Rick Barnes discussion (merged)

#8,276
#8,276
VolGee4 said:
I just don’t understand why people can’t enjoy what is happening. Some are probably trolling, and some are just miserable. But the man took a dumpster fire (that’s not debatable) and is succeeding at the highest (or at least the same as a prior coach) in our program’s history. One can provide constructive criticism, but the constant bemoaning is ridiculous to me. There will come a day when we don’t have Rick Barnes, we will miss a couple of NCAAT’s, and people will clamor for our current success. It will happen at some point. Just enjoy what we are witnessing.
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I don't disagree at all. Those who act like Barnes isn't doing great things are way off base.
 
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#8,277
#8,277
Chris4Vols22 said:
I'm sure you've noticed by now, but this board is not ready for good-faith critical discussions about Barnes.

It's true that we are likely living in the pinnacle of UT bball right now, pretty much entirely thanks to Barnes. It's also true that his NCAA tournament struggles are disproportionate to his regular season successes. Some people want to see UT aggressively go after a coach with a perceived higher likelihood of further advancement in the tournament, some people think the risk of that idea does not justify the means. Both are valid points imo, but I have to lean toward Barnes's side of that argument, especially since we advanced to the Elite 8 last year. But we have suspiciously not played up to our potential when it's mattered the most in other seasons.

It's an interesting discussion imo. We all love the Vols, and no one is happy when we lose, even if it's a charity exhibition game. I personally think the best thing to do is to save this discussion for another time. People drew conclusions after the Michigan State game last year, and the same thing is happening now. In reality, who knows what will happen between now and March....
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Very reasoned and logical. Agreed.
 
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#8,278
#8,278
VolGee4 said:
I just don’t understand why people can’t enjoy what is happening. Some are probably trolling, and some are just miserable. But the man took a dumpster fire (that’s not debatable) and is succeeding at the highest (or at least the same as a prior coach) in our program’s history. One can provide constructive criticism, but the constant bemoaning is ridiculous to me. There will come a day when we don’t have Rick Barnes, we will miss a couple of NCAAT’s, and people will clamor for our current success. It will happen at some point. Just enjoy what we are witnessing.
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I am grateful and I have greatly enjoyed our success, but I’m quite literally also providing constructive criticism. Those things can exist at the same time.
 
#8,279
#8,279
Chris4Vols22 said:
I'm sure you've noticed by now, but this board is not ready for good-faith critical discussions about Barnes.

It's true that we are likely living in the pinnacle of UT bball right now, pretty much entirely thanks to Barnes. It's also true that his NCAA tournament struggles are disproportionate to his regular season successes. Some people want to see UT aggressively go after a coach with a perceived higher likelihood of further advancement in the tournament, some people think the risk of that idea does not justify the means. Both are valid points imo, but I have to lean toward Barnes's side of that argument, especially since we advanced to the Elite 8 last year. But we have suspiciously not played up to our potential when it's mattered the most in other seasons.

It's an interesting discussion imo. We all love the Vols, and no one is happy when we lose, even if it's a charity exhibition game. I personally think the best thing to do is to save this discussion for another time. People drew conclusions after the Michigan State game last year, and the same thing is happening now. In reality, who knows what will happen between now and March....
Click to expand...
I’d be interested in a good faith critical discussion about Barnes as a coach. I have yet to see a good faith argument made that doesn’t rely on specious leaps to causation made by people who don’t know what they’re talking about. There may very well be valid reasons why Barnes hasn’t made it to a Final Four here. The team in 2019 was capable of winning it all. Last year’s team was capable of getting past the EE in most other matchups besides Purdue or UConn. Having two teams that good in a five year span exceeds my expectations, but I’ve lived through a lot of Tennessee basketball. I support keeping him as long as he wants to stay because he is a great coach who has been able to attract and develop great talent to a university that does nor have a history of doing so. As for holding him up against perfection, I think he digs in on “his way” to his detriment with certain players and puts a lid on potential in players who are ready to contribute early in some areas, but don’t meet his standards in others. With other types of players, he gets much more than expected. I think his stubbornness in certain circumstances has led to losses, but more frequently he has beaten better rosters (UK/Auburn/UNC) by sticking by his guns and frustrating flexible teams. I have yelled at the TV frequently over his tenure, but more often than not, “his way” turns out to be right. I’m enjoying this era as it is quite obviously the best at our university barring the Ernie and Bernie years. When he goes, I hope we hire someone who can match his character, reputation and legacy, but I think it will be very hard to do.
 
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#8,281
#8,281
SeanJean said:
I am grateful and I have greatly enjoyed our success, but I’m quite literally also providing constructive criticism. Those things can exist at the same time.
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Conceptually constructive criticism is something typically provided by a more learned person to a lesser one with the goal of improving an outcome. That obviously isn’t the case in this instance for a variety of obvious reasons.
 
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#8,282
#8,282
I thought that there was a thread dedicated to bashing Barnes. I couldn’t find it, maybe it was merged into The Official Regular Posters thread.

My complaint isn’t that there aren’t valid criticisms. My problem is that it shows up in EVERY ****ing thread. It was a meaningless exhibition game for gawd sake but the trolls, haters, and Legions of the Miserable are always there spewing garbage. I usually don’t even attempt to read the in-game threads because they are always toxic.
 
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#8,285
#8,285
Bump @Thunder Good-Oil

Bumping this thread because inevitably we have posters that want to fire Barnes after the first game, and others who only want to talk about Barnes postseason success or lack thereof. Those discussions are fine, but I don't want to read them in every thread. If you want to have those discussions, have them in here. The way I see it, it's a win/win. Those who want to discuss it every day can, and for those who don't, the thread will be easily avoidable.

Thanks for your cooperation. Also, if you see posters disregarding this guideline moving forward, please use the report button to bring it to our attention.
 
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#8,286
#8,286
Freak said:
Bump @Thunder Good-Oil

Bumping this thread because inevitably we have posters that want to fire Barnes after the first game, and others who only want to talk about Barnes postseason success or lack thereof. Those discussions are fine, but I don't want to read them in every thread. If you want to have those discussions, have them in here. The way I see it, it's a win/win. Those who want to discuss it every day can, and for those who don't, the thread will be easily avoidable.

Thanks for your cooperation. Also, if you see posters disregarding this guideline moving forward, please use the report button to bring it to our attention.
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I wonder why I couldn’t find it. I searched “Barnes” and separately “discussion” and whiffed. At least I’m not going nuts - I was sure that there was a thread to argue Barnes out there. But apparently my search game is weak.
 
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#8,290
#8,290
BTW, UT has been ranked every week (AP) since the end of the COVID year (2020-21) without the fans in the stands. Even that Springer/Johnson team was ranked almost every week. That team was ranked every week until the last 2 regular season polls and the final poll.

3 full seasons and counting. It’s an accomplishment that might never be matched.
 
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#8,297
#8,297
chuckiepoo said:
I see you did some house cleaning too! Gracias!

…wish we could get this kind of service over in the LV forum… 🤣🤙🏼
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Oh, we had a Kelly Harper thread over there. It was quite popular. I'm not sure any of the mods followed the game threads very closely, however, so stuff may have been missed. But if this year's LV is as fun as I think they're going to be, I'll be hanging out in there more often.
 
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#8,300
#8,300
Barnes has brought class and fun and relevance through the past nine seasons on Rocky Top and he will certainly surpass Ray Mears as the winningest coach in men's basketball history by the time he leaves.

He will certainly leave this program in much better shape than he found it in 2015.

The next coach will have a high bar to meet and surpass whenever Barnes retires.
 
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