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LSU on Solid Ground With N. Caldwell...But, Must Recruit
Posted on 4/1/14 at 9:41 am
Posted on 4/1/14 at 9:41 am
A pretty good, fair article by Scott Rabalais on the state of the LSU women's basketball program after Nikki Caldwell's third season......
State of the Program
State of the Program
Posted on 4/1/14 at 10:28 am to lsualum96
I can agree with all that.
I have to believe that they are going to bring a couple of JUCO's in. Harden was signed in mid-April last year and she proved to be fairly valuable. They need a big bruiser who is mobile and who can rebound. I think the "Caldwell way" is to have a small, fast team that can run and jump and force turnovers. I have no problem with being a guard-oriented team, but SOMEONE has to get some rebounds. Anyone who believes that Youngblood will get significant minutes, IF she is still on the team to begin with, is fooling themselves. She will forever be a 10-minute role-player at best.
Next year is a fairly crucial year, I think. We will get to see if the "Caldwell way" does indeed work. I do agree with others who have said that they thought we would get more "splash" recruits, but I just haven't seen it.
I have to believe that they are going to bring a couple of JUCO's in. Harden was signed in mid-April last year and she proved to be fairly valuable. They need a big bruiser who is mobile and who can rebound. I think the "Caldwell way" is to have a small, fast team that can run and jump and force turnovers. I have no problem with being a guard-oriented team, but SOMEONE has to get some rebounds. Anyone who believes that Youngblood will get significant minutes, IF she is still on the team to begin with, is fooling themselves. She will forever be a 10-minute role-player at best.
Next year is a fairly crucial year, I think. We will get to see if the "Caldwell way" does indeed work. I do agree with others who have said that they thought we would get more "splash" recruits, but I just haven't seen it.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 10:46 am to LSUGrad9295
quote:
the "Caldwell way" is to have a small, fast team that can run and jump and force turnovers.
It worked for UNLV in the 80's. I think she can pull it off with the right personnel.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 11:27 am to LSUGrad9295
quote:
I have to believe that they are going to bring a couple of JUCO's in. Harden was signed in mid-April last year and she proved to be fairly valuable. They need a big bruiser who is mobile and who can rebound. I think the "Caldwell way" is to have a small, fast team that can run and jump and force turnovers. I have no problem with being a guard-oriented team, but SOMEONE has to get some rebounds. Anyone who believes that Youngblood will get significant minutes, IF she is still on the team to begin with, is fooling themselves. She will forever be a 10-minute role-player at best.
Next year is a fairly crucial year, I think. We will get to see if the "Caldwell way" does indeed work. I do agree with others who have said that they thought we would get more "splash" recruits, but I just haven't seen it.
My thoughts exactly.
We definitely have to get AT LEAST one big post player via the JUCO route during this offseason. I think we're set at the guard position for at least the next two seasons. It does appear that Youngblood is not gonna be with the team next year. However, I'm a big believer that kids can make a turnaround and improve for their last two seasons so, I haven't completely written her off yet.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 11:45 am to lsualum96
quote:
It does appear that Youngblood is not gonna be with the team next year. However, I'm a big believer that kids can make a turnaround and improve for their last two seasons so, I haven't completely written her off yet.
IF she comes back, she MUST lose some weight. She can't run up and down as quickly as they would like and she will clog up their transition game. If you have ever watched close enough, it is clear that Youngblood does have some basketball skills and she is a very good screen-setter. She just needs to shed some tonnage so the refs aren't so inclined to blow a whistle on her every time she looks at somebody funny...
Posted on 4/1/14 at 11:46 am to lsualum96
I like Scott R and respect him great deal. His article was IMHO a glass if half full one...the half empty side is
3-11 vs top 50 rpi this year,
Worst SEC losing streak in 20 years, First losing record in SEC 15+ years
30-24 in SEC while Van was 29-23 his LAST 3 years (his worst 3 with NO seniors in year 1)
We won this year with 3 she did not recruit, but admit she made them better players.
The regular SEC season was our worst in 15 years and this was her 3rd year...this is a bad sign
BUT two sweet 16's and 3 NCAA's is something she deserves credit for.
Jury still out and even her supporters admit next year may be a tough one- this is her 4th year and we should not accept a "tough" year. I still think she can do very well here but 60-40 she will lose too much in next two years (to me this means not finishing in SEC top 4 and miss NCAA next year) and she will be let go. I still support her making $700K+ as this is the market and I still admit I underestimated how well she did at end of her 1st and second year, but to me like the article says, she needs to recruit enough players to get us in SEC top 3-4 and I dont see her doing that.
