It wasn't Silvio. I've heard nothing but complete admiration for Silvio on this team.
I'll change my statement to "basketball character."
drgnslayr
11251 posts
I always like Rick Barnes. He's a quality coach and a quality person. The Big 12 lost real quality when he left.
I can't equate Shaka to Rick. He seems too much of a gimmick.
Maybe I'm just an old timer and relate better to Barnes.
Silvio adds great character to this young team as well as luxurious depth. He is needed.
We should be lethal in the post... with or without Silvio. But I'm optimistic he'll be back.
I still think we will put up a decent amount of treys... just not at the pace we did this year because we won't have that many skilled trey shooters. But teams will have to pack the post. And a big pack creates huge off-ball screening opportunities for trey shooters to pop out and be wide open.
Glad Konate will be back. He's a pretty amazing catch for Huggy Bear. And he does nothing but make Doke better. Doke needs to be challenged.
Good post. Yes... the heat is turning up on Shaka. He seems he has not really found a system that works in Big 12. It's a different brand of basketball and he's at the school with the guaranteed hot seat because of their astronomical budget.
I think the Texas faithful are starting to question their gimmick pick for coach.
Heck... let's throw in the old traditional 2-3 offense with 3 bigs. The key is that your forwards can play the base line, including the trey from the corner. Not something really fit for today's game, but it could be one of those junk offenses. Amazing how much the game has changed (to becoming a perimeter game).
I'm hopeful to see a very different Doke next year.... shooting mid-60s from the FT line... developed midrange game... even better handles and passing.... and, of course, a much better defender who fouls less and blocks more. There is no reason to not expect big improvements. Doke works hard and is one of the more focused players we've had in years. He's new to the game and has already made extreme improvements since picking up the basketball for the first time.
DoubleDD said:
My point being? is the only reason the FBI/Government got involved is because there is a lot of money being thrown around and they're not getting their share. Think about it? What was the crime? What some kid and his folks/handlers lies to a university about receiving funds? You really think the FBI/government got involved because some kid lied to the his school of choice?
Last time I checked there is no law against a shoe company or any company throwing money at young men?
What I don't understand.... why weren't the feds in on the UNC academic fraud case?
Here is an example where a state-funded university had state-funded instructors committing a crime that defames all diplomas received by thousands of students.
If you ever want to do larger quantities and need injection molding, PM me.
Where is World Wide Wes these days?
I give up. I told myself years ago that when I saw flopping in the NHL I'd just give up.
So I gave up.
I'm a fan who surrendered.
Life has changed so much that it feels like a hindrance to have values.
Oh what the heck... I guess I will keep my values and continue to point and laugh at the flopping crowd.
Marcus Smart does hustle and accomplishes a lot of other things beyond flopping. He's one of the better defenders in the league.
Those same people that defame him did so far before this situation. That crowd merely looks for opportunities to trash him.
Let's see where this goes. I still feel optimistic.
I thoroughly enjoyed that read. Never really thought of "one-off" 3D printed shoes.... but why not? I have seen some custom one-off shoes already with 4-color printing.
I loved the part of your story where all that criminal shoe money vanishes! Money is what is ruining college basketball.
I miss the good ol' days. More than half of my early years as a basketball fan were spent in front of a radio.
The 3 amigos reunite!
I'm curious where we would be today had we still kept these two on the bench. I'm imagining Danny working with Doke.
I wonder how many FTs Doke is planning to shoot every day this summer?
He should start without going nuts on repetitions until he gets his stroke mechanics worked out. I've seen guys become too ambitious and then learn bad technique and reinforce it with reps and muscle memory. Then, he should have someone around him to verify his mechanics constantly. Do many short reps in a day and spread them out to see if he is able to replicate his proper mechanics each time. Then start increasing his reps.
I can't believe (if he does this right) he will shoot below the 60-percentile mark this coming season. Proper mechanics and some reps should guarantee him of that kind of number (or higher).
I guess I am assuming Doke will be back next year. IF Doke returns...
You guys are getting me all excited for next season. Heck, I haven't even picked a tomato out of my garden yet!
I agree.
However, some people who become "rich and famous" gradually lose their values over time because of the feeling of invincibility. I just don't see that in Bill. I've chatted with him every year for several years and he just doesn't seem to differ much (except continuing to grow as a coach). He has so many people around him, both family and friends... and then coaching mentors... I just can't see him doing anything to lose face with the people around him who have helped form him so much.
I hear what you are saying. I just don't believe he would let it slide.
I don't see him risking anything concerning his own reputation or the reputation of the university. And if the university and coaches previously knew nothing about a payment, we should be viewed as "victims" anyways.
If our coaching staff is clean, they should do everything to support their cleanliness. Coverups are usually where people screw up. If our coaches are willing to coverup something they previously knew nothing about... they take on risk for little or no gain.
I see it this way:
Bill Self is guilty of jaywalking. Yes... technically... it is illegal.
Coaches like Rick Pitino, are guilty of manslaughter.
We should be favored to win the Big 12 again by most sports writers... except Dougie Goetlieb, who will probably vote for KSU.
