Rick Pitino Talks Kentucky Loss, St. John's Game
by Mike Rutherford on Jan 2, 2012 3:51 PM EST
in Basketball
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--The Big East is so unpredictable because of all the different styles. Any team can beat any other team on a given night. St. John's is young and talented and if you let them play the way they want to play then they will beat you.
--Kentucky is the No. 1 defensive team in the country, and that's the reason our offense looked so bad on Saturday. Our offense is fine. We passed up some shots that we should have taken. Our strategy was to try and go inside and get them in foul trouble, and we didn't do that. Our offense looks bad because of some of our individual limitations, but it will be fine.
--You can't judge an offense off of what you see against Kentucky, because they're the premier defensive team in the country.
--Doesn't expect Stephan Van Treese back at all. Thought he'd be back already, and is shocked that he isn't. By the time he's healthy he will have missed so much time that it probably won't even be worth it for him to play. Rock will be way ahead and he probably won't even be able to pass Zach Price in terms of being game ready.
--Expects Wayne back before Van Treese.
--The problem with Wayne is that every time he gets hurt he puts on 15 pounds. We didn't do a very good job monitoring his diet. We should be working on more basketball things with him, but instead we're working almost entirely on getting him back into shape.
--Blackshear would have been ready to play in two weeks if he'd kept his weight in check, but that's our fault, not his.
--Richard says Wayne will be a "worthy substitute at best" when he gets back into playing shape.
--Kevin Ware is a lot better than he's shown. One day soon he's going to play about 20 minutes and blow people away. We're working on playing him a little bit more at the two.
--The offense on Saturday wasn't circulating around Russ, but Russ was the only one who could score against Kentucky.
--Peyton Siva did not do what he was supposed to against UK. We wanted to go inside more, and when we did go inside the offense looked good. Peyton used the high pick-and-roll too much.
--Didn't agree with the Chane Behanan technical. The referee told him he threw the ball at Terrence Jones, when in reality all he did was flip it on the ground. If he'd seen what actually happened then he would have protested the call more.
--Thought the Peyton Siva call at midcourt where he got to the ball first and then collided with Doron Lamb was awful. Still, Kentucky had some bad calls go against them too. It was a foul fest, an ugly game, but it wasn't the referees, everyone was fouling.
--Can't believe that Anthony Davis was a 58% free-throw shooter going into the game. Not only did he make 12-of-13 from the stripe, but his stroke looked really good. He looked like a much, much better shooter than 58% and he really made us pay for fouling him so much.
--Kentucky did what a lot of other teams are now going to do against Kyle Kuric, which is just shadow him and not let him get an open outside shot. Is he capable of doing more? Maybe not. The same can be said of Chris Smith. They both knew they were going to be played that way, and they didn't do anything about it.
--Guys with great length bother Kyle, and Kidd-Gilchrist is extremely long.
--Peyton Siva and Russ Smith did not help with rebounding at all. It was 3-on-4 on the glass every possession.
--Russ was the only guy we had capable of scoring in the game. Everyone else got taken out of their game.
--Not sure where U of L stacks up in the Big East right now.
--This is one of the hardest-working teams I've coached, but we're still limited in a lot of ways. Rakeem Buckles is still not 100%. Kevin Ware is still learning. Kyle Kuric and Chris Smith are not playing well because they're allowing teams to take them out of their games.
--We only had one guy playing well on Saturday and we still kept the game close because of incredible effort. But incredible effort isn't enough to beat a team like Kentucky. You're not going to beat a team like Syracuse on pure effort either. It's got to be effort and execution.
--Really proud of the guys though. We got taken to the woodshed on the glass and still gave an incredible effort and really competed.
--(Asked about guys from New York playing poorly or trying to do too much when playing in New York) "What's Russ gonna do? Take more shots? How can he?"
--"Russ is Russ. If Russ went down to the YMCA he would try to take every shot." Not too much bothers Russ.
--Chris Smith is trying to do things he's not capable of. Last year he fed off of ball screens, moving without the ball and faking. When he gets back to playing to his strengths, he'll be an effective player again.
--Chris and Kyle kind of fall under the same umbrella. They have to understand that Preston's gone. Last year they were the beneficiaries of everyone keying on Peyton and Preston. Now that Preston's gone, they're the ones being shadowed and they're not handling it well. They can't beat people off the dribble, they have to work hard without the basketball, and hopefully they learned that lesson from the Kentucky game.
--These next four games are crucial for us. If we don't come away with four W's it's going to be a fight to the finish, just like it has been a lot of other years recently.
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If Pitino had a daily 1-hour radio show discussing only Russ Smith...
I would listen.
by rcpeck on Jan 2, 2012 3:56 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Sorry but I still don't get the Russ didn't help with rebounding comment
It just doesn’t square with the stats.
by Carolina Cardinal on Jan 2, 2012 4:06 PM EST reply actions
Russ got mostly long rebounds.
Guess Rick expected him banging bodies, as well. My interpretation because I initially had the same question as you.
Stout Out!
by tdstout on Jan 2, 2012 6:08 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
If Russ didn't help with rebounding.....
….and was still our high rebounder (tie) I guess with a little effort the 6 foot (yeah, right!) 160 pound kid would average around 23 a game.
The Blackshear comments really piss me off.
If you are gonna run a system that you believe relies on the percent of body fat on your players, how can you not monitor an injured play enough such that he gains 15 pounds?! If it was a leg injury that prevented a lot of cardio, I could understand. But why were you not running him during every practice? This is just inexcusable.
