I’m not upset about that loss. I would have rather not loss but not upset. I think it is good to go into the tournament with an embarrassing loss so you have more to prove.
What I saw yesterday were players with no legs. They weren’t at the space they needed to be. They weren’t getting lift on their shots. They were just tired. Their minds were there…their bodies were not. I think that’s why Coach left the starters in and just let them “play through the pain.” Besides Lacey’s 4 on 1 attempts which always drives me nuts….I didn’t see horrible play. This game will probably stick with them and will get them to the gym (today).
Teams that go into to the tournament with 5-0 plus winning streaks don’t seem to fare well in the ACCT and NCAAT. Everybody is waiting for them to lose. I’d rather lose to Boston College than UNC-CHeat.
On the streak that we have and with the teams we have beat. I’m ok with this one. If we happen to take Syracuse (which I honestly don’t care about- I’m an ACC traditionalist and SEC proponent; If Gott experimented wouldn’t bother me a bit) and then head into the tournament with some fire….this young bunch needs something to prove in the tournament and having a target on us doesn’t benefit us. If other teams are charged for us, not good for us. If they take us for granted, we will take teams by surprise. We are not a great team.
We can play very good at times but mostly, we are just good. Kudos for the coaching staff for keeping us in the game. I see massive improvement with the quality of kids (haven’t heard/seen of any parental clashes, headcase issues, stupid court misbehavior, nor diva behavior issues) and their play but we are still not quite there yet. We are close though.
I do like this team. They just need to find some motivation within themselves. Lazy as hell, entitled (god gave them the talent and/or body length) but typical of the good players that are out there. They play like they only have to do the minimal to show they care. Again, typical of all good and mediocre teams. UNC-CHeat same way. I like the guys who LIVE for the game and have passion for it. Go beyond their god-given talent. Those are the guys diving on the floor, taking charges, setting extra picks, doing the things necessary and extra to win. Right now, the guys are playing in a routine. They are tired.
Attitude check…Saw two walk-ons at Carmichael in January. One was not there to work but did run out to the hallway to meet chicks. I know he’s a walk-on. The other walk-on worked. Can you imagine how they are doing now when they are tired and beat-up with midterms coming up. My guess is not too great. That was a walk-on. They are not on the floor: They are part of the motivation strategy. It’s what happens with political, local hires. I am glad I don’t have to deal with that nonsense. Doesn’t mean that they are not good kids. Just naive kids who don’t understand that people are watching them all the time when they step into the general public. What carries in public carries back to the locker room.
Difference between Duke and everybody else. Their players don’t need a Bobby Knight speech at the beginning and halftime of every game.
We have some real h8ters on this site. I wonder if they had a bad interaction with Gottfried. Doesn’t make sense to me otherwise. Comparing him to Lowe and Sendek is about as Lowe as you can go. Gott has done an AMAZING job rebuilding this program after years of abysmal suctitude. A complete culture change in just a couple of years. Is he the coach for us long-term? We’ll see. I couldn’t be more pleased at this point. We are competitive again.
