The Book: 2006-2007 Ragin' Cajuns Basketball

[rhineaux]

Hang in there, Coach Lee...HANG IN THERE!!!

Z.

Anyone else notice that tank job by ULM last night.

Keep it up boys. 2 wins and counting. Keep getting better, knock teams off, and get into that tourney.

[Zeebart21]

Anyone else notice that tank job by ULM last night.

Keep it up boys. 2 wins and counting. Keep getting better, knock teams off, and get into that tourney.

I noticed that, and believe me I did not shed a tear. Trust me, though...Early is a good coach, and they will have to be reckoned with in the future. They havent had nearly the recruiting class we have had, but with Early as coach they should always be competitive.

Z.

[NewsCopy]

Something you won’t see often on the Division I basketball level ... a college head coach on the floor playing pickup ball with a group of kids following a game. But after two wins, UL coach Robert Lee deserves to have some fun. Lee was waiting for a television crew to finish its setup to tape his coaches show, about 30 minutes after his Cajun basketball squad prevailed in a 74-71 decision over Florida International. While waiting, he joined three youths in a quick two-on-two game, pointing out some of the finer offensive and defensive points to his young game-mates. The game came to a quick end when the television crew finished its preparations, and Lee had a chance to talk on his show about two wins, a first since last season. Lee’s Cajuns are now riding a two-game winning streak. Neither win was overly impressive — a 66-64 victory over Denver Thursday and Saturday’s last-second victory over FIU — but no one in the Cajun locker room’s going to throw either one back after a 2-12 start. The rest of the story Dan McDonald dmcdonald@theadvertiser.com

[Oldman]

If Jesse Evans had stayed the 20+ win seasons would have continued.... As long as Lee is here, the 20+ loss seasons will happen. There is talent on the team now, certainly enough to win a few sunbelt games and avoid 40 point blow outs to the likes of Stephen F. Austin, but this is what is happening.

It was Lee that tried to bring in the transfers last year en masse, but then realized that he would actually have to figure out a way to mold those very talented but somewhat troubled young men into good students and players. Evans did this year after year and Lee thought he could too, as head coach, just as he helped Evans do while he was an assistant.

Lee proclaimed last year's team to be sweet 16 material going into the season. Then, during the season he proclaimed that Marques Cooke would be the best player in the sunbelt the moment he stepped on the floor for the first time. Lee was just as excited about transfers as Evans ever was, if not more so.... Then Lee's transfer project failed miserably, then Lee cancelled the scholarships of those guys, then he decided to recruit 4 year players.

The team is arguably the worst in Cajun basketball history, and worst team in sunbelt today, even though the talent level is better than average in sunbelt and better than the the few other Cajuns teams that had a losing record since joining D1 35 or so years ago.

Do you honestly believe that Lee will turn a 3 to 5 win team, in the lowly sunbelt, into a sunbelt championship team (what Evans already provided or came close to providing year in and year out) simply with a couple of years maturation process of the young guys now? These freshmen and the other more experienced players on the team are already good enough to compete in the sunbelt but it is not happening because of poor coaching. The team was good enough to compete with Tennessee, Nevada and Cal State Fullerton at the very beginning of the season (at a time when coaching is not as important as raw talent) but now could not possibly come within 30 points of those teams and cannot possibly get out of the cellar in the sunbelt. So why all the optimism about this team and program next year or the year after? Will the talent level be so high then that the team can continue to underperform and yet still win games and make NCAA tourney run?

Ironicaly, the best player by far on this current team is a transfer, Dees. Even more ironically is that if Cooke had stayed in school, the best two players would be transfers. So much for the 4 year plan.

Please note that the 35 years of consistent winning teams is being run into the ground now by the current program. This is happening almost overnight. This year's team is arguably the worst team in 35 years and arguably the worst team in a very weak conference. The young team is showing so much progress that after losing to CSF by a few points they turn around a month or so later and lose by 40. After being competitve against a few teams that would run all over the sunbelt, the Cajuns can't win a sunbelt game and it is no surprise when they lose to teams like SFA and Monroe by 20 to 40 points.

Cajuns may be the worst team in D1 today. So the future is bright?

Evans had 20+ win seasons year after year and that was terrible?

Whoever gave Lee the 5 year guaranteed contract should be fired on the spot. imho, Lee was not a bad hire, given the circumstances at the time, and he deserved a shot at the time. However, why give 5 year guaranteed deal when Lee had no other head coaching jobs coming to him and there was no great demand for him? It was an experiment, he was getting a shot that he deserved, but why not make it a two or three year deal? Why 5? That was flirting with dissaster, and was a negligent decision, especially for a program that apparently cannot afford to buy out contracts.

