SoCal_Pony wrote:Charleston Pony wrote:
I don't remember anyone suggesting that Jank was under pressure to reach the NCAAs last year, but I do remember hearing the TV crew covering one of our games last season saying that "the expectation for SMU basketball is to return to the NCAA tourney once the program has cleared sanctions and gets back to a full roster".
If that is true, the only question is what happens if this team fails to reach the NCAA (fails to win the auto bid) but earns the NIT invite and wins a couple of games in that tourney? My guess would be Jank comes back, especially when he can play the "we have no seniors" card and there is a reasonable expectation of improvement next year.
As I referenced in the sentence...Jason said it.
Now I realize Jason isn’t a decision maker and I certainly don’t agree with everything he says (he’s not critical enough IMO, way too rose-colored optimism), I do think he is knowledgeable and I enjoy his posts.
As for the remainder of the season, I thought SMU would win last night, I also think they win at USF and have a 50/50 chance of winning tourney game #1.
Regardless, I think jank returns next year.
At the beginning of last season, it was certainly an attitude of "we better improve". When Foster didn't return straightaway, the expectations were lowered a bit. And then when he got injured, you heard the language change from commentators, who had obviously been talked to by people close in the program.
The other factor is the financials around Jank's contract and resulting buyout were bigger than most anticipated.
My perceived optimism in reality is that I never root for my team or our players to fail. I root for them to succeed, and then judge them based on results.
Rumors that June recruits based on videos and doesn't build relationships with high school coaches? Me seeing with my own eyes the lax practices the last two years as well as the immediately negative impact of the new S&C coach? Okay, he has the right to take chances like that. But rather than focus on [deleted] about his methods, I'll root for the team to succeed and then judge on results. I gave everyone a heads up on lighter players and the lax practices, BTW, if you go back and read the reports. I just didn't see the logic in firing him until the results tanked on the field.
I have been critical of some of Jank's strategies, and the fact that the team isn't strong defensively. As a coach, I loved watching LB's teams play. I am aware of the various rumors about recruiting. I understand the frustrations. Again, I am a results based person. I would have liked to see a change after the results of the past two seasons, but I understand the logic in retaining him, both financially and because of the sanction impacts.
My expectations coming into this year were a top 4 finish and an NIT berth, and nothing short of the NCAA will be an expectation for next season. How we have gotten to this point is odd, but we are weirdly on track right now.
If we lose out, could I see frustrations boil over and him getting let go because we finish middle of the pack and get no post season bid? Yeah, I could see that happening. It would be expensive, but at the same time, Jank would be on the hot seat all next year, and that next recruiting class is huge and would be impossible to execute on until the Spring when it is clear on if he is back or not.
At the same time, if they flipped the switch defensively at the Memphis game and continue that through the rest of the season, I could see us winning out and going deep in the conference tourney. In that case, we would most likely exceed expectations for this season in my book, and in the SMU book. In which case Jank is clearly back, probably with support heading into next year.
I am going to root for the latter scenario. That makes me a fan, not an optimist. Look at it this way... if the team wins out, it means Jank turned up the intensity, which is one of the things everyone has been most critical of. It means he took steps forward as a coach. And that is better for us moving forward.