Thanks Dmitri for your insightful analysis on our Bruins and the depth you bring to the conversation. Let’s hope for the best this offseason and Go Bruins!
Question for you Dimitri, do you think Mack's nagging injuries are partially to blame for his defense in the back half of the season? It seems like I saw flashes of good defense from him, so I'm wondering if it is a case of lack of effort or physical limitations, or even just gassed freshman legs.
I mean, it did not help, but Mack's defense was a point of concern from the very start of the season. I think it more has to do with focus than anything, and he too often lets his play on one end of the court dictate the other. I don't want to go back and prove my theory, but you could almost guarantee that if he had a bad shot or turnover on offense then he was likely to give up an easy basket on the other end immediately after. Getting physically ready for higher minutes and being healthy will help but it's more a mental thing.
I get it, though.. for once, I didn't even watch Selection Sunday cuz our boys aren't playing. It's just not the same when you don't have a horse in the race. Sadness, indeed...
Can always root for Long Beach. They fired their coach last week and allowed him to coach out the season, only for the team to make the tourney. They’re abt to play Arizona and if they make it, can face Steve Alford and the Wolfpack. Makes Long Beach very easy to root for
It's such a strange empty feeling to not be dancing. Madness is not the same without the Bruins and it actually takes the luster off the Dance without the blueblood of UCLA 😢💙💛
💯 I will be rooting for the Lady Bruins! We are in the toughest bracket with LSU and Iowa. The Committee certainly made sure the Road to the Final Four was unbelievably rough for us. But one game at a time. I do think if we make it to the Sweet 16 that Albany will not be a friendly location in the least. But I am excited for our team! 💙💛
I think the issue with the offense running through Bona is that isn't the ideal position for him to be in. It was the best option we had this year, but Bona is ideally a 3rd or 4th option, rim running and being a terror on the offensive glass, while being the disruptor on defense. I think the turnovers show that.
The draft is going to be an interesting question for him this year. I could see some teams throwing a late first draft grade on him based off the defensive ability, but the 6'8 1/4 draft measurement was a crusher for him last year.
good assessment. my question for him is does he develop more at UCLA where there's less practice time and less games or playing a full G-league schedule against superior talent? If the answer is the latter, he needs to make the jump unless the NIL money is too much.
Yeah, Calimari just used Guerrero & Co. to secure his nice contract upgrade at Kentucky, which qualifies him as a true slimeball. Since then, his NCAA tournament record is only 2-4, unable to make it past the 2nd round and missing out on the tournament entirely in 2021 (posting a horrible 9-16 record). In any case, at least 1 Mildcats team is going home early this weekend.
That doesn't make him a slime ball, but having not one but two teams vacate either Final Fours (U Mass) or their entire season (Memphis) sure does. You gotta wonder what the hell is going on with the culture of his teams.
Infamous Tony gives us a life lesson... sucking at your job increases your demand and prosperity. Tony either has no integrity or is flat out inept. I feel bad for Samford.
Judging by first round action, I'd say that you have a better chance winning when you can score rather than winning when you can't score but have to rely on your defense. And you nearly always have a chance to win when you score in the 70s and 80s, but less so when you score in the 40s and 50s. But that's just me.
You need both sides to when the game. Having a terrible offensive or defensive game is gonna make it hard to work. Playing efficient is far more important than playing fast or slow, which is what Cronin's teams have done prior to this year,. If it doesn't revert back, its a problem.
UConn who obviously won March Madness last year and is one of the faves to win it again this year does not have a big NIL or a big media rights package. Being in the Big East, they are at a big disadvantage and play a second fiddle to many of the Power 5 schools.
How did UConn maintain their greatness without the NIL deep pocket money while our Bruins sit home with many believing that NIL played a big role in the reason we didn't get the recruits we wanted? 🧐
I am not saying that NIL is a non-factor with UCLA, just wondering how a school like UConn is having great success despite the NIL. Certainly NIL may soon catch up to them but right now they are dancing in a big way.
Perhaps Hurley is such an amazing coach and recruiter that players don't care about the NIL. Idk.
UConn...has a big NIL pool? They literally outbid UCLA for Cam Spencer this past offseason. And the Big East is a big conference when it comes to basketball - it is literally called the Power 6 in college basketball and not P5 for this reason. And UConn isn't really funding their football team in any meaningful way so the pretty good TV contract they have through the Big East in basketball is going almost-solely to their basketball program.
Like, UConn's whole thing is pretty obvious. They hit on a few recruits, made sure they were paid well to stick around, and added here and there to supplement with the money they have. There's a lot of youth but they're led by two senior guards. Dan Hurley is a good coach, which helps, but let's not pretend UConn isn't a blue blood in basketball.
I never said UConn is not a blueblood. My question pertained to the fact that they are able to have great success despite not having a big NIL bucket like a lot of schools.
Here is an interesting article on UConn and the NIL...
That article doesn't talk about UConn's NIL at all, though; it just talks about their TV deals which, yes, are not near the P5 level. But let me point you to this article which gets at why that isn't a big deal for their NIL:
In summary: UConn isn't really spending on NIL in football like most P5 schools, which means they're not at risk of double-dipping their donors and can instead invest fully in the basketball program they care about. I've seen enough numbers thrown around to believe their collective is comfortably in the top 15 in the country, probably top 10, so I'm still not sure why you think they do not have a big NIL bucket.
