Also, Tate was the only player of those 10 rated outside the top 200 (203). This class has our 2 players at our biggest position of need rated at 278 and 364. The 2011 class was ranked 10th in the country and had 4 top 100 players, the 2013 class was ranked 13th. This class is ranked 23rd. Maybe this class is different and will actually be the start of the turn around. But anyone who thinks that's the only reasonable outcome has not been paying attention for at least 10 years now.
Illini Basketball 2018-2019
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Also, Tate was the only player of those 10 rated outside the top 200 (203). This class has our 2 players at our biggest position of need rated at 278 and 364. The 2011 class was ranked 10th in the country and had 4 top 100 players, the 2013 class was ranked 13th. This class is ranked 23rd. Maybe this class is different and will actually be the start of the turn around. But anyone who thinks that's the only reasonable outcome has not been paying attention for at least 10 years now.
First time since the start of RSCI (1998) that UI has only had 1 RSCI (Ayo) player on the roster.
Whitmans Sampler
- Eastern Iowa
The 5 in Underwood's spread offense needs to be able to hit an elbow jumper. I had faith that Ebo was going to improve in that area, but maybe he wants to play in a system where that isn't expected of him in such a high degree. Also, Samba Kane is going to be good and eventually great.
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IF that is an excuse for abominable performance this season it MUST also mean that a dramatic increase of NECESSARILY highly ranked talent has to come into the program before there is ANY rational reason for optimism.
10,000 posters are going to weasel out of that absolute iron logic in the next 10 months and I'm already mad about it.
And a case could be made that we would have had JCL, Black, Smith, and a so close THT. The RSCI number would then have been 5 rather than 1. How would we look for 2018 with those 5? Get really optimistic and throw in Nolley/Castleton and the number escalates to 7.
I'm not ready to say that right now. We have a lot more talent than last year. I think we make the big dance this year.
We will win 
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Some players have a way of taking others to another level, you never know what can happen. Special talents do something special with everyday guys
I have seen the future, and it’s me getting angry about people saying this for the next decade.
We were so close to THT to the same extent Sophie was so close to having both of her kids
Gonna have to do a LOT of work to get from “there was no opportunity to not have the worst two-year record in program history” to “the three stars we signed in Fall ‘18 are gonna change everything”.
LOL... so we are just making things up now and calling ex-players whiners so we can all feel good and divert all blame to them.
Serious Late
- Peoria via Denver via Ann Arbor via Albuquerque vi
What a gross, baseless accusation to make. A scary place to be right now, when defending a coach's recruiting results in this...
The information available suggests Underwood didn't want Ebo to transfer. Hard to find the logic in suggesting his transfer was driven by the reasons above given that Underwood wanted him around.
Agree. The roster turnover is a problem, as are the recruiting misses, but one season is not a trend, and the overall class is decent.
S&C posts a lot, so I wouldn't blame the collective board for the angst --I suspect most people are disappointed, but not ready to jump off a ledge.
If I see another foul fest on defense, with a system that stalls too often, and players that don't seem to get how to run it, or show improvement as the season goes on, I may change my tune. But it's way too early to draw too many conclusions from a largely inherited roster that had plenty of issues.
Yet with all the new and young faces this may be exactly what we see this year. I am hopeful that the few remaining returning players and a coaching staff that now understands what Underwood wants to run will move the needle faster this year than last.
I love this optimism. What I do not love is knowing to an absolute certainty that missing this target by a country mile will not cause any revised analysis of the situation whatsoever from the Loyalty hivemind.
It was fewer for Crean's first year at IU wasn't it?
And I think Pitt last year only returned three. There's Kevin Stallings' name again.
Peoria Illini
- Peoria, IL
Of course, because the hivemind has been hanging on to this new coach waaaayyyy too long.
It's been one flippin' season under BU.
Don't worry about the hivemind. The Champaign branch of the Chicken Little Society will have your back.
sacraig
- The desert
Well that's all the Loyalty I need today. I seriously laughed out loud.
Looks like the returning player number for both was 2 . Crean went 1-17 in the B1G and Stallings 0-18 at Pitt.
I agree there is plenty of time to turn the ship back in the right direction. Nowhere have I said anything differently.
But on this board, you must deny that any issues exist at all, at least as they pertain to the head coach. Your post speaks to that narrative construction very well, that one year in is too soon to scratch at the Savior Figure narrative regardless of the facts.
I am going to be Brad Underwood's most staunch defender on this board two years from now, just by saying the exact same stuff I'm saying now. Loyaltyville is in denial about who the actual windsock is here.
Peoria Illini
- Peoria, IL
LOL... I never saw that movie, but thanks for ruining the plot!!!
Serously, funny line.
Yeah, I'm not sure how we would have ended up with both Ayo and THT, let alone all those other players.
And after watching Ayo on the USA U18 squad, I'm happy with that choice that had to be made.
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