Both of these points of view have merit, and there is some chicken or egg dynamic here. Pike does more with less talent. He does that with superior coaching and by having a system, and part of that system is he takes the early season to experiment with rotations and develop players. So, it makes sense that we would not be as competitive in the early season tournaments as other top programs (we are a top program now) that rely more on blue chip recruiting. And if Pike had to focus on results in early season tourneys he wouldn't have the space to experiment and work his coaching magic and iron out the kinks against lesser teams.
I agree with that POV.
I also agree that to take the next step we need to recruit better. Pike's formula has put us into a place to recruit better. And having Pike be able to work his magic with even better players will result in even better results. And I agree that playing in early season tournaments can also battle test us, bump our NET, and give exposure that helps recruiting (while it also could mess with Pike's formula).
It's not a black/white, this way OR that way, kind of thing. It's a process. As we recruit better we can have the horses and margin of error to both do well in early season tourneys and have Pike do his thing. There is no magic moment we we move from Model A to Model B. It will likely be a gradual shift.
But I do agree that Pike earned the space and support to call the shots on this. He IS a man with a plan.