You must have super-special analyst powers to have been able to see an Elite 8 team brimming under the surface of a team that looked cover-your-eyes awful and a good candidate to make it three straight first-round exits less than a month ago.

 

 

 

They were still playing awful when everybody on the team was as healthy as they were going to get. And while it all feels great now, the fact remains is Pitino's recruiting has slipped dramatically. I tip my hat to him for the coaching job he's done these past two weeks, but for the life of me I can't figure out where it's coming from.

 

Why do you feel his recruiting has slipped dramatically? You think the team we have has no talent? Do you wish we had Kentucky's recurits? What are you looking for from Coach Pitino. Serious questions. I personally like the guys he recruits. Love the way he sees talent others pass on (Gorgui), and the way he gets the most out of those "lesser" recruits.

A few random stats

 

-Kyle is now at 964 points, 36 shy of joining the 1000 point club

-Gorgs is now solidly in 4th place for most career blocks with 179. He’s approaching 3rd which is currently Billy Thompson with 185

-Siva is now at 200 assists for the season, 26 short of Labradford Smith’s (sp?) record

-Russ is still 2 short of the single season steal record

You must have super-special analyst powers to have been able to see an Elite 8 team brimming under the surface of a team that looked cover-your-eyes awful and a good candidate to make it three straight first-round exits less than a month ago.

 

 

 

 

I could see they had talented big men in Behanan and Dieng, a quick athlete in Smith, a confused, but talented PG, a team that at times could play very tough defense, and a coach that usually has his team ready to go at tournament time. Wasn't hard to see the potential for a run in the tournament was there.

Why do you feel his recruiting has slipped dramatically? You think the team we have has no talent? Do you wish we had Kentucky's recurits? What are you looking for from Coach Pitino. Serious questions. I personally like the guys he recruits. Love the way he sees talent others pass on (Gorgui), and the way he gets the most out of those "lesser" recruits.

 

Well, let's see. The Louisville teams Pitino has recruited don't come within a longshot of what the Pitino UK teams looked like. Compounding that, this year's and last year's team slipped dramatically in terms of talent from the teams of just a couple years ago. And those teams, which included a Final Four and Elite 8 team, don't come within a longshot of what he used to recruit at Kentucky. Not sure how anyone other than a Pitino worshiper could come to a conclusion other than mine -- that he can't recruit at a high level any more.

 

He's allegedly one of the best recruiters in the game. I don't want him to make a habit of "getting the most out of 'lesser' recruits." I want him getting the best recruits, and making them better. He used to be able to do that. He can't any more.

 

Sure, there's some talent there. But it's not the best of the best, and a program such as Louisville should have that. Instead, Pitino loves his head case point guards, and the team's fortunes wax and wane with the mental well-being of these head cases. That's a scary thought for a fan.

I could see they had talented big men in Behanan and Dieng, a quick athlete in Smith, a confused, but talented PG, a team that at times could play very tough defense, and a coach that usually has his team ready to go at tournament time. Wasn't hard to see the potential for a run in the tournament was there.

 

I'm still not sure you're being 100 percent honest. That, or you weren't watching any regular-season Louisville games, observing the cover-your-eyes awful basketball they played the entire season up until the BEast Tourney. If you watched the same team I did regularly, "deep NCAA run" was not a phrase that ever entered your mind.

Maybe it's just my imagination (probably actually), but Pitino looked younger to me tonight than he had in a long time.

 

I said the same thing when I was watching the game.

Well, let's see. The Louisville teams Pitino has recruited don't come within a longshot of what the Pitino UK teams looked like. Compounding that, this year's and last year's team slipped dramatically in terms of talent from the teams of just a couple years ago. And those teams, which included a Final Four and Elite 8 team, don't come within a longshot of what he used to recruit at Kentucky. Not sure how anyone other than a Pitino worshiper could come to a conclusion other than mine -- that he can't recruit at a high level any more.

 

He's allegedly one of the best recruiters in the game. I don't want him to make a habit of "getting the most out of 'lesser' recruits." I want him getting the best recruits, and making them better. He used to be able to do that. He can't any more.

