Man, What A WEIRD Season....

King of S

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Sep 20, 2017
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I was told we were in a group slightly ahead of 2 other Big East schools with our NIL.

The schools ahead of us, especially UConn, SJU and Providence, and to a lesser degree Creighton, Georgetown and Nova dwarfed our total.

Another issue is we didn't spend our allotted money until the court preceding was over meaning we were late to the party.

I'm hearing we will have at least $8M this year. Still not enough, but we should be able to compete with most of our peers with that amount.
Still not enough - what is college basketball coming to.
 

JTSHU

Senior
Feb 9, 2015
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It’s also leads to fan and program driven agendas. Don’t win, blame NIL. Lose or miss on a player, blame NIL. Get “insiders” talking about it within the fan base. Get a state run media person like Carino to leak it. Then you can only exceed expectations. And on and on.
You need to start with a decent budget but u still have to make the right decisions on players, plus your defensive and offensive schemes. We lacked the offensive side
 

SPK145

All-Conference
Jun 3, 2001
1,144
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It’s also leads to fan and program driven agendas. Don’t win, blame NIL. Lose or miss on a player, blame NIL. Get “insiders” talking about it within the fan base. Get a state run media person like Carino to leak it. Then you can only exceed expectations. And on and on.
Fast becoming my favorite poster.

Are you in Toms River?
 

dehere23

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Feb 28, 2015
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You need to start with a decent budget but u still have to make the right decisions on players, plus your defensive and offensive schemes. We lacked the offensive side
Absolutely. It is now no different than professional sports, and without a real salary cap for certain schools, apparently. Unlike professional sports, when my Yankees lost in the WS to the Dodgers, my initial take on the series wasn't "payroll/resources, payroll/resources, payroll/resources, payroll/resources". It was (a) man the Dodgers remind me of the late 90s Yankees with how they perform in big spots; (b) can't believe we let the Dodgers back into that game because of defensive miscues; (c) if only Nestor got Freeman out in that spot during game 1, maybe the series goes different; and (d) what can we do roster-wise to improve for next season.

And it certainly isn't: The Dodgers are evil; Dave Roberts is a demonic, bad person, who sold his soul to the devil when he swiped second base in game 4 of the 2004 ALCS, and helped reverse a curse; Andrew Friedman and the Dodgers ownership are terrible people who no one in baseball respects, and who covertly run the "pizza gate" stuff referenced in all the Epstein emails released by the DOJ.
 

CTF591011

Freshman
Jan 24, 2026
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I said it yesterday but I look at last four in projections. Teams like VCU and California are projected in and similar spots. They don't have anything that impressive over us. I'm not going to say anything absolute as I don't follow outside Seton Hall and BE play, but they probably beat all the teams they are supposed to beat. If we beat trash like Depaul and Creighton, we arguably are still very close in the bubble.

But getting one win against St Johns and Uconn, or even one against Nova could've made a difference between being far out of the bubble to being just right in.

End of day if we won last night, we needed to always make the final anyway to be a sure in. It's frustrating now they have to win the whole thing. I believe Sha made the tourney with St Peters by simply winning the tournament, but even then it seems like such a task and this isn't the MAC conference.
 

dehere23

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Feb 28, 2015
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I said it yesterday but I look at last four in projections. Teams like VCU and California are projected in and similar spots. They don't have anything that impressive over us. I'm not going to say anything absolute as I don't follow outside Seton Hall and BE play, but they probably beat all the teams they are supposed to beat. If we beat trash like Depaul and Creighton, we arguably are still very close in the bubble.

But getting one win against St Johns and Uconn, or even one against Nova could've made a difference between being far out of the bubble to being just right in.

End of day if we won last night, we needed to always make the final anyway to be a sure in. It's frustrating now they have to win the whole thing. I believe Sha made the tourney with St Peters by simply winning the tournament, but even then it seems like such a task and this isn't the MAC conference.
You are right in that if we get one of the Uconn/SJU games (preferrably one the road) and one of the Nova games, we are probably in the dance as an at-large. I haven't studied the metrics or other bubble teams enough, but that would put us at 12-8 in the league, 22 Ws overall, and give us two good wins for the resume.
 

