The Up and Coming Seton Hall Basketball Program

[jcpetri]

I can't help being excited at the direction we are headed in as a continuance of the Up and Coming Seton Hall Basketball Program. Not only do we have our point guard to add to our 4 seniors, but we have players on the bench who will be able to fill in without losing much. AND, we have the beginnings of a continued success for our program with red-shirted players and a great bench. We'll continue to attract high quality players into our successful program and hopefully become an annual entry into the NCAA tournament. Who to thank? It goes in many directions. How can you not be proud to be a "pirate" these days?

 

[Hall91]

success for SHU Basketball can be fleeting. Assuming Delgado is back and no unforeseen personnel issues, this should be a very good year for us. If we get enough stability with whoever emerges as our 1/PG, we could be a top 20 team.

Beyond this next season, you just never know what could shake out for a program like ours.

 

[SHUHoopsFan]

Finally being rewarded for having a coach more than 4-5 years. Amaker left on his own. Like him or not I thought Orr deserved more than 5 years, but he basically had no chance after we lost at Duke by 53 2nd game of the season. Gonzo needed to go. People were ready to throw Willard out. Building a program here has never been a quick fix because we don't get the Calipari or heck even the Bruce Pearl type to come here. I think the fans and the AD are being rewarded for avoiding the knee jerk reaction.

 

[BigEastHoops24]

Seton Hall is a very tough job. Kudos to Kevin Willard and his staff for laying the groundwork for what should be their most successful campaign to date. Let's take back our Big East trophy this season and make a run in the tournament.

Hopefully fans will actually show to the Rock for meaningful games this season. Donating a few bucks to Pirate Blue wouldn't hurt either!

 

[HallBall10]

It's nice to have a relevant basketball program again. And they make it easy to root for..

I think every single person on the roster is a high character guy. They represent the university very well on the court, in the classroom, and in the community. Great group of guys.

 

[Piratz]

We have dug our way out an epic, 10-year abyss (2006-16). And most thought the 3-year Blaney Era was bad, lol.

Reaching consecutive NCAA Tournaments for the first time in 20+ years and winning the BET for the first time in 23 was awesome. We're relevant again. We have a positive trend. It's been a freaking haul.

Everyone has taken their bows and patted each other on the back. Great. Now we have work to do. Take the losses to Villanova and Arkansas and carry them this summer because it's time to take the next step. Time to step up and really start to see the dividends nationally.

We should be in store for a really great, really special season this Fall. Roster is set with 4 Senior starters, we have what I think are good people in the program, we have vast experience, we have depth, we have talent, we have a track record of success, and now the hard work begins over the summer.

Plus it's the last run with the transformational '14 recruiting class. They and Willard have really turned this thing around.

 

[Irishwakeup]

I categorically refute SHU is a "very tough job " simply because so many consistently successful programs have fewer assets in terms of location, conference, name recognition, etc. ( St Mary's, Dayton, Davidson, Zaga, Evansville back in the day comes to mind).

What's tough is enduring the desertion of an Amaker mostly because he was ill-equipped to handle his recruits and bailed then compounding that error by hiring 2 successive replacements with nothing in their resume to suggest a good fit ( other than being cheap and stubborn).

As for current HC, we would be wise to not lose him over $ or administration interference. Wiser still to make Sha associate HC ($) and HC overnight should we lose Willard and I will tell you why. Not since PJ's heyday have we had this dual success on the court and in the classroom. It pains me that this board doesn't seem to appreciate how rare that is and vital to attracting good players who are also good students. And there are enough of them that you can have both.

I am grateful that our current staff is getting even better at passing on potential problem children. In the end it benefits us all. Sha and Grant are alums, they wouldn't embarrass The Hall. Willard and Hill are pros who are mindful of their rep and legacy. The staffs hard work and principle is successful because it always is - not because of the relative "toughness" job. It takes a village, lol.

Go Pirates!