 

Sure, there's some talent there. But it's not the best of the best, and a program such as Louisville should have that. Instead, Pitino loves his head case point guards, and the team's fortunes wax and wane with the mental well-being of these head cases. That's a scary thought for a fan.

 

Was it last year that UL relied so heavily on Preston Knowles? He was not a highly sought after recruit, either.

Was it last year that UL relied so heavily on Preston Knowles? He was not a highly sought after recruit, either.

 

While I love Preston, you see where it got them. First-round exit.

While I love Preston, you see where it got them. First-round exit.

 

I was just pointing out that Pitino's lack of recruiting left Louisville with a homegrown former walk-on (I think) to lead them into the tournament.

I was just pointing out that Pitino's lack of recruiting left Louisville with a homegrown former walk-on (I think) to lead them into the tournament.

 

A circumstance that never should have happened had he been doing his job properly (or, at least, the way he used to).

I'm still not sure you're being 100 percent honest. That, or you weren't watching any regular-season Louisville games, observing the cover-your-eyes awful basketball they played the entire season up until the BEast Tourney. If you watched the same team I did regularly, "deep NCAA run" was not a phrase that ever entered your mind.

 

I had UL making the final four, so I think that shows I was 100 percent honest in thinking UL would make a run in the tournament. Not to mention I am not one of those people who fill out multiple brackets and then try to say how they picked games being right. I fill out one bracket every year and pick the same teams in each contest I get in. Which I had UK, UL, OSU, and UNC in everyone. So this UK fan did really believe UL would make a run, and even went as far as showing that by picking them to make the final four before losing to UK.

Jim, I love the way Pitino recruits. I love that he finds guys, sees things in guys no one else sees. There are a lot of factors to winning ball games, and having the top recruits in the country doesn't guarantee anything. Maybe I'm just a different kind of fan, with different expectations. But in the end, I'm here to say Pitino recruits well, from my perspective.

 

I, for one, am even MORE excited to have us make the Final Four BECAUSE our team isn't made up of players everyone "knows" and "expects" to succeed. I think it solidifies that there are other factors at play. This team is a "team" in every aspect, as far as I can see. If UK wins, the odds (literally) are on UK to win. Does that diminish what UL has accomplished because we run into a team with the top recruits that also are able to play with the same qualities I see in the Cards? Not in my mind. Not at all. It only further enhances the notion that even without a roster filled with top recruits from the first off the bench to the last, it's NOT just about the individual players, nor the stars behind their name when they're recruited.

 

I wouldn't trade the heart, passion and unselfishness of this team for anything in the world. I wouldn't trade a Senegalese player who only began playing basketball after he grew too tall for soccer. I wouldn't trade Kyle Kuric and Chris Smith, walk on's who earned scholarships, then relinquished them for the greater good of the team. I wouldn't trade Russ-diculous. I wouldn't trade Jared Swopshire who is (by all accounts) fine to transfer to make room on the roster for "new blood". I wouldn't trade Peyton Siva, a "tiny" little player with probably the biggest heart of any UL player I've watched. I wouldn't trade Wayne Blackshear, a "top recruit" who's struggled with disappointment all year. I wouldn't trade Elijah Justice, another player who could have gone elsewhere. And I wouldn't trade Rick Pitino for any other coach....He recruits just fine for his system. He motivates players to levels no one expects. He still can take a team everyone bails on long before March Madness, and elevate them to a level that puts them in as one of the last four standing on the national stage. He believes in his players, and his players believe in him.

 

I don't care if we win the National Championship (although that would be sweet ). I don't care if we get to the Final Four every year. One of the reasons I love being a UL fan over the decades is because there is a difference (to me) in Louisville basketball and some other programs that may be deemed "more successful" based on things like recruiting and National Championships. It's that I rarely have had the occasion to question the committment of the players to the team, the school or the vision. I've rarely had occasion to question their passion for playing for the University of Louisville. If all I cared about were recruiting standings and winning National Championships, there are several other programs I could follow.