DD, thank you for stepping in and sparing me from Tamara's interrogation. I'm no expert, as many here gleefully can attest. However, I also was going to echo your point that UConn NIL funding is basketball centric, and there is lesser proportionate spending on football. More dollars available from the pot to chase hoopers.
Also, I think the Big East is more provincial, in that athletes want to play for schools in their region. Other than JJJ, who was coming to UCLA regardless of who was coach, what Southland ballers are thinking, "I want to be a Bruin!"
Dimitri... you claimed the article I included did not say anything about NIL. Here is the excerpt from the article about NIL...
'But Smith College Sports Economist Andrew Zimbalist said the next decade could be much tougher for both programs, now that boosters are allowed to pay players to play for their favorite schools. Zimbalist said there are many wealthier schools that can pay more for the talent UConn wants.
“One of the major reasons for that is the introduction of NIL – name, image and likeness – payments that are going to athletes and the formation of collectives, which are booster groups that pretend to be paying the athletes money for their property rights or the publicity rights,” Zimbalist said. “But what's really happening is they're getting paid money for their ability to generate victories on the field or on the basketball court.”
“Coaches are going to be able to go to the best players in the country and offer them big time NIL money — could be $1 million; could be more. UCONN simply doesn't have the ability to reach out to its donors and to its alums, like some of the Power Four schools do, and, as such, it's going to be harder and harder for them to attract the top basketball stars, both on the men's and women's side.”'
But regardless, we will see how Cronin does in the portal, who stays, who goes, and how next season shakes out.
As an aside, I despise the NIL and believe it is quickly destroying high revenue college sports. It is filled with corruption and it's certainly a challenge for schools who try to maintain integrity.
I guess I just don't believe what this dude is saying regarding UConn's ability to reach donors for NIL funds when we have actual tangible proof that UConn is able to reach donors for NIL funds. Pretending UConn doesn't have moneyed donors to begin with which has helped them maintain blue blood status despite their athletic department is also a really fun thing that this guy is doing.
Like, the thing that will actually kill UConn basketball will be having the universities themselves be the ones to pay players. That's where the main focus on TV revenue will actually come into play. UConn's donors have more than enough to play ball right now.
Oakland played entirely out of their normal character and played how you need to play as a 14 seed to beat a 3 seed. They shot 31 3pts, vs 23 avg for the season. They hit 48%, vs 35% on the season. It is a high variance play that is not the recipe for sustained success.
Did Oakland just play magical offense, or could it have something to do with Kentucky's fast pace and sub 120 efficiency defense?
So to tie this back to UCLA, how do you want UCLA to apply what you are seeing in the tournament to their play next year? Play faster or just be the same offense they have been the last 3 years before this one.
I don't know, Matt. I think we agree that both ends of the floor are important, and playing efficiently can be high scoring and entertaining that would meet Baskets' approval. A balance of both ends clearly is needed, but the Bruins are too heavily weighted towards one end. They have to play defense at a magical level--every game!--even to have a chance to win. Is it too much to ask that a team be able to hold a 19 point lead against Arizona?
The answer to your first question is yes! Oakland played magical offense and hit many absurd shots. Kentucky’s defense was fine in that game. It’s not like they were just letting them shoot. That’s why March is madness month. One game doesn’t discount the fact that Kentucky still had a very good season unlike ucla wgo stunk it up all year long
You mean the team led by a grad transfer from D2 Hillsdale College with 2 senior and 3 junior starters who beat a talented offense-only team with 4 freshman and one player - a 2nd year transfer - who started or played significant minutes last year?
Even Calamari mused in the post game presser that he's not sure what he does - 4-5 5* freshman McD one-and-dones rinse and repeat with 5 more the next year - can work anymore in these conditions... Sure some of that is an excuse for St. Peter's and Oakland but not all of it... (see portal discussions op cit)
Experience and maturity matters - that and talent and effort are all required... To echo your earlier post I took look forward to Part 3 - the new faces added to the returning core to get closer to that mix
Mostly. You're right. But the last team built like that to win the national title was 2015 Duke... Only saying in this era transfers are as if not more important than just freshman recruiting and experience - along with not being able to hit the ocean over the bow from the stern of a 22' 1-3/4" boat far too often - was part of the problem this year that *should* naturally get better with the core of this roster - not all of it - as time goes on
not sure there is any data to support this. it's easy to watch a few gams where offense dominates and come to the conclusion you came to. Of course, most wins are going to be by teams that win with offense. But you need both offense and defense to win. I'd rather have a great defense and an average offense than a great offense and a terrible defense. But I'd also rather have a great offense with average d than a great d with no offense. You need both, but you can definitely win with offense.
Just for small sample size fun - Florida scored 100 against Colorado while we could only manage 64 against those same Buffaloes... Bet they'd of rather had our result tho...
Oh the sweet irony of the SEC commissioner giving an interview where he says they need to explore eliminating auto bids because the power conferences are better and serve those bids. The SEC is currently 1-5 with 2 massive upsets to auto bids.
Huge thanks to DD for the post season write ups, and to all the folks commenting. It's been a great discussion so far, and It'll be interesting to see where things go now with the portal opening up. I have plenty of my own opinions about Cronin regarding his roster construction and his offensive and defensive capabilities, and two of those three aren't very complimentary.
