Willard/Pitt

[dcPirate]

Have you provided any solid reasons for your inane opinions? NO. "Don't hate. That's a female trait."

Ok, got it. Asking you to elaborate on your 1 word response on a Seton Hall basketball website about a former Seton Hall player (who could bring recruits to the program) possibly becoming an assistant was "hating"...and also signs of a female trait.

Marcus Toney-El has the ability to bring upper tier recruits to the program, is that enough elaboration??

For the record, most of my opinions are inane...but they are elaborated on...

 

[Smooth]

Just regarding the Rice comment.....he would take that job in a heartbeat.

You would know better than me.

I just find it odd that someone who is more accomplished as both an assistant and a head coach would take a job as the #2 to someone who has no head coaching experience that likely wouldn't even be the first choice of the school hiring him.

 

[Vegas pj]

No coach of ours had a weaker resume than PJ..

Being the SH AD's Godson was the equalizer with his hiring.

 

[Seton75]

Being the SH AD's Godson was the equalizer with his hiring.

And the other reason as the old joke went, he would say yes. So you never know. I was as adamant that he would fail as the gonzo supporters here were sure he was the savior...

 

[The Crows Nest]

Whoa! This equaled the best 3 year streak in Seton Hall history? Making it to the dance does not make it equal to the PJ runs in the tournament. 91- Final 8, 92 - Sweet 16, 93 second round. Yes, SH made the dance 3 years in a row. In those 3 years, only one tournament win. 1-3 record.

88- second round loss to Arizona, 89 National Runner-Up, 90 did not make the NCAA tournament.

I was focusing on three straight years of tourney bids. Only the third time.

The point being, we don't make the tourney with any regulatory at all (how many years since our last tourney win? Excluding last week of course) so labeling these years as mediocre is a vast overstatement.

Now if we were Kentucky, Duke, or any number of schools that go to the tourney basically every year, yes these are mediocre results.

But... We're not them.

Have to know who you are

 

[400SOAVE]

PJ was a head coach for seven seasons when he was hired at SHU.

He was an assistant for one season at Fordham after he graduated.

 

[cernjSHU]

I was focusing on three straight years of tourney bids. Only the third time.

The point being, we don't make the tourney with any regulatory at all (how many years since our last tourney win? Excluding last week of course) so labeling these years as mediocre is a vast overstatement.

Now if we were Kentucky, Duke, or any number of schools that go to the tourney basically every year, yes these are mediocre results.

But... We're not them.

Have to know who you are

That is accepting your lot in life. We were a great program before and we can be again. With Willard, was this the foundational class that he will build upon for greater success. Or was this his only shot?

At this point, it’s hard to tell.

 

[SHUHoopsFan]

That is accepting your lot in life. We were a great program before and we can be again. With Willard, was this the foundational class that he will build upon for greater success. Or was this his only shot?

At this point, it’s hard to tell.

The question is do you believe in Powell, Cale, Thompson, and the rest of the guys to continue the success or not? I do. Others may not.

 

[hallgrad80]

Being the SH AD's Godson was the equalizer with his hiring.

And Richie and PJ's dad , Peter, were friends as well.

 

[Piratz]

The question is do you believe in Powell, Cale, Thompson, and the rest of the guys to continue the success or not? I do. Others may not.

Personally, I am hopeful. But not fully sure yet until I see what it looks like. We have a lot of work to do and we haven't brought in stacked recruiting classes during our 3-year run to relevancy. Willard is getting about one high-end player per season, which is a bit less than the top Big East teams. Plus the 2015 and 2016 classes turned out to be literally one player - Powell, thus the 3 transfers.

That doesn't mean we won't have a good time or be able to coach them up, it just means we have to wait and see.

 

[Seton75]

PJ was a head coach for seven seasons when he was hired at SHU.

He was an assistant for one season at Fordham after he graduated.

Pj coached the freshmen team when he graduated. A friend, a guy at Fordham to play soccer, played frosh hoops along with some baseball players and even denzel w. Then he was hc at new Hampshire I think. And of course, he was at Wagner where a good center got him a good season, and after he graduated, in pj's last yr, they were under .500. We hired a coach at wagner off a sub 500 season, imagine the reaction here omg lol.

Point is, he didn't work for any major head coaches, but a helluva coach anyway. You just never know.

 

[knowknow456]

The question is do you believe in Powell, Cale, Thompson, and the rest of the guys to continue the success or not?

I do.

 

[dcPirate]

The question is do you believe in Powell, Cale, Thompson, and the rest of the guys to continue the success or not? I do. Others may not.

I think the jury will be out until they start playing games next year. If there is anything I've learned over the years, it's not to believe the off-season hype train that tends to happen on this board with incoming players. There are still many questions to be answered.

Is there talent coming back next year? Absolutely.
Powell - should be clear cut leader
Nzei (hopefully)
Cale - hoping for huge Soph leap
Thompson - offense won't be an issue, can he defend?
Sandro - showed flashes of potential last 8-10 games.
Walker (maybe)
McKnight - can he make the transition to BE play?
Gordon - solid/steady, does The Hall need more?
Rhoden - blew up late this season, can he contribute right away?
Nelson - can a Freshman PG get quality minutes early?
Gill - can he give a solid 5-10 minutes a game if needed?
Flory - can he get on the court?
Brodie - no expectations whatsoever

If the new guys can contribute and be factors, there is certainly the talent to compete. I think a lot would have to go right for this group to be a factor in making the NCAAs. Willard has historically not over-achieved with any of his teams to this point (IW throwing The Hall on his back late 2016 the lone exception). Can he do it next year with lowered expectations?