I just had the same surgery Blackshear just went through
And even though it’s a shoulder injury, there’s not much you can do at all except lay around, watch tv, and eat. I agree with your comment about the diet, but there’s no way he could do any cardio for at least 2 weeks I would say.
"I like Bullet very much"
I get that.
It seems like running would really jar it and shake it around when it needs to be healing. But, they could’ve gave him a strict diet regimen. Regardless, I don’t think it will take him as long to get back as Rick is saying.
by cardcorefan on Jan 2, 2012 4:35 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Yeah. Surely a stationary bike (even a recumbent one) would be acceptable.
Either way, I’m going to take this as a bit of hyperbole as well. I’ll bet we see Wayne sooner than later and more than just a “worthy substitute”.
by Remote Cardinal on Jan 2, 2012 4:44 PM EST up reply actions
I get that too, bu how long ago was that surgery. Seems like quite a while ago. Hell, they were talking about him possible playing in December.
by Carolina Cardinal on Jan 2, 2012 4:37 PM EST up reply actions
My daughter had labrum surgery two years ago
and she still has severe pain when she isn’t careful with that shoulder. It wasn’t supposed to take that long, and she faithfully did her rehab. Sometimes these things just linger. Like – well, you know.
"I am willing to donate to the charity that is working on the prevention of whatever the hell Dick Vitale has." - noobmaster
Agreed in full
Sounds like blaming the player when the fault lies with the staff. Rick is starting to lay blame a lot of places and none of it near home.
by cbcard on Jan 2, 2012 6:33 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Pitino said explicitly later in the PC
That is was the staff’s fault, not Wayne’s, that he was allowed to put on the 15 pounds.
This is such a huge failure by the staff
Damn, this is your best recruit in 2 or 3 years, and just out of pure laziness you let him put on 15 lbs? Of course he’s going to be somewhat out of shape coming off of an injury, but how do you not focus on him every single day to get him back as quickly as possible and in the best shape possible? If feeding him only green beans for 2 months would have helped him be the most effective basketball player he could be, that’s what should have happened. Huge failure to just let a key piece become less effective under your own watch
by uoflcard on Jan 2, 2012 8:27 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
I've already made up my mind he's not going to be able to contribute this year, it's just not logical.
And now CRP tempering those expectations even more just reaffirm those thoughts to me
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 7:01 PM EST up reply actions
"Guys with great length bother Kyle"
o_O
by NotSoGreen on Jan 2, 2012 4:45 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
I can see Rick's dilemma trying to get Ware minutes.
You can’t take Russ out when he’s playing like this. You can take out Siva, but not in that environment at Rupp. Sure, he didn’t play that well, but there’s no sense putting a freshman running the point in that situation. We pretty much need a lead to do that. Hopefully we can build a solid lead in the coming games and get him in there.
When Blackshear gets healthy, I think you have to give him 5-10 minutes a game ASAP. He needs to build confidence in his shot and his overall game.
by cardcorefan on Jan 2, 2012 4:45 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Yes - bottom line - develop Blackshear or we've already seen our ceiling
And it’s not high enough.
by cardsinindy2010 on Jan 2, 2012 5:03 PM EST up reply actions
I'll also add this.
If top recruits who go to UK get fat paychecks and top recruits who come here get benched, how does that help recruiting?
by cardcorefan on Jan 2, 2012 5:16 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
Blackshear is not going to be our savior, and he's probably not even going to help as a reserve.
Rick has been slowly tempering those expectations since he told us WB would be back by late December early Jan.
The team we have is the team that’s got to figure this thing out, no one is going to save them or this season for them. The roster we have is about as healthy and as deep as we’re going to get. If they don’t figure out how to score some points, get open, make tough shots, then we really will be struggling to make the tourney.
Because it’s pretty obvious CRP isn’t capable of scheming up sets and plays to score points. Either that or he’s made up his mind that the plays/ sets that we have are what we’re rolling with and we’re gonna live or die with them.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 6:59 PM EST up reply actions
Now that you're here, and that I've officially won the league...
How are those cards going to get to me, if they’re still on the table.
Remember the Beef Bowl!
oh yeah, was that you? O was gonna send you an email tomorrow.
Email me your address and I’ll mail them
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 11:22 PM EST up reply actions
What would the name of Rick and Russ' Sitcom be?
Chuck (the ball up)?
by Chris Redman is my hero on Jan 2, 2012 5:41 PM EST reply actions
Different strokes?
I bleed red and black. I poop blue.
by neecebravo on Jan 2, 2012 6:04 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
I don't see why not, it's not like RP is out there recruiting guys who could be as good as them in year one or two?
Under his system you need at least 2 years and change to be a solid contributor. Until then your pretty much a bull shit moron who could only grasp his system if you’re Doogie freaking Howser smart.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 7:04 PM EST up reply actions
Marra, for sure.
Van Treese, not sure, because our prospects in the 2013 class outside Kasey Hll look really, really good. Price-Martin or Iverson would eat his minutes.
Remember the Beef Bowl!
Great to hear positivity about Ware.
Definitely have expected him to be really good.
Stout Out!
by tdstout on Jan 2, 2012 6:11 PM EST via mobile reply actions
Re-watched first half of UK game on the treadmill, and I feel a lot better about it today
First, I just can’t imagine Peyton playing any worse than he is right now, and I fully expect him to rediscover his form and confidence before the year is out. He had an absolutely miserable day, both in shooting and decision-making, and that shouldn’t be happening a couple of months from now.
Second, there really were some atrocious, critical calls that went against us. Did the refs prevent us from winning? No, of course not. We missed plenty of opportunities to seize control of the game. But on a neutral floor, I think we’re a lot closer coming down the stretch of that game.