CTF591011

Freshman
Jan 24, 2026
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You are right in that if we get one of the Uconn/SJU games (preferrably one the road) and one of the Nova games, we are probably in the dance as an at-large. I haven't studied the metrics or other bubble teams enough, but that would put us at 12-8 in the league, 22 Ws overall, and give us two good wins for the resume.
I only saw from ESPN and CBS last night. I see VCU and checked their schedule, their one notable win is probably Virgina Tech and beating Dayton two times (I guess that's better than us), but IDK I will still value strength of Big East even during down year.

IDK if it was them or California, but one of them lost to K-State which we beat handily. Also VCU played NC State and lose while we won.

Still, I can't make excuses. VCU 2nd in their conference respectably and probably beat who they need to while we didn't, but 2 more wins could've made a difference in over toppping some of these teams.
 

dehere23

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Not being sarcastic, just asking.
I think the point he is making is that for folks like yourself, Seton75, Carino, etc -- who picked us to be around a middle of the pack team, our season and where we finished shouldn't be as surprising compared to folks (myself included) who thought we would finish at the bottom again. Or the BE coaches generally, who picked us last. And how all of that bears on people's views related to BE COY.

Part of the reason why I think Sha did a really good job overall with this group is because of where I thought we would be preseason. I massively underestimated and was dead wrong about some of the players we brought in the door. And I underestimated what Sha would be able to do after 2024's disaster, especially on the defense end of the court. But for folks who thought the team would be way better than projected, and that Sha is a top upper echelon coach in the league, it shouldn't be as surprising.

That's my understanding as to the point he was making.
 
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Halldan

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I picked them 8-12. That's not middle of the pack. They greatly surpassed my expectations and if memory serves only Seton75 agreed with me on the 8 wins.

Don't remember where Jerry picked them but I don't think it was middle of the pack either.
 

dehere23

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Feb 28, 2015
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I picked them 8-12. That's not middle of the pack. They greatly surpassed my expectations and if memory serves only Seton75 agreed with me on the 8 wins.

Don't remember where Jerry picked them but I don't think it was middle of the pack either.
8-12 is not middle of the pack most years, but this year it would be. My recall is Carino was "adamant" this isn't a last place team, and may have hedged a bit on where exactly they would land, but I thought he predicted a possible "middle of the pack" type finish as well.

Although I could be confusing this with last year, when Carino predicted we would be middle of the pack, and others thought we would too preseason, even as high as 6th as I recall was predicted by some here.
 

Gritty5837

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Nov 28, 2021
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From what I know, we had more than DePaul, Butler, Xavier, and Marquette (didnt need more) this past season.

I hate it but $8 million next year probably doesn't move Seton Hall up the BE food chain. Marquette can certainly get a lot more than they spent this year.

Middle of the pack NIL is fine by me. Seton Hall found a way to consistently make the NCAAT practicing in a basement. We’ve been at a recruiting disadvantage for a long time so nothing new there.

8M is plenty of money to assemble a very competitive team. Should the long term goal be to continue raising NIL? Absolutely, but that’s enough money to make the tournament imo.

They had 6M this year and the chance to dance was there for the taking.
 
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HallGuy2323

Senior
Jun 3, 2020
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I was told we were in a group slightly ahead of 2 other Big East schools with our NIL.

The schools ahead of us, especially UConn, SJU and Providence, and to a lesser degree Creighton, Georgetown and Nova dwarfed our total.

Another issue is we didn't spend our allotted money until the court preceding was over meaning we were late to the party.

