Brad Underwood's first (and only) season at Oklahoma State (2016-17) was eerily similar to Groce's first season at Illinois (2012-13). Both teams started well out of the gate (we won Maui and ended up 13-1 in pre-season), both teams really struggled at the beginning of their conference schedule (BU opened 0-6 in Bib12, Groce 2-7 in B1G), and both teams rallied to make the NCAA tournament (Illinois as a #7 seed, OSU as a #10 seed). Illinois advanced one more round but both ended their season playing very well with heartbreak losses (UI to Miami - the BAD call, OSU to Michigan). It is amazing how eerily similar those seasons were.
Does this mean that those players were executing superior systems and all those players on those rosters figured out the systems whereas players who followed did not have the intellectual ability to figure out the systems? Of course not. There are many reasons you can have a good season, you hit that right fit and chemistry, you can avoid some positional gaps, some players may surprise, etc. But it does not mean that you have a superior system and somehow players do not "get it" anymore, or that you have built a consistent winner.
Consistency (not just having a good season) requires talent, and when you have some huge gaps like our frontcourt, your overall system will not look good. Even when some players or elements are OK, it affects the overall product and takes a toll on the whole team. It's a team sport, it's like an orchestra, if some performers can't perform, it affects the whole product. Even under other great coaches and systems, our current team would have severe limitations.
I do not consider BU a superior coach with a superior system, there are many great coaches and systems and we will be regularly competing against as we have already. But I have nothing against BU's system, I have actually said many times that I like his system. But without upgrading the talent on the roster and closing some of those huge gaps (e.g., frontcourt), posters will likely keep complaining that our players do not get it. Or at best, hit a good season here and there, but never build a consistent B1G winner.