(Official) Hoops Post-Season Tourney Watch Thread

Trent's not going anywhere at the moment, not with the nice little contract extension Alleva gave him before the season started. But if we don't at the least put in a respectable post-season appearance by the end of Year 5, then it is time to start thinking about moving on. That is definitely enough time to take ownership of a program and get your type of players in a position to contribute, without forever resorting to the "young team" excuse for non-performance.

At some point those close games and disappointing performances have to turn into actual W's without having to rationalize why they haven't. Particularly if Anthony Grant continues to put Bama on track to be a serious SEC contender in the same period of time that Trent has had to do the same at LSU.

 

I'm not ready to throw Trent under the bus just yet. He had zip to work with after the '08-'09 season. But the snail's pace progress is making me very nervous. And frankly, contrary to what Alleva said in that article, I think LSU fans have been very patient so far with Trent, and it is not unreasonable to expect better results at this point in his tenure.

Just over a week ago we had a team poised to get an outside shot at the NCAA tournament. That's the time where the team should be extra motivated and playing its best ball. Instead we got 2 blowout road losses against mediocre squads and blew an 11-pt halftime lead at home against another, and probably staring at not even making it to the NIT. That is a very worrisome statement about Trent's ability to coach and motivate his team.

 

That is the problem that I have with Trent and the reason that he needs to go now. I can understand trying to build a team with your type of personnel, but to lose these last three games to lower tier SEC programs is piss poor coaching. If the Tigers don't have some magic in an SEC Tourney being essentially payed at home this year, he's earned his walking papers as far as I'm concerned.

 

If we are not a clear cut NCAA tournament team next season then there is reason to start talking about someone else. I have been very supportive of Trent but next season is my limit. I am pulling for him and the entire basketball team and I saw glimpses of what I believe to be great things to come. That said, it has to materialize next season or we need to look for a different direction.

 

This season was and should have been the benchmark point. After 4 full seasons in the program we have nothing to show for it. He has increased the talent level but losing 3 straight to arguably inferior competition sinks it for me. Fire Trent Johnson.

 

I compare it to the 2008 football season...wait for it.

 

If we drop a first-round game to Arkansas on Thursday on what is essentially a home court, then we're gonna be doing a lot of waiting.

 

Tigerrag sums it up nicely....

TigerRag - LOVE: After Further Review

At the end of the day, let's not forget that the game is just that. A game. The mental attitude and psyche of a team must be right. Could it have been the "pressure" of the situation? A LSU team that really hasn't even had a winning record the last few years, and now, a team that was relying on freshman like Stringer and transfers like Hamilton (who has never been anything more than a role player), to perform, perhaps not knowing how to go for the jugular, when they had something to lose?

Whatever the reason, get back to playing intense, hard-nosed ball. Just leave it out on the court, like men.

:geaux:

 

Learning to deal with success and the pressures it brings are critical to getting over the "hump," and it's the coaches job to prepare his players in how to deal with that. I don't know what the root of the problems have been over the last week and a half, but I know the Tigers have taken lots of terrible shots and committed countless stupid turnovers. Maybe that's youth and inexperience, maybe we just don't have any good shooters, I don't know, but there has to be improvement.

Speaking of Hamilton, I know he hasn't been getting any help in the way of good guard play, and I'm sure that's hard. Still, he has to do a better job of getting it back out to the perimeter when he's drawing double teams like he has been. He can't just hold onto the ball and let the defense collapse on top of him.

 

If LSU is indeed a "team on the rise", then where exactly is the ceiling? What are the near and long-term fan expectations for the program? Is acceptable improvement next year a 2-game bump on the other side of .500 in SEC play? If so, then you're likely fine with this year's outcome.

If you want this team to be a tournament contender every year, however, there is a big cause for concern. If we are to accept the freshman/transfer excuse, does this mean that LSU is the equivalent of a flash in the pan mid-major that can only make waves with senior-laden teams every few years? If that were the case, we might as well have hung on to Brady. Will we be making similar excuses for sub-par performances next season for not having a deep bench?

I guess my question is what is the timeline/benchmarks for Trent to achieve lasting success with this program, and what is the set of goals we want the team to achieve? At some point he will have to take ownership of the successes and failures of his players in his system.