I'm hearing we will have at least $8M this year. Still not enough, but we should be able to compete with most of our peers with that amount.
How will we possibly have $8m to pay men’s basketball players. Where did $6m come from this year? Now, we found another $2m on top of replenishing the $6m?? I don’t believe it.
 

dehere23

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How will we possibly have $8m to pay men’s basketball players. Where did $6m come from this year? Now, we found another $2m on top of replenishing the $6m?? I don’t believe it.
Because under the current revenue sharing rules, the school can use its own money towards paying college basketball players. So the school diverts money from other stuff to pay for rosters. Essentially. Then they try to fundraise to offset the $$$ going to pay players instead of to other students, academic programs, scholarships/grants, infrastructure and stuff like that. Or at least it seems some schools do that to offset the "pay for play" loss.
 

HallGuy2323

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Jun 3, 2020
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Because under the current revenue sharing rules, the school can use its own money towards paying college basketball players. So the school diverts money from other stuff to pay for rosters. Essentially. Then they try to fundraise to offset the $$$ going to pay players instead of to other students, academic programs, scholarships/grants, infrastructure and stuff like that. Or at least it seems some schools do that to offset the "pay for play" loss.
That’s crazy and ridiculous. And people here wonder why the students who are going into decades of debt don’t show up to support them..
 

HallGuy2323

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Jun 3, 2020
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Because under the current revenue sharing rules, the school can use its own money towards paying college basketball players. So the school diverts money from other stuff to pay for rosters. Essentially. Then they try to fundraise to offset the $$$ going to pay players instead of to other students, academic programs, scholarships/grants, infrastructure and stuff like that. Or at least it seems some schools do that to offset the "pay for play" loss.
That model is not going to work long term for a school like Seton Hall. As roster costs continue to rise and rise, eventually somebody from the school whether it be the students or faculty will flip out on the money dispersement. A few million you can sneak around. What happens when rosters are averaging 25-30 million?

As I’ve said numerous times, it’s going to come down to each team getting their own independent owner who will reap the benefits (if any) and pay the salaries while the school maintains a loose affiliation.
 

SHUSource

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Jun 3, 2001
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From what I know, we had more than DePaul, Butler, Xavier, and Marquette (didnt need more) this past season.

I hate it but $8 million next year probably doesn't move Seton Hall up the BE food chain. Marquette can certainly get a lot more than they spent this year.
I think it doesn’t necessarily move Seton Hall up the food chain. It could. Or we could go backwards. I wouldn’t say there is a fixed level of roster you can buy for a different price. That is, you can get a better roster for $6 million than you get for $8 million if you identify talent correctly and catch a break or two.

As much as I remain on #TeamSha, I think he could’ve built a better roster this year. It is probably pretty close to what others might manage, but scouting and identifying a shooter or two would’ve made all the difference in the world.

Holloway learned a lot from last year to this year, but he’s still got room to grow —plenty of it. If things the way we’re going to play — and that’s fine if so — then he needs to find a player or two that can hit a three every so often. The known quantities cost money, but resourcefulness is turning over stones to find the under-the-radar guys to make the $8 million go farther. Strategic spending can result in an improvement and we can make a move next season. But we could easily be worse.
 
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Feb 9, 2005
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Yep. This is a 6-14, 7-13 type team in a normal Big East season. The bad Big East was worth 3 or 4 more wins than usual.
It's sad that you used to be a fan (you admitted you've checked out multiple times) and poster. Now, you're in the class with the four nimrods who joined and have been tolerated since Dan handed over the reins. You have zero objectivity. On one hand, Pitino should win COY because he won 18 games; on the other, we should have had 3-4 more losses and benefitted from the Big East. Do yourself, and us, a favor and check all the way out. It's tiring -- and really silly.
 

Seton75

All-Conference
Jun 3, 2001
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It’s also leads to fan and program driven agendas. Don’t win, blame NIL. Lose or miss on a player, blame NIL. Get “insiders” talking about it within the fan base. Get a state run media person like Carino to leak it. Then you can only exceed expectations. And on and on.
The secrecy on nil spent and what kids are getting is the liar and manipulators dream. Every negotiation, every everything.
 
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Feb 9, 2005
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It’s also leads to fan and program driven agendas. Don’t win, blame NIL. Lose or miss on a player, blame NIL. Get “insiders” talking about it within the fan base. Get a state run media person like Carino to leak it. Then you can only exceed expectations. And on and on.
How is that tinfoil hat fitting, komrade?
 
