Basketball Delima

[MiamiCajun32]

Okay, I've had enough.

Too many people here are looking for a place to point fingers about the state of our basketball team.

It's not Michael Southall's fault.
It's not Coach Lee's fault.
It's not Adam James and Ross Mouton's fault.
It's not the grad assistants' fault.

If you're looking for a place to point, realize this: it's everybody's fault. We are in the middle of what appears to be a down year. Sometimes, things like that happen. Everybody has them. Duke has them. North Carolina has them. Everybody has them. It's okay. The program will be okay. Everybody calm down.

And keep going to the games. Because no one here should be a fair-weather fan.

It's a shame that people have such short memories. Because I remember a few months ago the football team was 1-5. Boy there were some headhunters out there. Rickey Bustle is a bum! Two months later...wait nevermind!

So, please, just stop.

If the football program has mostly winning seasons and competes for conference title in almost every season for the next 30 or so years, then yes Cajun fans would be reacting the same way if suddenly a talented team with a second year first time head coach were to be losing to division I-AA opponents or the bottom of 1-A. Yes, I know that we are not losing to Div II in basketball, but in basketball there are 2 or 3 times as many teams in 1-A so it is not so different.

No comparison to football situation.

[Doug]

"Not a good head coach" and "not coaching good" are two different things. I think coach is trying to do what he did last year and its not working. As soon as he lives and learns and has all the tricks up his sleeve he will do better. That will be next year.

[CRAWFISH61]

Coach Lee will get it done but he will have bumps in the road. He is learning how to handle things when they aren't going well. I do not believe any of us thought he was a crappy coach last year. All of us were singing his praises. You cannot fire a man in the 2nd year of his contract after he led team to the NCAA's last year. That would not be fair to anyone.

[Tripple Threat]

Coach Lee will get it done but he will have bumps in the road. He is learning how to handle things when they aren't going well. I do not believe any of us thought he was a crappy coach last year. All of us were singing his praises. You cannot fire a man in the 2nd year of his contract after he led team to the NCAA's last year. That would not be fair to anyone.

I appreciate his passion. When he speaks to the media, his focus is on the issues we speak of...Last year, he had some good players who seemed to know the game and took his direction (with some bumps in the road). This year is a whole new challenge...how he handles this season will show what he's capable of doing.

[MiamiCajun32]

I hope Lee turns things around and it is possible. But think of the really good coaches that Cajuns have faced in past, such as Tim Floyd and a few others. These great coaches found a way to get things done. Remember when UNO won American South with no one taller than 6'5? There are other examples out there..., as I don't want to sound like a Floyd fan, which I am not, but he just comes to mind because that is a great coach that proved it year in and year out at all levels of college.

I don't recall any long lasting great coaches who did not figure out ways to win, except for perhaps if the cupboard was totally bare when they first took a job, but here that cannot be said this season. There are at least 2 players on the team that will get a serious look by pro teams, at least overseas. A great coach would find a way to win after stumbling around for a few games.

Bringing up the Floyd example again, look at how his team responded after being blown out by Oral Roberts and another smaller school to open season, as somehow Floyd got the young and undermanned Trojans to win game after game and go on a long winning streak, including wins over major opponents.

Why does Lee get a year or two or three to lose (if indeed that ends up happening over the next few years)? Why can't this coaching staff find a way to be competitive with the group of players that are here now, as there is some decent talent no doubt? How can a team that blew out Oral Roberts and pretty much outplayed LSU when starters were in, manage to lose very badly to back of the pack Sunbelt teams at home? This team has shown flashes, but Lee does not seem to know how to keep things together at this point, as the team appears to have no confidence at all and does not expect nor know how to win.

If Ryan Francis had signed with the Cajuns, something tells me he would not be having as good of a year that he is having under a coaching staff that has helped him adjust to major college basketball, after he looked lost the first few games. Barksdale was heavily recruited by Maryland, but he can't play?

If Lee turns it around through a year or two of learning how to adjust and getting his type of players in then I guess that is good for long term, but a great coach would not need so much time to get a bunch of talented players to play at least .500 ball in the Sunbelt.

[NewsCopy]

In an increasingly desperate attempt to find answers, University of Louisiana head basketball coach Robert Lee is changing up his team's practice routine. The Cajuns, stuck in a four-game losing streak to begin Sun Belt Conference play, didn't hold a Monday workout as its NCAA-mandated one day off each week. Today, though, when UL returns to practice, Lee said the format will be a little different. "We're doing some things to get the guys more relaxed," he said, "just take a different approach. Maybe that will get us jump-started and get us going." What the Cajuns (4-11, 0-4 Sun Belt) need to get going is their shooting touch. Through four league games, UL is 19-of-92 (20.7 percent) from 3-point range. Over the last three games, the Cajun squad is hitting 37.4 percent from the floor, culminating in a 32.3 percent performance in Saturday's 73-50 home loss to Troy. And now they'll go on the road after a rare open Thursday, with three of their next four and six of their next nine away from the Cajundome. That streak begins Saturday at Florida International, a team mired in an 11-game losing streak and one that hasn't won since Dec. 1. "Right now it doesn't matter who we play or where we play," Lee said. "We have to get better and shoot the ball better. We can't make baskets, and you can't win if you can't make baskets." The rest of the story Dan McDonald dmcdonald@theadvertiser.com

[Turbine]

I hope Lee turns things around and it is possible. . .

