Season of change leaves Tennessee struggling for answers

[Hoosier_Vol]

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee wanted to show this year that it had built a program strong enough to withstand the loss of three draft picks and remain a Southeastern Conference contender.

It hasn’t quite worked out that way as the reconstruction of Tennessee’s roster proved even more dramatic than expected. Not a single guy who started an NCAA Tournament game for Tennessee last season continues to play for the Volunteers.

“From a reality standpoint, we’ve had so many different times we’ve really had to start over and do different things to try to kind of plug the dike,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said.

Season of change leaves Tennessee struggling for answers

 

[goldvol]

I had set my expectations low for this year, because realistically it was a rebuilding year in every sense of the word. Not having Plavsic right away and losing Turner only magnified that.
We got a couple early season wins, which were misleading. This year is just about developing a few guys, trying to learn a scheme mid season, and then looking forward to more success in 2021 and 2022 with the amazing recruits that are coming in.

 

[supersmo18]

I had set my expectations low for this year, because realistically it was a rebuilding year in every sense of the word. Not having Plavsic right away and losing Turner only magnified that.
We got a couple early season wins, which were misleading. This year is just about developing a few guys, trying to learn a scheme mid season, and then looking forward to more success in 2021 and 2022 with the amazing recruits that are coming in.

I agree. For me, personally, the results of this season sting so far just from the standpoint of my mind/emotions still riding on the success of last season, even though I knew we were going to likely have a huge drop off. Another thing that bothers me is the NCAA's late clearing of Plavsic, and thinking about where he might be had he been able to participate in some earlier season games. He's huge, but he's still a RS Freshman and lots of room to get better. So while my emotional bar is still set high, my reality bar is close to laying on the floor.

 

[VolunteerCeltic]

I have said this before, Barnes should not have to be rebuilding at this point in his tenure at UT, he should be reloading. His lack of recruiting the past couple of years shows the lack of talent we have on this team. Yes we got JJJ, but he has not impressed thus far, had some flashes but nothing significant. Look at all the programs that are consistently good, they rarely if ever have a rebuilding year, they reload their talent, mold it into their scheme and continue to win. Gonzaga is a great example of that template outside of the basketball blue-bloods like Duke, Kentucky, Ohio State etc. I hope Barnes can turn it around, but this year seems like a complete rebuild and there probably wont be any tournament action outside of the SEC tourney.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Recruiting begins when targets are 13, 14, or 15 years old. It's not a reach for it to take several years until a new coach is reloading. Barnes signed one of TN's best classes ever 4 years into the job. It actually seems like TN is now reloading. The 2021 scholarships won't be going to guys like Kasongo or Kwe Parker.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

BTW, JJJ will be a great player once he's not playing injured. There's only one basketball and he will be a perfect complementary player alongside Springer, Keon, Bailey, Vescovi, etc.

 

[SGMVols]

Gonzaga benefits from being in an easy conference and from the Pac 12 being a dumpster fire. And who considers Ohio State a blue blood in basketball?

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Gonzaga benefits from being in an easy conference and from the Pac 12 being a dumpster fire. And who considers Ohio State a blue blood in basketball?

tOSU is pretty close. They've been in about 10 FFs and had a natty when Knight and Devoe were there. But I'd put them in the 2nd tier with KY, Duke, UNC, Kansas, and UCLA as the 5 blue bloods. Indiana could be a blue blood again with another run. UConn is almost there as well.

 

[goldvol]

I have said this before, Barnes should not have to be rebuilding at this point in his tenure at UT, he should be reloading. His lack of recruiting the past couple of years shows the lack of talent we have on this team. Yes we got JJJ, but he has not impressed thus far, had some flashes but nothing significant. Look at all the programs that are consistently good, they rarely if ever have a rebuilding year, they reload their talent, mold it into their scheme and continue to win. Gonzaga is a great example of that template outside of the basketball blue-bloods like Duke, Kentucky, Ohio State etc. I hope Barnes can turn it around, but this year seems like a complete rebuild and there probably wont be any tournament action outside of the SEC tourney.

you are entitled to your opinion. to me, that's unreasonable because 1. we arent a blue blood 2. even blue bloods struggle from time to time (UNC this year). It's clear Barnes is a great coach and great recruiter, but this was an obvious rebuild due to losing so much of last seasons productivity

