Lanier goes in-depth on Barnes, team-building & culture

[kamoshika]

SIAP, searched but didn't see this excellent piece by Rob Lewis:

It’s a good time to be a Tennessee basketball fan. Something virtually no one has said in recent years. The funny thing? It hasn’t happened the way many people envisioned when Barnes stepped to the podium for the first time as the Vols’ head coach.

When it was announced that Barnes was taking over the Vols program after a 17-year run at Texas, visions of 5-star prospects and high profile one-and-done recruits danced in the minds of Tennessee fans. After all, Barnes had been in the vanguard of college coaches in the first decade of the 2000’s when it came to recruiting some of the biggest high school names in the country, who after abbreviated college careers went on to NBA stardom.

...Naturally, Tennessee fans assumed Barnes would follow the same blueprint once he had things up and running in Knoxville. Only he didn’t follow that blueprint.
VolQuest.com - Lanier goes in-depth on Rick Barnes, team-building and culture

 

[vols 30]

That article tells exactly why I and probably some others were frustrated with RB at first. Vol fans had "visions of 5 star and one and done type of talent" coming to Knoxville.

Obviously RB had another plan and it worked

 

[BACKDOC]

I've often thought; should we bring in that five star recruit for next year of just leave this team like it is?? Let's face it we're good, but this time next year we could be very good.

 

[volfan110%]

Kick..#@!$%^.. and Take Names Tennessee ..... and Thank You Coach Barnes

 

[ndubvols]

Lanier’s last thought is the primary reason I was excited about Barnes when he got here. He’s had a tremendous career and won a lot of different ways, as evidenced by the article. Glad he’s doing the same here

 

[Roustabout]

I've often thought; should we bring in that five star recruit for next year of just leave this team like it is?? Let's face it we're good, but this time next year we could be very good.

I haven't often thought it. I thought Barnes had mailed it in on recruiting. After the FBI stuff it could be that he's chosen not to get in the mud.

If Barnes' meh recruiting is strategic then he's done an amazing job.

I'd also be tempted to tell the 5-star to look elsewhere if I thought it would wreck chemistry.

 

[StrangeVol]

I haven't often thought it. I thought Barnes had mailed it in on recruiting. After the FBI stuff it could be that he's chosen not to get in the mud.

If Barnes' meh recruiting is strategic then he's done an amazing job.

I'd also be tempted to tell the 5-star to look elsewhere if I thought it would wreck chemistry.

Don't think for a minute that Rick won't do just that. As fans, we have no idea how many "high fliers" he has already passed on due to their lack of character or coachability. I love his approach to team building. Recruit the whole player, not talent alone. :good!:

 

[BigZiti09]

This is worth the time to read.

 

[cncchris33]

...Rob Lanier on if he is surprised by Tennessee's success...

“I mean think about this. Say you take his whole body of work and all of those years, say he had only been at Tennessee, he wasn’t at Clemson or Providence or Texas. Say that everything he had done as a coach he had done at Tennessee. Who would he be to this place? He’d be the best coach ever here.

“That’s who our coach is, so why would I think anything else?”

Pretty much sums it up.

 

[BigZiti09]

I've seen a scenario play out with football coaches where once they hit that 8-10 year mark with a team they start the downward trend. Fulmer and Richt come to mind. A change of scenery for Richt has rejuvenated him. Outside of Saban it seems FB coaches need a change of scenery every once in a while.

In basketball, it seems like coaches are able to stay at the same place for a long time and just continue to grow and there isn't a fall off.

Maybe Barnes just needed a change of scenery as things had kinda gotten stale at Texas and he had gotten away from what made him successful earlier in his career.

 

[livefaith]

I've seen a scenario play out with football coaches where once they hit that 8-10 year mark with a team they start the downward trend. Fulmer and Richt come to mind. A change of scenery for Richt has rejuvenated him. Outside of Saban it seems FB coaches need a change of scenery every once in a while.

In basketball, it seems like coaches are able to stay at the same place for a long time and just continue to grow and there isn't a fall off.

Maybe Barnes just needed a change of scenery as things had kinda gotten stale at Texas and he had gotten away from what made him successful earlier in his career.

Maybe he did? But, Barnes hasn't done anything here (so far) that he didn't already do at Texas more than once. If we win 1 in the NCAA then falter it will be a phenomenal season coming from where we were 2 years ago. But, it would be another frustrating season for Longhorn fans who had gotten entitled to making the NCAA like clockwork.

Now, he pulls off an elite 8 or FF, then we'll have a story. Heck, TX didn't make the sweet 16 for the last few years iirc.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

The Barnes story at Texas would have been much different if Kansas hadn't been so dominating while he was there. They've been on an all time great run of success. John Wooden coaching Texas and having Jesus as his top assistant wouldn't have been able to jump over that Jayhawk dynasty.

 

[cncchris33]

I've seen a scenario play out with football coaches where once they hit that 8-10 year mark with a team they start the downward trend. Fulmer and Richt come to mind. A change of scenery for Richt has rejuvenated him. Outside of Saban it seems FB coaches need a change of scenery every once in a while.

In basketball, it seems like coaches are able to stay at the same place for a long time and just continue to grow and there isn't a fall off.

Maybe Barnes just needed a change of scenery as things had kinda gotten stale at Texas and he had gotten away from what made him successful earlier in his career.

I think that Texas forgot they weren't Duke, UK, or Carolina, and decided that mere Sweet 16s and Elite 8s weren't going to cut it anymore. In other words, they got a little too big for their britches and took for granted that they had a good coach. At the first opportunity, they cut bait, and in retrospect, it's backfired on them up to this point. They'll likely be sweating it out on Sunday.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I think that Texas forgot they weren't Duke, UK, or Carolina, and decided that mere Sweet 16s and Elite 8s weren't going to cut it anymore. In other words, they got a little too big for their britches and took for granted that they had a good coach. At the first opportunity, they cut bait, and in retrospect, it's backfired on them up to this point. They'll likely be sweating it out on Sunday.

Exactly. But I'm not writing off Shaka. I think he'll be okay. However, they sure tarnished their entire history by running off their Hall of Fame coach. Dumb and entitled.

 

[cncchris33]

Exactly. But I'm not writing off Shaka. I think he'll be okay. However, they sure tarnished their entire history by running off their Hall of Fame coach. Dumb and entitled.

I'm not either, which is why I said "to this point". However, the school that ran off a coach with Barnes's track record probably won't accept missing the tournament in 4 straight seasons. So, if they miss it this year, and they might at 19-14, next year is probably make or break for them. They likely return everyone of significance except Bamba, who will go pro, and bring in a couple top-50 players.

 

[a vol n tears]

I think that Texas forgot they weren't Duke, UK, or Carolina, and decided that mere Sweet 16s and Elite 8s weren't going to cut it anymore. In other words, they got a little too big for their britches and took for granted that they had a good coach. At the first opportunity, they cut bait, and in retrospect, it's backfired on them up to this point. They'll likely be sweating it out on Sunday.

This sounds just like many TENN football fans. They claim they will be satisfied with such and such number of wins. They get the number of wins then not happy because they are not winning the games against certain teams. UGA fans and CMR were the same. He was winning better than their history but eventually not good enough.