If Ryan Francis had signed with the Cajuns, something tells me he would not be having as good of a year that he is having under a coaching staff that has helped him adjust to major college basketball, after he looked lost the first few games. Barksdale was heavily recruited by Maryland, but he can't play?

Good points I don't agree with all.

I think the difference is when USC was 0-2 they were talking good about their players while some UL coaches and fans were talking bad about our players.

USC players began to say "I think we can, I think we can, I think we can . . . and they did. USC continues to tout their attributes.

UL players heard over and over they were no good and they now believe it. Players are scared to shoot and think way to much about their every move. In a I"I had to blink twice" moment I realized that players are openly apologizing and taking responsiblity after missing OPEN shots. That is ridiculous, how could anyone EVER find a groove when they are saying they are sorry for missing a shot.

Here is what each team’s first year players are doing on offense. I think Ryan Francis would be doing just fine here.

*UL Ed Turner 10.9
*UL Maurice Barksdale 8.0 ppg
USC Ryan Francis 7.0 ppg
USC RouSean Cromwell 4.7 ppg
USC Jeremy Barr 3.5 ppg
*UL J.T. Fields 3.3 ppg
USC Sead Odzic 2.9 ppg
*UL Lucian Pesoli 2.6 ppg
*UL Valentino Hart 2.4 ppg
USC Collin Robinson 1.8 ppg
USC Keith Wilkinson 1.1 ppg

[Ewhite]

I still contend that this team needs to get hot and get hot soon, but most importantly get at the Tourney and they dance. We could have stuggled through our non conference schedule as we did and be sitting 4-0 in conference and basically be in the same position.

I think that Coach Lee is experiencing a rough time as a coach while the players are mentally challenged this year and actually have gotten into a losing streak. They need that dying quail to fall in and give them umph to get over the hump.

I agree with that one post that said no more light show and that, but I will go one step forward. Let's send coach a basket of lemons and tell him we want some lemonade from here out. I know it's not that simple but it is something that a week long break may take care of.

I will be listening and I will be at the next home game. Call me a pollyanna, die hard whatever fits, but I am going to pull for this team 100% and not leave them. They will never be a waste of time, we need to all be Cajun fans.

No I don't have season tickets, I get online or go to the box office day of game to purchase.

[MiamiCajun32]

4-11 with no signs of improvement or direction of team is not necessarily time to make drastic changes, but if it continues through the end of the season, then I believe it will be. My point is that this was not a total rebuilding year coming in, such as what happened when Fletcher, Evans, and Pascal first showed up. Ok, maybe excited and unknowledgeable fans, such as myself, were expecting too much, based only on athletic talent and press clippings of some new transfers... However, if this season continues as it is now, with the Cajuns not being competitive at all in Sunbelt and placing last or near the bottom of the league, then yes I believe it is time for a change, even after two years.

There is a problem when there is more talent on this team than most sunbelt teams, yet we can't compete with the sunbelt competition at home at this time.

A continued failure on this magnitude is not acceptable to me as a Cajun fan, when considering all the circumstances surrounding this year, including the fact that the cupboard is not bare.

As for me being a Cajun fan, well I grew up in Lafayette during my early years, then moved to New Orleans, University of Florida, Monterey CA, St. Petersburg Russia, Boston (for law school), New York, Los Angeles, and now Miami and I keep up with Cajuns basketball almost religously, and also follow strongly football and baseball. I have also sent in financial contributions and I try and attend a few games a year. So I guess I do bleed Vermillion and White a bit after all, although I also bleed Orange and Blue because that is where I attended college (and luckily the two programs rarely cross paths, although I would pull for Cajuns in basketball if they came to Gainesville and I did pull for Cajuns when Delhomme and company came to UF my senior year).

[CajunProud]

As far as Coach Lee is concerned, I will wait until the end of the year to form an opinion on whether he deserves another year, but I do respect your opinion.

P.S.

I too am an attorney, but here in Lafayette. In what area of the law do you practice? Please don't tell me you do defense work

[MiamiCajun32]

As far as Coach Lee is concerned, I will wait until the end of the year to form an opinion on whether he deserves another year, but I do respect your opinion.

P.S.

I too am an attorney, but here in Lafayette. In what area of the law do you practice? Please don't tell me you do defense work

I have done white collar defense before, but focus on international tax for private clients for the most part these days. I am only 5 years out of law school, so still not 100% settled on a practice area. I am barred in NY and FL.

I hope things get turned around for Lee and the team. Lee deserves better for his efforts! We shall see...

[Turbine]

I really think preseason expectations play a huge part to the current air of disapointment expressed.

In the recruiting wars, where would UL's basketball tean be right now if they had gotten just the players they came in 2nd with?

Darrell Mitchell to LSU,
Ryan Francis to USC
Kenneth Cooper to OSU