DBR: Featherston On NC State Hoops

07-08 Basketball NCS Basketball125

So where do you rank them? If you believe all the optimism about the newcomers at the point, it makes sense to project the Pack at second or third in the league.

But it’s dangerous to believe that optimism. You have to understand that one lesson you learn about more than 30-plus years of ACC Operation Basketball is that EVERYBODY is optimistic at this time of year. Every problem will be solved, either by a freshman underrated by the experts, or by a veteran who just hasn’t gotten a chance to show what he can do yet.

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07-08 Basketball NCS Basketball

125 Responses to DBR: Featherston On NC State Hoops

  1. beowolf 10/25/2007 at 6:03 PM #

    Remind me how many banners Herb hung in ten years? How many trophies? We play for silverware here; anything less over TEN YEARS IS mediocrity. Learn your history, son.

  2. burnbarn 10/25/2007 at 6:42 PM #

    ^ ouch beo!!! It had to be said however.

    “I missed anything? I don’t think I recall ever seeing a team with such a gaping hole at PG ranked in the top three in the ACC preseason”

    This is the new college bball…. rarely do teams have great guard experience anymore…. In the ACC last year..UVa, BC, maybe Md… so only three teams in the league had experience in the backcourt (both positions).

  3. redfred2 10/25/2007 at 8:03 PM #

    This shouldn’t really be necessary, but apparently there are still some who don’t know much about college basketball.

    The following is copied from Wikipedia:

    The NCAA tournament has expanded a number of times in the last 65 seasons. This is a breakdown of the history of the tournament format:

    1939–1950: eight teams
    1951–1952: 16 teams
    1953–1974: varied from 22-25 teams
    1975–1978: 32 teams
    1979: 40 teams
    1980–1982: 48 teams
    1983: 52 teams (four play-in games before the tournament)
    1984: 53 teams (five play-in games before the tournament)
    1985–2000: 64 teams
    2001— : 65 teams (with an “opening round” game to determine whether the 64th or 65th team plays in the first round)

    Now, does that shed any light on the never ending praises for “FIVE IN A ROW”?

    So, packgrad93, in the time since the NCAA has expanded it’s field to 64, now 65 teams, and severly cheapened the entire format, YOUR coach is the only one who has taken NC State to the tournament five straight times.

    I guess that proves just about what I’ve always said it did, and not much else. It proves that Les Robinson wasn’t a very good basketball coach at all.

  4. redfred2 10/25/2007 at 8:12 PM #

    “answer my question, why was Wright coming then?”

    I asked Dan that question back when Wright first “commited” to play for the Pack.

    I asked WHY??? Or maybe it was, WHY IN HELL???

  5. McPete 10/25/2007 at 9:44 PM #

    We all like the same team, right?

    Any reasonable person would agree that while Coach Lowe was given a great opportunity to head a proud, storied program with excellent facilities and a passionate fanbase, he did not inherit a great situation for his 1st year (I know i’m not the only one who said ‘oh shit, we’re really screwed now’ after Atsur got hurt in the Michigan game). We had a walk-on in the starting lineup. Seriously, I can dribble better than Bryan Neiman (no disrespect intended).

  6. PackerInRussia 10/25/2007 at 11:01 PM #

    “Well…there’s 10 minutes I’ll never get back.”

    Yet it seems like I’ve wasted those same ten minutes many times before.

  7. WIFF 10/26/2007 at 12:19 AM #

    All I wanna know is who picked us to finish 8th in the conference?

  8. cooldrip 10/26/2007 at 12:20 AM #

    I’m 38, son. I’m one of SEVEN Nc State grads in my family, son. One of my first memories as a child was our Final Four victory over UCLA, son. I met the team at what I think was the last Dixie Classic/North-South challenge in 1982, son.

    And about Chris Wright, I really don’t know why he would have come here. I never said Herb couldn’t recruit, he just didn’t know what to do with the kids when they got here (see Cedric Simmons).

    Since I answered your question, answer mine: how many TITLES did Herb win?

  9. PackerInRussia 10/26/2007 at 4:57 AM #

    If it would help resolve the conflict, you guys can call me son.

  10. Stoner 10/26/2007 at 7:29 AM #

    ellington dosen’t scare me at all, you put a lock down defender on ellington he can’t do anything.

    I disagree. Ellington was a one demonsional player last year. He got better at putting the ball on the floor and driving to the basket, at the end of the year. If he can finish at all around the basket and doesn’t settle for jump shots, he’ll be tough to defend.

    If it would help resolve the conflict, you guys can call me son.

    To quote Darth Vader, “there is no conflict”. Folks just seem to want to debate a guy, who knows just what to say to push everyone’s buttons…

    Not saying it’s a bad thing, gives more to read at work, while I’m trying to kill some time.

  11. RochesterRedWolf 10/26/2007 at 10:15 AM #

    Jeff Goodman on Foxsports picks NCSU @ #18…what i noticed was this bit of drivel/nonsense when he’s writing up the team..

    “You don’t know him … yet: J.J. Hickson — He’s extremely talented and just needs to learn to play hard all the time.”

    Goes to show you how sportswriters have a short bucket of cliches that they just pull out of the hat and then put them in every story. Anyone who has ever read any scouting report about Hickson or read interviews knows that the guy never ever stops.

  12. beowolf 10/26/2007 at 10:24 AM #

    For the record, I call PackerinRussia tovarishsh.

  13. packgrad93 10/26/2007 at 11:07 AM #

    “There could not be confusion between the definition of the words “situation” and “opportunity”. ”

    I said Sid came into a great situation. You said Sid came into a great opportunity. Same thing. I never said his 1st season was a great situation, just his overall program situation.

