Dan Issel on Kentucky Struggles
- Thread starter TheResistance
- Start date
Well geez thanks Dan, that seems to be really helpful right now.
Encouraging, lol.
The next coaching hire will be the most important decision in the history of UK basketball. The "brand" can't hold it up anymore. Another bomb and it could really launch it into the unknown.
Back in the day, coaches would join for the prestige and fact it could attract recruits. Now that does't matter. Between the administration and NIL dysfunction, makes you wonder what they can pull. If it's not attracting recruits the concern is whether it can attract coaches.
The next coaching hire will be the most important decision in the history of UK basketball. The "brand" can't hold it up anymore. Another bomb and it could really launch it into the unknown.
Back in the day, coaches would join for the prestige and fact it could attract recruits. Now that does't matter. Between the administration and NIL dysfunction, makes you wonder what they can pull. If it's not attracting recruits the concern is whether it can attract coaches.
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That’s the same reasoning I’ve been hearing for the SEC’s recent football decline.
And there’s probably some element of truth to it. The old good ole boy hundred dollar handshakes ain’t gonna cut it in this new era. Not when you’ve got rivals like Duke legally signing friggin Amazon contracts.
And there’s probably some element of truth to it. The old good ole boy hundred dollar handshakes ain’t gonna cut it in this new era. Not when you’ve got rivals like Duke legally signing friggin Amazon contracts.
Big Dan, as a long time admirer, I strongly suggest you ignore the follow up questions.
And this is the environment that MP is now trying to operate in. Others are obviously doing it better than he is, but it's a totally different animal now. A GM is a very legitimate thing imo.
I don’t remember where I saw this so don’t remember who to give the following credit for but I agree with it.
“Not all coaches need a GM but Mark Pope certainly does”
Sadly, it is often those who needs help the most that refuse to accept any. More sadly, it is absolutely going to cost Pope his job.
Maybe but it's also true that the B10 cheated before NIL too. Perhaps not go the SEC level? Idk
He didn't say one lie. Kudos for admitting what we all knew. The blue bloods have done it forever and now it's a level playing field to some degree. We have to adapt or we are going to be left behind
But Duke bought Zion's family a house and gave Chris Duhon's mom a job she wasn't qualified for and what about Lance Thomas?????????
Every program that has been relevant has been cheating since the 80's. NCAA just too stupid to catch anyone.
Every program that has been relevant has been cheating since the 80's. NCAA just too stupid to catch anyone.
If only we had a HC who was known for recruiting top talent and putting scores of players into the NBA.......
........who also didn't get fat and sloppy and lazy and mail it in for his last 7 seasons at UK.
........who also didn't get fat and sloppy and lazy and mail it in for his last 7 seasons at UK.
Sarcasm is difficult to process when the audience is angry.
Why did we have a 20 year struggle between 1958 and 1978 (our longest drought since winning the first)? Wonder if Dan can give us any insight?
Now coaches have to promote the hell out of their program to recruits… sell it with some pizazz so that it stands out. Coaches with charisma and that are not socially awkward will be the winners now
That one’s easy to explain. It was caused by our stubborn refusal to recruit black players during the period when they were taking over the sport.
The first black basketball player in the SEC was in 1967. We signed Tom Payne in 1969.
And Payne lasted all of one season. It wasn’t until the mid to late 70s that black players became a regular part of our lineups with guys like Givens, Lee and Johnson. And not coincidentally, that’s also the group that ended that 20 year title drought.
Whether you want to admit it or not, that absolutely is the main reason we fell a bit behind in the 60s and early 70s. That was the period when blacks began to take over the sport …and we weren’t getting in on it.
Meh, if some still want to believe the good players weren’t getting paid under the table for decades prior to NIL, I won’t waste any energy arguing with them…
Calhoun was known for dropping his bags of cash - but he was doing it because the next guy was. Calhoun was also known to dabble in a type of recruit that you might call "high risk".
Hurley has it on quite a different trajectory, his recruits tend to feel more like Coach K kids - lot's of punchable white boys.
This is false. Rupp tried to recruit black players and petitioned UK to leave the SEC over their ban on black players. You do realize the SEC had a ban on black players up until the '67-'68 season? Rupp recruited black players previous to this with the intention of challenging the rule.
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Western Ky - Louisville - Murray St were better with great teams with majority of black players like Wes Unseld - Butch Beard - Jim McDaniels - Clarence Glover & the Smith Brothers.