Hamilton's departure meant that it was likely we were looking at a losing season. That's not progress. That's a testament to how precarious our recruiting has been. The entire point of pursuing "program players" is that they actually stay in the program (Dotson, Derenbrecker, Hamilton). Trent can't have it both ways. He can't be praised for a recruiting strategy that explicitly avoids one-and-done's while getting a pass when his players leave early anyway. One can argue that some of that is bad luck, but when the guy at the top makes 7 figures a year to produce acceptable results and comes up short, the buck stops with him. A sure sign of a desperate company is when the brass starts blaming the public for not buying its product. I haven't seen any compelling argument that LSU fans are unique among top college athletics programs in creating a toxic environment for players and coaches. And frankly, it comes off sounding like a copout. Are fan expectations any worse here than those of a program whose NCAA semifinal win led to couch and vehicle fires and vandalism? Somehow I don't expect to see top HS players citing that as an excuse to avoid them. In 40 years LSU has had a grand total of 3 head coaches. That doesn't exactly have the ring of a fickle fan base irrationally running the coaching staff out of town with pitchforks and torches. LSU does, however, have a big marketing problem when it comes to basketball, and it isn't clear to me that the AD is willing to spend the money and effort to do what's necessary to take it to the next level, rather than do just enough to post modest profits. Having said that, I wish Trent nothing but the best of luck at TCU. Sometimes the pieces just don't fall together despite everyone's best efforts. That doesn't even come close to justifying the insane amount of vitriol being tossed around on TOS by the rantards.
Not happening. Shaka loves it at VCU and already spurned Illinois when the Illini came calling. Last year right after the Final 4 run, he said no to NC State. I'm sure he'll eventually leave VCU for a BCS program, just not anytime soon.
It looks like we need someone to build excitement about roundball like Dale did. Bertman came in behind Dale and marketed a sport that will always play second fiddle to football. Basketball is and was very much the same. Now we can't even get a sizable student turnout at basketball games. Who ever is named coach will have to bring energy and excitment back to the court. Brady couldn't sell out the Pmac when he had an all home grown starting line up.
Eddie Ludwig @NotEddieLudwig Reply Retweet Favorite · Open RT if you think I should be player/coach at LSU #ludswag Retweeted by Jordan Grove
Here's the latest "confirmation" from the advocate... http://theadvocate.com/sports/2522942-77/resignation-official The coaching speculation is rampant. Now there are rumors of names like Floyd, Steve Alford, in addition to Jones and Reggie Theus. I hope that Alleva casts the net wide and tries hard to hit various angles. Buzz Williams at Marquette was mentioned in this article, although at this point, everyone's guessing. More to come in the coming days! If someone like Coleman and Hammink want serious playing time, it's available at LSU!
I agree. I was really excited about the possibilities for LSU basketball next year, but it hinged around Hamilton, JOB, Turner, and Hickey. We couldn't afford to lose any of them, Hamilton probably more than any other. Maybe he knew something before the rest of us. Either way, whatever excitement I had has all but evaporated, and it's going to take a helluva hire to get it back. I especially agree about LSU fans being no different than anyone else. Brady has a losing SEC record, yet still managed to hang around for 11 years. Trent got hired away, not fired, and everyone knows the Dale Brown story. There is no reason we can't be an elite basketball program.
Floyd and Theus are a couple of also rans. They both have potential to win here, but I really want a coach who will come here and build something. Brad Stevens and Shaka Smart are pipe dreams, but I wish Alleva would at least give them something to think about. In truth the only way we could get an up and comer is to grab them before they become a hot commodity. For this reason I am liking Chris Collins. He is a longshot, but I would like to take a chance on him or a guy like him.
I really think LSU should spend the money and get a real marquee coach. This is an opportunity here. Are there any NBA coaches out there that want to establish a legacy in college basketball? Avery Johnson?....From here Steve Van Gundy?....coached here, I think Tom Thibodeau?.....all he needs is an "X"
Just say no to Floyd. Did everyone forget the O.J. Mayo saga at USC when Floyd was coach that led to SEVERE sanctions by the NCAA? Who cares if he has Louisiana connections? It is not worth the risk. http://www.ktla.com/news/landing/ktla-usc-basketball-violations,0,1911432.story