    “YOUR coach is the only one who has taken NC State to the tournament five straight times”

    how many other programs have done that?

    “I’m 38, son. ”

    2 years older than me so quit acting like a child if you can

  14. newt 10/26/2007 at 11:12 AM #

    Yeah, Goodman just lost all credibility.

    What I’ve realized is that nobody knows and understands a team, program, coach, etc. like its fans. And that team’s fans understand their arch rival better than most as well.

    That’s not to say fans don’t sometimes translate what they know into delusions of grandeur.

    Also, let’s make an exception for some bandwagon fans that don’t understand recruiting and think their chosen teams win because they are better people and try harder.

  15. TNCSU 10/26/2007 at 12:19 PM #

    ^^Seriously, I can dribble better than Bryan Neiman (no disrespect intended).

    FYI, Neiman’s playing pro ball in Ireland and scored 45 points in a games recently.

    WRT Hickson, he definitely plays hard all the time. I think you’ll see him playing alot WITH McCauley. The way Big Ben can pass, and the way Hickson can FINISH will be fun to watch. I think Tracy Smith has had the issue with not playing hard all the time, but he’s a Freshman, and I think Sid will fix that. I think he’ll also get some good playing time this year. Man, I’m psyched!!

    I think we’ve got a few official visits (bball recruits) this weekend — anyone know who we may be hosting???

  16. primacyone 10/26/2007 at 1:19 PM #

    ^Kelly and Wall attended a practice reacently and I think both will be in attendance on Saturday. I’ve heard Thornton is coming down as well, but I am not sure.

  17. McPete 10/26/2007 at 4:41 PM #

    TNSU: So i guess you’re saying that you don’t have to dribble to play professionally in Ireland? Sweet!

    I applaud his contributions to the team last year and they may not have won as many games without him, but if a guy scores 1.9 points a game (theacc.com) in college but can score 45 a game elsewhere, i’d really question the level of competition. and it’s not like he didn’t get an opportunity to play last season.

  18. TNCSU 10/26/2007 at 7:32 PM #

    ^^^Just interesting to note….You don’t have to be able to dribble to play professionally in the States, either – see Shaq. But you are correct, I’m sure it’s not “stellar” competition, but it didn’t surprise Sid — Neiman does have a nice shot.

  19. redfred2 10/26/2007 at 8:22 PM #

    “answer my question, why was Wright coming then?”

    Why, you ask, packgrad93?

    It’s kind of like a sickness, wherein certain young, or just plain unfortunate individuals, fall prey and are very susceptable to different OUTSIDE influences. Once hooked, they just can’t see anything else because their own addiction won’t allow it. But in Chris Wright’s case, it wasn’t one the normal evil influences that most young kids face, it was instead, just a very bland flavor of koolaid.

    You, of all people, should know that, along the flavor.

    For help visit:

    http://www.sunshinekoolaidannounymous.com

    Where you sit and watch for a year, everyone is treated just like everyone else, no problem is bigger than any other, and the staff is all interchangeable.

  20. beowolf 10/26/2007 at 10:44 PM #

    The fact that you have to point to a kid who would have played in Year 11 to make your case, doesn’t.

    BUT GETTING BACK TO THE TOPIC OF THE POST, WHICH IS ABOUT THE FUTURE OF NC STATE BASKETBALL, NOT THE PAST:

    I’m hoping Lowe and his staff will find an answer at point guard, because guard play usually spells the difference between winning teams and championship winning teams.

  21. packfanstk 10/28/2007 at 10:08 PM #

    Wright was coming because he was obviously not interested in being in a system where he had the responsibilities of a true point guard. If he was, he would have still come to State, or at least, NOT gone to a school where the coach is another disciple of the positionless offense. Point guards and centers to Herb Sendek were like cars to dogs…even if they catch one they couldn’t drive the dang thing. If the Desert Fox had still been our coach last season, Ben McCauley would have been setting screens between the rings and jacking threes, while Engin Atsur’s injury would have cost Herb his prime post-up guy.

    Only Jim Valvano, Les Robinson, and Herb Sendek have coached at NC State for at least five seasons in the era of the 64-team NCAA Tournament. Both V and Sendek made five consecutive NCAA appearances. V had only one team that had to play its way in after the regular season ended. Sendek had only one team that didn’t. If Sendek had coached under the old rules, NC State would have had zero NCAA appearances in his decade. Only one other coach in the history of the entire ACC that lasted ten years at one school had a worse record than Sendek….Virginia’s Hoot Gibson. Only two that lasted as many as eight years were worse than Sendek’s eight-year record….Gibson and Clemson’s Bobby Roberts.

    Cedar/Mebane/Whateverhecallshimselfnow knows all this. He’s just an indomitable shill for the Sandman.

    Oh, and Featherston’s column is pretty spot-on.

  22. redfred2 10/29/2007 at 1:10 AM #

    packfanstk, FUNNY and full of undeniable FACTS, just the way I like them.

  23. packgrad93 10/29/2007 at 10:07 AM #

    “Ben McCauley would have been setting screens between the rings and jacking threes”

    really, how many 3’s did Ced jack?

  24. redfred2 10/29/2007 at 7:13 PM #

    “really, how many 3’s did Ced jack?”

    I don’t think he had the usual outside shooting touch that most point centers have nowadays. Man, if he could have only shot the three though, just think what an asset he could been.

  25. redfred2 10/29/2007 at 7:14 PM #

    ^could “have” been.

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