Great! Another opportunity to smash the Cats on their own court!
Doke was just starting to become effective when the year ended. His FT % hurt him and us big.
There aren't many players in D1 with his size. He really needs to learn how to dominate in D1 before thinking pro ball. And pro ball doesn't really play Doke's low post, back to the basket, game. I just don't see him leaving now.
BShark said:
I don't see any way McCormack starts. I also don't expect Silvio to play at all, unfortunately.
Do you think Silvio will be found ineligible, or he just won't win PT because other guys are ahead of him?
The Silvio situation is unique. The accusations come from the FBI. And there are many schools and coaches caught up in this. And we don't know if there are a lot more things to come.
One thing.... where are all the Nike busts? Nike makes up what, 85% of the American D1 market?
The Adidas dirt was uncovered first. It should then draw the feds into the entire situation, which is mostly a Nike market.
I am guessing that the feds have some level of communication with the NCAA, including some level of status concerning ongoing investigations.
I don't think it wise to compare this to the Diallo situation. The national spotlight is on this and the overwhelming message is that college basketball is dirty.
I just don't see the risk right now of the Big 12 vanishing. Yes... we could eventually lose OU. And losing Texas would be the best thing ever for us because of the Longhorn network and the grotesque spending of the Longhorn AD. They represent a testament that just blowing money doesn't create success. But they also put a question mark by the Big 12 because why isn't Texas more dominant?
What would help Kansas and the Big 12 is if Kansas could get back to playing football again. Kansas is truly an eyesore... not only for the conference and for our school... but a national embarrassment! The Big 12 should not house one of the worst D1 programs in the nation! Kansas has to get this fixed.
I hope Bill keeps the concept of a two PG offense. We need two guards that can equally handle the rock.
Everything I hear and read says he is coming back. Even though all indications say he is coming back and he did this to learn what he needed to do over the next 12 months... you just never know what will happen. He is one phone call away from ending his D1 days....
It's time for new management that really knows sports management. I never felt like Zenger understood enough about sports. I spoke with him many times and the conversations related mostly to business and the real estate developments.
Bringing back football shouldn't be this impossible. Look at all our positives... mainly... being in a good football conference with rich history.
10 years ago we were in the Orange Bowl and we were one game win away from being National Champions.
Is Bill Self clean? I believe he is, if for no other reason than thinking what recruit would be worth risking his legacy and everything he wants to accomplish moving forward? No recruit!
I think it is easy to look at the Big 12 and imagine "failure."
But while we focus so much attention on the Big 12, we then don't focus as much on other power conferences and their problems. I believe they have plenty of issues
A double round robin schedule is crucial... otherwise the conference winner is largely decided by that year's schedule instead of the best team.
I'm okay with us going to 12 teams as long as we can continue a double round robin. Otherwise... forget it.
I just can't see us going west. Time zones become a much bigger factor, and it just spreads the Big 12 brand identity too thin.
There is a good reason why Colorado left.
Yeah, not sure I can see another company attempt to enter this market. It's expensive to enter this market, but the potential sales are huge.
I just think it cuts sketcher too thin. They make so many different shoes now and their market strategy looks effective.
Sketchers would have to raise a ton of capital and I don't think they can play "criminal" like Adidas and Nike as easily because these two companies have been around a long time and are entrenched in their pseudo-legal business practices (actually, extremely illegal, but these companies would be harder to nail than to a drug cartel).
However.... perhaps Sketchers has an inside track on the feds doing a more-thorough investigation of both Adidas and Nike. This Adidas bust seems fishy because Nike's illegal activities are more widespread than Adidas. Why didn't the feds just go after the entire ShoeCo illegal activities?
Or... since Nike's dirt is so large, perhaps they will release info about them soon, too.
I think the concept with Sketchers is to operate cleanly and show the difference between clean and dirty. If they come in clean, both Nike and Adidas will look like the trash they are. Then... every player considering one of these two big shoecos will have to drag along the reputation that they are dirty, too.
Or... maybe the big shoecos will get nailed so hard that they will be largely banned from NCAA participation. Hard to see that since they contribute so much capital to D1 and the entire structure behind it.
Eventually... the shoeco dirt will have to be cleaned up. D1 will never operate anywhere near correctly as long as they are sloshing around all those cash dollars.
justanotherfan said:
Does Sketchers even make basketball shoes?
I haven't seen them. But they do make sporty leisure shoes that compete with sales of shoes from the same category produced by Adidas.
So if KU players are wearing Adidas shoes during their leisure hours, Adidas and Sketchers are competing for that shoe use area of the market.
The sports world could really use a clean player in sports shoes. Whether or not Sketchers can become that is left to be seen. There are plenty of big money people on the Sketcher's team.
I think you have properly stated the current situation with Zenger and the AD. Zenger is about raising money, but at some point we need that position filled with someone who knows sports... more than business.
Hazing.... that moment in life when young people who have never been empowered in any way suddenly feel powerful when they make newbies do stupid, often harmful tasks.
To your last point... sure... on a nice 110-degree summer heatwave.