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cernjSHU

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Jul 17, 2001
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Absolutely. It is now no different than professional sports, and without a real salary cap for certain schools, apparently. Unlike professional sports, when my Yankees lost in the WS to the Dodgers, my initial take on the series wasn't "payroll/resources, payroll/resources, payroll/resources, payroll/resources". It was (a) man the Dodgers remind me of the late 90s Yankees with how they perform in big spots; (b) can't believe we let the Dodgers back into that game because of defensive miscues; (c) if only Nestor got Freeman out in that spot during game 1, maybe the series goes different; and (d) what can we do roster-wise to improve for next season.

And it certainly isn't: The Dodgers are evil; Dave Roberts is a demonic, bad person, who sold his soul to the devil when he swiped second base in game 4 of the 2004 ALCS, and helped reverse a curse; Andrew Friedman and the Dodgers ownership are terrible people who no one in baseball respects, and who covertly run the "pizza gate" stuff referenced in all the Epstein emails released by the DOJ.
Problem with that analogy is that the Yankees can spend as much as the Dodgers. They are on equal footing. The Yanka have what the second or third highest payroll. They are two blue bloods playing against each other. Can’t complain about how much the Dodgers spend.

Seton Hall will never be on equal footing, unless it gets funded by billionaires. Therefore, it will always be an underdog.
 

dehere23

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Feb 28, 2015
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Problem with that analogy is that the Yankees can spend as much as the Dodgers. They are on equal footing. The Yanka have what the second or third highest payroll. They are two blue bloods playing against each other. Can’t complain about how much the Dodgers spend.

Seton Hall will never be on equal footing, unless it gets funded by billionaires. Therefore, it will always be an underdog.
If you ask Hal Steinbrenner, he will tell you the Yankees cannot spend on that level. That his family doesn't have the money that the Dodgers have. Again, not sure how accurate, and certain bothers some Yankee fans because of how George used to be, but it's been raised.

We all know Seton Hall has never been at the top of the food chain resource wise, pre-NIL, now post-NIL. But it has now devolved where the first reaction to so many outcomes is "NILNILNILNILNILNILNILNILNILNIL".
 

dehere23

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Feb 28, 2015
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The secrecy on nil spent and what kids are getting is the liar and manipulators dream. Every negotiation, every everything.
Agreed. And the "agents" now in some cases aren't even real, professional "agents". They also supposedly get commissions that dwarf professional sports. So, come portal season, they have every incentive to leak to the media types numbers or rumors that are fake or enhanced.
 
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radecicco

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If you ask Hal Steinbrenner, he will tell you the Yankees cannot spend on that level. That his family doesn't have the money that the Dodgers have. Again, not sure how accurate, and certain bothers some Yankee fans because of how George used to be, but it's been raised.

We all know Seton Hall has never been at the top of the food chain resource wise, pre-NIL, now post-NIL. But it has now devolved where the first reaction to so many outcomes is "NILNILNILNILNILNILNILNILNILNIL".
Fair enough but I would love to see what Holloway could do with $10 million.
 
Feb 9, 2005
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If you don't think coaches, athletic departments and "insiders" sometimes have agendas with this stuff, I disagree. But we can go back to the name calling and trolling. All good.
I was being tongue-in-cheek, so I apologize I didn't make that clear. I didn't call you any names, so...
It was more a reaction to the "state run media" comment. Carino is an alum and fan, so there's that. He's also the only beat writer we
have, and calls it pretty straight. He also has to do a balancing act and keep his access.
 

Hall84

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May 23, 2023
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While I would love to share your optimism, the reality of the situation is that we simply struggle to score, especially shooting 3's. And it is hard....really hard....to beat good teams without the ability to make some 3 pointers.

