I might literally laugh out loud at somebody who said their kid has improved linearly at something over the years.
Coaching Carousel (Basketball)
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mhuml32
Gesture of Northern Aggression
If that's still true, then it's not a replacement of Kwa. He could have completed a full assistant coach search under a reasonable amount of time. But your post from September says he didn't have enough time.
Matt Painter still doesn't make the money Underwood gets. . .
mhuml32
Gesture of Northern Aggression
Just because some of you want to fire Underwood does not mean the folks who disagree believe Underwood needs anything you are mentioning in this sentence.
It's been a tough six weeks, but some of the things folks are projecting on here is wild stuff.
Umm we had Anthony Higgs
Germanboxers
- Fort Wayne, IN
Well…my kid improved geometrically.
mhuml32
Gesture of Northern Aggression
I don't understand the money comparisons. Does it really matter if Underwood is making $7 million and another coach is making $5 million that's more successful? It makes sense if Illinois is going to be searching for a coach and it's someone that's going to be targeted, but Painter isn't coming here (and likely isn't on Whitman's list). The buyout should be the only thing people care about on here because it's a price that could influence the athletic department's decision making.
It means in Football and Basketball things are Even. It’s more about a coach that teach Xs and Os and what program has money. See Ohio State Football 20 million dollar roster. No more Alabama , Georgia and the rest of the SEC dominating College football. Where is the SEC in College Football since NIL? There will be no more coaches at a school for over a Decade and not producing. Fan are giving their hard earned money to College Sports program NIL and we want ROI . It’s sink or swim little fish. Money doesn’t grow on trees. I contributed my money to the collective because I want results . If Brad can’t handle it go do something else . I’m not here for Brad Underwood being a multi millionaire coaching college basketball with no RESULTS. Tell your story walking Brad . Take a Crap or get off the potty is What It’s the NIL era means
Yes
Still gotta win another game.
This cracked me up! I don't think I've ever used the word exponentially in my lifetime. I've read it many times, but perhaps my 'assumed' definition is (most likely) wayyy off. It's way too late in the evening (read early morning), but I'm gonna definitely study of on this tomorrow, lol.
I will always hammer this point- we have Lou Henson's name on our court. Look at his career and tell me we deserve better than Underwood for this program. 21-year career. One shared Big Ten Championship. One single season with 3+ wins in the NCAA Tournament, his single Final Four appearance. That is the bar this program has set for its head coach.
I'm willing to give Brad a pass on this one.
Going down a level was a very smart move by Podz. Playing in the WCC enabled Podz to shine on offense while masking his defensive weakness -- there was only 1 (2?) PGs in the conference good enough to expose him. When Podz first started in the NBA, everyone targeted him non-stop. He was a gushing hole in the defense. He worked hard to fix it, and today he is just a weak link. His offense almost makes up for his lack of defense when he isn't in a slump. He does try really hard, and gets more charge calls (as defender) than any other NBA player I can recall. I'm not sure he would survive anywhere in the NBA outside of the warriors offense that so strongly emphasizes 3pt shooting and cuts vs. initiating offense via a dribble drive. He falls in/out of the warrior rotation as they experiment with other backup PGs.
Normally no, but if you put a bunch of words in all caps, I think that elevates one’s post to the level that it does mean that.
Nothing has changed with that coach … I just checked in with him yesterday …
Did Brad change his mind between the time of that post and now ? Who knows …
Part of it … Not all of it …
Matic Vesel …
sacraig
- The desert
I can only imagine there would be some resentment watching two alleged wunderkinds, one of whom is the coach's kid, get the reins to all the strategy and game planning over two more established coaches without seemingly having the credentials.
It's like having your manager hire two hot shot college grads who think they know everything at your same mid-career job title. And it turns out one of them is the boss's kid.
ChiefGritty
- Chicago, IL
To describe a system where richer schools dominate poorer ones by sheer force of spending money as "even" is pretty incredible, but I take your point.
I agree that the NIL world seems to advantage Illinois, particularly on the basketball side, though everything is so new and moving so fast that I retain a healthy degree of uncertainty about where it will all shake out and I take insider claims of our financial superiority with ten boulders of salt.
But then I also firmly agree that old world or new, Illini fans should have high expectations.
I'm as upset about the soft, weak basketball we've played the last month plus as anybody, but when we're coming off of a period in which we had the best record in the Big Ten over a five year period with two (legitimate) Big Ten titles, two BTT titles, and an Elite Eight just last year, I think freaking out over two bad months is pretty ridiculous ESPECIALLY with the added weapon of NIL to buy our way out of problems.
There's just a lot of people looking to take issue with BU, either because of a distaste for him personally (which honestly I somewhat understand, he's kind of a jerk, I wouldn't play for him, but results are results), or because of irrational, illogical overweighting of random tournament results heightened to a fever pitch by our Loyola trauma.
Those things are understandable, but they are also unwise, IMO.
mattcoldagelli
- Script Illinois Enthusiast
A theory I've been workshopping that got a big shot in the arm last night: Ivisic is our most important player*, by a lot.
If you're a buyer on that, the narrative of this season takes a different shape.
*not most talented, not most EDG, but literally the most important in that if he is healthy/playing well, we can do lots of advantageous things on both ends of the floor that virtually disappear when he is not
If you're a buyer on that, the narrative of this season takes a different shape.
*not most talented, not most EDG, but literally the most important in that if he is healthy/playing well, we can do lots of advantageous things on both ends of the floor that virtually disappear when he is not
I was talking to some Purdue/Michigan/Kansas/KSU fans in my friend group about this thread, and that's essentially what the outsider consensus on Brad was. He's done very well here, and is a good fit for the prestige of the program and the salary band that we're paying for him. Best 5 year run of any B1G team, the conference season and conference tourney titles ... it's wild some of the takes on this thread.
ChiefGritty
- Chicago, IL
I think there's a lot to that, especially in the sense that no one who replaces him is remotely similar. Morez is great but he's an entirely different type of player, and any time we try to get away with Humrichous at the 5 we wind up trying to have Boswell or someone guard 7-footers and the whole thing goes lopsided.
An incredibly skilled, pro-tested 7-footer who can shoot as a complementary, essentially role player is a pretty unique weapon.
Name one one coach who won often without what you call “generational talent”
Illini in Italy
- Illini HQ, Florida Panhandle
Sounds like a post from an IU fan? One seemed destined to live a life of disappointment . . .
Alex Legion....
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