In retrospect I would agree. If he had done that they might have been 12 and 5 rather than 17-0 to start, but I believe they would still be playing Barnes' approach will pay dividends next year. I think he finally got through to Hamilton, who looked like a total lost cause and a transfer till roughly 7 games ago. J'Covan seems like he might have been coming around. His approach was just starting to work in the last couple of games. Pittman's total collapse and the injuries to Ward, who was, aside fromn Bradley the only guard who could play offense and defense were not Barne's fault. I think surprisingly next year's team will turn out better than this one. '
it was the WORST coaching job Ive EVER seen at the collegiate level I mean, how do you go from being ranked #1 to being knocked out of the top 25 by seasons end? Ive never seen that b4, it falls soley on Ricks shoulders
They were all playing 20-30 minutes a game most of the season, starting from day 1. That should have been plenty of minutes to develop. An extra 5 minutes a game wasn't going to make that much of a difference. Hamilton actually played the fewest minutes early, and he's the one that actually showed some improvement by the end of the year. The other two didn't get any better.
Texas is not Rice U, the Longhorn Nation is not content with a first round appearance. It was frustrating to watch an uninterested team who could not make FTs, box-out on rebounds, manage the game clock, make a dunk / layup, secure a ball on the floor, keep mouth guards in their mouths. The officiating sucked, too. In summary, Texas is not Rice High -- Texas is expected to win.
Prime example of terrible coaching.... Last play of the game. Up by one. Call a timeout. Draw a play to your BEST free throw shooter. You know they are going to foul. This doesnt happen. Instead? They throw it to Bricks Johnson... he dribbles it WANTING to shoot free throws when he clearly was going to miss them. UGH. CALL TIMEOUT! set a play up! get it to j. brown who is a 90% FT shooter. If he misses, at least you can live with it. Not a 60% brick layer.
Who on earth would draft any of those freshmen? Are people really talking about any of those guys entering the draft?
I sent Rick Barnes an email telling him to look at Ryan Donahoe for PG help. Donahoe is a 6'2", strong, smart, pass-first PG. He put up good PG numbers this season at Highland, KS CC after two years out of basketball to rehab a torn meniscus. (He was working for UPS at one point). I have never seen a tougher kid, or a more determined competitor. He was the 2007 3A POY in Texas after leading the Hardin-Jefferson Hawks to their state championship-- on one good leg. Saw him hit eight straight NBA threes in a rivalry game. Saw him invite J'Covan Brown to drive, and then pin J'Covan's attempted dunk up against the backboard, up above the top left corner of the square. His weight room stats are legendary. His D is tenacious and relentless. With wings around him like Hamilton and Brown, UT would be tough to stop. Most importantly, Ryan Donahoe would provide the kind of leadership and character the Longhorns sorely lacked this season.
That's exactly what Barnes told them: get the ball to Brown, if you have to give it up before the foul, get it back IMMEDIATELY. Instead, Brown takes a few dribbles, PICKS UP HIS FREAKING DRIBBLE, passes to Johnson, and then STANDS THERE as Johnson's fouled. Microcosm of their season. There's certainly a good bit of blame to lay at Barnes's feet, but I've never heard the word "uncoachable" more from inside the UT program. That right there is the reason Hamilton & Brown got such inconsistent PT.
Bradley could maybe go in the 1st round based on potential alone. He could definitely be a lottery pick if he sticks around another year and proves he can handle PG duties. But I would take a long look at Hamilton if I were a scout. He has good size at 6-7 and already has a very good jump shot with range. He's definitely raw in terms of bball IQ and defense but the potential is all there. The guy is a pure scorer. As another poster pointed out, I thought Hamilton was a big transfer candidate during the season, but hopefully he sticks around because I think he could benefit a lot from some hardnose coaching.