I do feel pretty good about Cronin's ability to teach defense and employ a solid defensive scheme, but it is imperative he has the right players to execute it, which was clearly a shortcoming this season and jumps to the issues with roster construction. It's also crucial that he has the recognition and courage to adapt ingame when his pregame plans aren't working (see UW's center go for another wide open dunk with no defensive adjustment). Cronin's stubbornness and insistence on his way or the highway helps when he's right, but it is a big pitfall when he meets a coach with a better gameplan or has a player who unexpectedly gets hot.
The problem with a defensive focused team, if you have the right players in the first place, is that games tend to be lower scoring affairs with little separation that don't allow much leeway for a poor offensive night, and so the offense must necessarily be an important factor (see, Virginia, University of). Ben Howland had this same issue with far better defenses and players who fit. And my devil's advocate impression is that the Bruins were highly successful the last 3 years because we had really high end offensive talent (if not a high end offensive scheme). In the 20-21 season, Johnny Juzang went nuclear and carried us to a FF. The next two years, a junior and senior laden mature experienced squad that played its roles very well and had a unicorn in Jaime Jaquez Jr provided enough offense to win the large majority of close games. But the core of those players were recruited by a guy I won't name, not by Cronin. So I don't think the successes from the prior 3 years were due to Cronin but rather due to the talents and leadership of the players. Of course Cronin added an Amari Bailey and an Adem Bona who played key roles, but his recruiting has fallen far short of a complete roster. See Etienne and Canka and Watson and Myles Johnson as guys who made little to no contribution in Westwood. Look what happened to the offense this season with a roster comprised only of Cronin's players. Nearly every game featured prolonged scoring droughts, little offensive imagination or diversity, and even when the defense played well we still went down to the wire almost every night.
Can Cronin's style make legit runs at another coveted NCAA title? Yes, because it has. If it weren't for 2 crushing injuries last year, I'm certain we had another FF team and maybe more (FU, Gonzaga). But can Cronin himself continue to lead the Bruins to consistent excellence and competitive teams, given the way he recruits and runs an offense to complement his defense? That part I have real doubts about, because he isn't getting the kind of players he had success with the last 3 years. I'd keep a very close eye on what this roster looks like going into next year.
CMC, pundits and fans alike thought it a given that CMC would stack his roster with top athletes at UCLA that he could not get at Cincinnati. Has he? Can he? Will he? You're doubtful. "It's the NIL, stupid," cry deflectors.
I was one who thought he'd have more recruiting success in Westwood. I do think NIL is one part of it. His offensive style is another part of it. The visuals of him yelling at his players on the floor is part of it. Him throwing them under the bus in post game pressers is part of it. There's a reason Mick was working to get players from across Europe instead of across Southern California.
None of the players born and raised in so cal want to come to ucla anymore. They go to usc or another blue blood school. The good players in LA no longer come to ucla… it’s because they don’t want to play for a defense minded school
I said from the moment that cronin was hired he would be another Alford. Instead of promoting offense, he promotes defense… he will have the same fate as alfie… won’t be long until everyone realizes that he can’t recruit and no one wants to play for him… I’ve said it from the beginning and I’ll say it until he’s gone. Cronin is the wrong brand of basketball for ANY LA basketball team
I’m not saying he shouldn’t… because defense is cronins brand. I’m just saying that he’s only selling defense to the incoming players. I’m not even saying he can’t coach offense because others have shown that he has had consistent offense teams. It’s just that the players that contributed offensively were not his recruits and that he’s not selling up tempo teams. So cal born players want to play up tempo basketball. It’s what they play in the nba. Why do you think they keep making ways for more points to be scored? Because that’s more entertaining to most players and fans. Cronin, while demonstrating an efficient offensive scheme in past seasons, is more concerned about grinding out slow tempo games where they can win by scoring 60 points… that brand of basketball is going to become extinct!!!!
Yay! Someone who has a brain and sees the writing on the wall. It’s going to take an absolute genius to recruit 3 transfer starters (maybe 4?) and turn this squad into a competitive basketball team. Cronin has yet to get any good transfers outside of juzang who came back to LA because he was homesick
I really like the way you put into words the things I think. My ability to put these concepts into writing is where I clearly lack 😂
I do think the tempo of play is a huge problem for cronins ability to recruit, get transfers, and retain nba bound players. I truly don’t believe that Southern California born players want to go play for a slow tempo team like ucla, Virginia, and even Houston to an extent. I don’t think that slow tempo teams can’t be good offensively… I just don’t think many nba bound stars are willing to play for a coach that only promotes defense and slow tempo of play. I’ve said they don’t want to play for mick, and it’s not even because they don’t like him, they just realize they are going to learn more offensive tempo elsewhere.
The players that do come to ucla seem to like mick. There is definitely a sense of loyalty, and I do think ucla will develop players overtime with cronin there. I don’t think it’s a style that will last as the LA brand of basketball isn’t capable of keeping fans for 3-4 years of hardship and one magical season mixed in. The last several years involved a crop of leaders that were recruited by Alford. Cronin hasn’t recruited any leaders as this seasons team demonstrates that there weren’t any capable leaders anywhere to be found. Next season might look a little better, but without any good recruits, it’s hard to envision a substantially different outcome than what this season brought us
U of aaaa, we fell short of the Final Four again! 😂
Bears repeating (pun intended) we've been to as many Final Fours in the 21st century as they have in their school history.... Thanks Clemson! Schadenfreude rules! Go BRUINS
Interesting how nobody on UCLA has entered the transfer portal now that we're at the end of the second week of the portal being open. Almost like our players actually LIKE playing for Mick despite the in-game yelling, and his being publicly critical of the team.