Glad to be proven wrong, but cant think even her biggest supporters are "ok" with how we are in SEC, especially after SEC has been shown to be not as strong as thought this year- one final 8. no final four teams.
3-11 vs top 50 rpi this year,
Worst SEC losing streak in 20 years, First losing record in SEC 15+ years
30-24 in SEC while Van was 29-23 his LAST 3 years (his worst 3 with NO seniors in year 1)
We won this year with 3 she did not recruit, but admit she made them better players.
The regular SEC season was our worst in 15 years and this was her 3rd year...this is a bad sign
BUT two sweet 16's and 3 NCAA's is something she deserves credit for.
Jury still out and even her supporters admit next year may be a tough one- this is her 4th year and we should not accept a "tough" year. I still think she can do very well here but 60-40 she will lose too much in next two years (to me this means not finishing in SEC top 4 and miss NCAA next year) and she will be let go. I still support her making $700K+ as this is the market and I still admit I underestimated how well she did at end of her 1st and second year, but to me like the article says, she needs to recruit enough players to get us in SEC top 3-4 and I dont see her doing that.
Glad to be proven wrong, but cant think even her biggest supporters are "ok" with how we are in SEC, especially after SEC has been shown to be not as strong as thought this year- one final 8. no final four teams.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 12:11 pm to lsualum96
Number one: get rid of Tank. Number two: get faster and more athletic especially under the goal. Number three: get a solid three point shooter.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 12:20 pm to secman12
She needs to get her butt in gear and do some hard big time recruiting. We are down to nothing in player numbers. Just see what happened in the last game. She has not improved the team in my opinion.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 12:25 pm to lsualum96
Interesting that UCLA has what many believe to be the #1 recruiting class this year. We definitely need some big girls to replace our seniors but to me the thing that we have always been lacking is a pure shooter who can knock down the 3 consistently. We've had players who can hit 4 3s in a game and then go 0-for for the next 4 games. I was amazed at the shooters that Louisville had...I don't think they missed an open 3 all game. All the teams that are advancing have deadly shooters who almost never miss the critical shot. I know the SEC is more power and speed, etc, but so many of the games we lost this year were because we couldn't hit a critical shot in a close game.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 1:20 pm to dagotiger
Pokey was the GOAT womens BB recruiter.
No coach has yet to bring in the type of talent she was reeling in and that's why the program is just average now
No coach has yet to bring in the type of talent she was reeling in and that's why the program is just average now
Posted on 4/1/14 at 1:25 pm to sunnydaze
"Pokey was the GOAT womens BB recruiter.
No coach has yet to bring in the type of talent she was reeling in and that's why the program is just average now"
THIS!
And we need a shooting guard besides Harden to compliment her. We need one big plug for the post; hopefully Kalani Brown. We need to let Tank go. And Petersen needs to actually play basketball next year and not that "graceful European player stuff" that Van described her as....
Pokey.....just admit we were wrong to let her go and just bring her back.
No coach has yet to bring in the type of talent she was reeling in and that's why the program is just average now"
THIS!
And we need a shooting guard besides Harden to compliment her. We need one big plug for the post; hopefully Kalani Brown. We need to let Tank go. And Petersen needs to actually play basketball next year and not that "graceful European player stuff" that Van described her as....
Pokey.....just admit we were wrong to let her go and just bring her back.
This post was edited on 4/1/14 at 1:27 pm
Posted on 4/1/14 at 1:29 pm to whatchamacallit
quote:
Pokey.....just admit we were wrong to let her go and just bring her back.
What in the actual frick?
Posted on 4/1/14 at 1:52 pm to lsualum96
She is a good coach but the name of the game in college sports is recruiting. When and if Saban wins anything without having talent advantage I will put coaching ahead of recruiting.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 1:55 pm to whatchamacallit
quote:
Pokey was the GOAT
Unfortunately, the GOAT ate too many briars in the briar patch.......
Posted on 4/1/14 at 1:58 pm to RATeamWannabe
It is mind boggling how she reeled in top classes at UCLA but seems to be struggling here. Yes Moncrief and Ballard were good grabs but we need to bring in a class that has multiple top players. We definitely need shooters. Harden is a good 3 pt shooter, her mid range is wildly inconsistent. Rhodes and Peterson can't seem to make a shot unless its WIDE open. Rhodes needs to develop an outside game, her game in hs was literally all inside the paint. I'm hoping Deemer will change that
Posted on 4/1/14 at 3:42 pm to Tigerbait357
long, but true..