 

[cardvolfan]

I have said this before, Barnes should not have to be rebuilding at this point in his tenure at UT, he should be reloading. His lack of recruiting the past couple of years shows the lack of talent we have on this team. Yes we got JJJ, but he has not impressed thus far, had some flashes but nothing significant. Look at all the programs that are consistently good, they rarely if ever have a rebuilding year, they reload their talent, mold it into their scheme and continue to win. Gonzaga is a great example of that template outside of the basketball blue-bloods like Duke, Kentucky, Ohio State etc. I hope Barnes can turn it around, but this year seems like a complete rebuild and there probably wont be any tournament action outside of the SEC tourney.

His "lack of recruiting" was based on the state of the program before he even arrived. I am not sure what is so hard about that to understand, but apparently for some, it is very hard to understand, including you.

 

[cardvolfan]

Recruiting begins when targets are 13, 14, or 15 years old. It's not a reach for it to take several years until a new coach is reloading. Barnes signed one of TN's best classes ever 4 years into the job. It actually seems like TN is now reloading. The 2021 scholarships won't be going to guys like Kasongo or Kwe Parker.

Yet people keep saying he took his first two years off. At that point, Tennessee was experiencing so many negative factors, John. wooden himself couldn't have gotten anyone to sign here. Yet, these "experts" can't see the obvious.

 

[VolunteerCeltic]

Gonzaga benefits from being in an easy conference and from the Pac 12 being a dumpster fire. And who considers Ohio State a blue blood in basketball?

Gonzaga traditionally plays more ranked teams than UT and has a higher BPI. They have also been more successful in the NCAA tourney with a tourney record of 31-21 while the Vols are only 20-22. How does a small school that plays in a sh^!!y conference have so much more success in the NCAA tourney than an SEC powerhouse like UT? Ill answer that question, because they recruit well and have not had any coaching transitions. Consistency is the name of the game. Even the guys on Sports 180 mentioned today that Barnes did not recruit well in 2017 and 2018 which is a direct correlation to the struggles this team is having now and why it looks like a complete rebuild. The last two seasons were great during the regular season, but neither team won the SEC tournament and the 2018 team lost in the round of 32 to a #11 seed Loyola-Chicago. The 2019 team in the Sweet 16 to #3 Purdue, but almost lost in the Round of 32 to #10 seed Iowa in overtime. And on top of all of that, Barnes was ready to bolt for UCLA after last season until he got a raise from UT (which I felt he deserved). If Barnes was such a great coach though, he would have recruited the depth and had the team prepared for the roster exodus that we had after last season. That didn't happen and we are where we are.

 

[VolunteerCeltic]

His "lack of recruiting" was based on the state of the program before he even arrived. I am not sure what is so hard about that to understand, but apparently for some, it is very hard to understand, including you.

How many recruiting cycles does a NCAA basketball coach need to have before you would say he has established a good foundation to build on?

 

[cardvolfan]

How many recruiting cycles does a NCAA basketball coach need to have before you would say he has established a good foundation to build on?

Ask the coaches. I don't know. Since you are the expert, why don't you go ahead and tell me. Of course, it would be your opinion, which in most cases is laughable.

 

[VolunteerCeltic]

Ask the coaches. I don't know. Since you are the expert, why don't you go ahead and tell me. Of course, it would be your opinion, which in most cases is laughable.

I know, sometimes I laugh at myself to have to actually respond to minions like you. But I will give you an answer, it may not be the answer you want but it will be the answer you need......

A college coach should have the base of his basketball team set by the end of the 3rd recruiting cycle, at that point, current and future recruiting classes would be to provide future starters and depth and have them develop within the program so you do not have huge drop off years when players leave early or graduate. Now the contingencies in this plan which do not affect the Vols atm but would be very relevant are NCAA penalties, scholarship reductions and postseason ban, all of which would affect recruiting and depth considerably.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I know, sometimes I laugh at myself to have to actually respond to minions like you. But I will give you an answer, it may not be the answer you want but it will be the answer you need......

A college coach should have the base of his basketball team set by the end of the 3rd recruiting cycle, at that point, current and future recruiting classes would be to provide future starters and depth and have them develop within the program so you do not have huge drop off years when players leave early or graduate. Now the contingencies in this plan which do not affect the Vols atm but would be very relevant are NCAA penalties, scholarship reductions and postseason ban, all of which would affect recruiting and depth considerably.