Third, our interior defense can be really imposing. Gorgui makes everything difficult around the rim, and Jones got swatted repeatedly because he had to take time to gather with Gorgui at the rim, and the help defender was easily able to block the shot. And we did a much better job of closing out on 3-point shooters in this game.
Finally, like last year’s team, this group never quits. They play their guts out, they don’t panic when behind by double digits, and they can get turnovers when they need them. As bad as our offense has been, the good news is that it can probably only get better. Peyton cannot shoot this poorly forever, and that alone will make a huge difference. Gorgui is developing offensively as the season progresses, and Buckles should help more as he gets healthier. If we can get Wayne healthy, and if he at all resembles his high school form, I think we still have the potential for a special team by year’s end.
I was about to write a similar comment.
I get the feeling that Rick is confident things will start to work themselves out…and I think he is most likely exaggerating about Wayne’s recovery time/ being a “worthy substitute.”
"I like Bullet very much"
We'll figure it out. Eventually.
by James Sutherland on Jan 2, 2012 7:40 PM EST up reply actions 4 recs
hahahahahaha
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 7:43 PM EST up reply actions
Rickspeak
“we got taken to the woodshed by UK and I ain’t changin nothin”
Put it on the players and not on this multimillion dollar coaching staff. We can expect these beatings to continue-get used to it.
by chipconstant on Jan 2, 2012 6:43 PM EST via mobile reply actions
IDK about anyone else but I'm so freaking tired of CRP's BS spin. It's like he think's we're all stupid.
Kentucky is the No. 1 defensive team in the country, and that’s the reason our offense looked so bad on Saturday. Our offense is fine.
So(????) our offense is fine? Really? Was it fine when we scored 54 at home against ArkSt, 59@ home vs. Ohio, and needed OT to break 60@ home against Vandy? Our offense is anything but “Fine” and anyone who’s watched us this year knows that.
—The problem with Wayne is that every time he gets hurt he puts on 15 pounds.
— Blackshear would have been ready to play in two weeks if he’d kept his weight in check, but that’s our fault, not his.
—Richard says Wayne will be a “worthy substitute at best” when he gets back into playing shape.
Translations?
—The problem with Wayne is that he hasn’t played basketball in about a year and overweight or not if he could contribute he’s be playing.
—Wayne was never really gonna be ready this year and now I’m tempering expectations. I told everyone he’d be able to come back this year because I was sure our offense was gonna struggle without him, and I was right.
—I love telling you that Richard thought of this or said that, you know, cause he’s my son and I want everyone to think he’s a brilliant young coach who thinks of things like putting Kyle in the middle of a zone when we’re getting killed.
So sick of this shit, what we need is a coach who can adjust his “impossible to learn in 2&1/2 year system” so kids with talent can play and contribute right away.
What we need is a coach who can figure out ways to get baskets when no one other than Russ wants to take a shot.
What we need is a coach who won’t throw a kid who scored 30, and was our leading rebounder, under the bus for not rebounding.
So fed up with Rick right now, offense has been the issue all dam year, and the only reason we didn’t have a loss before G-Town was because the teams we were playing weren’t nearly as good as them, or 1/2 the teams we’ll play in the BEAST.
I swear to God, I hope he’s still trying to convince people that our offense is “Fine” after we’re still struggling to break 60 three weeks from now.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 6:54 PM EST reply actions
Right fucking on Chick
CRP blames everybody but his meat grinder system that blows out weight bearing joints every 5 seconds and has no answer for an NBA one on one offense. RP jr? No thanks. We did ojt with Krag.
by chipconstant on Jan 2, 2012 7:03 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
The way that Rick antagonizes our players' weight makes me half expect to see the Cookie Monster suited up in red and white on the sidelines.
Wayne Blackshear is a 5 star recruit and should be on the basketball court the second his shoulder is healed. He should be working on his weight and basketball, and honestly I simply don’t get how working on basketball isn’t improving your weight anyways. When you’ve been Cheeto-ing it up for a few months, I’m sure CRP’s practices are more than enough to get you back in shape without spending another month or 6 weeks doing the master cleanse and wearing a sauna suit. Wayne being a little porky on the court for a few games is no more of a liability than shooting 30%, so why the fuck not.
by James Sutherland on Jan 2, 2012 7:17 PM EST reply actions
Because he's not gonna be healed and CRP knows it/ knew it all along. He's just been spinning hope out of nothing
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 7:23 PM EST up reply actions
The whole "I cant play him because hes 15 lbs over weight"
Is a crock of shit. 15 lbs is in no way gonna totally limit a 5 star recruit. Im not saying he will be as fast, or able to jump as high, but its only 15 lbs. He would still be able to contribute and possibly back someone up for 5 minutes. The big thing he would be missing is stamina. So why not use him for 5 minutes this game, then 7 the next, then 10 the next, until hes 100% ready to go.
Im 33, and guarantee that if I had nothing else to do I could lose 10+ lbs in 3 weeks of good ole hard workouts and eating correctly. Im guessing these guys being 12 years younger can do the same.!!!!
"Winning gets you where you want to go"
-CS5-
It's just spin bro,... WB will not be playing this year because he will not be healed.
That injury+ not playing organized ball for nearly a year is just too much for him to overcome and help this team,… and CRP knows it.
The team we have is the team that’s going to have to get it done. There’s no magic bullet for our offensive struggles. Either the players we have start executing, CRP starts makign the right adjustments, or we will continue to struggle.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 7:40 PM EST up reply actions
Well, if you're right (and CRP's finally speaking the truth), we're f**cked!