 

[radecicco]

I categorically refute SHU is a "very tough job " simply because so many consistently successful programs have fewer assets in terms of location, conference, name recognition, etc. ( St Mary's, Dayton, Davidson, Zaga, Evansville back in the day comes to mind).

What's tough is enduring the desertion of an Amaker mostly because he was ill-equipped to handle his recruits and bailed then compounding that error by hiring 2 successive replacements with nothing in their resume to suggest a good fit ( other than being cheap and stubborn).

As for current HC, we would be wise to not lose him over $ or administration interference. Wiser still to make Sha associate HC ($) and HC overnight should we lose Willard and I will tell you why. Not since PJ's heyday have we had this dual success on the court and in the classroom. It pains me that this board doesn't seem to appreciate how rare that is and vital to attracting good players who are also good students. And there are enough of them that you can have both.

I am grateful that our current staff is getting even better at passing on potential problem children. In the end it benefits us all. Sha and Grant are alums, they wouldn't embarrass The Hall. Willard and Hill are pros who are mindful of their rep and legacy. The staffs hard work and principle is successful because it always is - not because of the relative "toughness" job. It takes a village, lol.

Go Pirates!

Agree with most of your points but Seton Hall is a very tough job. And the programs you mention are laudable but let's be real, The West Coast Conference, the Southern Conference (Davidson when they had strong teams), Missouri Valley, even the A10 can't compare with the Big East, old or new versions.

 

[hallgrad80]

We have experienced two seasons of high success and confidence is high that success will continue for a third year led by 4 seniors and aided by one redshirt junior from a unique class , the 2014 class. It's been a joy to finally have a team that's relevant again and deservingly so because they've earned the recognition they're getting now. Having said that , this program will have to put even greater effort into ensuring that success continues and we'll need to elevate the level of talent we bring into the program to achieve that goal. The question in the forefront is whether we'll achieve that sustained success we all want and the answer should be that we're confident that we can and the 2018 class should be the barometer that confirms that our confidence was not misplaced.

 

[Irishwakeup]

Agree with most of your points but Seton Hall is a very tough job. And the programs you mention are laudable but let's be real, The West Coast Conference, the Southern Conference (Davidson when they had strong teams), Missouri Valley, even the A10 can't compare with the Big East, old or new versions.

That's exactly my point. BE should be more of an attraction and easier to close deal. Trick is finding guys who want to make a difference like our core 4 had the confidence to do

 

[Piratz]

I think the Seton Hall job has changed a lot from where it was prior when we were getting lost in that insane 16-team league and with a dysfunctional organization on campus.

We'll see what happens with a new University President, but over the past 7 years, the new leadership worked hard to reconfigure the support to the program, facilities upgraded further, and of course the revamped conference has helped significantly.

Plus now the program itself is now on a winning trend. No longer the desolate place it had been, IMO.

 

[Seton75]

Think back to the 90 season. I wonder how many of us said it was over already. Then with a whole new team pj won again. I am thrilled with this new recruiting class. I love Powell. But I need to see us win without this core group. Till then skepticism is not unfounded.

 

[Pirate64]

Our only disadvantages are no on-campus arena and perhaps a sleepy campus on weekends when the season is over.
Tony mentioned the latter. It's tough for a kid who lives far away and can't get home on a weekend.
But aside from that we are more than competitive in academics, cash for coaches, recruiting money, academic support.
Forgot Our attendance could also use a boost. Don;t know what the answer is there.

 

[hallgrad80]

I think the Seton Hall job has changed a lot from where it was prior when we were getting lost in that insane 16-team league and with a dysfunctional organization on campus.

We'll see what happens with a new University President, but over the past 7 years, the new leadership worked hard to reconfigure the support to the program, facilities upgraded further, and of course the revamped conference has helped significantly.

Plus now the program itself is now on a winning trend. No longer the desolate place it had been, IMO.

