Rick Barnes Approval Rating Thread (1-10)

[VolFreakJosh]

Ok so I do realize we have some very upset fans including myself over how this team has regressed at the end of this season. Now let's take a close look on what the issues could have been leading up to the end of the season:

1.) Very inexperienced team with no leadership from Hubbs. Hubbs is a senior and is too talented to not be able to impact a game more often. I know he's been injured but there's been plenty of times where he wouldn't show up in important games. I'm not saying he's a bad player, but he's never lived up to his full potential.

2.) Absence of Fulkerson, Bowden, and Mostella resulted in missing key pieces. All 3 were playmakers that was showing great potential. Unfortunately injuries, illness, and bone headed decisions took away that extra firepower and depth.

3.) Barne's age and coaching style has everyone scratching their heads. I know we've had some fans talk about how he's just here to collect a paycheck and how Barnes has lost that "fire" in his eyes. His coaching track record speaks for itself. I still think he overachieved the whole season until the very end. It almost seems like he lost control of this team and now they can't seem to find a way to get their confidence back. I'm not saying that's all on Barnes but I think he's also responsible for getting our kids ready for each game so I'm not going to go easy on him for that.

In conclusion, its year two for Barnes and has yet to make the NCAA Tournament. I'm not going to give him the benefit of doubt and say that he needs to be fired immediately but I will say that there's much work need to be done. If he does not make the NCAA Tournament next year with pretty much everyone returning then yes, his seat should get hot. We have a good roster full of young talent with so much potential. No reason we shouldn't be in the discussion of the NCAA Tournament next year.

My approval rate of Barnes this season on a scale of 1-10, is 6. I would have gave him a higher rating if his team didn't collapse at the end of the season. No excuse for poor showing especially when you're fighting to get an NCAA bid.

 

[cwbytruckers]

Hard to judge fairly when we are missing players with injuries throughout the season. Bone missing 9 games at the start really held him back. Fulkerson sucked. I was looking forward to seeing him all season. Cant wait to see him next year. Lack of big men hurt us. That is going to change next season. Hubbs just isnt a top 5 star player. He is good. But not a game changer. I wanted really bad to like Evans. But he only brought the occasional 3 and multiple pump fakes. This team looked talented at time. And like a freshman loaded team at other times. So i would say a 7 because of these issues and the potential with the pieces coming next year. But i wish really bad we could get a grad transfer that can shoot and average 18 ppg.

 

[OrangeAllDay]

It's hard to win a lot of games when your best player is a 6'5 post freshman. I'm refraining a decision for another year

 

[livefaith]

Ok so I do realize we have some very upset fans including myself over how this team has regressed at the end of this season. Now let's take a close look on what the issues could have been leading up to the end of the season:

1.) Very inexperienced team with no leadership from Hubbs. Hubbs is a senior and is too talented to not be able to impact a game more often. I know he's been injured but there's been plenty of times where he wouldn't show up in important games. I'm not saying he's a bad player, but he's never lived up to his full potential.

2.) Absence of Fulkerson, Bowden, and Mostella resulted in missing key pieces. All 3 were playmakers that was showing great potential. Unfortunately injuries, illness, and bone headed decisions took away that extra firepower and depth.

3.) Barne's age and coaching style has everyone scratching their heads. I know we've had some fans talk about how he's just here to collect a paycheck and how Barnes has lost that "fire" in his eyes. His coaching track record speaks for itself. I still think he overachieved the whole season until the very end. It almost seems like he lost control of this team and now they can't seem to find a way to get their confidence back. I'm not saying that's all on Barnes but I think he's also responsible for getting our kids ready for each game so I'm not going to go easy on him for that.

In conclusion, its year two for Barnes and has yet to make the NCAA Tournament. I'm not going to give him the benefit of doubt and say that he needs to be fired immediately but I will say that there's much work need to be done. If he does not make the NCAA Tournament next year with pretty much everyone returning then yes, his seat should get hot. We have a good roster full of young talent with so much potential. No reason we shouldn't be in the discussion of the NCAA Tournament next year.

