What about Steve Alford then? (Sorry had to interject some Iowa in the conversation) This is actually his best coaching job since he got to Iowa. I'm actually somewhat warming to him as a coach, not as a human being.

Thanks for that Vince.

I really despise myself for somehow becoming the standard bearer for Bruce Weber. I like the guy as a coach and all...wait, not starting again...

Iowa has done better than I thought. I'd have to look back at my Big 10 prediction but I think I had them 8 or 9.

Maybe I'll update that prior to the Big 10 tourney to show how poorly I predicted.

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You know me like that.

I said a good season for Iowa was NIT, 17 wins and 500 in the big ten. With a win Wednesday in Happy Valley, they'd be guaranteed a over 500 mark in the Big Ten and hit 17 wins I think.

I actually never say them getting more than 6 in the Big Ten. Tyler Smith has developed into a good solid 3/4 type player and Haluska should be MVP of the league, but Tucker will get it.

I would always rather have top recruits over lesser players. However, hasn't the last few tournaments shown that teams comprised of good but not great players who stay 4-5 years even out the competition presented by highly touted but inexperienced younger players?

The superior recruiting classes NEVER get the opportunity to realize their full potential because of defections to the NBA.

But as you suggest, it's not logical to assume that McCamey will be as good as Williams. If it were, then McCamey would be much more highly rated and Weber wouldn't have wasted all his time and energy trying to woo Gordon, Rose and Turner. Obviously the rankings aren't perfect, but it's telling that Weber hasn't been able to gain commitments from ANY of his "priority" recruits. So the idea of Weber getting a "top 20 guy" to have a breakout year seems like a remote possibility at this point.

But obviously things can change fast. Maybe Weber will overhaul his approach to recruiting--I've heard stories that he's already started changing things around.

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In what league GD? Iowa was full of seniors and won the BigTen so I agree with that, but in the NCAAs, Florida was full of younger players and won it all....

I'd say you need a mix of superstars and four-year guys. Isn't that what Carolina had two years ago and Florida had last year (and has again)?

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He has. My comments are based partly on that fact.

I guess I could have mentioned that a couple hours ago and given us all some of our lives back.

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You know me like that.

No. This was good. I needed some serious procrastination today.

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I think the success of the "mid majors" is really a testament to what I was talking about. That was not just a one year wonder either. This has been a trend in the NCAA tourney for several years.

At the "major conference" level, take a team like the Illini of 05. Before the season started, it had been documented in several publications that professional scouts did not think much of their talent (it turns out they were wrong).

I sometimes feel that some people on here think I'm a clown or a fool so I feel the need to occasionally post on a serious topic and remove all doubt.

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You know me like that.

You know Doc, it is better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and confirm it.
Or a reasonable facsimile thereof.

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We all have private ails. The troublemakers are they who need public cures for their private ails.- Eric Hoffer

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You know me like that.

In all seriousness Doc, I agree with your opinion of Coach Bruce.
I am willing to give him another two years to see what it will be like when he has a roster of his guys. The last couple classes have been thin, but injuries have killed them this season, not to mention motoring issues.
Bruce is a solid coach and I think the next two classes will impress the detractors, when all is said and done.

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We all have private ails. The troublemakers are they who need public cures for their private ails.- Eric Hoffer

Midge, you make an excellent counter argument to the good Doc.
Bruce is not the best recruiter, but he is an excellent coach. I am willing to give him 2 more years to see what he can assemble.
Initially, I don't think he was prepared to be a coach of a big time program, not from an X and O standpoint but from a recruiting standpoint. Only time will tell is he has learned form this and made the necessary changes. He was able to recruit some good teams at SIU, so I think he can evaluate talent. Maybe, for the first two years or so, he thought the program would recruit itself, because of the Championship season but he was wrong. Hard work goes a long way.
I don't know what the answer is. I am willing to wait and see. I have heard good things about next years' class, but my local sources are biased.

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We all have private ails. The troublemakers are they who need public cures for their private ails.- Eric Hoffer

So my question is:

Is Lance Painter better suited to recruiting at the Big Ten level than Bruce Weber?

Both came from SIU out of the Gene Keady tree and Painter has made strides with Purdue since Keady left it in the toilet (a la Hayden Fry)

I think some of these Weber recruiting woes are "system" based as well. I don't think the blue-chip superstars are typically looking to be slotted in a system like Weber's.

Now maybe Weber is telling him that they'll change the system to suit their needs. Or maybe he wasn't before and now he is and that is what he changed.

But, guys that are looking to vault to the next level want to come in and show their stuff. Remember the stink Dee Brown made when Weber first tried to implement his stuff. It takes time to get that right but once they have it down it is fun to watch a la '04-'05.

I really do feel that Weber has the ability to take guys and improve their game. Look at guys like Head and Powell. And, so, I do feel if he loads up with top 50-100 guys, he might be able to make more of them than some other coaches.

But, I imagine a guy like Wainwright or Painter might just be telling these top kids come on in and we'll feed you the ball. Just speculation.

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You know me like that.

They had a tremedous bout of hard luck today, actually playing a good team away from Champaign

I thought they played Iowa.

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You know me like that.

It seems like the local media think Illinois already is in the tournament or at the worst need to beat Penn St.

However watching ESPN, Jay Bilas and Hubert Davis both think Illinois at this point is out of the tournament.

At this point I would have to agree with the ESPN guys. Illinois most impressive win this year? Michigan St? Indiana? Bradley? They finished
9-7 in a weak Big Ten and were fortunate to play Wisconsin and Ohio St once, both losses at home. I don't see how beating a bad Penn St. team proves anything.

I think Depaul has a much more impressive resume, beating Kansas, Notre Dame and Marquette. I think DePaul is a more deserving invite than Illinois. Yet it seems that according to the local scribes DePaul still has work to do.

Even Loyola has a more impressive victory (at Butler) than any Illinois victory.

If Illinois's colors were blue and white, and their coach had a rat face, they would say Illinois was in.

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Good people drink good beer - Hunter S. Thompson

<º)))><

Waiting for the time when I can finally say
That this has all been wonderful, but now I'm on my way