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How’s Tennessee gonna be this year?

No one is knocking Barnes.

You want me to say Tennessee is going to win a National Championship?




Barnes brought energy to Texas Basketball. Very much like Tennessee.
Rick Barnes is very good at what he does. He can create a program.
What he created at Texas is still there under Shaka Smart.

Before Barnes the basketball program was an afterthought.
The Big 12 helped with this as well because Big 8 schools valued basketball a lot more than SWC schools.
Barnes brought NBA talent to Texas. Smart is continuing this. The talent hasn't dropped off.

When you are talking about wins and losses and what coach has the ability to make deep runs in the tournament.
I am still going with Shaka Smart.

Smart has a defensive system that works in the NCAA tournament.
Northern Iowa hit a 3/4 court shot.
Nevada hit 10 contested 3 point shots late in that game.

Seen quality Texas teams get shredded in the NCAA Tournament under Rick Barnes too many times.

Lol. Shaka has like 1 NCAAT win in the last 7 years. He’s done nothing in the postseason since his miracle run.
 
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Umm...Texas doesn’t even have a tourney win in like 4 years. Man the depths to your homerism are unbelievable sometimes.

Longer than 4 years.

I am a critic of Shaka Smart regarding certain things.

There was no reason for that team to play the way they did after key losses.
But ultimately that team is much closer to being where they should be for a long time.
Goes back to Michigan State and the second loss to Tech.
Two Final 4 teams.
 
I don’t know and who cares? It’s VCU. Shaka is at one of the easiest schools to recruit to in the country an in a conference that only has 1 true elite rival.

It is VCU.
Shaka used a CBI/CIT tournament champion to create a Final 4 team.
Does he do it with a NIT team is the question.
They played the NIT without Jaxson Hayes and totally outclassed every team they played.

He has the pieces in place to really make some noise this year.
Kai Jones is already getting that one and done buzz from the same people that said the same thing about Jaxson Hayes

Plus they bring back Andrew Jones to replace Kerwin Roach.


If that team does get through the season and doesn't have their Michigan St/Texas Tech moments they are a threat to make a deep run.

Mainly because Shaka Smart makes the games ugly and refs are more willing to hold their whistle in the Tournament than they are during the season.
 
You still haven't seen Texas peak under Shaka Smart.
The next two years you will because they are loaded in the Backcourt.

These last two years was Barnes peaking at Tennessee.
He had the experience needed.

Texas was relying on a Rick Barnes recruit in Kerwin Roach for senior leadership.
Pretty sure everyone around the program would much rather have Andrew Jones healthy.
Hope springs eternal for fools. Smart has been at Texas as long as Barnes has been at Tennessee. Smart took over from a 20-14 team that made the tourney the year before and hasn't done anything with it. Nada...

Barnes took over a 16-16 Tennessee team and built them into an upper tier program and he did it with 2 & 3 stars.

Barnes had less to work with and still completely outperformed Smart. It is not a subjective point, it is a fact.
 
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Hope springs eternal for fools. Smart has been at Texas as long as Barnes has been at Tennessee. Smart took over from a 20-14 team that made the tourney the year before and hasn't done anything with it. Nada...

Barnes took over a 16-16 Tennessee team and built them into an upper tier program and he did it with 2 & 3 stars.

Barnes had less to work with and still completely outperformed Smart. It is not a subjective point, it is a fact.


How many players did Barnes lose to the NBA or to injury?

Barnes pretty much had his entire team together for those 4 years.
Put Jarrett Allen and Mo Bamba on Texas last year with a healthy Andrew Jones.
 
No one is knocking Barnes.

You want me to say Tennessee is going to win a National Championship?




Barnes brought energy to Texas Basketball. Very much like Tennessee.
Rick Barnes is very good at what he does. He can create a program.
What he created at Texas is still there under Shaka Smart.

Before Barnes the basketball program was an afterthought.
The Big 12 helped with this as well because Big 8 schools valued basketball a lot more than SWC schools.
Barnes brought NBA talent to Texas. Smart is continuing this. The talent hasn't dropped off.

When you are talking about wins and losses and what coach has the ability to make deep runs in the tournament.
I am still going with Shaka Smart.

Smart has a defensive system that works in the NCAA tournament.
Northern Iowa hit a 3/4 court shot.
Nevada hit 10 contested 3 point shots late in that game.

Seen quality Texas teams get shredded in the NCAA Tournament under Rick Barnes too many times.

Didn’t he generally play to seed in the tourney?
 
How many players did Barnes lose to the NBA or to injury?