If SVT is 3rd string and WB ain’t coming back, I just can’t see this team getting out of the Sweet 16, and that’s if they get their shit together. If they don’t, I think, best-case scenario, this team will give us a three-peat performance of a 1st-Round flameout … worst-case scenario: we don’t get invited to the Dance!
I don't think we are gonna see a 1st round loss
I just think this team will fight too hard. I don’t however expect much more than a sweet 16.
I hope i’m wrong, but have decided to hold off any judgement until post season play has been completed.
"Winning gets you where you want to go"
-CS5-
Nope, I think most of us were thinking sweet16 maybe elite8, no! killed those hopes though
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 9:45 PM EST up reply actions
LOL.
He is looking a little chubby but it looks GOOOOOD.
by GOCARDSATTITUDE on Jan 2, 2012 7:56 PM EST up reply actions
On Kuric
I think the Kuric comments are completely unfair. When exactly in our offense does the 3 get to drive/create/score? When does the 3 get to create his own looks? If we know teams are going to guard him a certain way, and that way prevents him from using his offensive weapon, DESIGN SOMETHING TO GET HIM OPEN WITH PLAY CALLING. Not many teams have the athletes to do what UK did, but lots of teams can watch tape. And read press conference notes.
Look, we don’t run any actual plays designed to get guys open. We never have. We run “sets” or “a system” that relies on a point guard to drive/dish, or big guys to pass back out to an open guy when their man helps. The offense is designed to get open 3s or dunk/layups. High percentage, open shots. Point blank, period.
The reason our offense sucked in 2010 was because Sosa was not a drive/dish guy, Samardo didn’t have any real post moves and never passed back out of the post, and we didn’t create turnovers. Why would all of a sudden we expect Kuric to be creating baskets for himself. And how is he going to go backdoor, who is going to pass him the ball, and when there’s no space underneath because Dieng and Chane are there, why would we expect him to get open? We scored a lot on backdoor cuts in 2007-08 because David Padgett was awesome. Dieng could be that for us next year. But he isn’t this year.
And, when the UK players are holding Kuric on a screen, and it never gets called (and when it DOES get called, it’s a foul on Kuric, oh wait a few minutes later it’s a foul on Dieng and too bad you kept playing him because in between he picked up his 3rd foul, so this retroactively becomes his 4th foul, which seems very unfair) and we have run the same backdoor pick for an alley oop for YEARS and it works once every 5 games…when all of that is true, how is that Kuric’s fault that he doesn’t get open.
I said before the season this would be Pitino’s dream offensive set – a drive/dish PG, a good passing big man and lots of 3-point shooters, and really hoped Chane could shoot the 3 well enough to be a weapon from the 4. Well, if you face guard Kuric and don’t help on the driving point guard, and Siva is in a funk with his outside shot, and Chane can’t really shoot the 3 and doesn’t have a green light, well, then the offense sucks. That’s the system, not the players, and if Siva can’t shoot the 3 and our 4 can’t shoot the 3 and the other team doesn’t leave Kuric open, we are going to have to rely on Dieng and Chane to score inside, which is a 50/50 situation when it should be 80/20. And score off turnovers. And Russ.
Sorry to be ranty, I usually ignore Pitino’s comments but blaming Kuric for what should be a coaching adjustment is frustrating.
Design a play to get Kuric open. The picket fence. A clear-out where Kuric is in the corner, Dieng at opposite high post, and the 2/4 are on the other side of the court outside the 3 point line, then Siva drives. Will that work? No idea. But at least it is something that someone who has seen ONE UofL game on tape from the last 8 years would not have seen before.
UK’s defense took us completely out of our offense, and the adjustment should be on the coaches, not the players. For him to call out Kuric like that is not cool.
by CardsFan922 on Jan 2, 2012 7:47 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Exactly B,... exactly
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 7:56 PM EST up reply actions
I agree with everything you said
The only thing Kuric does is run the baseline getting a screen, or run the dribble hand offs up top. I don’t know about giving Kyle an iso, but having him be an option for a Siva or Russ iso wouldn’t be a bad idea. He’s got to get looks to get him into the game. He’s too important to be a non-factor
COMPLETELY AGREE
Pitino has not adjusted his offensive system at all. It does nothing to get Kyle and Chris (or anyone else) an open look. The whole offensive plan for this game was a pick and role – period. There were no adjustments from the Georgetown game. No half time adjustments. It is plain bull for his to say “we told Kyle”. Fine – you told him but how about doing something else like designing a play to get him an open look. Kyle was used as a plain decoy on the wing to try and open up the middle for the pick and role. Don’t blame the decoy for your lack of coaching adjustments.
by cardhoopfan on Jan 2, 2012 8:54 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Was thinking this. Design a damn play that gets certain players open on purpose.
Running off screens isn’t working as long as the defenders smashes through it and into Kyle, and as long as Siva is in a funk, guys aren’t going to be open.
We do get some open shots, but it feels like we are just missing them. That should hopefully even out over the season, but design plays for your players strengths specifically.
You know, you're right, but...
Why can’t our two and three **COUGH COUGH CHRIS SMITH KYLE KURIC COUGH COUGH
Learn to TAKE THE BALL TO THE BUCKET?!?!?!?!
I swear, I may only play eighth grade ball, but if you can’t take someone off the dribble or vice versa, the defense will play you accordingly every, single, time. This same thing happened with Marra last year. Teams started to play skin-tight D on him, and he couldn’t take them off the dribble, so he was reduced to an average jumpshooter.