At this point, I think anyone who transfers out now will be those who were (politely) asked to leave to make scholarship room for transfers.
Yesterday, 3 teams pulled upsets in the sweet sixteen. Among those 15 players with most minutes played, only 2 were sophomores, 1 junior. The rest were seniors and super seniors. Experience and retaining upperclassmen matters in winning ncaa tournament games
It's not just about retaining players, but getting the right guys in the transfer portal. 3 of 4 winning teams yesterday had a starter from the portal. I believe all 4 teams playing today too. NC State's entire starting 5 (and every single player who scored) was from the transfer portal. All 4 teams playing today have starters (some multiple....I think Alabama 4 guys?) from the transfer portal. Tennessee, Alabama, Illinois, and NC State would certainly not be where they are without the portal.
The guys most likely to transfer are not exactly going to be hot commodities on the open market. None of them are going to help a team win immediately. None of them will be top 30 transfers. So why would they leave until told to leave?
Also, nobody has ever disputed that the players love Mick. It's just 3-4 people here who get offended when they see one grown man yelling at another grown man. Coaches have been doing that for 100 years. Nobody has transferred out because we have not picked up anyone get. Transferring out is the new "getting cut."
Aside from the fact that it’s incredibly insulting to call our freshmen guys “non-impact, inexperienced, low basketball IQ player”, I don’t think anyone has claimed the CMC doesn’t chase off players? What I meant is that Mick will recruit players regardless of whose feelings might be hurt and those who might see their playing time decrease or disappear will transfer on their own.
I agree that it’s insulting to call your players those things. I think sea actually pulled those statements from a cronin presser this season. He said many very comparable statements throughout the season. If you’re offended, look up some Cronin conferences as he said those things first
I think players that come to play for mick know what they’re getting into. Those that don’t leave early like Watson and Bailey who have not been heard showering praise on cronin
I’ve seen that Bailey has gone back to visit UCLA and watch them play last season. I think if he didn’t like Cronin or enjoyed his time here he would do that? I don’t remember any Alford players visiting him after they graduated lol
When we find out which players wind up transferring to UCLA one of us will get the chance to say I told you so… will I be the one that gets to say it? Let’s see what sucker ucla gets to come play at ucla. Will we get a few more stefanovich’s? Or will we land someone that we’ve all actually heard of
Most people never heard of Juzang and those who had derided him as someone who barely saw the floor at Kentucky. And he led us to the Final Four and a Sweet 16. Even Lazar had started to become a more consistent shooter after 2 months in cronins system. Sometimes a change of scenery is all players need to flourish .
Thanks Dmitri for your insightful analysis on our Bruins and the depth you bring to the conversation. Let’s hope for the best this offseason and Go Bruins!
Question for you Dimitri, do you think Mack's nagging injuries are partially to blame for his defense in the back half of the season? It seems like I saw flashes of good defense from him, so I'm wondering if it is a case of lack of effort or physical limitations, or even just gassed freshman legs.
I mean, it did not help, but Mack's defense was a point of concern from the very start of the season. I think it more has to do with focus than anything, and he too often lets his play on one end of the court dictate the other. I don't want to go back and prove my theory, but you could almost guarantee that if he had a bad shot or turnover on offense then he was likely to give up an easy basket on the other end immediately after. Getting physically ready for higher minutes and being healthy will help but it's more a mental thing.
No TMB Bracketology contest this year.
March Sadness.
I get it, though.. for once, I didn't even watch Selection Sunday cuz our boys aren't playing. It's just not the same when you don't have a horse in the race. Sadness, indeed...
Can always root for Long Beach. They fired their coach last week and allowed him to coach out the season, only for the team to make the tourney. They’re abt to play Arizona and if they make it, can face Steve Alford and the Wolfpack. Makes Long Beach very easy to root for
💯 The Beach!!! Love Dan Monson! 💙💛
Clearly overmatched, but CSULB put up a fight for at least 1 half.
And so much for Nevada (the overrated Mountain West teams (6 total) are 1-3 in the NCAA tournament as of this writing...
Nevada losing right away is pretty much what I would expect from any Alford-coached team
I rejoiced in Alfraud's premie exit more than I cheered any win for teams where my friends attended or that I picked in my bracket.
It’s not jsut that they lost , but how they lost, getting outscored 24-2 in the final 7 minutes to lose a double digit lead.
Feel the same way. Channeled my sadness and made a NIL donation to Men of Westwood. Go Bruins!
It's such a strange empty feeling to not be dancing. Madness is not the same without the Bruins and it actually takes the luster off the Dance without the blueblood of UCLA 😢💙💛
You can still root for the Lady Bruins on Saturday.
Go Bruins!
