How the hell do you know? All of you have no idea, unless you're in that inner circle. You're getting all of your info from Matt Jones and his gang, that's laughable he has no inside info. Just wanted hits on his website. He's a **** stirrer, that whole crew his. Just like the news media of today, it's all BS.
Toppin and Attitude
- Thread starter TheJuddDome
- Start date
If you wake up in the middle of the night and your bedroom is full of smoke, do you need to see the flames before you believe your house is on fire? You can take MJ out of the equation, but really on your own eyes and common sense to find your answer about the Wheeler situation.
That's interesting take and like it. Leadership is natural for most people in high power positions. Just feel needing to read the team-when to push/ride them hard, when to pull back. If your best player says "Quit yelling and let us play"-that's usually a sign of someone who can't read how to get through to players. Having to "figure out how this group plays" is an excuse. Cal grew up in an era where you started practices in late October and now you get more time than ever with players/team. He had a trip in August to get a head start with practices and playing. Now the teams suck but you still see how guys play together, what their skill level is, etc...
Confrontation and challenging each other is great. That said when you always have to return to Day 1 as a HC/Staff, you need to either find different ways to communicate or find players who have that learning capability so you can push forward.
Toppin is so fragile sometimes. Mentally weak at the worst times. It's so frustrating because he is a senior and folds when things aren't going his way.
Didn't we hire a Dr., Or a counselor back in 2013, that was dealing with the team. I know it happened just not sure what year.
I'm sure they did. A lot of schools have Mental Health or Team Psychologists to deal with all that players are going through. Cool by me, but players are also smart enough to know how to manipulate the coach especially when he's a bleeding heart who wants to be loved and save everyone. There's a reason some coaches MF a lot of their players because they are exactly that, MF'ers.
When winning takes a backseat to lectures about fans noticing that a team is better when a player isn't playing, that's on the Coach/Staff. It's also part of the experience of a big time program. Every player wants this stage, well exposure only helps if you can play at a high level. If you stink, it exposes you. Fans at College games can now drink liquor and players are getting paid. It's not going to work well for those who have thin skin. Either get tougher or GTFO of the way of someone else who will fight/compete.
My big problem with Toppin is that he has less blocked shots than our point guard
Reggie was playing no matter what--he was NPOY in HS. Thing is he was willing to come off the bench his Freshman year which shows how CBB has changed since we were younger. Numerous examples of modern players who go somewhere big and just don't cut it due to microscope but flourish when elsewhere in less of a fishbowl atmosphere.
Yeah but to his credit, it looked like when we came back on the court after the last timeout, he was in the other guys ears telling them to suck it up an refuse to lose or something to that affect. Didnt work out but it looked like he was trying to lead.Just read the story about Toppin admitting he pouted after getting scolded.
If that’s the mental fortitude of these guys, that explains so much. No wonder this team is such crap. And you’ve got a coach that let’s them get away with it. This is dysfunction to the max. WTLF
You can hurt their feelings and they need it. A bunch of sissies that think it should be given to them and not earned like Brad did.
Cal acts and speaks like someone who has been compromised...........
The dots no longer connect in anything he says or does...
I guess I'm just from a different time. Playing in the 90s if we were hurt we wrapped it up. Effort never had to be coached. When you step on the field or court you are locked in until the final whistle and the only thing taking you out of the game is a stretcher.
I once heard my hamstring pop 2 days before a game. I had never missed a game because of injury in my life and said just tape it up tight. I did some PT for 2 days, stretched well, warmed up some it felt ok. After 5-10 mins the coach subbed me out and said thanks for the effort. I asked why. He said I can't watch that anymore your dragging your leg around. I said I'm fine of course and he just said no your not.
I can excuse a lot of things but lack of effort is not one of them. Due to pouting (I felt my balls shrink up just typing that word, pouting, seriously) or any other bs.
I once heard my hamstring pop 2 days before a game. I had never missed a game because of injury in my life and said just tape it up tight. I did some PT for 2 days, stretched well, warmed up some it felt ok. After 5-10 mins the coach subbed me out and said thanks for the effort. I asked why. He said I can't watch that anymore your dragging your leg around. I said I'm fine of course and he just said no your not.
I can excuse a lot of things but lack of effort is not one of them. Due to pouting (I felt my balls shrink up just typing that word, pouting, seriously) or any other bs.
Might as well play him there. He's not guarding anyone there either. But maybe that would keep him from driving into the paint to shoot a fade away from 1 ft.
I saw a thing earlier in the year on him. He was showing someone his place of solace out in the woods when things get to hectic. He might have an issue. Don't know.
I thought Toppins quote was very mature. He got yelled at, popped off to Cal, but then admitted as a leader he needed to be more mature and learned from it.
At least he acts like he gives a crap.
Most of the time I can’t tell if Reeves, Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, etc. give a crap when they screw up and it infuriates me.
At least he acts like he gives a crap.
Most of the time I can’t tell if Reeves, Wallace, Fredrick, Livingston, etc. give a crap when they screw up and it infuriates me.
Yes, agree he said it was his mistake and he’ll do better. But this seems to be the mental makeup of the whole team. Guys are quitters when punched in the mouth. No grit. You better have some grit if you going to sniff a championship.
I think Jacob showed leadership by his statement. I admired him.
He didn’t have to shoulder the blame nor relate what happened in his exchange with Cal. No one would have known.