Remember the Beef Bowl!
Yeah, but Marra used to do a lot of little (good) things w/o the ball
Ironically (being that he is “the greatest hs shooter…”), I used to find myself wishing that he just never take an outside shot when he’s out there … when he only shot on the finish I used to feel a whole lot better b/c he used to do a lot of other great things.
Wow. Everybody is really crazy and mad and losing it.
Cardmegeddon hit HARD.
by GOCARDSATTITUDE on Jan 2, 2012 7:57 PM EST reply actions 3 recs
no kidding
We lost two games to really good opponents, one of them being the best in the country on their home freakin court. We see this happen every year about this time and we usually get it together, don’t see why it will be any different this year. And Blackshear, he should contribute, and so should Ware. But even if they don’t, this squad excelled in Big East basketball last year. We’ll bounce back on the road in the next few weeks and a lot of you are going to be like,“this might be the best coaching job CRP has ever done,” just like you did last year. Well, except maybe Chick
We lost 2 games to good teams but the reasons we lost are the same reasons we nearly lost 2-3 other games that would have had people losing their minds right now. That is the difference between other years and this one.
We won against Ohio and COC because they’re pretty good teams, not really good/ great teams like G-Town/ UK, and we were at home.
But you’re right,.. if he gets the problems fixed and we’re playing better on offense then I’ll give him all the credit in the world for making the proper adjustments.
As of right now, he’s stubbornly trying to make something work that’s obviously been not working very well against teams like Ohio, CoC, WKU, ArkSt, ect,ect,ect and failed against G-Town and UK.
Anyone who feels good about CRP’s performance so far is entitled to feel that way.
Just as anyone who if frustrated with his performance thus far is equally entitled to feel that way.
Doesn’t mean I can’t feel like he’s doing a better job, but for right now,… well just take a look at everything CardsFan922 said since he pretty much summed it all up. I don’t hate Pitino and I’m glad he’s our coach, but he had no one to blame for our offensive struggles but himself. To put the burden on Kyle for not "getting himself open or Russ for not rebounding, or to say that our offense is “fine” is stupid and ridiculous.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 8:22 PM EST up reply actions
I think you can blame CRP if
he tore WB’s labrum, he twisted Marra’s and Buckles knees until their acl’s were torn, punched Justice and siva in the face, tackled SVT, etc etc etc. But, he didn’t. What he did was scout our opponents, do everything he could do so we could be prepared and win 12 games through late december, 12 games, 12 games. (Sorry, that was a CRG impression, doesn’t look as good in text)
I don't blame him for anything other than what he's admitted to.
He’s said himself that, in so many RP words, that what we’ve been doing isn’t working.
Some of that is because of the injuries/ missing personnel.
But IMO it’s the coaches job to adjust his system, to find a way to score points with what you have. IMO he hasn’t done a good job of that and he’s constantly contradicting himself like we’re all a bunch of morons who can’t understand English.
He says things and makes remarks about what the individual players aren’t doing offensively as reasons why we can’t score, but then says “our offense is fine.”
I can’t stand that, as if none of this issue is his fault or the fault of his system. No, it must be the players, right? Bullshit Rick, bullshit.
That I can’t abide
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 9:17 PM EST up reply actions
Ok, even though I think our offense will improve as some individual performances (namely Peyton) improve, I have to agree with this
CRP needs to at least acknowledge that we’ve had offensive problems all year and accept some responsibility for fixing them. And no, we don’t have the same kind of personnel we’ve had in recent years, so running some different sets that play to their strengths just might be worth trying.
And yeah, I’d like it if I thought that he understood why we all hate losing to UK so much, and why so many of us are so pissed off to have endured our second 3-game losing streak to UK on his watch. Losing 6 of 8 to them is not fun at all.
by cardsinindy2010 on Jan 2, 2012 8:45 PM EST up reply actions
WHO ARE THESE SO CALLED MEDIOCRE TEAMS??????????????????
by GOCARDSATTITUDE on Jan 2, 2012 10:58 PM EST up reply actions
here you go
54 points against Arkansas State, RPI 156
70 points against WKU, RPI 236
And 53 against #68 Lamar isn’t so wonderful.
watching the game over again on dvr gave me more confidence in this team.
by phipps40 on Jan 2, 2012 8:19 PM EST via mobile reply actions
You rewatched U of L lose to UK voluntarily? Do you also masturbate with tears?~
by James Sutherland on Jan 2, 2012 8:49 PM EST up reply actions
LMFAO, I tried that once and it hurt~
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 9:17 PM EST up reply actions
Not to belabor
And I think we CAN threaten in the tournament, I am just tired of Pitino getting a pass because he was a great college coach 15 years ago. Morehead, losing to UK repeatedly, tournament chokes (2009), not to mention the personal crap. We flame out this year and I really think Jurich needs to start some sort of process, seriously. RP needs his chain pulled in a big way.
by chipconstant on Jan 2, 2012 9:21 PM EST via mobile reply actions
No offense, but shut up people.
It’s not time to panic yet.
Yes, that is Spike Lee.
by TheRealSlimShady on Jan 2, 2012 9:29 PM EST reply actions
Apparently, *no offense, is their problem
by cardchomp on Jan 2, 2012 9:36 PM EST up reply actions 3 recs
This doesn't feel like a panic. Feels like frustration.
We are used to seeing Pitino teams get it together over the holiday break, and this years team hasn’t done that yet. the lack of improvement is definitely due to injuries, but it’s frustrating to see our talent squandered because it looks like the offense is not playing to team strengths. It feels like Rick is deflecting the true issues this team has. I agree with above, the offense is NOT fine right now.
