Rick Barnes discussion (merged)

#3,527
#3,527
VolArmy74 said:
I believe he's saying late Devoe/Wade Houston doesn't define Tennessee basketball. But that's a narrative often spun here.
Click to expand...

Even the two TN coaches in between Mears and Barnes that were 10 for 10 in NCAAT appearances left the program a mess. Really good coaches are hard to get and the one that TN has right now is making the program better every year.
 
  • Like
Reactions: EasternVol
#3,528
#3,528
Thunder Good-Oil said:
Even the two TN coaches in between Mears and Barnes that were 10 for 10 in NCAAT appearances left the program a mess. Really good coaches are hard to get and the one that TN has right now is making the program better every year.
Click to expand...

What’s funny is this is the same program that got turned down by Mike freaking White and we’re supposed to assume we’ll do better than a HOF coach after he retires.
 
  • Like
Reactions: EasternVol
#3,529
#3,529
VolFreakJosh said:
What’s funny is this is the same program that got turned down by Mike freaking White and we’re supposed to assume we’ll do better than a HOF coach after he retires.
Click to expand...
Program is in a much different place now (yes Barnes did what he was hired to do and gave us that stability) and we have a top notch AD now (little Mikey’s brother ironically) who would aim higher than a Mike White … he’s more of a fit at a place like UGa
 
  • Like
Reactions: Native Orange, Sportslady and UTFanHades
#3,530
#3,530
Thunder Good-Oil said:
Even the two TN coaches in between Mears and Barnes that were 10 for 10 in NCAAT appearances left the program a mess. Really good coaches are hard to get and the one that TN has right now is making the program better every year.
Click to expand...

We made 15 NCAAs since the bad streak that was referenced earlier. Making stupid hires plagued us. We passed on Jay Wright and Bill Self on different occasions.

I know you hate Pearl, but there were 6 top 100 recruits on the roster when he left here and no NCAA sanctions against the program after what he did. We just made a bad hire as usual under the past, terrible ADs we had that were hostile towards basketball. Even so, that bad hire recruited a few NBA level players and made the Sweet 16 before walking out ahead of the coming collapse, which would be a pattern with him.

Buzz Peterson is by far the worst hire since Wade and the second worst ever here imo. He wasted a ton of talent here because he was a clueless idiot when we hired him and when we fired him. That's why the program was a mess under him. Kevin O'Neil is the one who took over the biggest mess ever at UT.

All that was a long time ago now. These days kids and even young coaches have seen two+ decades of Tennessee as a program that's often in the NCAA tournament and that supports basketball with big crowds and big coaching salaries.

We are clearly a program with resources, passion, a great recruiting footprint, great facilities and a smart, young, athletic director. I think hiring a good coach will be very possible once Barnes retires, as long as White is still here and we don't have some weird collapse to end Barnes' career here.
 
  • Like
Reactions: UTFanHades
#3,531
#3,531
VolArmy74 said:
We made 15 NCAAs since the bad streak that was referenced earlier. Making stupid hires plagued us. We passed on Jay Wright and Bill Self on different occasions.

I know you hate Pearl, but there were 6 top 100 recruits on the roster when he left here and no NCAA sanctions against the program after what he did. We just made a bad hire as usual under the past, terrible ADs we had that were hostile towards basketball. Even so, that bad hire recruited a few NBA level players and made the Sweet 16 before walking out ahead of the coming collapse, which would be a pattern with him.

Buzz Peterson is by far the worst hire since Wade and the second worst ever here imo. He wasted a ton of talent here because he was a clueless idiot when we hired him and when we fired him. That's why the program was a mess under him. Kevin O'Neil is the one who took over the biggest mess ever at UT.

All that was a long time ago now. These days kids and even young coaches have seen two+ decades of Tennessee as a program that's often in the NCAA tournament and that supports basketball with big crowds and big coaching salaries.

We are clearly a program with resources, passion, a great recruiting footprint, great facilities and a smart, young, athletic director. I think hiring a good coach will be very possible once Barnes retires, as long as White is still here and we don't have some weird collapse to end Barnes' career here.
Click to expand...

I don’t hate Pearl. But he did wreck our program with his selfishness and he is greatly overrated with what he accomplished here. His act was an embarrassment.
 
  • Like
Reactions: South Florida Vol
#3,533
#3,533
BigOrangeFanatic said:
It's always coaching. Never the players executing. Lol.

I've been down on this team and the coaching as much as anyone in here. But you can't tell me there's any chance we even have a prayer of winning this game if Barnes doesn't go small and take ON out of the game in the second half. That's the only reason we got back in the game. He actually for once got over his stubbornness to keep watching ON either throw the ball away or dribble it off his foot, or force some terrible shot up all freaking game and decided to go with the younger guys. That, together with Key having a huge night lead to us getting back in the game.

Again...ZZ and Santi let their team down tonight. Awaka had a dumb move at the end but you have to hit free throws at the end. That's not coaching. That's players executing.
Click to expand...
Barnes let this team down by WAITING until the second half to make a change. Worse maybe he could not scout the team well enough to know going in to go small. He is always a step behind. A run without a win is still a loss and a failure of coaching, especially with the stupid mistakes at the end.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Native Orange
#3,535
#3,535
Vols8086 said:
A narrative that Cuonzo started and also used as a motivation tactic to his team. Cuonzo did quite a bit of damage to the program but nobody wants to touch that one.
Click to expand...

