I think the truth lies somewhere in between your opinion and SupaFan's opinion, IMO. Let's sort of get over the "death penalty" and let's also acknowledge the shortcomings of Brady's era. To Brady's credit, he showed what a McD AA could do in his first "successful" run to the sweet 16 with Stro' Swift. He did this very soon after the "death penalty". At the same time, hit or miss recruiting, lack of top-tier coaching, showed that it was very difficult to rely on recruiting. That led to a lot of up and down seasons, due to lack of recruiting depth, lack of recruiting to fill needs, and injuries. I think that contrary to your post, LSU has decent street cred in the SEC (West) and honestly, the detractor recruiting wise was not LSU being "down" but whether Brady was really a top-tier respected coach. I would argue he wasn't, he was rather a scrappy coach that had some good assistants and could in short bursts motivate. Enter Trent Johnson. A COY in the WAC, Pac10, and the SEC. A classy, understated fundamentally sound coach who wins by implementing a system, developing players and creating stability. He is in my estimation a stronger coach than a pure recruiter, although I'd say the 2010 class is more indicative of LSU's recruiting cred. Top 100 Kids from the south will respect Trent. The question is perhaps whether they prefer an "old school approach" and appreciate working through the system in a team first environment--that won't necessarily appeal to kids like AR. Add to this the new practice facility, positive recruiting momentum, LSU brand and athletic support, and I think it's just a matter of time before Trent establishes him in the year in year out competing for top of the SEC West. I don't think there's a "window" other than the reality is that this team (and the lack of perceived talent) is largely still Brady's players and Trent needs some time to get his players in here. You can argue that Trent could have signed some players within the last year and a half that could have impacted this team, but by the time he signed Bass, it was late spring, and really last year, it wasn't a great year largely b/c it takes a little more time to resonate with the top players. Some of these kids are being recruited in their Freshmen/sophomore high school years, and for 2009 recruits, Trent was at Stanford. When you look at the "talent void" then, remember that in Brady's last year coaching, the only Freshman/sophomores on that team were Farrer, Randolph, Garrett Green and Spencer. That's lack of recruiting depth for a two year period. The year before that, you have two sophomores Ben Voogd and Magnum Rolle who also transferred. Also Delwan Graham a "top" Brady recruit before he left to go with Dennis Harris and Storm Warren, didn't pan out from a disciplinary standpoint. Give Trent time. He's going to get his players slowly into the system and I think 2009-10 will be a brief blip in the timeline. In the meantime, we should enjoy watching the kids this year develop, and in the case of Tas', watch him go down as perhaps one of the most prolific players in LSU basketball history. :thumb: :geauxtige
He did not recruit well for this year. That is why the cupboard is so bare right now. Is that difficult to understand?
Without Collis Temple Sr. bringing in his AAU kids Brady never would have won anything. Other than the Baton Rouge kids that played for Temple and Taz who was Pierre's godchild Brady's recruiting was dismal to say the least. I hope you are right, but I think if Trent doesn't show some consistent success soon LSU will fall of the recruiting radar of most quality players, JMO. There is still a talent void and it shows no signs of being filled soon, that's the problem. Trent has yet to show that he can recruit at LSU. I do like watching them develop and would love to see LSU turn into a fundamentally sound team. Not sure what you mean by Tas going down as one of the most prolific players in LSU basketball history. He has never lived up to the hype and will probably be forgotten soon after he leaves. I like the guy and wish him well, but I don't think history will be nearly as kind to him as you are. Again JMO.
I don't understand what miracles you expect him to perform as a 2nd year coach who lost a ton of seniors and has a roster filled with Brady bench players forced into starting roles. If LSU finishes at the bottom of the West for the next 2 years then yes, Trent will have definitely shown some recruiting problems. It's simply too early to tell what a true Trent Johnson LSU team will look like. And as others have pointed out, we likely won't know what that is until the 2011-12 season.
Coach Johnson has signed a top 10 class for next year so the recruiting will be fine. He is one of the finest technical coaches in the country. In regards to Tasmin, he is way up on the scoring list record books for career totals. Yes, he may have "underachieved", but it is also possible that the expectations of him were too high. Either way, we will miss him.
I have full faith in Trent Johnson. He has done a great job so far and will continue building our program.
Not me !! I love women's basketball...it gives an added dimension to the terms "Point Spread" and "The Spread" :hihi:.
Good thing for you we are not going to be at our best this yr. If we were you wouldn't have anything to post.
If you read my posts I say it's an almost impossible job. I'm not expecting him to work any miracles, nor am I criticizing the job he has done. LSU basketball has fallen so far that John Wooden might not be able to revive it.