This team can still be REALLY good, but right now the system isn’t working because of injuries, cold streaks, whatever. Sticking to it because it’s the system doesn’t help.
Plus people are just plain frustrated over injuries etc.
Some feel its CRPs fault…. Some feel its not. Either way people are frustrated.
I think most everyone thought we would walk into this season with a healthy WB, a ready to play KW, an improved Siva, and a lights out shooting KK. So far non of that has been true.
Whos fault it is I have no idea, but people are still frustrated.
"Winning gets you where you want to go"
-CS5-
Newbie with a question
Been reading for some time, finally decided to get an account so I could comment (and maybe even post something).
So — here’s my newbie question:
What happened to the classic Pitino game plan?
I’m talking (a) full-court press, (b) man-to-man defense, © runrunrunrunrun, and (d) shoot 3s till the baskets melt.
I’ve lived here since ’92 and followed Cards sports since we arrived, and when CRP arrived I thought that was what we were going to see. Did I miss a memo?
Just askin’. Thank you for taking my call — I’ll take my answers off the air.
Bruce in Louisville
by Bruce in Louisville on Jan 2, 2012 9:52 PM EST reply actions
Is that not what we've seen?
A) We press every game. We are 23rd in the nation in getting Turnovers, which is part of the point of the press. The other is to wear teams out. Can’t recall how often we hold teams to a scoring drought late in games cause their tired, or we get a late spurt to take the lead or put it away for good. Gameplan won’t always work, but can’t think of a season where we haven’t been a pressing team.
B) He did get away from the man and go zone during the T-Will/E5 era, but we are back to mainly man now. We’re 12th in defensive efficiency. Even if it’s not man all the time, it’s still effective.
C ) Can only run in transition with steals and turnovers. Currently we’re 8th in the country in steals per game, as as in 8, 23rd in total turnovers. And part of the running is the press, which wears the other team out.
D) We took 24 3s against Georgetown. Is that not enough? Our shooters are just cold right now. That should even out.
by CardinalDude on Jan 3, 2012 10:10 AM EST up reply actions
Ahem,... the classic Pitino game plan you mention has never happened here for one reason, IMHO.
Recruiting. Point blank, Period.
To press baseline to baseline, play man to man defense, and run-run-run for 40 minutes,… you must have a very deep team with superior talent to everyone else you play.
Look at his great Kentucky teams, he didn’t win his championship there with the scrappy, hard fighting “Unforgettables.” He won his Championship with 9 players who were drafted into the NBA. NINE PLAYERS who were NBA DRAFT PICKS.
That style that you refer to was awesome but, people remember it being this overwhelming typhoon of basketball perfection that steamrolled other teams into submission. They remember his time at UK as those teams because they were so dominant. You could almost see other teams quit playing after 2-3 runs from those squads, it was unreal, they would go on a 15-0 run before you could blink,…. then go another one as soon as you scored a basket.
But those teams played that style in such a dominant fashion because they had the players to do it. Pitino has not had anywhere near the kind of recruiting success here that he did at UK. As a matter of fact, it could be argued that his inconsistent recruiting is exactly why we’ve had teams that struggle to get wins every few years, when it seemed like that never happened at UK.
You can’t be an elite program like Duke, UNC, Kansas, or (Yes) even UK without bringing in NBA level talent every year. EVERY YEAR. Not a few one year and none the next. Doesn’t work that way.
Commitments From 2002-present
2002: Fracisco, Dean, Kendall Dartez, Prileu Davis (1NBA player, 1Great CBB player, 2Washes)
2003: Brandon Jenkins, Nouha Diakite, Nouha Diakite, Nate Daniels (Jenkins solid,& 3Washes)
2004: Telfair, Palacios, Lorenzo Wade, Brian Johnson, Terrance Farley, Lamar Roberson, Donta Smith (Palacios, good but always injured, Loved Farley but the rest of the class gave you nothing)
2005: T-Will, Amir Johnson, Jonathan Huffman, Andre McGee, Clarence Holloway, Bryan Harvey, Chad Millard (1NBA Player& a really good CBB player, the rest was a wash).
2006: E-5, DC, Jerry Smith, & Sosa were arguably CRP’s most productive class ever (2NBA players, one of which was a head case who didn’t give us much, and 2 very good CBB players).
2007: George Goode&Preston! (1Amazing CBB player! & 1Player who was never healthy).
2008: Samardo, Swop, Jennings, Kuric (1NBA player, 1Very good& 2 good CBB players).
2009: Siva, Buckles, SVT, Marra (1NBA player? and 3 good CBB players)
2010: Gorgiu, Russ, Justice, Justin Coleman (2 Very good CBB players who could become NBA players, 1 wash and a Bullet).
2011: Wayne, Chane, Price, Ware, Nunez (2NBA players? and the book is out on the rest).
Thus far in the Pitino tenure, there have been 5 NBA players wearing Cardinal Red. Not 5 on one team,… and certainly not 9 on one team. There have been years when the recruiting classes were almost total washes other than a solid contributor or two.
Is Rick Pitino a HOF coach? Yes, absolutely. But he has not done, here at UofL, the same things he did at Kentucky because he has not recruited the same level of talent. Has he had some bad luck with recruits and injuries? Yes he has, but if you’re reloading every year then that shouldn’t matter, IMO.
I love where we are right now, I really do. I think there is some great talent on this team, if it can ever get/ stay healthy(knock on wood). I think CRP has set this program up very well for another couple of runs at a Final Four/ Championship with the players he’s recruited.
