The Kim Caldwell System

[LadyVolsDiehard]

The fan base would be one of the reasons I wouldn’t want to come here! We are NUTS

Thank you!

 

[volfan102455]

The fan base would be one of the reasons I wouldn’t want to come here! We are NUTS

I don't think the fans here are any different than fans at other schools. You just don't see the craziness when the season is going great.

 

[glv98]

I don't think the fans here are any different than fans at other schools. You just don't see the craziness when the season is going great.

Plus anyone remotely qualified for the job doesnt have an ef to give about what random fans on sm think. They have far bigger fish to please in real life.

 

[knoxvol52]

Lots of fans are to serious about sports even myself occasionally... Although I want my teams to win every game but if they lose I'm definitely not a person who goes and sits in corner rocking back and forth in fetal position because we lost.

 

[Volfan2012]

 

[Volfan2012]

 

[37620VOL]

My biggest concern with the Caldwell system from day 1 has been economics. With NIL being what it is, I see the most successful model possible being this:

-- Spend most of your resources on a "Big 3". You need 3 game changers that are elite on both sides of the ball. Ideally, you want a main ballhandler/floor-general type, a stud 6-1 to 6-3 wing shooter/slasher, and a rim-protecting rebounding-machine that can score in the paint.
-- After locking in your Big 3, you get bargain role players to surround them. You need 2 corner-3 shooters, 1 defensive specialist wing, a solid backup PG, and 2 rebounding paint defenders. All need to be solid on defense, none need to be great at offense, as they will be playing off the Big 3.
-- You use your timeouts and natural game stoppages to play your Big 3 about 35 minutes per game or until you have enough of a lead to pull them.

If you had a $5M NIL pot, you can spend $1M annual on each of the Big 3. Then, you have $2M left for the supporting cast, and it might be smart to only give real NIL money to the ones you actually expect to play meaningful minutes.

In the Caldwell system, with the same $5M, you need 12 high-level players who can all shoot, all defend baseline to baseline, all rebound, all play positionless defense, all are ball handlers. These players exist, but they are in high demand. Market value might be $1M each. You are at a disadvantage because your NIL pot has to stretch much farther than a team using the Big 3 model.

I love the Caldwell style system. I just believe at the SEC level there are many structural disadvantages that will cause it to fail. Efficient, smart half-court basketball paired with intelligent fast break and secondary break features appears to be the future.

 

[Volfan2012]

My biggest concern with the Caldwell system from day 1 has been economics. With NIL being what it is, I see the most successful model possible being this:

-- Spend most of your resources on a "Big 3". You need 3 game changers that are elite on both sides of the ball. Ideally, you want a main ballhandler/floor-general type, a stud 6-1 to 6-3 wing shooter/slasher, and a rim-protecting rebounding-machine that can score in the paint.
-- After locking in your Big 3, you get bargain role players to surround them. You need 2 corner-3 shooters, 1 defensive specialist wing, a solid backup PG, and 2 rebounding paint defenders. All need to be solid on defense, none need to be great at offense, as they will be playing off the Big 3.
-- You use your timeouts and natural game stoppages to play your Big 3 about 35 minutes per game or until you have enough of a lead to pull them.

If you had a $5M NIL pot, you can spend $1M annual on each of the Big 3. Then, you have $2M left for the supporting cast, and it might be smart to only give real NIL money to the ones you actually expect to play meaningful minutes.

In the Caldwell system, with the same $5M, you need 12 high-level players who can all shoot, all defend baseline to baseline, all rebound, all play positionless defense, all are ball handlers. These players exist, but they are in high demand. Market value might be $1M each. You are at a disadvantage because your NIL pot has to stretch much farther than a team using the Big 3 model.

I love the Caldwell style system. I just believe at the SEC level there are many structural disadvantages that will cause it to fail. Efficient, smart half-court basketball paired with intelligent fast break and secondary break features appears to be the future.

Adidas is a better NIL partner than Nike was. We can't recruit anyone else for next season except Okeke and maybe some other foreign player. So all the upgrades for this next year have to be portal. I don't know if we have a 5 million NIL pot but if we do no reason this next portal class should not be a huge success. It has to be or were coming back to a team that lacks in certain areas. No need to repeat what we need we all know and have been saying it since this season began.

 

[Volstylexx]

Scorching new article

Log into Facebook

 

[creekdipper]

I had reservations about the system since first hearing about it due to thinking it was just a run 'n' gun, little-half court offense or defense, heavy reliance upon the press. I have had to grudgingly admit that we have seen flashes of brilliance along with surprisingly strong play (and even wins) against some elite teams. Sadly, that success hasn't been sustained...sometimes within the same game...and the highs have been accompanied by puzzling lows. Injuries and/or lack of experience couldn't be used as excuses.

The overall problems I see are twofold. First, it seems that there's a lack of a holistic approach that makes sure that every phase of the game is covered. All coaches know that practice time is limited and that it's hard to cover everything. Emphasizing the press and outside shooting means that half-court defense and offense preparation suffer. We become one-dimensional. Not like Kellie's current, brave, overwhelmed Mizzou team who are getting massacred in SEC competition, but bad enough that we can lose to the bottom of our league. The SEC is just too strong to be able to coast in most games, and we can't just out-athletic other teams on most nights. We have to have answers when our preferred system isn't working.. We can't be so predictable, and there must be a Plan B and C.

The other major problem is that the system relies too heavily on having players with specific abilities and mindsets due to its unorthodox nature. It was easier at Glenville and Marshall because the talent level in those leagues was more equal. It could even take a weaker team and use the unorthodox style as an advantage because the opponents weren't sufficiently prepared or able to counteract it. At the highest levels, the best teams have the talent to overcome the advantages given by the system. Break the press and stop the three and you can control the game. And conditioning of top athletes negates the wear-them-down subbing that affects weaker teams with a thin bench.

I guess a third problem is recruitment. Most of Tennessee's best players could thrive playing a more traditional system, but it seems that lots of good players don't translate to Kim's system and reject it. Early playing time might seem attractive to rookies, but the star players needed to be elite want to stay on the court. The system might yield the occasional unicorn team, but it seems hard to sustain the type of elite players to be consistently successful over time.

The upshot that it seems that Kim will have to make her favorite elements an identity for her teams while adjusting into a hybrid approach. More like what we saw in Q2'against UCON this year.

 

[37620VOL]

Adidas is a better NIL partner than Nike was. We can't recruit anyone else for next season except Okeke and maybe some other foreign player. So all the upgrades for this next year have to be portal. I don't know if we have a 5 million NIL pot but if we do no reason this next portal class should not be a huge success. It has to be or were coming back to a team that lacks in certain areas. No need to repeat what we need we all know and have been saying it since this season began.

I didn't mean to imply that we have a $5M NIL budget. It was just for purposes of the example.

 

[37620VOL]

I would allow her husband to coach with her for next year *IF* it led to implementing a Barnes-style system for the LVs. If it works, keep it rolling. If it fails, both are gone.