The Book: 2006-2007 Ragin' Cajuns Basketball

[Cajunsmike]

This team would not lost most games against patsies too. Just too inconsistent and misguided to have confidence. Sunbelt play was mostly patsies in itself, but did not matter. Got on a roll there towards the end, but not enough organization and confidence to keep from collapsing down home stretch. This team is capable of losing by 40 to any team on any given night, no matter from the southland or ACC conference. Hopefully things will be better next year, but I think the days of consistently winning 20+ each season is unfortunately over. Two more seasons of this coaching staff will make it very difficult for the next staff to turn things around and keep a great winning tradition going when it has by that time been sidetracked by 4 horrible seasons.

Last night's elimination game against North Texas was case in point about how poorly prepared this team has been.

For all those that think all of this change is for the good and that the program is actually being saved by Lee, from the alleged destruction by Evans, just remember this: 9-21 in 3rd season. No excuse.... If cupboard was bare when Evans left, then Lee had an entire year to recruit for replacements needed and now we are two years past that point. If he thought going after high school talent was best, then he should not have recruited all the transfers and then proclaimed sweet sixteen before last season, then dumped all those guys. But it is not just about talent. There is young and experienced talent on this team, but the perception and propaganda out there is that there is no talent. There always has to be an excuse with this program these days after all. This team is more talented than most sunbelt teams but that did not translate to victories anyways.

What will be the excuse next year? Then again the winning tradition has been replaced by mediocre goals and expectations so an improvement to, let's say 13-15, will be cause for celebration for this coaching staff and most of the people on this board (but not for most of the poeple represented by those empty seats in Cajun Dome).

This team is not more talented than most Sun Belt teams when you consider experience. I saw just about all the teams and I can make that statement. We may be more talented than most next year. 13 and 15 won't be cause for celebration next year. How do you know that is the best we will do. I have asked this and you have not given me a reason backed by facts that support that statement. How many times do I have to tell you five new people will be coming on board next year as basically freshman. Recruiting is not a big issue for awhile. You obviously never sent BOP your email so as he can give you more info about what is really going on with the program.

[Cajunsmike]

UL's first 5 opponents have a combined record of 100-40 that is an average of 20 wins and only 8 losses between UL's first 5 opponents.

This was the wrong year to have a brutal out of conference schedule. In my opinion getting beat down causes a player to over-think situations it causes coaches to keep starting over in the middle of a season at a point when they should be working on small things.

Early in the season at a point that you may know it is the toughest early schedule in school history, you have no idea they will have a 100-40 record. So what happens is you regroup when you should stay the course. You lost to a much better team not because you were bad; except at that point in time you do not know this.

In my opinion, a young team should be coddled, not tested. By the time UL got into conference play they had no idea who they were if they were coming or going.

So why the tough schedule? It was recommended by Wright Waters and implemented by David Walker.

Part of the schedule was set last year as paybacks for teams coming here last year. Robert also thought the schedule would prepare the team for conference play. You may have a point that it was too demanding. My belief is that when Milsap came in, the team regressed. Thas was a necessary regression when you consider he became freshman of the year and was a move to build for the future.

[CockyCajun]

I would have considered McNeese and SFA to be patsies in basketball.

It was two years ago UL and SFA played each other in a bracket buster game.

[Just1More]

Hopefully things will be better next year, but I think the days of consistently winning 20+ each season is unfortunately over. Two more seasons of this coaching staff will make it very difficult for the next staff to turn things around and keep a great winning tradition going when it has by that time been sidetracked by 4 horrible seasons.

Miami, you haven't been shy about sharing your doomsday theory regarding Lee. In all of your posts, the only thing you have gotten correct is the record you were tracking. Every conclusion you make is based on incorrect premises. You have made it very difficult to counter your posts, because you take off on a rambling stack of premises that interweave our current record (got that) and our past string of good years (got that). Other than that, you keep making many, many incorrect premises and therefore, poor conclusions.

We weren't that talented this year. We are also inexperienced with the talent we do possess. We have more talent in the wings. We did have, the last couple of years, a cash of transfer talent as the core of the team. We are now building a core around highschool recruits. We will supplement the core with transfer talent. This is a process not an event. We will get better. You aren't guaranteed doom, even if you have many back to back losing seasons, so that whine needs to stop. You admitted that you didn't attend games, nor attend practices, so you are totally unaware of Lee's coaching abilities... you only have the record to use as your hammer. Again, we have changed coarses mid-stream, and it is a process, not an event. No Cajun fan is happy with losing.