But what the hell do I know.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 3, 2012 10:40 AM EST up reply actions
No doubt that CRP's recruiting has been not up to the standards of a UK, UNC, UConn, Duke, Kansas, etc.
Looks like that may be turning around somewhat, but I agree much of our lack of elite level success (Championships, Final Fours, etc) is our lack of elite level talent.
And while I don’t doubt his ability to coach or his ability to take the Preston Knowles of the world and turn them into very good players, it certainly takes a number of years for that to occur, and the team must suffer until that occurs.
by Carolina Cardinal on Jan 3, 2012 10:56 AM EST up reply actions
I do agree that it wasn't his system at UK that led to their domination.
It was the players in that system. I read some article last year that suggested underdog teams should use the press to get turnovers and improve their chances at winning against superior opponents. Had stats and data and made a very good argument. It made sense to me then why UK was great when Pitino was there. And his system works here. He’s got good season results from inferior teams. Look at last year. If he could recruit like he did at UK in this system, we’d be dominate.
by CardinalDude on Jan 3, 2012 11:23 AM EST up reply actions
IMO, CRP is doing a fine job of coaching
I’ve noticed that we are really low on timeouts early in the game cause he’s coaching his ass off. Problem is, his upperclassmen aren’t executing. If CRP is guilty of anything, once again IMO, its not benching those guys and giving more opportunity to guys hungry for PT. The most frustrated fans seem to be the same ones who are upset about not keeping up with UK in recruiting, and the same ones who always are looking forward to next year. All this same talk was happening last year and then we owned uconn, syr, marquette, etc. The bright side to all this, we are playing defense and playing tough, which wins big east games
GCA is right; most everyone here is losing it.
YES our offense is ok! He didn’t say we have a top 5 offense. The average visiting team at Rupp scored 58.2. UL scored above average on one of the best teams in the nation. The average UK score at Rupp was 82.3. All other teams that slightly outscored UL at Rupp also allowed 16-18 more UK points.
And did that despite Siva having another terrible day and CSmith/Kuric/Behanan being underwhelming.
Dec 3 North Carolina 73-72
Nov 15 Kansas 75-65
Dec 28 Lamar 86-64
Dec 22 Loyola 87-63
Nov 26 Portland 87-63
Dec 31 Louisville 69-62
Dec 17 Chattanooga 87-62
Dec 1 St. John´s 81-59
Nov 11 Marist 108-58
Nov 20 Old Dominion 62-52
Dec 20 Samford Won 82-50
Nov 19 Penn St. 85-47
Nov 23 Radford 88-40
And once again, CRP IS NOT CALLING OUT RUSS. For crying out loud just listen to the tape more carefully. He said it’s 4 on 5 down there, meaning Russ doesn’t go mix it up as a team effort. HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH RUSS’S REB COUNT. Apples and oranges. Here’s my transcript of the Russ sentences:
He’s impressive doin things with the ball. He’s not impressive, he’s gotta start – at least go in there and hit somebody. He’s standing, taking tickets on the perimeter. And we’re, we’re in a fight 5 vs 4 and we’re getting the hell beat out of us. We need another guy to get in there and just hit somebody’s.. knees. If you come up to the knees, hit somebody…"
I understand frustration, but not a lack of control of emotions to the extent of becoming irrational . You guys calling CRP an idiot are making fools of yourselves. And making CC look like a UK fan site during Tubby’s years.
If scoring less points at Rupp than Loyola, Portland, and Lamar makes the offense "Ok" then,... ok? I guess?
Not for me. We’ve scored 62 or less four times this year.
The offense is not working. It’s not vibrant. It’s not pretty. It’s a momentum breaker, not a momentum maker. It’s not scoring enough points. The offense is leaving U of L with little margin for error, certainly not against a team as relentless and athletic as Kentucky.
"We struggled shooting the basketball," Pitino said.
Allow me to amend that statement: They struggled shooting the basketball — again.
The Cards are not making 3-pointers the way Pitino’s teams usually make the shot he long ago made one of his trademarks. After missing 14 of 18 attempts Saturday, U of L’s 3-point shooting percentage this season dropped to .314.
Beware. That’s the worst 3-point shooting of Pitino’s 11 seasons at U of L. A year ago the Cards made more than 36 percent of their threes.
This team got to 62 points against the Wildcats by making three baskets in the final 13 seconds of a game that already was lost. Again, Pitino’s teams scored 62 or fewer in eight of the 269 games he coached at UK. It’s already happened three times in 14 games this season — and that number would be four if the Vanderbilt game had not stretched into overtime.
-Rick Bozich
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 10:24 PM EST up reply actions
Yep.
Pitino has lost his shooting touch for sure. He should bench himself and let the players take the shots.
"I am willing to donate to the charity that is working on the prevention of whatever the hell Dick Vitale has." - noobmaster
More about the Rupp game
0.87: Points per possession for Kentucky. Kentucky currently has the 7th ranked offense in the country and had only been held below a point per possession one time this season (in their win over ODU). It was the lowest output of the year, and matched their lowest scoring all of last season when they scored 0.87 in their loss against UConn in the Final Four.
20: Kentucky turnovers, in 79 possessions. For the season, UK turns it over on 18.5% of their trips, which is 52nd best in the nation. If they played every game like the Louisville game they would rank 324th.
6: Anthony Davis blocks. Davis displayed great touch on his blocks, and rather than swatting them into the stands he kept the ball in play and Kentucky took possession on 5 of his 6 blocks. Davis blocked Russ Smith three times, and has now had 5 or more blocks in half of Kentucky’s games. His counterpart – Gorgui Dieng – also blocked 6 shots – and Kentucky maintained possession on 5 of them.