So you're mad that Barnes signed Johnson, Walker, and Springer in year 4 instead of year 3? Do you realize that some years have more great players than others? Do you realize that some years maybe none of the top 25, 50, or 100 players have any interest at all in playing basketball in Knoxville?

 

[volunator]

JMO We didn't have the interest of top notch players until we went through last couple of years.

 

[VolunteerCeltic]

So you're mad that Barnes signed Johnson, Walker, and Springer in year 4 instead of year 3? Do you realize that some years have more great players than others? Do you realize that some years maybe none of the top 25, 50, or 100 players have any interest at all in playing basketball in Knoxville?

Pretty sure I stated that Barne's 2017 and 2018 classes were the ones that had a direct correlation to this season. Cannot speculate on Johnson, Walker and Springer because they are not on this current roster here and haven't played yet.

 

[cardvolfan]

Pretty sure I stated that Barne's 2017 and 2018 classes were the ones that had a direct correlation to this season. Cannot speculate on Johnson, Walker and Springer because they are not on this current roster here and haven't played yet.

That's funny, Zoro!

 

[cardvolfan]

I know, sometimes I laugh at myself to have to actually respond to minions like you. But I will give you an answer, it may not be the answer you want but it will be the answer you need......

A college coach should have the base of his basketball team set by the end of the 3rd recruiting cycle, at that point, current and future recruiting classes would be to provide future starters and depth and have them develop within the program so you do not have huge drop off years when players leave early or graduate. Now the contingencies in this plan which do not affect the Vols atm but would be very relevant are NCAA penalties, scholarship reductions and postseason ban, all of which would affect recruiting and depth considerably.

Minion, eh? You must be some kind of top dog? At least in your own mind, right?

 

[VolunteerCeltic]

That's funny, Zoro!

Gracias!

 

[VolunteerCeltic]

Minion, eh? You must be some kind of top dog? At least in your own mind, right?

My mind is the only one that matters atm, but you have every opportunity to change it....hit me with some logic, these basketball debates are enjoyable

 

[livefaith]

I agree. For me, personally, the results of this season sting so far just from the standpoint of my mind/emotions still riding on the success of last season, even though I knew we were going to likely have a huge drop off. Another thing that bothers me is the NCAA's late clearing of Plavsic, and thinking about where he might be had he been able to participate in some earlier season games. He's huge, but he's still a RS Freshman and lots of room to get better. So while my emotional bar is still set high, my reality bar is close to laying on the floor.

That's what real fans do IMO.

 

[SN-A-C Orange]

My mind is the only one that matters atm, but you have every opportunity to change it....hit me with some logic, these basketball debates are enjoyable

Factors even Barnes can't control...
1) When players are declared eligible (Uros)
2) Players that are key to your success have to quit due to injury (Turner)
3) How quickly players pick up the system (JJJ)
4) Key players getting hurt (JJJ)
5) Seniors lose the shot and have a subpar season at best (Bowden)
In my book, that's a lot to overcome!
There are the facts ... your turn.

 

[Giveem6]

To understand why the let down this year you have to understand what type of coach Rick Barnes is. He's a systematic defensive minded coach that gels with consistency with years in the system.

This year is a complete nightmare for a coach like Rick Barnes. Barnes wants defense on the highest level and that is usually the last thing that comes for basketball players. Even some of the best college players struggle on the defensive side of the ball in college as well into their pro careers.

Having Lamonte go down was the worst thing Barnes could envisioned happening to this team. A great defender and floor general who could control the game and pace. I'm not making excuses for CRB, I don't think any excuses can be said for a guy that is top 5 in salary but everything has been worse case scenario for Barnes this year.

Walker and burns transferring, uros being denied elagability until mid January, vescovi (even though he can pass and shoot, he's SLOW) starting at pg, JJJ not being healthy, and lamonte being gone has set this season up for what it has become. A disaster for CRB.

Now, next year if we aren't dominanting with all the talent coming back and the new talent coming in strong CRITICISM should be held for CRB but until then let's see how good of coach he can be down the stretch and get some damn victories starting tonight. Go vols!