This is one of my favorite times of year for hoops. The college football season — and all the ridiculous bowl games that coincide with it — is winding down, and the college basketball season is ramping up.
Three hoopservations about the college game, now that we’re getting into the swing of things:
1. Kemba Walker is good. Very good. (It’s because of hoopservations like this that I earn the big bucks for keeping this blog going.)
2. Syracuse is very good, but they’re going to have trouble beating good teams if they continue to shoot 17-for-36 from the foul line, as they did yesterday. (It’s because of hoopservations like this that I’m going to be asking my boss for a raise.)
3. Looking at the Top 25, three names stick out. They’re regulars in the Top 25 these days. And, yet, they stick out because I don’t see any way they can be a threat come tournament time. I’m talking about Pitt, Kansas State, and Notre Dame. (Ranked 5, 14, and 17, according to the current AP rankings.) Pitt, in recent years, has emerged as a national powerhouse, fielding teams with future pros like DeJuan Blair, Sam Young, and Aaron Gray. Those teams were frequently ranked in the Top 20, or even Top 10. And they made zero Final Fours. Kansas State, in recent years, has also emerged as a national powerhouse, fielding teams with future pros like Michael Beasley and Bill Walker. Those teams were frequently ranked in the Top 20, or even Top 10. And they made zero Final Fours. Notre Dame, in recent years, has emerged as a national powerhouse, fielding teams with future pros like Luke Harangody and Chris Quinn. Those teams were frequently ranked in the Top 20, or even Top 10. And they made zero Final Fours.
Now these teams are back, each in the Top 20, and, presumably, viewed by the experts as a threat to make the Final Four. Well, I don’t buy it. Am I supposed to believe that K State is going to win more without Beasley than it did with him? Or that Pitt will have more success than it was able to have with Blair and Young? I don’t see it happening. I’m well aware that the teams that beat them back when they had those guys now have different players (that’s how it works in college hoops), but, still… If the programs couldn’t get the job done when they had those talented future pros, I don’t see reason to believe they’re going to get over the hump now.
When the time comes to distinguish contenders from pretenders, I’ll be ranking them with the pretenders.
Agreed that Boeheim gets it done for the ‘Cuse. Last year in particular was one of the better coaching performances that I can remember, that is, until the Orange’s early exit from the tournament. But what’s with the shot at Coach Roy Williams of UNC? Sure, Ol’ Roy had a tough year last year as it was the only year (other than his first at Kansas when the Jayhawks were on probation) that his team did not make the NCAA tourney. Roy still has the highest winning percentage among active coaches and has won two NCAA championships in the last six years.
TigerHeel, you are the man. Your comments always move the hoopservation along.
Fair points re Roy, but here’s the thing… the TarHeels performed so far below expectations last year that it calls into question Roy’s coaching ability. Those guys started the year ranked in the top 5, then completely fell apart. Of course, it’s possible that they were overrated to begin with, but my point is that, if Roy was coaching anything as well as Boeheim is coaching his patented 2-3 zone, you wouldn’t see a collapse like that.
I guess Carolina’s performance this year will tell us a lot about whether Roy deserves to be ranked in that elite group. If they step up, then last year can be written off as a fluke. If they don’t, then there are real questions about whether Roy can win without a dominant amount of talent on his squad.
Agreed that this year’s performance by a slower-than-I would-like improving Tar Heels team will go a long way towards restoring Roy’s suddenly tarnished image. I seem to recall Boeheim having some off years, too, and folks are quick to forget some horrid Duke teams in the mid-90s, including one that finished with a losing record.