 

[blueice2011]

With the exception of Miles Powell this team is very green and really seems that they have to learn not only to play better but increase their skills. This year when Dezi got hurt, i felt like the season was over but turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It gave played like Miles Cale and even Jordan Walker some minutes to get the bench bugs out from sitting all season. From what I have seen so far and again except for Miles Powell this team does not have the natural ability that this graduating team had coming in. I am looking forward to seeing them develop next year and hoping we can get one or maybe two transfers in the future to again lift us up. Jordan Walker is also the key and needs to play without getting fouled out early.

 

[Vegas pj]

And Richie and PJ's dad , Peter, were friends as well.

Richie was PJ's "Godfather", who is usually a family member or close family friend of the parents..

 

[Pirate64]

Pj coached the freshmen team when he graduated. A friend, a guy at Fordham to play soccer, played frosh hoops along with some baseball players and even denzel w. Then he was hc at new Hampshire I think. And of course, he was at Wagner where a good center got him a good season, and after he graduated, in pj's last yr, they were under .500. We hired a coach at wagner off a sub 500 season, imagine the reaction here omg lol.

Point is, he didn't work for any major head coaches, but a helluva coach anyway. You just never know.

We hired PJ because of his connections to Richie and because he came cheap
$45K. We were so broke back in those days.

Now, I hope KW stays. He's too quirky for me but I am starting to understand why he coaches he way he does. Maybe the kick ass days of Lombardi are over.

We have gone to the dance 3 years in a row, we will be competitive next year, there's harmony in the locker room, the players love him , nobody is leaving, and everyone is graduating. And the media goes out of there way to applaud Kevin and his guys Especially Steve Lavin.
Except for a Sweet 16, what the hell more do we want. And would it be worth the risk?

 

[Halldan1]

But before that happened Gary Williams accepted the SHU job then called Boston College that same night to see if they would offer (they did).

The Hall had a press conference set up the next day to announce Williams as their next head coach and when he reneged decided to offer PJ on the spot.

 

[radecicco]

We hired PJ because of his connections to Richie and because he came cheap
$45K. We were so broke back in those days.

Now, I hope KW stays. He's too quirky for me but I am starting to understand why he coaches he way he does. Maybe the kick ass days of Lombardi are over.

We have gone to the dance 3 years in a row, we will be competitive next year, there's harmony in the locker room, the players love him , nobody is leaving, and everyone is graduating. And the media goes out of there way to applaud Kevin and his guys Especially Steve Lavin.
Except for a Sweet 16, what the hell more do we want. And would it be worth the risk?

Could not agree more.

 

[Seton00]

Ok, got it. Asking you to elaborate on your 1 word response on a Seton Hall basketball website about a former Seton Hall player (who could bring recruits to the program) possibly becoming an assistant was "hating"...and also signs of a female trait.

Marcus Toney-El has the ability to bring upper tier recruits to the program, is that enough elaboration??

For the record, most of my opinions are inane...but they are elaborated on...

Bull.

 

[BostonBlackie]

"Marcus Toney-El has the ability to bring upper tier recruits to the program, is that enough elaboration??"

So many guys say this as a matter of fact but where is the evidence? Because two decades ago as an 18-year-old he talked two AAU buddies into coming here with him? As an assistant at FDU he did nothing (and did I hear he got into some sort of trouble?) and as an IC assistant he made no impact on Jalen Carey. His Playaz connection is pretty limited in scope, no? We do so much wishful thinking... I would put Shaheen in this category as well. Being an alum provides no advantage when recruiting. Being a persuasive communicator does.

 

[lloyde dobler]

Gotta remember the flip side to hiring a guy based on connections to an AAU team: What helps you with that team can alienate you with the others.

 

[Vegas pj]

Isn't there a rule about hiring AAU coaches and him then recruiting his players?

 

[Potbelly407]

Isn't there a rule about hiring AAU coaches and him then recruiting his players?

Only if he’s a DOBO

 

[Halldan1]

Isn't there a rule about hiring AAU coaches and him then recruiting his players?

The coach must be hired as a recruiting assistant or you can't touch his players for 2 years.

 

[PiratePride]

I think the jury will be out until they start playing games next year. If there is anything I've learned over the years, it's not to believe the off-season hype train that tends to happen on this board with incoming players. There are still many questions to be answered.

Is there talent coming back next year? Absolutely.
Powell - should be clear cut leader
Nzei (hopefully)
Cale - hoping for huge Soph leap
Thompson - offense won't be an issue, can he defend?
Sandro - showed flashes of potential last 8-10 games.
Walker (maybe)
McKnight - can he make the transition to BE play?
Gordon - solid/steady, does The Hall need more?
Rhoden - blew up late this season, can he contribute right away?
Nelson - can a Freshman PG get quality minutes early?
Gill - can he give a solid 5-10 minutes a game if needed?
Flory - can he get on the court?
Brodie - no expectations whatsoever

If the new guys can contribute and be factors, there is certainly the talent to compete. I think a lot would have to go right for this group to be a factor in making the NCAAs. Willard has historically not over-achieved with any of his teams to this point (IW throwing The Hall on his back late 2016 the lone exception). Can he do it next year with lowered expectations?

Definitely a whole new dymamic next year.. who will be that guy who can make the chemistry right. Who will be the strong team leader? Not sure we had that this year. Maybe at times it was Angel and maybe it was Khadeen... but we lacked consistent team leadership.


..

 

[Vegas pj]

Only if he’s a DOBO

Thanks

 

[Vegas pj]

The coach must be hired as a recruiting assistant or you can touch his players for 2 years.

Think you meant to type can't. My I pad makes some of my posts grammatically challenged. lol Thanks for the answer since I "thought" there was a rule limiting recruiting in a hire and it didn't apply to Tiny.