I heard this claim "where is the NBA talent like we use to have". Tell me who else played in the NBA during the Marty and Bobby years, other than Kevin Brooks. Did we have any other multi year NBA players? Isn't the Marty and Bobby years what you refer to as our past glory years? In the next 20 years, Lee or no Lee, we will put more people in the NBA. We will also see conference championships, NIT and NCAA appearances.

I am very sorry we had such a down year in men's basketball. It is a bummer for all of us. If you and others are going to get on here and hammer Lee, you need to know what you are talking about. If all you are going to do is re-post the same sad story with bad premises, would you mind just posting a simple message, like "I don't like Robert Lee"... and just leave it at that?

[RCAJUN90]

It was two years ago UL and SFA played each other in a bracket buster game.

So you guys are saying our program is so low that we would be at the middle or bottom of the SLC? SFA and McNeese are not even in the top of their conference but then again neither are we. The Belt has sunk in basketball.
http://southland.cstv.com/sports/m-b...skbl-body.html

[Cajunsmike]

So you guys are saying our program is so low that we would be at the middle or bottom of the SLC? SFA and McNeese are not even in the top of their conference but then again neither are we. The Belt has sunk in basketball.
http://southland.cstv.com/sports/m-b...skbl-body.html

The belt is down this year because it is an overall young league. Of the 15 guys on the All Conference team, only three are seniors.

[CockyCajun]

So you guys are saying our program is so low that we would be at the middle or bottom of the SLC? SFA and McNeese are not even in the top of their conference but then again neither are we. The Belt has sunk in basketball.
http://southland.cstv.com/sports/m-b...skbl-body.html

My point they don't put patsy teams in bracket buster contests

[MiamiCajun32]

Miami, you haven't been shy about sharing your doomsday theory regarding Lee. In all of your posts, the only thing you have gotten correct is the record you were tracking. Every conclusion you make is based on incorrect premises. You have made it very difficult to counter your posts, because you take off on a rambling stack of premises that interweave our current record (got that) and our past string of good years (got that). Other than that, you keep making many, many incorrect premises and therefore, poor conclusions.

We weren't that talented this year. We are also inexperienced with the talent we do possess. We have more talent in the wings. We did have, the last couple of years, a cash of transfer talent as the core of the team. We are now building a core around highschool recruits. We will supplement the core with transfer talent. This is a process not an event. We will get better. You aren't guaranteed doom, even if you have many back to back losing seasons, so that whine needs to stop. You admitted that you didn't attend games, nor attend practices, so you are totally unaware of Lee's coaching abilities... you only have the record to use as your hammer. Again, we have changed coarses mid-stream, and it is a process, not an event. No Cajun fan is happy with losing.

I heard this claim "where is the NBA talent like we use to have". Tell me who else played in the NBA during the Marty and Bobby years, other than Kevin Brooks. Did we have any other multi year NBA players? Isn't the Marty and Bobby years what you refer to as our past glory years? In the next 20 years, Lee or no Lee, we will put more people in the NBA. We will also see conference championships, NIT and NCAA appearances.

I am very sorry we had such a down year in men's basketball. It is a bummer for all of us. If you and others are going to get on here and hammer Lee, you need to know what you are talking about. If all you are going to do is re-post the same sad story with bad premises, would you mind just posting a simple message, like "I don't like Robert Lee"... and just leave it at that?

When it comes down to it, other than bop and gone golfing, most of us are just ranting and raving and are not experts by any means.... I never said that Cajuns had NBA talent consistently in the past. To the contrary, the Cajuns have had very very few nba players, much less so than many other programs of far less distinction. However, I do think that Lee needed the nba talent he did have his first year to win 20+ games.

It is Lee's third year. Results are very bad. There really is no excuse. I hope he can turn it around next year, just like any fan does. But I doubt this can happen. If the team had poor talent this year, then I blame that on Lee for heading up recruiting the past two years. If the team had talent but they were too inexperienced, then I feel that this excuse does not wash in today's college basketball environment where freshmen and sophmores win national championships and certainly should be able to compete, at least compete, in a very weak sunbelt.

Team will have more talent next year and more experience, but I think that will only make it harder to give excuses of poor play. I am predicting about 13-15 for next season.

Bobby, Marty, and Jesse did not need nba talent to win, but Lee apparently needs such talent, along with very very good role players. Lee had that his first year and since then it has been very poor play.

There is simply no excuse for 7-12 in sunbelt and getting blown out by 40 by a mediocre southland team.