The other thing that goes against us winning a tournament such as the one we will be in next week is, we are simply not built to win 3 games in 3 days. We play so hard, so physical, that even if we manage to win Wednesday, we will have a tough time recovering to come back the next night...against a MUCH tougher and better opponent (in this case St. John's at home with their fans going nuts) and have the stamina to defend just as aggressively as we will need, to and have the legs to make some shots.

But, lets say we do that; then the odds go even higher to again, ratchet that intensity and energy up to come back again the next night against again, perhaps an even better team in UConn.

Impossible? of course not, nothing is impossible. Improbably? Absolutely at the highest level.

Seton Hall seems to learn things in small bites (our progression into NIL, etc.) lets hope we have finally learned that we NEED a couple of guys that can make baskets and specifically 3 pointers, and do what we have to, and have them on the roster next year.

This year was fun, especially after last season; but the limits on this team are glaring...
We did play well in Maui which was the same 3 games in 3 days format. Yes we play hard but do play 9-10 players and have good defensive depth. The 1st thing to go when you're tired is the shooting and we don't do that so well to begin with.
 

dehere23

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Feb 28, 2015
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I was being tongue-in-cheek, so I apologize I didn't make that clear. I didn't call you any names, so...
It was more a reaction to the "state run media" comment. Carino is an alum and fan, so there's that. He's also the only beat writer we
have, and calls it pretty straight. He also has to do a balancing act and keep his access.
All good. I appreciate Jerry being the only person who gives us coverage and it’s why I make it a point to “click” on anything Dan sends and listen to Jersey Jump shot because I know that matters (also I think his non-basketball stories are terrific).

Do I think he covers things objectively? Not recently. And I get that to a point because he needs access and our head coach isn’t exactly a media machine or someone who even likes the media. I think Carino has gone beyond out of his way to be “glass half full” all the time this last year plus. Especially because of what happened last year.
 
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Feb 9, 2005
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All good. I appreciate Jerry being the only person who gives us coverage and it’s why I make it a point to “click” on anything Dan sends and listen to Jersey Jump shot because I know that matters (also I think his non-basketball stories are terrific).

Do I think he covers things objectively? Not recently. And I get that to a point because he needs access and our head coach isn’t exactly a media machine or someone who even likes the media. I think Carino has gone beyond out of his way to be “glass half full” all the time this last year plus. Especially because of what happened last year.
I've read Carino for years, and I'm not sure this is new -- and I'm more of a glass half-full person, myself. In the dark days of Willard's early years here, before Lyons' intervention and the Whitehead class, was Jerry down on Willard? I honestly don't remember -- maybe he got treated with the same kid gloves.
 
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I've read Carino for years, and I'm not sure this is new -- and I'm more of a glass half-full person, myself. In the dark days of Willard's early years here, before Lyons' intervention and the Whitehead class, was Jerry down on Willard? I honestly don't remember -- maybe he got treated with the same kid gloves.
Guess you can decide for yourself how he treated Willard.

Here is his article following the final BE regular season game in March of 2015, before our poor showing vs Marquette in the first round of the BET.

Remember we were in a 4-12 slide after starting the BE season with ranked wins over Nova and SJU. Just put that into context in regard to how some are killing Sha now vs how Jerry wrote this article relative to Willard.

 

Pirates94

Freshman
Dec 21, 2021
67
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As befits a .500 team, we alternated wins and losses over the last 6 games.

Only 1 double digit loss. Nova 72-60 over SHU.

Holloway squeezed everything out of this team and deserves praise. Same with the players. They never let up and gave everything they had all season long.

Haters can hate if they want. Me? I'm proud about everyone associated with the program this year.
Well we'll have to rebuild most of the team again next season with NIL the way it is so let's hope Sha can entice at least 1 Myles Powell or Jeremy Hazel type who can put a team on their back on offense. Powell was the last time we had a guy like that..
 

NCAAsorBust

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Jan 14, 2026
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Everyone in the league that finished .500 or over benefitted from a weak bottom half. This isn't some enlightened thought.
Not really. If I was a fan of SJU or UConn I would say we were hurt by not having more times to showcase their teams against better competition. 14 of their 20 games were against teams with a NET between 80 and 105.