My approval rate of Barnes this season on a scale of 1-10, is 6. I would have gave him a higher rating if his team didn't collapse at the end of the season. No excuse for poor showing especially when you're fighting to get an NCAA bid.

C'mon man. We had a nice and unexpected mid-season run and played some good teams really close.

But, lets just stop with the idea that we were "on the bubble" or "fighting to get in the NCAA" etc. Our roster, due to youth(erratic), talent, injury, and dismissal is not close to making the NCAA from the SEC. The false "we can make it" narrative a month or so ago just created a false hope. We are NOT a tourney roster in any form or fashion.

Now, as far as Barnes on a 1-10. I'll go 6 also. I really like his character, development, and ability to court coach. But, his recruiting here has not restored the gaping hole left by CCM and CDT. Recruiting IS collegiate coaching.

That being said, it looks like were finally getting some size in the lineup soon. Filling that gaping hole combined with getting maturity for our promising young guys, holds promise for the next two seasons. If Fulkerson comes back and the new post players develop, then Barnes gets a rating raise IMO.

 

[The Dog]

I give CRB a 6, also. But, these late, regular season collapses are worrisome. I know, we turned it around last season with 2 SEC Tourney wins, but, instead of 2 of 6, if UT had gone 4-4, which was very doable, if nothing else, they would be a NIT lock. Although it ended, horrendously, I thought, we were, a couple of 3s away from being a 20 win team, which was inconceivable, according to the BB seers and my own expectations. So, in other words, good job CRB, but quit choking in the last 10 or so, games. Btw, nice recruiting class, please show improvement and get us to the Big Dance, next year. I think that is reasonable, what about "u all"?

 

[BigOrangeVols]

Going with a 4 or 5 right down the middle. If he made the tourney and finished the season strong it'd be an 8 or 9.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I'll go with a 7 because:

CRB started out with a complete dumpster fire/train wreck. He was the 3rd coach in 3 years and 4th in 6 and the three previous coaches left their programs in a mess.

Last year the regular season ended badly, but Punter had a season ending injury just before the bad finish and Baulkman was playing through his injury for most of the second half of the season. Still managed to get a couple of SECT wins.

This year was even worse for player attrition. Started out with Bone missing 9 games. Then Fulkerson only played in 10 games. Then Mostella was dismissed with half the season remaining. Then Hubbs played the last few weeks with an injured knee. Then Bowden caught pneumonia. Not only did 5 of 12 scholarship players miss a significant portion of the season, but those 5 plus Williams were the best players. The attrition also included 2 of the 3 upperclassmen.

50% of the roster are freshmen and 7 of 12 are in their first year in the program. Only 3 of the 12 were upperclassmen.

I like the roster that's been put together for 2017-18.

He's beaten Kentucky twice.

TN competed with, and could have beaten, four of the top teams in the country (Gonzaga, UNC, Wisconsin, Oregon).

 

[Special Ed]

Even mediocre coaches with incomplete rosters don't lose to abysmal teams like LSU.
There's more to this situation than meets the eye.
And the recruiting class he's got coming in won't fix it.

 

[kentucky sucks]

This situation reminds me of when Emmitt Smith went to the Arizona Cardinals. He was a first ballot HOFer but his best days were clearly behind him. His heart just wasn't in it.

I wish Barnes the best and he did ok with what he had this year but he just can't seem to be able to get his players fired up for a low quality opponent.

 

[Crazy Ivan]

Barnes did a heckuva job this season. I give him high marks.

 

[kyvol98]

Even mediocre coaches with incomplete rosters don't lose to abysmal teams like LSU.
There's more to this situation than meets the eye.
And the recruiting class he's got coming in won't fix it.

So what is the answer? You seem to enjoy tearing down everything but never offer an opinion on a solution. To me, that is just plain miserable and lazy.

As for the question, I would say a 6.5. We are a tired team and it shows on defense, or the lack thereof. You can overcome a bad shooting night with good defense, but ours has been horrible down the stretch. I believe help is coming next year.

