This is a question I ask myself at the end of each of TN's basketball seasons. In my mind it's a fluid expectation - I didn't have the same expectations during the Buzz Peterson years that I have now or during the Pearl years. Where I currently land is that I consider the season a success if TN wins something (SEC regular season or tournament) or makes a run in the NCAAT. It's not exactly rational, but the Duke win made this season a success for me even though it's just one game - we made the Sweet 16 when I didn't expect them to. Last season was a success to me because we won the SECT. The 2017-18 season was a success because we won a share of the regular season title. Although you'd probably have to consider the 2018-19 season a success with the team going 30-6 and being ranked #1 for the longest stretch in program history, I didn't feel as good about it because they didn't win anything at the end of the day and didn't make it past the Sweet 16. On the flip side, Bruce Pearl's first year felt like a huge success even though we didn't win anything and lost in the second round of the NCAAT. I guess it's similar to the key to a successful marriage . . . realistic expectations. What is success to you?
I feel like you must follow me somehow. I just spoke at length about this.
I think success is achieving your goal. Period.
However, I think that realistic expectations determined realistic goals.
Sure, every team wants to win it all, but that's unrealistic for most.
Fluidity is indeed a factor.
Let's try and tack that.
I think year in and year out, the benchmark for every program is the NCAA Tournament. You go down or up from there.
For a program and staff that is inheriting a dumpster fire or program that doesn't have a history of making it to the tournament, improvement from there but not achieving the tournament is a success in the beginning. You have about 3 years at most places until not reaching that benchmark is considered a failure.
Once you establish a history of being in the tournament, the Sweet 16 is the next realistic goal. I think going to the Sweet 16 every 3 years since 2010 or perhaps before I think has been a mark of success for Tennessee Basketball.
At this point, I think that you have to look at the level of success. That lends itself to whether or not it is realistic to raise the benchmark. I think a team that is in the Sweet 16 every 3 years that recruits well, has a stable program and the same coaches has justification to raise the bar to an increase to an NCAA Tourney appearance every year, Sweet 16 every 2 years and an Elite 8 every 4 years.
That said, I truly believe if Tennessee doesn't reach the Sweet 16 every 2 years following this year, it is a failure. Great success is The Elite 8 every 4 and anything beyond that is unrealistic to expect at this juncture.
For other teams, well you just have to look at where they are vs where they have been and how that applies to this roadmap.
One thing I want to bring up with Barnes is how well we are competing in a league that is far better than it was when any of his predecessors were coaching.