💯 I will be rooting for the Lady Bruins! We are in the toughest bracket with LSU and Iowa. The Committee certainly made sure the Road to the Final Four was unbelievably rough for us. But one game at a time. I do think if we make it to the Sweet 16 that Albany will not be a friendly location in the least. But I am excited for our team! 💙💛
I think the issue with the offense running through Bona is that isn't the ideal position for him to be in. It was the best option we had this year, but Bona is ideally a 3rd or 4th option, rim running and being a terror on the offensive glass, while being the disruptor on defense. I think the turnovers show that.
The draft is going to be an interesting question for him this year. I could see some teams throwing a late first draft grade on him based off the defensive ability, but the 6'8 1/4 draft measurement was a crusher for him last year.
good assessment. my question for him is does he develop more at UCLA where there's less practice time and less games or playing a full G-league schedule against superior talent? If the answer is the latter, he needs to make the jump unless the NIL money is too much.
by the way, when he was a soph and junior (and even a senior) i would have never dreamed that Jules Bernard would score 16 points in an NBA game.
Holy Alford collapse. Nevada was outscored 24-2 over the last 7:19 to lose 63-60
No Steve Sixteen for Alfie this year.
And that is why he is not the head coach at UCLA.
So long, Chief!
And to think that some wanted to throw the bank at Coach Cal, and further that he had any intention of coming.
Yeah, Calimari just used Guerrero & Co. to secure his nice contract upgrade at Kentucky, which qualifies him as a true slimeball. Since then, his NCAA tournament record is only 2-4, unable to make it past the 2nd round and missing out on the tournament entirely in 2021 (posting a horrible 9-16 record). In any case, at least 1 Mildcats team is going home early this weekend.
So long, Chief!
how does that qualify him as a slimeball? It's good business. Every coach does it if given the chance.
That doesn't make him a slime ball, but having not one but two teams vacate either Final Fours (U Mass) or their entire season (Memphis) sure does. You gotta wonder what the hell is going on with the culture of his teams.
I hope CMC hits the portal hard so we can read Post Mortem Part 3: New Faces!
Tony Padilla is reffing in the NCAA tourney. He’s currently working the Kansas/Samford game. Called a foul on an obvious block. Pretty typical
and boy did he impact the game!
Infamous Tony gives us a life lesson... sucking at your job increases your demand and prosperity. Tony either has no integrity or is flat out inept. I feel bad for Samford.
Judging by first round action, I'd say that you have a better chance winning when you can score rather than winning when you can't score but have to rely on your defense. And you nearly always have a chance to win when you score in the 70s and 80s, but less so when you score in the 40s and 50s. But that's just me.
💯on point and underlying meaning embraced 💙💛
How'd that work out for Kentucky?
You need both sides to when the game. Having a terrible offensive or defensive game is gonna make it hard to work. Playing efficient is far more important than playing fast or slow, which is what Cronin's teams have done prior to this year,. If it doesn't revert back, its a problem.
Of course both ends of the court matter. The Bruins must address that in the portal or face another woeful year.
Sea... would love your opinion...
UConn who obviously won March Madness last year and is one of the faves to win it again this year does not have a big NIL or a big media rights package. Being in the Big East, they are at a big disadvantage and play a second fiddle to many of the Power 5 schools.
How did UConn maintain their greatness without the NIL deep pocket money while our Bruins sit home with many believing that NIL played a big role in the reason we didn't get the recruits we wanted? 🧐
I am not saying that NIL is a non-factor with UCLA, just wondering how a school like UConn is having great success despite the NIL. Certainly NIL may soon catch up to them but right now they are dancing in a big way.
Perhaps Hurley is such an amazing coach and recruiter that players don't care about the NIL. Idk.
UConn...has a big NIL pool? They literally outbid UCLA for Cam Spencer this past offseason. And the Big East is a big conference when it comes to basketball - it is literally called the Power 6 in college basketball and not P5 for this reason. And UConn isn't really funding their football team in any meaningful way so the pretty good TV contract they have through the Big East in basketball is going almost-solely to their basketball program.
Like, UConn's whole thing is pretty obvious. They hit on a few recruits, made sure they were paid well to stick around, and added here and there to supplement with the money they have. There's a lot of youth but they're led by two senior guards. Dan Hurley is a good coach, which helps, but let's not pretend UConn isn't a blue blood in basketball.
I never said UConn is not a blueblood. My question pertained to the fact that they are able to have great success despite not having a big NIL bucket like a lot of schools.
Here is an interesting article on UConn and the NIL...
https://www.ctpublic.org/news/sports/2024-03-21/uconn-ncaa-tournament-paid-athletes
That article doesn't talk about UConn's NIL at all, though; it just talks about their TV deals which, yes, are not near the P5 level. But let me point you to this article which gets at why that isn't a big deal for their NIL:
https://www.si.com/fannation/name-image-likeness/news/with-nil-the-big-east-has-gone-from-good-to-great-noah9
In summary: UConn isn't really spending on NIL in football like most P5 schools, which means they're not at risk of double-dipping their donors and can instead invest fully in the basketball program they care about. I've seen enough numbers thrown around to believe their collective is comfortably in the top 15 in the country, probably top 10, so I'm still not sure why you think they do not have a big NIL bucket.
DD, thank you for stepping in and sparing me from Tamara's interrogation. I'm no expert, as many here gleefully can attest. However, I also was going to echo your point that UConn NIL funding is basketball centric, and there is lesser proportionate spending on football. More dollars available from the pot to chase hoopers.