Cuonzo certainly played the us against them card with his players and the fans, but in CCM’s defense Bruce lurking around Knoxville and especially not squashing the stupid petition created a toxic environment.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DuckInAPen
#3,536
#3,536
Vols8086 said:
A narrative that Cuonzo started and also used as a motivation tactic to his team. Cuonzo did quite a bit of damage to the program but nobody wants to touch that one.
Click to expand...

I think what Cuonzo did at Cal and Mizzou after UT has pretty much vindicated UT for everyone except probably Pat Forde. Martin isn't an old guy and will probably be back with someone but right now I have a hunch that First Four Sweet 16 run will be his career peak.
 
  • Like
Reactions: joevols89
#3,538
#3,538
There are two very stupid narratives that most everyone wants to follow. It's either we should get rid of Barnes or we will never be able to get a good coach again when he's gone. Neither are even close to being true. Barnes should be here as long as he wants and the investment level is good enough now that we should continue to be good for a long time.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Govolsman98
#3,539
#3,539
I'd be ok with Barnes if he'd just slide a little on his philosophy and recruit more towards a dominant offense. I mean we were just beaten by a team that was at 189 D on kenpom. They were however top 10 on offense.
Why can't we get a guy like Robins or the puke from Florida. Haven't had a dominant big man since Williams.
 
#3,541
#3,541
calban said:
I'd be ok with Barnes if he'd just slide a little on his philosophy and recruit more towards a dominant offense. I mean we were just beaten by a team that was at 189 D on kenpom. They were however top 10 on offense.
Why can't we get a guy like Robins or the puke from Florida. Haven't had a dominant big man since Williams.
Click to expand...
They scored 85 against that 189 D. Only 4 games this year were equal or more. The offense was not the problem last night.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MinisterofDef#92
#3,542
#3,542
jaguinn5 said:
Taking small samples of history and saying that defines history doesn't work. You look at it as a whole.
Click to expand...

Our first NCAA tournament appearance was in 1967, that is, 57 years ago. During the 57 year period from our first appearance to our upcoming appearance in March, we will have been in the big dance 25 times (less than 44% of the time). From the introduction of the field of 64 in 1985 to this year's tournament, we will have made the tournament 17 times in 39 years (again, less than 44% of the time). What is the whole that we're supposed to be looking at?
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: EasternVol, cardvolfan, MinisterofDef#92 and 1 other person
#3,545
#3,545
JCP201 said:
Wrote this in the recruiting forum, but post here, too.


Every loss, we go around and around.

VOLS fans of all people should know better thank firing a good coach because of some bumps in the road.

The mistake we made with the football team was firing Fulmer. His offensive coordinator (who went on to become a great coach) was never really given a chance and we had two Heisman quarterbacks committed. Firing Fulmer was what caused Clemson to rise. We should have allowed him to retire with dignity and our program wouldn't have struggled all these years. (hopefully Hype has gotten us out of that ugly mess.)

Barnes has us playing in the NCAA --ranked higher then predicted in preseason --often in the top ten- winning SEC last year, etc. He deserves to retire here, and then as should have happened with football, hire a great coach to replace him.
Click to expand...
Did he have to retire this week though?
 
#3,546
#3,546
Thunder Good-Oil said:
I don’t hate Pearl. But he did wreck our program with his selfishness and he is greatly overrated with what he accomplished here. His act was an embarrassment.
Click to expand...
Only elite 8 in program history and built the program from Buzzball. Two sweet 16’s. NCAA tourney every year of his tenure. One regular season conference championship. .704 win percentage with .677 in conference (second behind Ray Mears amongst coaches with 4 or more seasons). If that’s overrated, who are we benchmarking against?
 
#3,548
#3,548
BigOrangeTrain said:
How is he making the program better every year?
Click to expand...

Better recruits. Most players landing in the NBA than in history. Higher rankings longer. SEC championship. SEC tournament championship. Consistently finishing near the top of the SEC and well above NCAAT bubbles. Building a deep rooted coaching tree. Doing all that with high character student-athletes that are outstanding representatives of the university. The program is still rising.
 
  • Like
Reactions: EasternVol, Govolsman98, cardvolfan and 1 other person
#3,549
#3,549
UTFanHades said:
Only elite 8 in program history and built the program from Buzzball. Two sweet 16’s. NCAA tourney every year of his tenure. One regular season conference championship. .704 win percentage with .677 in conference (second behind Ray Mears amongst coaches with 4 or more seasons). If that’s overrated, who are we benchmarking against?
Click to expand...

And he tarnished all of those accomplishments. He left a dumpster fire in his wake which greatly damaged the program and its reputation.
 
  • Like
Reactions: EasternVol and DuckInAPen
#3,550
#3,550
Thunder Good-Oil said:
Better recruits. Most players landing in the NBA than in history. Higher rankings longer. SEC championship. SEC tournament championship. Consistently finishing near the top of the SEC and well above NCAAT bubbles. Building a deep rooted coaching tree. Doing all that with high character student-athletes that are outstanding representatives of the university. The program is still rising.
Click to expand...

Rising would mean moving to greater heights. Even Barnes staunchest of supporters would admit it’s starting to look like it’s plateauing.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Native Orange and UTFanHades
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.

VN Store



Back
Top