Big difference between the feds capabilities to investigate, versus the NCAA. The NCAA has few teeth. They can basically threaten to make a player or players ineligible, and can punish a school. The feds can throw people in jail... and they can bring felony charges to put people in prison.
Guards can improve... especially if they really go after improvement.
Tyshawn Taylor improved dramatically between his junior and senior years. He went down to Houston and hooked up with John Lucas.
The word was Lucas would help him on his trey shot. And he did improve dramatically.
Where TT improved most was on how to finish at the rim. For his first 3 years he would always go way too hard to the rim, which limited his ability to adjust, making his finishes very very predictable.
Lucas taught him how to slow down on his finishes and then he was able to either adjust to the defender or just figure out the most efficient finish. Lucas was (easily) the very best small guard that could finish on any big in the paint. I watched his entire career and I loved it when he got inside and finished on guys a foot taller than him.
All of those improvements ended up being just what the NBA doctor ordered.... because it was enough to get him in the NBA. Is he still there? I don't think so, but maybe others in here know.
What I don't understand.... is If Marcus shoots less than 50% from the line, why not change his stroke in the middle of the season? Were we trying to protect his 49% average?
That was what I was told.
I don't think a Kansas parent would get away with this -
If Marcus ever gets desperate for money, I could see him intentionally trip in some business and sue.
Sorry about that!
I have a Duke grad in my family and he says the Duke law school is better than what we have.
Anyone know?
How do they avoid NCAA trouble?
By having a first-rate law college that pumps out future attorneys by the truckload. The NCAA is afraid to challenge Duke... I promise you that!
Yes... Doke thought he'd be done in 2 years. But his injury really took him out of a year.
What isn't mentioned here is his poor FT shooting. NBA coaches play to win, and they won't hesitate to run "poke a Doke." I know most people think like me, that Doke can easily be decent at the line after learning proper mechanics. But we do know that some players just never get it... I'm sure Shaq and Wilt tried about everything and they both never figured it out.
Let's keep remembering who we are dealing with here... the "Riverboat Gambler!"
Bill still has an ace or two stuck in his boot.
Something is going to happen somewhere, and we have a quality team next year, just could use a few gaps plugged.
I seriously doubt our roster is complete.
I will be shocked if we don't add anyone else.
Good! We need to be pushed. It's never good for us to not be challenged in league play.
I'd rather have our main competition come from another Kansas school.
Who knows? Maybe we can spark more of a rivalry back!
I like your optimism. We can all use some optimism about now... in any area.
I don't know why we can't rebuild our program and become a respectable team and possibly even a powerhouse team?
We could be in a worse football conference!
The renovation project is needed. It's necessary to have a chance to compete. Just hiring a good coach won't do it for our program. And the fans know it. Hard to believe it was just 10 years ago when we were playing in the Orange Bowl and was one loss away from possibly being crowned national champions.
There was a lesson in all of that. And fans have good memories. They know that a good situation or two isn't going to put Kansas on the football map.
Actually.... we have the opportunity now to do what KSU did years ago. They made their move a long time ago and their program was every bit as run down as ours is now. We actually have the chance that their program declines while ours rises... and there is no reason why we shouldn't pass up the purple kitties.
truehawk93 said:
If they even lift a finger against KU, the lawyers better take this crap to the highest courts. Who's next?
Now you have the right attitude. The NCAA backs down when they know they will face a tough legal battle. This is where KU screwed up royally on the Askew probation. We bent over and took it when we should have challenged them.
Our position today is very different from the coaching days of Larry in Lawrence. We have THE compliance program hailed by the NCAA and most universities. It's a model program used to bring other institutions into compliance.
Do you think the NCAA wants to tarnish that? I don't think so... but I also think they are nervous that Kansas isn't the easy target any longer. For one big reason... our athletic program is a multi-billion dollar generator (indirectly). Read the financial article over on KUSports. That talks about the operational revenues only. The big money is "donors"... either through specific fundraising projects or in endowments. Anyone in here have the latest figure on KU endowments? I know it is a multi-billion dollar program.
Sports are THE major tool used in all fundraising... especially in endowments.
I laughed when I read about Kansas running a $17 million deficit in 2017 in athletics. Ha... This only relates to the annual operational fees and the goal of the athletic department is to spend as much as they can get their hands on. Their goal is to win, and money helps get us there. It's quite possible for us to win NCs in both basketball and football in the same year and still post a deficit.
I know we are in the middle of a huge gamble on football.
I think it is for a kid with nothing.
I was under the impression the car wasn't a clunker.
It would be nice to see a photo of it or have the details.
What I want to know... and what I have asked before:
Did our athletic department and coaches know about Billy Preston's nice car before his "accident?"
And, if not, WHY not?
And, if so, why weren't they investigating how this kid could swing a car of that value?
Personally, I can't believe our staff didn't know of Billy's car. I see corruption in our staff from this. Either they knew and kept it secret, or they didn't know but was at fault for not keeping watch over this representative of KU (Billy). Both of these examples show corruption as how I define corruption.