Also, I think the Big East is more provincial, in that athletes want to play for schools in their region. Other than JJJ, who was coming to UCLA regardless of who was coach, what Southland ballers are thinking, "I want to be a Bruin!"
Sea... now would I ever interrogate you my sweet friend? I hope that was supposed to be in 'sarcasm' font 💙💛
All in fun.
where are you getting that UConn does not have a "big NIL?"
Here's the article I referenced and linked above...
https://www.ctpublic.org/news/sports/2024-03-21/uconn-ncaa-tournament-paid-athletes
This article talks specifically about basketball but in hindsight propaganda does run rampant so there's thst 🤣
But DD makes a valid point that UConn is doing just fine in getting big donors to fill the NIL bucket for basketball as football takes a back seat.
Dimitri... you claimed the article I included did not say anything about NIL. Here is the excerpt from the article about NIL...
'But Smith College Sports Economist Andrew Zimbalist said the next decade could be much tougher for both programs, now that boosters are allowed to pay players to play for their favorite schools. Zimbalist said there are many wealthier schools that can pay more for the talent UConn wants.
“One of the major reasons for that is the introduction of NIL – name, image and likeness – payments that are going to athletes and the formation of collectives, which are booster groups that pretend to be paying the athletes money for their property rights or the publicity rights,” Zimbalist said. “But what's really happening is they're getting paid money for their ability to generate victories on the field or on the basketball court.”
“Coaches are going to be able to go to the best players in the country and offer them big time NIL money — could be $1 million; could be more. UCONN simply doesn't have the ability to reach out to its donors and to its alums, like some of the Power Four schools do, and, as such, it's going to be harder and harder for them to attract the top basketball stars, both on the men's and women's side.”'
But regardless, we will see how Cronin does in the portal, who stays, who goes, and how next season shakes out.
As an aside, I despise the NIL and believe it is quickly destroying high revenue college sports. It is filled with corruption and it's certainly a challenge for schools who try to maintain integrity.
I guess I just don't believe what this dude is saying regarding UConn's ability to reach donors for NIL funds when we have actual tangible proof that UConn is able to reach donors for NIL funds. Pretending UConn doesn't have moneyed donors to begin with which has helped them maintain blue blood status despite their athletic department is also a really fun thing that this guy is doing.
Like, the thing that will actually kill UConn basketball will be having the universities themselves be the ones to pay players. That's where the main focus on TV revenue will actually come into play. UConn's donors have more than enough to play ball right now.
Fair enough...
I agree with you Tamara regarding NIL though I also decided to light a small candle and contribute to it while I also curse the darkness FWIW
I hear you my friend 💙💛
How'd that work out for Oakland?
Oakland played entirely out of their normal character and played how you need to play as a 14 seed to beat a 3 seed. They shot 31 3pts, vs 23 avg for the season. They hit 48%, vs 35% on the season. It is a high variance play that is not the recipe for sustained success.
So your point is that if an offense plays at a higher level than the other team then they win?
Did Oakland just play magical offense, or could it have something to do with Kentucky's fast pace and sub 120 efficiency defense?
So to tie this back to UCLA, how do you want UCLA to apply what you are seeing in the tournament to their play next year? Play faster or just be the same offense they have been the last 3 years before this one.
I don't know, Matt. I think we agree that both ends of the floor are important, and playing efficiently can be high scoring and entertaining that would meet Baskets' approval. A balance of both ends clearly is needed, but the Bruins are too heavily weighted towards one end. They have to play defense at a magical level--every game!--even to have a chance to win. Is it too much to ask that a team be able to hold a 19 point lead against Arizona?
The answer to your first question is yes! Oakland played magical offense and hit many absurd shots. Kentucky’s defense was fine in that game. It’s not like they were just letting them shoot. That’s why March is madness month. One game doesn’t discount the fact that Kentucky still had a very good season unlike ucla wgo stunk it up all year long
You mean the team led by a grad transfer from D2 Hillsdale College with 2 senior and 3 junior starters who beat a talented offense-only team with 4 freshman and one player - a 2nd year transfer - who started or played significant minutes last year?
Even Calamari mused in the post game presser that he's not sure what he does - 4-5 5* freshman McD one-and-dones rinse and repeat with 5 more the next year - can work anymore in these conditions... Sure some of that is an excuse for St. Peter's and Oakland but not all of it... (see portal discussions op cit)
Experience and maturity matters - that and talent and effort are all required... To echo your earlier post I took look forward to Part 3 - the new faces added to the returning core to get closer to that mix
Mostly. You're right. But the last team built like that to win the national title was 2015 Duke... Only saying in this era transfers are as if not more important than just freshman recruiting and experience - along with not being able to hit the ocean over the bow from the stern of a 22' 1-3/4" boat far too often - was part of the problem this year that *should* naturally get better with the core of this roster - not all of it - as time goes on
not sure there is any data to support this. it's easy to watch a few gams where offense dominates and come to the conclusion you came to. Of course, most wins are going to be by teams that win with offense. But you need both offense and defense to win. I'd rather have a great defense and an average offense than a great offense and a terrible defense. But I'd also rather have a great offense with average d than a great d with no offense. You need both, but you can definitely win with offense.
You made the same argument and reached the same conclusion as I.
So your point is that if you score more points than the other team, you win? Thank you John Madden.
no i did not. I reached the opposite conclusion.