 

[YankeeVol]

7

 

[vols 30]

Barnes did a heckuva job this season. I give him high marks.

Heckuva job? On being a .500 team? On missing the tournament? On players regressing?

I'd give him a 2 or 3

 

[calban]

He's a fine country gentleman.

 

[Crazy Ivan]

Heckuva job? On being a .500 team? On missing the tournament? On players regressing?

I'd give him a 2 or 3

Yes. He took a team expected to finish 13th in the league and finished middle of the pack. Would have likely finished higher but I think some of his freshmen wore out down the stretch. And considering his starting PG missed 9 games, Fulkerson missed all of SEC play, Mostella was dismissed and missed SEC play, Hubbs has been nursing a bad knee, etc., I think Barnes did a very good job with what he had. We're all disappointed with the last 2 weeks obviously, but considering what everyone, both inside and outside of the program, expected of this team preseason, the fact that we were in the NCAA discussion with 2 weeks left in regular season is a testimony to Barnes being able to get the most of those young guys for the majority of the season. So if we are assigning a number score I give him a 7.

 

[Plateauvol]

The only problems I see are that the guys have tired legs which is effecting their shooting (a lot of shots coming up short) and without shots falling opponents can sag into the paint and double team Williams every time he comes inside, negating him, and Kyle really doesn't seem to like playing inside, so there's not much help for Williams.:crazy::mf_surrender:

 

[Ace]

CRB took over a mess. IMO, year 3 was going to be and is the make or break year. Next year he should be gone without an NCAA bid. The pieces are there. The question is can he put them together. My main concern is Bone. He has the skills, but even in high school he showed an inability to guard an opposing pg and was a streaky shooter. Garland schooled him in state championship game. I expected about 10 to 13 wins this year. I did get excited when the team played better than I anticipated, but when Bowden went down hopes of an NCAA bid went down.
With Walker, Kent and Pons coming in there is hope. So far I give him a 5. But Walker will have to be an immediate impact player and injuries will have to be limited for any hope of an NCAA bid next year.

 

[Ace]

The only problems I see are that the guys have tired legs which is effecting their shooting (a lot of shots coming up short) and without shots falling opponents can sag into the paint and double team Williams every time he comes inside, negating him, and Kyle really doesn't seem to like playing inside, so there's not much help for Williams.:crazy::mf_surrender:

Good post

 

[Ace]

Also for next year as upperclassmen Phillips and Schofield need to step up and show leadership and consistency.

 

[Dallasbowlin]

I'll go 5.

 

[Sudden Impact]

Where we were projected. What was accomplished with height disadvantage and youth, is above a grade of 7.

Freshman hit walls. CRB has handled this well. Get healthy and get the recruiting class in we will show improvement.

Again, what he inherited and what the players choose to do, stay or leave, was not his choice but theirs.

The fact that we were even in the discussion as a bubble team is amazing. This team has hit a wall and yes there maybe something going on regarding the team. Who really knows.

We have not seen CRB's true team yet and he needed to establish a foundation and it takes time.

 

[BigOrangeMojo]

Much like the grade for Butch Jones dropped after the USCe and Vandy losses, the same thing has happened to Barnes. A month ago, this grade was a 6-7, now it's 4-5. Not being competitive against Vandy at home and against an awful LSU team will do that.

 

[Otis07]

Barnes did a heckuva job this season. I give him high marks.

you are definitely crazy for giving this coach high marks.......I will give him a 3.0

 

[IhateGA]

2
I have no idea what anyone sees in this guy. Recruiting is part of your job, so do it.

 

[savannahfan]

Late season collapse.... For me a lot of this is due to freshmen and general lack of depth. Freshman (youngsters) have just hit "the wall". This LSU game is an example, strong first half, what looked like lack luster second half. For me the main difference seemed to be just plain tired. Makes the team look like, no confidence, no leadership from coach, and on and on. They have run out of gas!!!!

Give Barnes AND staff a "7"