Barnes pretty much had his entire team together for those 4 years.
Put Jarrett Allen and Mo Bamba on Texas last year with a healthy Andrew Jones.
Both coaches have had 4 years knucklehead. Barnes started with a weaker hand. He has won with kids he recruited and now some have gone to the NBA. Everyone has injuries...

Smart started off with higher ranked recruits and still recruits, but it fails to result in wins. Smart is wasting talent at Texas
 
How many players did Barnes lose to the NBA or to injury?

Barnes pretty much had his entire team together for those 4 years.
Put Jarrett Allen and Mo Bamba on Texas last year with a healthy Andrew Jones.

Why are you adding Allen and Bamba back to the roster? Who expected them to stay?

While we’re at it, can Barnes get Durant and Aldridge back?Laughing
 
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How many players did Barnes lose to the NBA or to injury?

Barnes pretty much had his entire team together for those 4 years.
Put Jarrett Allen and Mo Bamba on Texas last year with a healthy Andrew Jones.
You are a cry baby. You have way higher rated recruits and it doesn't translate to wins.
 
Why are you adding Allen and Bamba back to the roster? Who expected them to stay?

While we’re at it, can Barnes get Durant and Aldridge back?Laughing
When they had Bamba they only went 19-15.
 
It is VCU.
Shaka used a CBI/CIT tournament champion to create a Final 4 team.
Does he do it with a NIT team is the question.
They played the NIT without Jaxson Hayes and totally outclassed every team they played.

He has the pieces in place to really make some noise this year.
Kai Jones is already getting that one and done buzz from the same people that said the same thing about Jaxson Hayes

Plus they bring back Andrew Jones to replace Kerwin Roach.


If that team does get through the season and doesn't have their Michigan St/Texas Tech moments they are a threat to make a deep run.

Mainly because Shaka Smart makes the games ugly and refs are more willing to hold their whistle in the Tournament than they are during the season.

Hahaha. You are something else. Anthony Grant, Will Wade, and Jeff Capel all took VCU to the tourney. They also had more regular season success than Shaka.

Kai Jones is a stud. Texas always has studs. Talent hasn’t been the issue. You had Mo Bamba. How many NCAAT wins did he get? Jaxon Hayes is tearing up summer league. What did he do last year?

Shaka doesn’t have a system. His teams hack players and hope the refs don’t call it. For the life of me I can’t figure out why elite talent keeps wanting to play for him, but whatever.
 
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Both coaches have had 4 years knucklehead. Barnes started with a weaker hand. He has won with kids he recruited and now some have gone to the NBA. Everyone has injuries...

Smart started off with higher ranked recruits and still recruits, but it fails to result in wins. Smart is wasting talent at Texas

Shaka Smart is learning how to recruit with one and dones.
It takes time.
The injury to Andrew Jones hurt. You lose you best guard for a year and half things are going to not go well.
 
How many players did Barnes lose to the NBA or to injury?

Barnes pretty much had his entire team together for those 4 years.
Put Jarrett Allen and Mo Bamba on Texas last year with a healthy Andrew Jones.

Yeah let’s just add sure fire one and dones back onto rosters. I’m sure Duke would like to have Zion and RJ Barrett next year. Imagine Kentucky if Anthony Davis came back for a second year!

Shaka is in control of who he recruits and how he manages his roster.
 
Hahaha. You are something else. Anthony Grant, Will Wade, and Jeff Capel all took VCU to the tourney. They also had more regular season success than Shaka.

Kai Jones is a stud. Texas always has studs. Talent hasn’t been the issue. You had Mo Bamba. How many NCAAT wins did he get? Jaxon Hayes is tearing up summer league. What did he do last year?

Shaka doesn’t have a system. His teams hack players and hope the refs don’t call it. For the life of me I can’t figure out why elite talent keeps wanting to play for him, but whatever.

They go to the NBA and are prepared to play.
 
Yeah let’s just add sure fire one and dones back onto rosters. I’m sure Duke would like to have Zion and RJ Barrett next year. Imagine Kentucky if Anthony Davis came back for a second year!

Shaka is in control of who he recruits and how he manages his roster.

I agree but it was something Shaka never had to deal with.
He had to learn some hard lessons.
Overall he is much better suited going into 2019-2020 than he has been his entire time at Texas.
 
I agree but it was something Shaka never had to deal with.
He had to learn some hard lessons.
Overall he is much better suited going into 2019-2020 than he has been his entire time at Texas.