3rd year. 9-21. No more excuses and explanations of how great things will be in future.... At least for me, it is falling on deaf ears. Anything less than a return to 20+ wins the next two seasons and I will be hoping that Lee's contract is not renewed. Going through two dissaster years just to get back to where we were before is a problem. But if we don't get back to where we were before after these two embarassing seasons, then it is pretty much over as far as long term winning tradition goes. I am concerned that a .500 record next year and then a 16-12 type record afterwards will keep Lee here for another 5 year guaranteed contract.

This has thus far been a bad experiment of a brand new head coach figuring out how to win at D1 level.

Lee is apparently a great guy, driven and a very competitive guy. That is all fine and well, but we are all in result oriented businesses, especially at the highest level of our professions. Being a head basketball coach of a D1 program is the pinnacle of coaching, a place that most very good coaches cannot even sniff much less accomplish. No one gets a free pass.

[MiamiCajun32]

Part of the schedule was set last year as paybacks for teams coming here last year. Robert also thought the schedule would prepare the team for conference play. You may have a point that it was too demanding. My belief is that when Milsap came in, the team regressed. Thas was a necessary regression when you consider he became freshman of the year and was a move to build for the future.

Lee believed Cajuns were sweet 16 type team before last season, so kudos to him for improving the schedule dramatically. That is one thing he has done very right. Why not play very good non-conference teams? I wish Evans arranged more of that. Lee believed from the get go that Cajuns would continue with great winning tradition in each of his years at the helm and he wanted to face the best teams, to keep Cajuns in contention re rpi and such. This team played very well in first few games against top notch competition but that is because of all the rustiness of teams. Other teams improve greatly as season progresses, but Cajuns never did. Nevada's coach said he would not want to play the Cajuns later in the year because he could see talent that was inexperienced, but had huge upside for later this season. Cajuns just stumbled and bumbled along....

It is not easy to win less than 10 games overall and play in sunbelt conference. Have to be a very very bad team to do this....

Youth, inexperience, players not following system each game, difficult non-conference schedule, cupboard bare after Lee's first season, last season's very heavy transfer experiment not working out due to all of them being bad apples by coincidence, new way of recruiting hs players needing a few years to pan out, etc., etc....

The excuses are more frustrating than the losses. Lee should just own up for his failures thus far and explain how he is going to improve as he goes forward. The head coach is the one who is supposed to take responsibility and not lay blame on every one but himself for 20+ losses.

I only hope that all this losing has taught Lee how to be a successful D1 head coach. Perhaps things will change next year. Let's hope so.... If they don't, let's just try and look at facts and not blame everyone but Lee.

[JamesTheJeweler]

Miami, you haven't been shy about sharing your doomsday theory regarding Lee. In all of your posts, the only thing you have gotten correct is the record you were tracking. Every conclusion you make is based on incorrect premises. You have made it very difficult to counter your posts, because you take off on a rambling stack of premises that interweave our current record (got that) and our past string of good years (got that). Other than that, you keep making many, many incorrect premises and therefore, poor conclusions.

We weren't that talented this year. We are also inexperienced with the talent we do possess. We have more talent in the wings. We did have, the last couple of years, a cash of transfer talent as the core of the team. We are now building a core around highschool recruits. We will supplement the core with transfer talent. This is a process not an event. We will get better. You aren't guaranteed doom, even if you have many back to back losing seasons, so that whine needs to stop. You admitted that you didn't attend games, nor attend practices, so you are totally unaware of Lee's coaching abilities... you only have the record to use as your hammer. Again, we have changed coarses mid-stream, and it is a process, not an event. No Cajun fan is happy with losing.

I heard this claim "where is the NBA talent like we use to have". Tell me who else played in the NBA during the Marty and Bobby years, other than Kevin Brooks. Did we have any other multi year NBA players? Isn't the Marty and Bobby years what you refer to as our past glory years? In the next 20 years, Lee or no Lee, we will put more people in the NBA. We will also see conference championships, NIT and NCAA appearances.

I am very sorry we had such a down year in men's basketball. It is a bummer for all of us. If you and others are going to get on here and hammer Lee, you need to know what you are talking about. If all you are going to do is re-post the same sad story with bad premises, would you mind just posting a simple message, like "I don't like Robert Lee"... and just leave it at that?

thank you, well said!

[JamesTheJeweler]

When it comes down to it, other than bop and gone golfing, most of us are just ranting and raving and are not experts by any means.... I never said that Cajuns had NBA talent consistently in the past. To the contrary, the Cajuns have had very very few nba players, much less so than many other programs of far less distinction. However, I do think that Lee needed the nba talent he did have his first year to win 20+ games.