Bradley's still mulling his options, but word on the street is that he's declaring for the Draft. My roommate has a class with Bradley, Hamilton, J'Covan, and Shawn Williams, and he said that Bradley wasn't in class yesterday afternoon, and according to his teammates, "he's gone." Here's the latest on the situation: http://collegesportsblog.dallasnews...texas-frosh-bradley-undecided-on-nba-dra.html
Funny thing is, the reporter claimed that "Bradley was in class," yet my friend, who's actually in the 25-person class with Avery, told me that he was MIA. Also, according to his Facebook, he's back in Tacoma, WA. The kid's gone.
in terms of draft position, this would be the time for avery to declare for the draft. This year's draft is pretty weak after the top few positions, which explains analysts projecting him as high as mid 1st round pick, which i dont think avery will surpass even if he stays another year. on the other hand, avery imo absolutely should stay another year or more to work on his offensive game. sure, he has tons of athleticism, but an underdeveloped skillset as a sg to fully utilize it. ive watched him play all season, and it seems quite apparent he has yet to discover what he can/should do in the offense. sometimes he finds success running through screens and picks for open 3's or midrange jump shot, which i applaud him for scoring in the flow of the game. however, he needs to improve his ballhandling, as well learning when to be aggressive in the flow of the game. he must learn to be effective going both left and right. he cant handle the ball well with his left hand, the only ball handling skills he has demonstrated is a right to left crossover, a right hand in and out move, or putting the ball on the floor when a defender closes out on him at the 3 line. i agree that rick barnes deserves to shoulder a good deal of blame for texas' struggles. lack of offensive direction, offensive discipline(to not take bad shots frequently), and defensive discipline are all something a coach can control to a good extent. throughout the season, even during the 17-0 run, i never really saw texas run consistently good offensive sets or plays. it most consisted of a shoddily run high pick at the top, forcing the ball to the post whether it was there or not, or most frustratingly and frequently, one on one plays. if youre going to set a high pick, your guard needs to know how to use it effectively, aka drive as close and tight to your teammate giving you a pick instead of loosing dribbling around the pick. also consistently, after the high pick, the big man would roll wide open to the basket, but of course texas guards rarely looked for it, nor could they consistently make that pass. clearly teams game plan for dexter was to double team him, teach him in practice how to pass out of double teams! teach your players to cut to the basket when he is double teamed, instead of everyone sliding around the 3 line hoping for a pass. give your team structure offensively! i think some in this thread were on point on one of texas' greatest needs this season - true pg to run the offense. jai lucas is trash, jcovan has low basketball iq and little pg instincts. sure he can shoot, and ball handle just fine, but he has no clue how to run the offense, much less get his teammates involved. Balbay was the closest thing to a true pg we had, but...his unwillingness(maybe inability?) to shoot allowed defenders to sag off which tremendously negated much of his pg strengths. i know we're hotly recruiting cory joseph right now, who is an excellent pg. i hope we get him! hook'em!
He's an AAU teammate of both Tristan Thompson (2010 signee) and Myck Kabongo (2011 commitment), and he currently goes to Findlay Prep in Vegas, which is where Avery Bradley went to HS. We have numerous ties to Joseph, and Barnes has the upper-hand in his recruitment at this point. It look like Texas, Villanova, and UConn are fighting for his signature.
Did Coach Barnes respond? I hope Brad Stevens is on the short list of potential replacements if Barnes / UT under-performs next year.
Who will play C next year, I don't see any C's on the recruiting lists. Baylor is going to tower over the Horns.
If Udoh declares (I haven't really heard anything either way), Baylor will have only 1 player returning who is over 6-7 and averaged more than 5 mpg. Though they do have 6-10 Perry Jones joining the team. The Longhorns have 6-10 Tristan Thompson as their top recruit; he'll likely see a lot of minutes at the 5. We'll need Wangmene and Chapman to step up. Gary Johnson will play a ton of minutes at the 4. Though, it does seem we need to double down on recruiting up front. We recruited no big men in 08 or 09, only Thompson in 2010 (who could be gone in 1-2 years), and already have 4 commits for 2011, all of whom are perimeter guys. Hill, Chapman, and Johnson graduate next year, so in in 2011, you're looking at Wangmene, a sophomore Thompson (if he stays), and a true freshman or two. That's pretty thin.
