Reasonable improvement expectations for basketball PROGRAM

Bottom line up front: I'm curious of perspectives about what folks think are reasonable expectations for improvements from our basketball PROGRAM. (I capitalize 'program' to call out the distinction from just our team's on-court performance this season.)
I personally don't expect any standard definition of on-court success this season to be achievable at this juncture, with our record standing at 8-15 (3-7) and only 8 games remaining. So, my attention is shifting mostly to where our overall program is, where we are headed, and what we should reasonably expect over the next 12-24 months, all things considered.
Ultimately, I'm eager to hear others that have optimism about how we're positioned (if some folks are), relative to things within our program's control (setting aside conference affiliation movements that could help, but that the program has virtually no control over).
Interested in any thoughts. And, particularly, those relating to the categories below...
Roster construction and talent level: Our talent level doesn't seem to be sufficient to compete even in the AAC, much less nationally. Normally I'd like that of the many transfers we brought in this year, at least 6 of them have multiple years of eligibility. That is good for program-building and continuity. But, even projecting for some skill development, the talent level seems insufficient and we don't have a lot of roster spots opening up soon with all those players having numerous years of eligibility upon their transfer to SMU.
High School recruiting: We don't appear to have much traction or momentum on the recruiting front. This is based on the recruiting websites that show no high or mid-to-high prospects showing much interest in us. Hopefully that changes.
Coaching: I almost left this dimension out, given how briefly Coach Lanier and his staff have been in place AND that on-court performance is a combination of coaching and inherent player talent. But, I'm including it on the basis that 23 regular season games give some reasonable indication of how well coached a team is, provided we look at HOW a team plays in terms of it's choices, the soundness of offensive sets and defensive positioning and focus, and not just fixated on the record. Thoughts on this dimension? I'm not loving the evidence thus far. We're not very careful with the ball. Last night, for instance, we had 22 turnovers against a 14-7 Tulane team. We miss a lot of FTs (last night we shot 44% from the FT line). Our defense has not yet become a demonstrable calling card of our team, despite Coach Lanier's discussion of it becoming one and my hopes becomes true. Great defense, perhaps more than anything, takes buy-in by all the players and maybe that is still coming together.
Overall buzz: I think it is very reasonable to argue that this category is simply a bi-product of the categories above, along with a few others (e.g., scheduling, conference alignment, fan attendance levels and high-profile game attendees, and in-game experience). But, I'm adding it in as an intangible category to hear thoughts on this, particularly since I live 1,500 miles away from Dallas and not privy to some of the day-in-a-life of the SMU basketball program and fandom. Perhaps there is a little of buzz I'm not detecting.
Thoughts? How are we doing and what are our prospects over the next 12-24 months?
(NOTE: I'd love any responses that look at the observables of the program and steer away from merely "I love the coach" or "the coach and/or AD need to go." For my part, that's not what I'm trying to drum up. And, in our world of sometimes unreasonable instant gratification expectations I think coaches need numerous years to make things happen, short of there being massive performance issues on all dimensions or abuse or worse.)
I personally don't expect any standard definition of on-court success this season to be achievable at this juncture, with our record standing at 8-15 (3-7) and only 8 games remaining. So, my attention is shifting mostly to where our overall program is, where we are headed, and what we should reasonably expect over the next 12-24 months, all things considered.
Ultimately, I'm eager to hear others that have optimism about how we're positioned (if some folks are), relative to things within our program's control (setting aside conference affiliation movements that could help, but that the program has virtually no control over).
Interested in any thoughts. And, particularly, those relating to the categories below...
Roster construction and talent level: Our talent level doesn't seem to be sufficient to compete even in the AAC, much less nationally. Normally I'd like that of the many transfers we brought in this year, at least 6 of them have multiple years of eligibility. That is good for program-building and continuity. But, even projecting for some skill development, the talent level seems insufficient and we don't have a lot of roster spots opening up soon with all those players having numerous years of eligibility upon their transfer to SMU.
High School recruiting: We don't appear to have much traction or momentum on the recruiting front. This is based on the recruiting websites that show no high or mid-to-high prospects showing much interest in us. Hopefully that changes.
Coaching: I almost left this dimension out, given how briefly Coach Lanier and his staff have been in place AND that on-court performance is a combination of coaching and inherent player talent. But, I'm including it on the basis that 23 regular season games give some reasonable indication of how well coached a team is, provided we look at HOW a team plays in terms of it's choices, the soundness of offensive sets and defensive positioning and focus, and not just fixated on the record. Thoughts on this dimension? I'm not loving the evidence thus far. We're not very careful with the ball. Last night, for instance, we had 22 turnovers against a 14-7 Tulane team. We miss a lot of FTs (last night we shot 44% from the FT line). Our defense has not yet become a demonstrable calling card of our team, despite Coach Lanier's discussion of it becoming one and my hopes becomes true. Great defense, perhaps more than anything, takes buy-in by all the players and maybe that is still coming together.
Overall buzz: I think it is very reasonable to argue that this category is simply a bi-product of the categories above, along with a few others (e.g., scheduling, conference alignment, fan attendance levels and high-profile game attendees, and in-game experience). But, I'm adding it in as an intangible category to hear thoughts on this, particularly since I live 1,500 miles away from Dallas and not privy to some of the day-in-a-life of the SMU basketball program and fandom. Perhaps there is a little of buzz I'm not detecting.
Thoughts? How are we doing and what are our prospects over the next 12-24 months?
(NOTE: I'd love any responses that look at the observables of the program and steer away from merely "I love the coach" or "the coach and/or AD need to go." For my part, that's not what I'm trying to drum up. And, in our world of sometimes unreasonable instant gratification expectations I think coaches need numerous years to make things happen, short of there being massive performance issues on all dimensions or abuse or worse.)