All of what you say is true but the most important element in our recent success has been the quality of the talent that was brought in the 2014 class that gave us 6 high quality talented players. While we've added some talent since then that have contributed to our success like DG, Powell and MJ and the 2017 class has added more players to help replace what we'll lose thru graduation , we need to bring in another class in 2018 that is close to what we did in 2014 in terms of talent so that we don't take a step backward. I was pleased by Dan's comment that the staff is looking for a transfer with our last ship for this year that will make an immediate impact when he becomes eligible in the 2018-2019 season. That's a smart way to utilize all the avenues available to add high quality talent to your program.

 

[SPK145]

Trick is finding guys who want to make a difference like our core 4 had the confidence to do

That trick wasn't confidence, it was jobs. Whatever it takes, just be honest.

 

[GSD118]

Seton Hall is a very tough job. Kudos to Kevin Willard and his staff for laying the groundwork for what should be their most successful campaign to date. Let's take back our Big East trophy this season and make a run in the tournament.

Hopefully fans will actually show to the Rock for meaningful games this season. Donating a few bucks to Pirate Blue wouldn't hurt either!

And donating a few bucks for those pretzels

 

[cernjSHU]

Think back to the 90 season. I wonder how many of us said it was over already. Then with a whole new team pj won again. I am thrilled with this new recruiting class. I love powell. But I need to see us win without this core group. Till then scepticism is not unfounded.

hmm, during the 1989 season, PJ went out and recruited Dehere and Jerry Walker, Walker being the stud in the recruiting rankings. In 1990, Dehere was eligible but Walker was not. Thus, we did not have a good season. But PJ, followed that up with another good recruiting coup in Caver, Karnishivas and Luther Wright and they brought in a JUCO Ollie Taylor.

In 1990, I never thought it was over, it was just beginning.

 

[wpc75]

In the early 90"s PJ was being mentioned for the Notre Dame job but Seton Hall was bigger and better than ND then

 

[400SOAVE]

I lived on campus four years and one year off-campus in South Orange.

The idea that there's nothing to do on weekends is ridiculous and false.

There are probably few places in the United States where there are more varied places to visit, and things to do within an hour or less than South Orange USA.

This includes NYC, the Shore, every professional sport, Great Adventure, skiing and hundreds of other possibilities. And let's not forget Pirates basketball

There's probably not a single weekend when there's not a major artist performing at the Rock and/or NYC.

Travel a little farther once or twice during the school year and you have a great place called Philadelphia. There are also many cool places on Long Island and north of NYC.

These are all viable and enjoyable day trips.

Moreover, there have never been more out-of-state students on campus. You're going to tell me there aren't parties on weekends?

If you have nothing to do on weekends while living in the dorms then the problem is not that you're not trying hard enough. The problem is that you're not trying at all.

Don't have a car? SHU runs a shuttle bus that drops off and picks up at the South Orange train station which is conveniently located less than 10 minutes from campus.

 

[Seton75]

In the early 90"s PJ was being mentioned for the Notre Dame job but Seton Hall was bigger and better than ND then

YES. I used to do business with a guy from ND back then 2 of my customers were college hoops fans, and always talked SHU hoops when we made a call on them. The ND guy would mention he went to ND and they would mod and go back to discussing SHU.

The 88 and 89 teams were made up of the core 4 just like this one. When Kevin gets a team without kc et al to the ncaas, that will mean a lot to me.

 

[Piratz]

Seton Hall is a different type of campus (BTW, the campus looks gorgeous these days). South Orange is not a typical college town, but has a lot to offer and is within easy striking distance of much more.

Seton Hall is a different experience than a school in the middle of nowhere that has the entire community bending over backwards for it. It is also in an area and offers things that those areas do not, so what's better or worse is up to the individual. But there is a difference that HS kids have to evaluate for themselves.

I would think these factors are less of a consideration for a major D1 basketball player who basically has their entire life on a schedule. Less leisurely.