Just for small sample size fun - Florida scored 100 against Colorado while we could only manage 64 against those same Buffaloes... Bet they'd of rather had our result tho...
Oh the sweet irony of the SEC commissioner giving an interview where he says they need to explore eliminating auto bids because the power conferences are better and serve those bids. The SEC is currently 1-5 with 2 massive upsets to auto bids.
And 0-2 vs the Pac12
How is Tony Padilla allowed to ref the Arizona game? I thought refs can’t work games with teams from the same conference?
I think the real question is how is Tony Padilla allowed to ref?
I find it amusing that every Pac-12 win gives Wazzue and Oregon St each another million dollars. Beavs are sitting at home getting paid.
Huge thanks to DD for the post season write ups, and to all the folks commenting. It's been a great discussion so far, and It'll be interesting to see where things go now with the portal opening up. I have plenty of my own opinions about Cronin regarding his roster construction and his offensive and defensive capabilities, and two of those three aren't very complimentary.
I do feel pretty good about Cronin's ability to teach defense and employ a solid defensive scheme, but it is imperative he has the right players to execute it, which was clearly a shortcoming this season and jumps to the issues with roster construction. It's also crucial that he has the recognition and courage to adapt ingame when his pregame plans aren't working (see UW's center go for another wide open dunk with no defensive adjustment). Cronin's stubbornness and insistence on his way or the highway helps when he's right, but it is a big pitfall when he meets a coach with a better gameplan or has a player who unexpectedly gets hot.
The problem with a defensive focused team, if you have the right players in the first place, is that games tend to be lower scoring affairs with little separation that don't allow much leeway for a poor offensive night, and so the offense must necessarily be an important factor (see, Virginia, University of). Ben Howland had this same issue with far better defenses and players who fit. And my devil's advocate impression is that the Bruins were highly successful the last 3 years because we had really high end offensive talent (if not a high end offensive scheme). In the 20-21 season, Johnny Juzang went nuclear and carried us to a FF. The next two years, a junior and senior laden mature experienced squad that played its roles very well and had a unicorn in Jaime Jaquez Jr provided enough offense to win the large majority of close games. But the core of those players were recruited by a guy I won't name, not by Cronin. So I don't think the successes from the prior 3 years were due to Cronin but rather due to the talents and leadership of the players. Of course Cronin added an Amari Bailey and an Adem Bona who played key roles, but his recruiting has fallen far short of a complete roster. See Etienne and Canka and Watson and Myles Johnson as guys who made little to no contribution in Westwood. Look what happened to the offense this season with a roster comprised only of Cronin's players. Nearly every game featured prolonged scoring droughts, little offensive imagination or diversity, and even when the defense played well we still went down to the wire almost every night.
Can Cronin's style make legit runs at another coveted NCAA title? Yes, because it has. If it weren't for 2 crushing injuries last year, I'm certain we had another FF team and maybe more (FU, Gonzaga). But can Cronin himself continue to lead the Bruins to consistent excellence and competitive teams, given the way he recruits and runs an offense to complement his defense? That part I have real doubts about, because he isn't getting the kind of players he had success with the last 3 years. I'd keep a very close eye on what this roster looks like going into next year.
Roster construction thread.
"I want to play for CMC !"
"I've always wanted to be a Bruin."
"My goal is to be the Deflection King of the B1G, and I think CMC can get me to that level."
Said no one.
What I’ve been saying ALL season… you may have even stolen those from my posts 😂
Wait. You said that CMC has ridden on the roster success of Alfie (as did Chipster with Bellotti [and Vick]). Have we then seen peak CMC?
That does worry me.
This what I’ve been saying all along!!!!!
CMC, pundits and fans alike thought it a given that CMC would stack his roster with top athletes at UCLA that he could not get at Cincinnati. Has he? Can he? Will he? You're doubtful. "It's the NIL, stupid," cry deflectors.
I was one who thought he'd have more recruiting success in Westwood. I do think NIL is one part of it. His offensive style is another part of it. The visuals of him yelling at his players on the floor is part of it. Him throwing them under the bus in post game pressers is part of it. There's a reason Mick was working to get players from across Europe instead of across Southern California.
They DONT WANT TO PLAY DEFENSE in LA!!!!
huh?
None of the players born and raised in so cal want to come to ucla anymore. They go to usc or another blue blood school. The good players in LA no longer come to ucla… it’s because they don’t want to play for a defense minded school
and that's exactly what he did until NIL made it impossible
I said from the moment that cronin was hired he would be another Alford. Instead of promoting offense, he promotes defense… he will have the same fate as alfie… won’t be long until everyone realizes that he can’t recruit and no one wants to play for him… I’ve said it from the beginning and I’ll say it until he’s gone. Cronin is the wrong brand of basketball for ANY LA basketball team
why would you not promote defense?
I’m not saying he shouldn’t… because defense is cronins brand. I’m just saying that he’s only selling defense to the incoming players. I’m not even saying he can’t coach offense because others have shown that he has had consistent offense teams. It’s just that the players that contributed offensively were not his recruits and that he’s not selling up tempo teams. So cal born players want to play up tempo basketball. It’s what they play in the nba. Why do you think they keep making ways for more points to be scored? Because that’s more entertaining to most players and fans. Cronin, while demonstrating an efficient offensive scheme in past seasons, is more concerned about grinding out slow tempo games where they can win by scoring 60 points… that brand of basketball is going to become extinct!!!!