You were praying for Texas to eat the money and hire any decent coach that would accept. As soon as that ship sailed, you returned to predicting glory.Laughing
 
You were praying for Texas to eat the money and hire any decent coach that would accept. As soon as that ship sailed, you returned to predicting glory.Laughing

Not really.
I only have maybe 1 or 2 coaches I would replace Smart with.
One might be available this season it looks like but things can change with OKC.

If Smart went to Michigan or UCLA I think Texas would have made the move but that move still can be made so they are in no rush.

What I said this season is a win/win.
Smart wins big and they bring in Greg Brown with others and Texas is loaded for 2020-2021

Texas is a bubble team again and Texas sees how interested Billy Donovan is.
Donovan has one season left and I don't know what way the Thunder go. Might want Donovan with a young roster especially if they get rid of Westbrook.
 
Shaka Smart is learning how to recruit with one and dones.
It takes time.
The injury to Andrew Jones hurt. You lose you best guard for a year and half things are going to not go well.
He has been there 4 years...
 
He has been there 4 years...

Not trying to take over the conversation about Tennessee

Shaka Smart's first two recruiting classes weren't all that.
The first one was the mix of his recruits and Rick Barnes.
The second one was a little better but still Shaka Smart didn't have a handle on all the players.


It wasn't until his third and fourth.
Pretty much those are his players plus Andrew Jones for 2019-2020
 
Not trying to take over the conversation about Tennessee

Shaka Smart's first two recruiting classes weren't all that.
The first one was the mix of his recruits and Rick Barnes.
The second one was a little better but still Shaka Smart didn't have a handle on all the players.


It wasn't until his third and fourth.
Pretty much those are his players plus Andrew Jones for 2019-2020
You are making excuses Buford.
Look, I have nothing against Texas, they wear orange and begin with a T, what is not to like. However, if you come into a Tennessee thread disparaging our Barnes ignoring the truth that he has completely outperformed his replacement at Texas, then I'm going to spotlight it.
 
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Not really.
I only have maybe 1 or 2 coaches I would replace Smart with.
One might be available this season it looks like but things can change with OKC.

If Smart went to Michigan or UCLA I think Texas would have made the move but that move still can be made so they are in no rush.

What I said this season is a win/win.
Smart wins big and they bring in Greg Brown with others and Texas is loaded for 2020-2021

Texas is a bubble team again and Texas sees how interested Billy Donovan is.
Donovan has one season left and I don't know what way the Thunder go. Might want Donovan with a young roster especially if they get rid of Westbrook.

I have a hard time believing you’d only approve of 1-2 potential hires. Who is the 2nd?
 
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You are making excuses Buford.
Look, I have nothing against Texas, they wear orange and begin with a T, what is not to like. However, if you come into a Tennessee thread disparaging our Barnes ignoring the truth that he has completely outperformed his replacement at Texas, then I'm going to spotlight it.


Actually gave him a complement, Della.

Truthfully Tennessee doesn't have much going into the season if he can get into the tournament as a 8,9 or 10 it is an accomplishment.
Barnes is good at keeping momentum going for awhile.
He won his fair share of important games. Just when the spotlight was the brightest it didn't happen.
Regarding Smart. It is the total opposite. His teams perform better with a spotlight. Just against really great teams Texas couldn't pull through.
Against some other quality teams they have.
 
Actually gave him a complement, Della.

Truthfully Tennessee doesn't have much going into the season if he can get into the tournament as a 8,9 or 10 it is an accomplishment.
Barnes is good at keeping momentum going for awhile.
He won his fair share of important games. Just when the spotlight was the brightest it didn't happen.
Regarding Smart. It is the total opposite. His teams perform better with a spotlight. Just against really great teams Texas couldn't pull through.
Against some other quality teams they have.
Obviously, you're not talking about Barnes and last year. The Vols beat UK twice, Gonzaga and played Kansas to overtime when they were loaded. Regarding the Tourney, UT was a 3pt foul away from advancing to the elite 8. Barnes coaching was stellar.
 
Obviously, you're not talking about Barnes and last year. The Vols beat UK twice, Gonzaga and played Kansas to overtime when they were loaded. Regarding the Tourney, UT was a 3pt foul away from advancing to the elite 8. Barnes coaching was stellar.

He also was a 3 point basket from losing in the second round plus Tennessee didn't look stellar against Colgate.
 
He also was a 3 point basket from losing in the second round plus Tennessee didn't look stellar against Colgate.

Since when is “looking stellar” a prerequisite for success? I think we’d all be fine with not looking stellar if it resulted in a win every time.

How stellar did Texas look against UGA last year? Or Radford? Or what about—wait for it—in your loss to VCU?
 
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