THIS IS HOW STUPID YOU ARE.......JESSE HAD TO 1ST CHASE THESE GUYS AROUND AND GET THEM TO CLASS AND WHEN HE LEFT THEY LEFT
2ND YOU DIDN'T KNOW IF THEY WERE ELEGIBLE AND MOST OF THE TIME THEY WEREN'T
3RD THEY WERE ALWAYS GETTING INTO SOME SORT OF TROUBLE
BUT AS LONG AS HE PUT UP 20 + WINS AS YOU SAY THAT WAS OKAY BECAUSE YOU SIMPLY DON'T KNOW OR CARE IF THEY GO TO CLASS OR GRADUATED.........HOW STUPID CAN YOU BE! AND WHERE ARE THE PLAYERS NOW(THAT WE SHOULD HAVE)DON'T GET ME WRONG THERE WERE A FEW GUYS WHO UNDERSTOOD THE IMPORTANCE OF AN EDUCATION AND TOOK IT UPON THEMSELVES TO DO JUST THAT, GAVE ME A BREAK TODAYS BASKETBALLS GPA 2.5-2.8, WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM........I KNOW YOU ACTUALLY ARE A lsu guy trying to act a cajun fan..GOTTA BE BECAUSE YOU AINT ONE OF US.

[rhineaux]

THIS IS HOW STUPID YOU ARE.......JESSE HAD TO 1ST CHASE THESE GUYS AROUND AND GET THEM TO CLASS AND WHEN HE LEFT THEY LEFT
2ND YOU DIDN'T KNOW IF THEY WERE ELEGIBLE AND MOST OF THE TIME THEY WEREN'T
3RD THEY WERE ALWAYS GETTING INTO SOME SORT OF TROUBLE
BUT AS LONG AS HE PUT UP 20 + WINS AS YOU SAY THAT WAS OKAY BECAUSE YOU SIMPLY DON'T KNOW OR CARE IF THEY GO TO CLASS OR GRADUATED.........HOW STUPID CAN YOU BE! AND WHERE ARE THE PLAYERS NOW(THAT WE SHOULD HAVE)DON'T GET ME WRONG THERE WERE A FEW GUYS WHO UNDERSTOOD THE IMPORTANCE OF AN EDUCATION AND TOOK IT UPON THEMSELVES TO DO JUST THAT, GAVE ME A BREAK TODAYS BASKETBALLS GPA 2.5-2.8, WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM........I KNOW YOU ACTUALLY ARE A lsu guy trying to act a cajun fan..GOTTA BE BECAUSE YOU AINT ONE OF US.

With the new APR rules, we would have gotten smoked under Evans. Hell, we got smoked for something as small as T.Wade leaving for the pros because it counted as a non-graduate. the way things are nowadays, its much more important to make sure the players are right in the classroom above all else. Wins are nice, but the great kids that have decent grades aren't coming here (are many other places anywhere around here), for that matter.

[ragin2112cajun]

Once again I see on this forum that all these people believing in coach lee,cant answer the question about "the man" being able to COACH all this
talent he is bringing in. Dr.Fidell extending lee's contract is a move only this
cowtown university could make.Lee got a contract extention heading a program off of someone elses players.The talent on those teams all lee had
to do was role the ballout and make sure they were out of the strip joints
and bars before practice started.
As for as bashing Evans moving to San Francisco was not a step down when
you just look at baskeball,the cajuns would have trouble winning out west.
Lets be real the Sunbelt is HORRIBLE as of late.

[Zeebart21]

Once again I see on this forum that all these people believing in coach lee,cant answer the question about "the man" being able to COACH all this
talent he is bringing in. Dr.Fidell extending lee's contract is a move only this
cowtown university could make.Lee got a contract extention heading a program off of someone elses players.The talent on those teams all lee had
to do was role the ballout and make sure they were out of the strip joints
and bars before practice started.
As for as bashing Evans moving to San Francisco was not a step down when
you just look at baskeball,the cajuns would have trouble winning out west.
Lets be real the Sunbelt is HORRIBLE as of late.

Evans moving to SF was a lateral move at best. Maybe the top 3 teams are better, but Jessie isnt helping that RPI. He hasnt improved that program. In fact they've taken a step backwards, similar to what has happened here.

Now, given time to bring in his own people, Jessie will probably succeed, just like Lee will, here at UL.

Z.