Yay! Someone who has a brain and sees the writing on the wall. It’s going to take an absolute genius to recruit 3 transfer starters (maybe 4?) and turn this squad into a competitive basketball team. Cronin has yet to get any good transfers outside of juzang who came back to LA because he was homesick
I really like the way you put into words the things I think. My ability to put these concepts into writing is where I clearly lack 😂
I do think the tempo of play is a huge problem for cronins ability to recruit, get transfers, and retain nba bound players. I truly don’t believe that Southern California born players want to go play for a slow tempo team like ucla, Virginia, and even Houston to an extent. I don’t think that slow tempo teams can’t be good offensively… I just don’t think many nba bound stars are willing to play for a coach that only promotes defense and slow tempo of play. I’ve said they don’t want to play for mick, and it’s not even because they don’t like him, they just realize they are going to learn more offensive tempo elsewhere.
The players that do come to ucla seem to like mick. There is definitely a sense of loyalty, and I do think ucla will develop players overtime with cronin there. I don’t think it’s a style that will last as the LA brand of basketball isn’t capable of keeping fans for 3-4 years of hardship and one magical season mixed in. The last several years involved a crop of leaders that were recruited by Alford. Cronin hasn’t recruited any leaders as this seasons team demonstrates that there weren’t any capable leaders anywhere to be found. Next season might look a little better, but without any good recruits, it’s hard to envision a substantially different outcome than what this season brought us
In other news...
U of aaaa, we fell short of the Final Four again! 😂
Bears repeating (pun intended) we've been to as many Final Fours in the 21st century as they have in their school history.... Thanks Clemson! Schadenfreude rules! Go BRUINS
Interesting how nobody on UCLA has entered the transfer portal now that we're at the end of the second week of the portal being open. Almost like our players actually LIKE playing for Mick despite the in-game yelling, and his being publicly critical of the team.
At this point, I think anyone who transfers out now will be those who were (politely) asked to leave to make scholarship room for transfers.
Yesterday, 3 teams pulled upsets in the sweet sixteen. Among those 15 players with most minutes played, only 2 were sophomores, 1 junior. The rest were seniors and super seniors. Experience and retaining upperclassmen matters in winning ncaa tournament games
It's not just about retaining players, but getting the right guys in the transfer portal. 3 of 4 winning teams yesterday had a starter from the portal. I believe all 4 teams playing today too. NC State's entire starting 5 (and every single player who scored) was from the transfer portal. All 4 teams playing today have starters (some multiple....I think Alabama 4 guys?) from the transfer portal. Tennessee, Alabama, Illinois, and NC State would certainly not be where they are without the portal.
The Elite 8 had 2 freshman starters, across all teams, and only 10 sophomores, so 12/40 We had 4/5 this season.
The guys most likely to transfer are not exactly going to be hot commodities on the open market. None of them are going to help a team win immediately. None of them will be top 30 transfers. So why would they leave until told to leave?
Also, nobody has ever disputed that the players love Mick. It's just 3-4 people here who get offended when they see one grown man yelling at another grown man. Coaches have been doing that for 100 years. Nobody has transferred out because we have not picked up anyone get. Transferring out is the new "getting cut."
It's almost as if there is no demand for a non-impact, inexperienced, low basketball IQ player with (I'm guessing) an over valued contract.
"why would they leave until told to leave?" I thought that CMC doesn't chase off his players.
?
Aside from the fact that it’s incredibly insulting to call our freshmen guys “non-impact, inexperienced, low basketball IQ player”, I don’t think anyone has claimed the CMC doesn’t chase off players? What I meant is that Mick will recruit players regardless of whose feelings might be hurt and those who might see their playing time decrease or disappear will transfer on their own.
Mick has made no secret of the fact that he is going to recruit over guys.
frankly some of our freshmen are non-impact, inexperienced, and low basketball IQ. insulting or not.
I agree that it’s insulting to call your players those things. I think sea actually pulled those statements from a cronin presser this season. He said many very comparable statements throughout the season. If you’re offended, look up some Cronin conferences as he said those things first
It's a compilation.
If any of the players are offended by those comments none of us should have any interest in those players returning
I think players that come to play for mick know what they’re getting into. Those that don’t leave early like Watson and Bailey who have not been heard showering praise on cronin
I’ve seen that Bailey has gone back to visit UCLA and watch them play last season. I think if he didn’t like Cronin or enjoyed his time here he would do that? I don’t remember any Alford players visiting him after they graduated lol
Bailey has done nothing but rave about Cronin. He left because it was time fo rhim to go to the NBA.
lol yeah i'm sure Bailey and Watson left early because of the coach. nba had absolutely nothing to do with it.
Peyton Watson said from day 1 that he was going to be one and done. That was the plan.
When we find out which players wind up transferring to UCLA one of us will get the chance to say I told you so… will I be the one that gets to say it? Let’s see what sucker ucla gets to come play at ucla. Will we get a few more stefanovich’s? Or will we land someone that we’ve all actually heard of
Most people never heard of Juzang and those who had derided him as someone who barely saw the floor at Kentucky. And he led us to the Final Four and a Sweet 16. Even Lazar had started to become a more consistent shooter after 2 months in cronins system. Sometimes a change of scenery is all players need to flourish .