The "Pokey was great" mythology remains, facts about her recruiting..Pokey almost killed our program...She helped recruit some great players for sure, but she also lost us many recruits who did not want to be "hit on" by an asst coach, (Tiffany Jackson to name one with whom we almost certainly would have won at least two NC's),
BUT, Pokey was let go in late March and left a team with 9 seniors, two juniors and two underclassmen. She had signed two players in early signing (Hightower and Phillips). In other words she was going to the next season with FOUR players who ever saw a college court. She had NOT recruited well the last 2+ years and the team was going to be waaaay down after the next year no matter what.
Oh, and as a parting shot her "sig other" Coach Stiles from La Tech lineage (who is now an asst coach with Pokey and has been for last 7 years in Russia etc) talked Porsche Philips into leaving for UGA before ever playing for us.
The "Pokey was great" mythology remains, facts about her recruiting..Pokey almost killed our program...She helped recruit some great players for sure, but she also lost us many recruits who did not want to be "hit on" by an asst coach, (Tiffany Jackson to name one with whom we almost certainly would have won at least two NC's),
BUT, Pokey was let go in late March and left a team with 9 seniors, two juniors and two underclassmen. She had signed two players in early signing (Hightower and Phillips). In other words she was going to the next season with FOUR players who ever saw a college court. She had NOT recruited well the last 2+ years and the team was going to be waaaay down after the next year no matter what.
Oh, and as a parting shot her "sig other" Coach Stiles from La Tech lineage (who is now an asst coach with Pokey and has been for last 7 years in Russia etc) talked Porsche Philips into leaving for UGA before ever playing for us.
This post was edited on 4/1/14 at 3:51 pm
Posted on 4/1/14 at 4:09 pm to secman12
quote:
The "Pokey was great" mythology remains, facts about her recruiting..Pokey almost killed our program...She helped recruit some great players for sure, but she also lost us many recruits who did not want to be "hit on" by an asst coach, (Tiffany Jackson to name one with whom we almost certainly would have won at least two NC's),
She also recruited all the players from the most successful run in program history so.......
While the entire affair hurt the program hiring Van for mostly PR purposes hurt more.
quote:
BUT, Pokey was let go in late March and left a team with 9 seniors, two juniors and two underclassmen. She had signed two players in early signing (Hightower and Phillips). In other words she was going to the next season with FOUR players who ever saw a college court. She had NOT recruited well the last 2+ years and the team was going to be waaaay down after the next year no matter what.
Obviously but the team would still have been in a better place with had a better coach and recruiter leading the program.
This post was edited on 4/1/14 at 4:11 pm
Posted on 4/1/14 at 4:14 pm to saintsfan22
I think this article was spot on, but did Matt Harris or Rabalais do anything similar on Coach Jones and the men's team? I must have missed it. I'd sure like to read it.
Posted on 4/1/14 at 4:43 pm to secman12
quote:
The "Pokey was great" mythology remains, facts about her recruiting..Pokey almost killed our program...She helped recruit some great players for sure, but she also lost us many recruits who did not want to be "hit on" by an asst coach, (Tiffany Jackson to name one with whom we almost certainly would have won at least two NC's),
BUT, Pokey was let go in late March and left a team with 9 seniors, two juniors and two underclassmen. She had signed two players in early signing (Hightower and Phillips). In other words she was going to the next season with FOUR players who ever saw a college court. She had NOT recruited well the last 2+ years and the team was going to be waaaay down after the next year no matter what.
Oh, and as a parting shot her "sig other" Coach Stiles from La Tech lineage (who is now an asst coach with Pokey and has been for last 7 years in Russia etc) talked Porsche Philips into leaving for UGA before ever playing for us.
Can't completely agree with everything here.
When Pokey left, she had a team that had 9 juniors. Also, she was recruiting LaSondra Barrett AND April Sykes (who at the time was the #2 recruit in the nation behind Elena Della Donne)...........who were both heavy leans. In other words, she had another great class coming in. So, let's not trash Pokey on that point. Pokey and her staff were GREAT recruiters.....................the value of which we're really seeing now because we're not getting the same results with the current staff.
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