The fact that UK wound up possessing 10 of the 12 Davis/DIeng blocks relates to Coach’s sentiment that we had 4 against 5 down low.
I agree, I saw many many possessions where he was the only guy going for the ball. Still,..
You can play hard, be scrappy, fight until the end, and that’s great. But if you don’t score more points than the other guys you’re still gonna lose every time. Every time.
CRP can blame the guys for not executing all he wants, but the fact is that they haven’t been executing his amazingly “complex” system very well all year. Why then would you continue doing the same things over and over again expecting a different result?
This is the definition of crazy/ insanity.
Our offense is not “fine” and the fact that we did play defense so well against UK only to lose makes our offensive struggles that much more apparent.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 10:38 PM EST up reply actions
Misinterpretation
I don’t think Coach means “fine” in the literal sense, nor do I. That’s a Yank way of saying not a significant issue. And it’s not. Is it a great offense? No. Top 10? No. You rant about how complex his system is — but it worked for 12 straight wins and we only need 5 in a row this spring for a title.
And honestly, don’t you think Siva has a lot to do with the problem? Everyone in the country knew Louisville’s success this year would hinge on Siva. As his performance has declined lately, so has the team’s. So I would restate things myself to ‘Our offense is ok, once our point guard gets his shit back together.’
Lol,... Misinterpretation
RP rants about his system being complex. I’m being sarcastic because I hate it when he says that. Doesn’t help in recruiting, nor does it do anything to make the fans feel better about struggles.
12 in a row yes, but some of those were against LSOTP and had we played an Ohio, Vandy, or CoC in the Spring, on a neutral floor, we would’ve lost. The offense is a problem period and it’s not all due to CRP or PS3,… it’s a team problem that everyone needs to get fixed.
I do put the most emphasis on CRP because he’s the guy making millions of dollars to figure it out.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 2, 2012 10:58 PM EST up reply actions
If all 5 guys crash the boards doesn't that leave you very vulnerable to the fast break the other way with nobody back?
I always thought the standard plan was to have about 3 guys rebound and the 2 guards fall back to defend.
by Carolina Cardinal on Jan 3, 2012 7:56 AM EST up reply actions
Amen
And I cannot see that a 5’ 10" to 6’ 160 pounder is going to occupy very many bodies inside. Plus one person is always supposed to be playing in back as the free safety or there will be a run out all the time. I suspect if people got 10 rebound fast break baskets against us CRP would be calling out players for not being back on defense. He can’t have it both ways.
Stats that really matter
12 wins, only 2 losses (to very good opponents I might add)
by cardchomp on Jan 2, 2012 10:37 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Kyle DOES need to rebound, disagree with Rick.
I love Rak more than anyone but he is the sloppiest one of them all right now. I have NO IDEA what is going on with PeyPey but it is almost unbearable to watch. I am crying right now just thinking about it.
by GOCARDSATTITUDE on Jan 2, 2012 11:00 PM EST reply actions
Cuse at #1 STILL is going to give us a BIG chance for redemption, seeing as we OWN them, and play TWICE.
by GOCARDSATTITUDE on Jan 2, 2012 11:01 PM EST reply actions
One caveat: this Syracuse team is NOTHING like the one's we owned
Not saying we don’t sweep them, but I’ve seen them play live twice this year and once each of the last 3 years … trust me, this unit is better than his Carmelo gang, by far.
Yes Yes Yes
If we win one out of the two we play against them ill be happy. I feel they are easily one of the best 3 in the country. Could be a banner year for them
"Winning gets you where you want to go"
-CS5-
Another caveat,.... when we've "owned" Syracuse, we've shot the three very well.
We’ve done a good job of moving the zone and knocking down threes. This team would lose to Syracuse by 20 right now the way they’re playing/ shooting the basketball.
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by Chick-Stratino'sUrDaddy on Jan 3, 2012 10:43 AM EST up reply actions
I love PK as well
but he didnt drop 30 on UK last year….
Russ Smith baby!!!!!!!!
"Winning gets you where you want to go"
-CS5-
Our good 05, 07, 08, 09 teams
Started slow in Dec and looked bad with injuries but took off later on, so I’m not freakin out. I bout lost it when siva went too basket by himself then turned around and passed to UK player, somethings not right with him right now.
by jamesc11 on Jan 3, 2012 12:17 AM EST via mobile reply actions
What about Chris at the start of the game
He was 1 on 0 and instead of dunking decided to do a stop, spin around, look for the defense, wait for two guys to show up and then throw up a 4’ double contested airball. What was going through his mind other than perhaps a loss of confidence.
This team is definitely overpassing at times when there is not a better option than the shot.
The whole point of multiple passes is to get a better shot. When you get that good/open shot, you take it and don’t continue to pass. Some of this, like in Siva’s case is his lack of confidence. You often see him pass into the post, get the return pass wide open from 3, and almost panic trying to find someone else to pass it to. That’s why I said earlier, I would love for them to practice him passing to the post, maybe swinging behind a screen, getting the return pass, and shooting immediately. And keep doing that until he makes a bunch of them. It’s all about confidence. Make a bunch and build that confidence. If you’re a golfer you know that you practice the 3 foot putts to gain confidence. When you make 10 in a row and you stand over the11th one, you think you’re going to make it. Same thing. Now will you always make it? No, but your chances are much better if you have a positive perspective.
by Carolina Cardinal on Jan 3, 2012 10:48 AM EST up reply actions
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