I know I’m going to catch a lot of bitterness over this from the UK fan crowd that believes in the philosophy that you support your players and coaches until they are no longer a part of the team. I’m willing to deal with that.
The fact is, I cannot sit back and watch UK basketball, its rich tradition, and the players and coaches who made it what it is, go down the drain. The sad part about it is that it is going to happen. There is nothing I can do about it. There is nothing you can do about it. In fact, the only two people that can do something about it are Mitch Barnhart, the Athletic Director at UK, or Billy Gillispie himself.
Barnhart has one of the easiest tasks in all of college sports sitting right in front of him. You see, UK can rid itself of a coach that once seemed to be the savior of UK basketball. And it can do it, free of charge. Billy Gillispie still hasn’t signed a contract. He still coaches at UK under a “Memorandum of Understanding.” He’s reaping all of the benefits of coaching at the most prestigious of all college basketball programs, while being under no stress of the consequences that come with failing.
And failing he is. In two years, he has had 5 of the worst losses in UK history. Last year he lost to San Diego, Gardner-Webb, and got blown out by Kansas. This year, he has added VMI and the disaster that was last Wednesday night.
You see, he took a UK team that was atop the SEC East standings for the entire month of January, one that had beaten badly the defending East Division Champion Tennessee Volunteers twice, and turned them into an afterthought.
Last Wednesday night, Georgia came into Rupp Arena. Losers of 12 of their last 15, and the worst team in the SEC, they came into Rupp Arena in a game that UK had to have to feel safe about getting into the NCAA Tournament, on Senior Night of all nights and handily beat the Wildcats.
A well coached team doesn’t allow that to happen. Especially a well coached team with two legitimate All-American type players. And you can’t blame this one on the point guard either. Michael Porter had a career night, and finally looked like the player he was meant to be. Patrick Patterson was 1 rebound and 2 blocked shots away from a triple double. Meeks struggled all night long, because of intense defensive pressure designed to shut him down, yet he still scored when it counted and kept UK from getting blown off of its own court.
No, the problem Wednesday night was in bad coaching. When your team is offensively challenged, you do not take out your only two legitimate scoring threats at the same time to make whatever statement you want your players to get. After thirty seconds into the second half, Coach Gillispie pulled 4 of the 5 starters, leaving only Michael Porter, and watched as Georgia built a 10 point lead.
Not only did this not make for a smart substitution, but it allowed Georgia to gain confidence. That was coaching mistake numero uno. Number two, was stubborn pride. I’ve said it before, I’m saying it again. Play a zone for once in your life. Over the last 4 weeks, as UK and its season have gone down the drain in rapid form, the one consistent has been that teams in the SEC have learned how to beat Gillispie’s tenacious man to man defense.
It’s simple really. Use a quick guard who can drive to the basket, and when UK’s wing men double down kick the ball out to wide open three point shooters. In effect, you get the same result as you did with Tubby’s ball line defense.
We could get rid of all of this without having to pay an extra dime. No buyout clauses matter when the contract isn’t signed. And I’m sure there are other, better coaches who would jump at the chance to coach at their alma mater (cough Travis Ford cough) for what Gillispie makes per year. Even if he is not ready yet, what do we really have to lose?
UK is slowly losing the mystique that used to be a pain in other teams sides. And Patrick Patterson said it best when he said, “An NIT bid is not the Kentucky way.” Did anybody else see how good Ford had Oklahoma State looking this week against Kansas State? I know I was taken back to better times.
It’s time to get back to those times, and getting rid of a coach who is good, but not good enough for UK is the first step. The fans can make that happen if UK accepts an NIT bid. The NIT is not good enough for UK, its players, or its fans. If Gillispie accepts that bid, the fans should boycott and not attend the games. Sure watch them on TV, but don’t go. The way to get a message across to an Athletic Director is to hit him where it hurts. UK fans making a statement of that magnitude, could not go unnoticed… just as the job Coach Gillispie is doing at UK can no longer go unnoticed.
See ya’ll next week!
I believe that you are correct in your opinion that a coach should be competitive with the talent he inherits; but Gillespie only inherited Bradley, Crawford, and Meeks (of which only one of them was really any good). In my opinion, it was this lack of talent that gave Tubby the extra push to get out of Lexington.
Gillespie didn't really inherit any talent and if he did, who knows where we would be this year. I think there was too much play from good freshman that will develop during the upcoming years to bring UK back to prominence.
We need depth and experience of which we had neither this year. My argument is with some experienced talented players, and some new, talented players to throw in with the rotation, we could stand to be a power in the SEC and NCAA again, but we can't do that if we get rid of Gillespie and all of his good recruits go with him.
Although you might be right about Meeks staying, I highly doubt he will because he may not want to learn an entirely new system again. That would be his third in as many years. Also, I think the pro scouts may realize that it was relatively easy to guard UK this year; just shut down Patterson and Meeks and you have the game. Considering the defense these teams could then utilize, it's no wonder Meeks' numbers dropped. His season averages however, and style of play, is exactly what the pros need (and part of the reason Rondo left with worse numbers).
You'll also see why I don't. A good coach, worth his salt, should be able to be at the least, competitive with the talen that he inherits. For example, Tubby Smith. He inherited a team from Rick Pitino and went on to win a National Title with them. Tubby's problem is not that he couldn't recruit top talent, it's that he refused to do so after being burned by the likes of Rashaad Carruth. We have the opposite here now. We have a coach who is a decent coach, a great recruiter, but lacks any motivational skills whatsoever.
Here's another example for you. Sean Sutton at Oklahoma State couldn't recruit and was only a decent x's and o's coach. Travis Ford steps in and wins with Sutton's players. He has them in the NCAA tournament this year. He's also showing an ability to recruit big time players. He's a coach that can do both of what any program wants.
While I agree that we may lose Patterson if Gillispie leaves, I think the second half of the season showed Meeks that he is not ready for the NBA and will not jump ship. I would much rather watch a more exciting brand of basketball that a coach like Ford would bring in, and watch him develop a team (yes we may lose a few on the way), than to watch Gillispie run the program into the ground because he cannot connect personally with his players, cannot motivate them, and refuses to adjust his gameplan to suit the opponent we are playing.
Just my two cents.
PG: Porter/Liggins/Villarino
SG: Meeks
SF: Miller/Galloway
PF: Patterson/Stevenson
C: Orton/Harrellson
We're stille a little light at SG, so if Meeks leaves we could be in trouble again, but if he comes back, we'll compete for a final four appearance at the least.