It is Lee's third year. Results are very bad. There really is no excuse. I hope he can turn it around next year, just like any fan does. But I doubt this can happen. If the team had poor talent this year, then I blame that on Lee for heading up recruiting the past two years. If the team had talent but they were too inexperienced, then I feel that this excuse does not wash in today's college basketball environment where freshmen and sophmores win national championships and certainly should be able to compete, at least compete, in a very weak sunbelt.

Team will have more talent next year and more experience, but I think that will only make it harder to give excuses of poor play. I am predicting about 13-15 for next season.

Bobby, Marty, and Jesse did not need nba talent to win, but Lee apparently needs such talent, along with very very good role players. Lee had that his first year and since then it has been very poor play.

There is simply no excuse for 7-12 in sunbelt and getting blown out by 40 by a mediocre southland team.

3rd year. 9-21. No more excuses and explanations of how great things will be in future.... At least for me, it is falling on deaf ears. Anything less than a return to 20+ wins the next two seasons and I will be hoping that Lee's contract is not renewed. Going through two dissaster years just to get back to where we were before is a problem. But if we don't get back to where we were before after these two embarassing seasons, then it is pretty much over as far as long term winning tradition goes. I am concerned that a .500 record next year and then a 16-12 type record afterwards will keep Lee here for another 5 year guaranteed contract.

This has thus far been a bad experiment of a brand new head coach figuring out how to win at D1 level.

Lee is apparently a great guy, driven and a very competitive guy. That is all fine and well, but we are all in result oriented businesses, especially at the highest level of our professions. Being a head basketball coach of a D1 program is the pinnacle of coaching, a place that most very good coaches cannot even sniff much less accomplish. No one gets a free pass.

whether one agrees or disagrees whether lee is a good coach/recruiter doesn't change the fact of how misinformed you are. you obviously don't live here and it shows. i wish you could see how ridiculous you sound. its painful!

[rhineaux]

However, I do think that Lee needed the nba talent he did have his first year to win 20+ games.
.

NBA talent? One of those players is on an NBA roster right now, and he doesn't even start. But what does NBA talent get you? If he were here now,we'd be losing APR points becasue he wasn't very smart. One afternoon, upstairs at Bourgeois, while he was recovering from an injury, I had to program the computer on the recumbant bike for him. You know, the one that says, in big red letters, ENTER YOUR AGE, ENTER YOUR WEIGHT, ETC...and has a keypad to the side so you can enter such info. Would be good to have tons of guys like that on the team.

It is Lee's third year. Results are very bad. There really is no excuse. I hope he can turn it around next year, just like any fan does. But I doubt this can happen. If the team had poor talent this year, then I blame that on Lee for heading up recruiting the past two years. If the team had talent but they were too inexperienced, then I feel that this excuse does not wash in today's college basketball environment where freshmen and sophmores win national championships and certainly should be able to compete, at least compete, in a very weak sunbelt..

You have no proof that he can't turn it around. If its his fault for recruiting, then explain to me why he has five seniors leaving from the Evans era. And, the freshman and sophomore reference is stupid. it contains no logic. why you think that UL should be able to recruit freshmen and sophomores of the caliber to lead their respective teams to national championships, I have no idea. (and please give me one example, other than Florida, when a team has won a Nat'l Championship with all freshmen and sophomores). Besides, even if they come here, and are that great, they would only be here a year or two at the most.

Team will have more talent next year and more experience, but I think that will only make it harder to give excuses of poor play. I am predicting about 13-15 for next season.

Bobby, Marty, and Jesse did not need nba talent to win, but Lee apparently needs such talent, along with very very good role players. Lee had that his first year and since then it has been very poor play.

Lee's "nba talent" was the same talent that Jesse had his final year. Their best seasons only took them to the first round of the NCAAs and no further. In fact, Jesse's second to last year, he did the same thing with all of his "NBA talent". Making it to the tournament is great, but Jesse only did it a few times. He got us to the NIT twice, but lost both of those games as well. Do you see the trend here? All first round losses in every postseason appearance.


I'm not even gonna begin to break down the rest of whatever you say. The truth is that you ramble on about this and that. But even if you did go to games and see this team on a regular basis, all of your arguments are unfounded. They are statements with no proof. You say Lee needs "nba talent" but jesse had the same players and he got jsut as far and failed just as hard. You say its Lee's fault for recruiting crappy players, but he hasn't been able to get a full recruiting class in here yet. not one of all players he wanted. i don't think he wanted any of the players he had last year. he had the cyprien debachle and did what he could. but even though, who do you think was out there getting guys like Southall and Mitchell and Greene to come in?

I am not trying to give Lee a free pass either, but i am not gonna come on this board, only after losses, and make the same unfounded statements every time. Like i said yesterday, and like i told you several months ago, we understand you don't like the coach, but we don't need your sorry ass copy and pasting the same long winded posts every f-ing time the team loses.

