The Beginning of Something Special (Basketball)

I know- TL,DR.

Listen closely and you can hear it. The echoes of glories past. The battle call of Old Red yelling Geeaauuux Tiiigers heard across the arena; the shattered glass falling to the floor after a monster dunk by Shaq; the roar of 12,000 fans celebrating a 148-141 victory over Loyola-Marymount. And if you look hard enough you might just see the shadows of floppy socks running up and down the court, the smooth dribble and shot of Chris Jackson, the undersized Ricky Blanton playing out of position at center and leading his team to a final four berth . And above all, you will see and hear the indomitable Dale Brown, the coach who put his stamp on the Tigers’ glory days, prowling the sidelines, coaxing more from his players than expected, and turning boys into men, men into teams, and teams into family.

And now, if you care to look, you will see Coach Johnny Jones, who played and learned to coach under the tutelage of Dale Brown, beginning to place his stamp on the LSU program. It is way too early to know the heights he will reach as coach of LSU. But already you can begin to see the kind of program he will create, and for long-time Tiger fans it may seem familiar.

Look no further than Andrew del Piero for the evidence. After spending the last couple years on the practice squad and bench, save a few lackluster appearances, del Piero has become the breakout player of the team so far. Make no mistake, no one will confuse him with Shaq, or even Geert Hammink anytime soon, but consider his play this year. He is playing significant minutes at significant points in the game. Coach Jones has confidence in him and in turn his own self-confidence in his play has increased. And it’s not just his play. The rest of the team is excited for him. You can see it when he comes off the court. There is beginning to be a family built here again, and proud Papa Johnny Jones learned from the best how to coax overachieving performances from players.

If you listen really closely, you will hear a rumble, building its way to a roar; the sound of the tiger faithful awakening from their long slumber and seeing what is being created here again. And make no mistake, it is the beginning of something special.