[cajunpepper]

Once again I see on this forum that all these people believing in coach lee,cant answer the question about "the man" being able to COACH all this
talent he is bringing in. Dr.Fidell extending lee's contract is a move only this
cowtown university could make.Lee got a contract extention heading a program off of someone elses players.The talent on those teams all lee had
to do was role the ballout and make sure they were out of the strip joints
and bars before practice started.
As for as bashing Evans moving to San Francisco was not a step down when
you just look at baskeball,the cajuns would have trouble winning out west.
Lets be real the Sunbelt is HORRIBLE as of late.

Just straight up, you are an idiot who knows nothing about hoops.

[rhineaux]

Just straight up, you are an idiot who knows nothing about hoops.

ANYONE LISTEN TO THE RL SHOW TONIGHT? ANYTHING PARTICULAR THAT STOOD OUT (I.E. HIS FEELINGS ON TWO WINS, CHANGE IN MOOD OF THE TEAM, CONFIDENCE, ETC.)

[Cajunsmike]

ANYONE LISTEN TO THE RL SHOW TONIGHT? ANYTHING PARTICULAR THAT STOOD OUT (I.E. HIS FEELINGS ON TWO WINS, CHANGE IN MOOD OF THE TEAM, CONFIDENCE, ETC.)

I listened to the Coach Lee show. Here is what I remember. Morale is good. It would have been devastating to lose to Denver had they made a three at the buzzer. We won Saturday because we won Thursday. First half Saturday was our best of the year defensively. Many teams have gotten hot with threes against us. He thought it was mostly luck but has found by looking at film that many of our freshman don't close out on key shooters like they should. After all, in high school, many guys miss that type of shot. Guys need to learn, you can't hope they will miss, you have to make them miss. He was very proud of Rhett Hebert, Willie Lago, and Dees for the good free throw shooting on Saturday. 10 fpr 10 in the last few minutes.Now some not so good news, injuries caused us to have only nine guys at practice today. Mouton's knee swelled up, Courtney Wallace is still out while both Valentino Hart and Aubrey Milson sat out. Adam James was the only inside player at practice. Trainer says they should all be OK by Thursday. UNT is 2 and 3 in the league but have only played one conference home game. They had the best non conference record in the Western Divison of the Sun Belt though. They probably have the most offensive talent in the league while Saturday's oppenent, WKU has the most likely pro prospect in Courtney Lee. It will be a challenging week. Finally, he did not talk about Elijah Milsap but I will tell you he was a big part of the wins with his quick hands on defense.

[ragin2112cajun]

If i am a idiot come introduce yourself to me next home game sec206 row bb seat 11,12.Your the dude who probably liked Baldwin for football,and thinks Lee can do what Pasqual,Fletcher,and Evans did be a winner year end year out.Lee got a winning record as a coach off of Evans players.The administration obviously was trying to make themselves look good publicly hiring Cyprien and Lee.Will see,the crowd numbers have been going down even before this season,if you don't have a following how do you expect to fill the cajundome idiot.And I think we are hosting the sunbelt tourney at seasons end whats your excuse if the cajuns don't get in.A young team,sorry thats a sad excuse when there have been other coaches out there who have done great things with true freshmen as a starting five.Geaux hang out with your buddy Jay at 1420 IDIOT.

[Cajun Express]

If i am a idiot come introduce yourself to me next home game sec206 row bb seat 11,12.Your the dude who probably liked Baldwin for football,and thinks Lee can do what Pasqual,Fletcher,and Evans did be a winner year end year out.Lee got a winning record as a coach off of Evans players.The administration obviously was trying to make themselves look good publicly hiring Cyprien and Lee.Will see,the crowd numbers have been going down even before this season,if you don't have a following how do you expect to fill the cajundome idiot.And I think we are hosting the sunbelt tourney at seasons end whats your excuse if the cajuns don't get in.A young team,sorry thats a sad excuse when there have been other coaches out there who have done great things with true freshmen as a starting five.Geaux hang out with your buddy Jay at 1420 IDIOT.

Just don't hold back anything. Robe missed out while he hosted a Sun Belt Torney, and both Jesse and Marty hosted and were one and done. Marty won seven games the year he signed all those freshmen, Lee will equal or better it.

Dude I got no ill will towards Jesse, or Marty why so hostile towards Lee? He is trying to do what neither Jesse nor Marty tried to do, build a foundation and get get players who can stay in school while playing. You do know that Lee had the UNO point guard Bo ready to sign, but Jesse decided to go with a Los Angeles point guard who never showed. He pulled the request while our Lee was at the home? Everyone makes mistakes on players.