[MiamiCajun32]

NBA talent? One of those players is on an NBA roster right now, and he doesn't even start. But what does NBA talent get you? If he were here now,we'd be losing APR points becasue he wasn't very smart. One afternoon, upstairs at Bourgeois, while he was recovering from an injury, I had to program the computer on the recumbant bike for him. You know, the one that says, in big red letters, ENTER YOUR AGE, ENTER YOUR WEIGHT, ETC...and has a keypad to the side so you can enter such info. Would be good to have tons of guys like that on the team.



You have no proof that he can't turn it around. If its his fault for recruiting, then explain to me why he has five seniors leaving from the Evans era. And, the freshman and sophomore reference is stupid. it contains no logic. why you think that UL should be able to recruit freshmen and sophomores of the caliber to lead their respective teams to national championships, I have no idea. (and please give me one example, other than Florida, when a team has won a Nat'l Championship with all freshmen and sophomores). Besides, even if they come here, and are that great, they would only be here a year or two at the most.



Lee's "nba talent" was the same talent that Jesse had his final year. Their best seasons only took them to the first round of the NCAAs and no further. In fact, Jesse's second to last year, he did the same thing with all of his "NBA talent". Making it to the tournament is great, but Jesse only did it a few times. He got us to the NIT twice, but lost both of those games as well. Do you see the trend here? All first round losses in every postseason appearance.


I'm not even gonna begin to break down the rest of whatever you say. The truth is that you ramble on about this and that. But even if you did go to games and see this team on a regular basis, all of your arguments are unfounded. They are statements with no proof. You say Lee needs "nba talent" but jesse had the same players and he got jsut as far and failed just as hard. You say its Lee's fault for recruiting crappy players, but he hasn't been able to get a full recruiting class in here yet. not one of all players he wanted. i don't think he wanted any of the players he had last year. he had the cyprien debachle and did what he could. but even though, who do you think was out there getting guys like Southall and Mitchell and Greene to come in?

I am not trying to give Lee a free pass either, but i am not gonna come on this board, only after losses, and make the same unfounded statements every time. Like i said yesterday, and like i told you several months ago, we understand you don't like the coach, but we don't need your sorry ass copy and pasting the same long winded posts every f-ing time the team loses.

I make one statement and then am attacked. Then I respond.

I think we can agree that 9-21 is very very bad, especially in weakened sunbelt. Why it happened or how to improve it is not really so relevant to what it is. The facts. And it is Lee's third year. No more excuses....

Yes, it would have been great if Evans won first round NIT or NCAA games but can live with those "failures". Going 9-21 is not going to get you to the first round. Young teams can win the sunbelt just like they can win any other conference. I was not saying the Cajuns should compete for a national title. They should compete for at least the upper half of the sunbelt.

9-21, third year, 2nd year to recruit players for your system.... That gets a failing grade...

Winning in Cajun basketball is no longer demanded by the powers that be though so just get ready for .500 type seasons. That is what we are all shooting for, right? When this team gells, with some new players next year, then Cajuns should be at about .500. How could you expect more? Now the expectation is simply to make the conference tourney....

Mid major type schools with very good long-term winning traditions have fallen apart suddenly for the long term in the past. Just look at Lamar and UNO. UL is in danger of just being another mid major program that sometimes has good years and sometimes bad years. I thought Cajuns basketball was more than that, putting at least an over .500 team on the floor for the vast vast majority of the past 40 years or so.

[RCAJUN90]

This reminds me of our football debacle. The only difference is that we have a rich tradition in basketball. Someone mentioned on here that the Marty Fletcher era didn't start out so well. We are stuck with Lee like Bustle for better or for worse for a while. No use going after each others throats. We are all Cajun fans want to see the same thing. I hope the optimists are right and this is just a bad year and next year the Cajuns win the Belt in both football and basketball. Now it is time to think about baseball and football for next season.

[Cajun Express]

This reminds me of our football debacle. The only difference is that we have a rich tradition in basketball. Someone mentioned on here that the Marty Fletcher era didn't start out so well. We are stuck with Lee like Bustle for better or for worse for a while. No use going after each others throats. We are all Cajun fans want to see the same thing. I hope the optimists are right and this is just a bad year and next year the Cajuns win the Belt in both football and basketball. Now it is time to think about baseball and football for next season.

Marty started off OK, not good, not bad but gradually built his program to being pretty good. He lost ground after he had been here nearly ten years, and was unable to recover enough to see his talented group of freshman bloom in Jesse's first year.