The program was losing players, missing out on recruits, missing out on the top junior college recruits, coming off an implosion at the end of the season, missing the tournament, and having a terrible showing in the NIT. Did anyone expect this to be a tournament team? I certainly didn't.
If you look at this season that way, I'm not sure how you can't consider it a success. Jamie patched a bad roster (which is 100% his fault it got that way) to get a tournament team. He'll likely have to do the same next year while continuing to try and get the program back into its model of having an older, more cohesive team than 99% of our opponents.
I think there's a real potential issue that college basketball has changed in the past 10 years enough that Jamie's old model doesn't work. Kids don't want to sit for two years. They'll just transfer. But, I'd like to see a few more years to see if Jamie can get there. However, I find it hard to believe that Jamie can't find 12 guys that all buy into that trend even if college basketball as a whole has changed.
If we're still making the tournament while trying to get back to that, I don't have an issue with it at all. If it seems that college basketball just doesn't work the way Jamie was so successful with, I think we need to move on. Jamie has proven to us that he can't succeed by outrecruiting or outcoaching other teams.
I don't think the issue is a defensive-minded approach though at all. Virginia has gone up against elite talent at UNC and Duke with great success with the same model that Pitt basketball used to use.
If you look at this season that way, I'm not sure how you can't consider it a success. Jamie patched a bad roster (which is 100% his fault it got that way) to get a tournament team. He'll likely have to do the same next year while continuing to try and get the program back into its model of having an older, more cohesive team than 99% of our opponents.
I think there's a real potential issue that college basketball has changed in the past 10 years enough that Jamie's old model doesn't work. Kids don't want to sit for two years. They'll just transfer. But, I'd like to see a few more years to see if Jamie can get there. However, I find it hard to believe that Jamie can't find 12 guys that all buy into that trend even if college basketball as a whole has changed.
If we're still making the tournament while trying to get back to that, I don't have an issue with it at all. If it seems that college basketball just doesn't work the way Jamie was so successful with, I think we need to move on. Jamie has proven to us that he can't succeed by outrecruiting or outcoaching other teams.
I don't think the issue is a defensive-minded approach though at all. Virginia has gone up against elite talent at UNC and Duke with great success with the same model that Pitt basketball used to use.