I played and had some heated conversation in huddles when I thought the coach was on me unfairly. If you care there are some exchanges and coaches aren’t always correct. It gets forgotten quickly.
He didn’t have to shoulder the blame nor relate what happened in his exchange with Cal. No one would have known.
I played and had some heated conversation in huddles when I thought the coach was on me unfairly. If you care there are some exchanges and coaches aren’t always correct. It gets forgotten quickly.
If he knew he had an issue that would require a procedure, why didn’t he do it three weeks ago after he sprained his ankle and knew he would not be playing?
My problem with Toppin is that he does not play good defense because he becomes a spectator at times.
Things happen on the court. Emotions run high, especially when things aren’t going well. The fact he admitted it and tried to fix it is a sign of maturity. There aren’t many with that mindset period, much less in sports.
Lmao! Good Lord!
Common sense, man. He decided to have a procedure done on the morning of senior night?! He hasn’t played in a month for a sprained ankle, in which he played the rest of the game in which he sprained said ankle. This isn’t rocket science.
If he
I’ve been one of the biggest defenders of Jacob even from last season saying I thought he’d be all SEC this season. I still believe he had the potential to do that and even become a lottery pick after this year. Love how hard he has played the last few games as well. Now If he could hit a two footer maybe he could’ve been really good, but for the life of him he has shot it short from five feet in all year. I mean wide open two footers, SHORT! Scared money won’t ever make money. Have some dog and confidence and put them in. We maybe win four or five more games if he hits his short shots. Love all these guys for playing here, with that comes a little constructed criticism though. Just put the ball in the basket and play hard. That’s all. Lol. I’ll just add, if we have any chance to win four to six games in the tournament this year, Toppin will have to play very well and hit those two footers. Hope he will.
I think we’re just arguing with trolls at this point. Trolls or absolute morons. And some are one in the same.Lmao! Good Lord!
He loves watching his man take him off the dribble and lay it in. Even when he’s guarding a dude 5 inches shorter than him. It’s unbelievable how much this dude gets scored on.
Exactly. He very RARELY ever blocks a shot and he’s 6’9” or 10 with what, a 40 inch vertical?! Just unreal honestly.
Nothing wrong with that. But he's playing it for some $ now and a scholarship, so only has 3 guaranteed games left, don't have time to be in his feeling and figure out if he wants to compete in a particular game.
To the "let's coddle the kids" crowd. Part of the problem with this attitude is that it permeates in every aspect of life right now. Too many children/young people are telling the adults how they'll do things and adults want to be "cool" or "friends" instead of telling them to STFU and sit down and learn something. At some point you are not out of line if you want to be critical and make people get tougher skin, more knowledgeable and grow up. Life is hard. It comes with several moments of adversity and you don't build strong people by giving into every damn thing that a young person wants or more importantly allow them to do everything they want to do. Choose to play an individual sport if all you give a **** about is yourself. Plenty of them out there to make a great living if you put in the work. Team sports are about the team success and within that comes individual accolades and success. Which leads to....
The players wanted money via NIL? Got it. The top guys were already getting paid under the table and that was tax free but now everyone gets a little cut. They want followers/fans on social media and have them. But they either are too ignorant or arrogant and expect everyone to love them no matter how they perform or what they like/don't like when choosing an activity that pays them and forum that invites strangers who don't know them other than where they play a sport. Fair? Not at all. But it's REAL. Reality is a 4 letter word in the age of delusion. Most college games have alcohol served and players are paid. Every bleeding heart wants to write something when a non tragedy happens to heighten their access to a team/player and ignore the continued wasting of growth from young people by coddling them so much they don't have any concept of team, we/us and it's all about me/mine. Time to grow up and accept responsibility. If you want to be cheered play well. Want to be successful, can't be afraid to be rejected or fail and if you get up off the deck and fight, it'll be good. Run and hide? Point fingers instead of thumb? See how it turns out.
Have never and wouldn't boo a player nor would I ever take the time to give 2 ****s what they were doing all times of the day, but my advice is if you want that adulation and spotlight, with it comes negative people and people who are going to gamble and lose, or be pissed because the bane of their very existence is in the hands of 18-20 something year old people playing sports. Sad? The monster has been built, can't reel it in unless we aren't afraid to tell some of these guys to grow up and suck it up. Will it happen? Not very confident based on what I continue to see at the HS/Middle School/Youth ball levels. Protecting a player doesn't mean ignoring reality and embracing their delusion.
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You sound like a dude who was held accountable while growing up and played the game under an old-school coach or two along the way. I'm not saying either is a rarity these days, but it certainly doesn't seem to be as common as it once was.
I said it after the game and still believe it's true: toppin lost UK the game at the end of the first half. We were up 7 or 9 and threatening to blow the game open. He gives up a few threes in a row then doesn't get that missed dunk, which ended up getting put back in. Gave vandy life right when they were about to quit
Anyone who watched that game that knows anything about basketball knows we lost that game, not because of missed shots, but because of a lack of hustle.
And no one hurt us more by loafing than JT. For much of the second half he was guarded by a 6'3" guard and couldn't post him up or score over him.
The entire team came out with that "Swaggy Cal" attitude and got their chops busted by a team they should have beaten 15 points at home.
JT lack of hustle and pouting during a game is just a symptom of the real problem.