Inconsistent lineups

[NashvilleUteFan]

One of the biggest indictments on Craig is his inability to figure out who to play 70% into the season. I can’t imagine anything more frustrating as a player to not know whether you’re going to play 5 minutes or 25 minutes any given night. And that example isn’t even an exaggeration. Just look through the game logs for Mason, Miro, and Mike.

What it tells me is that Craig doesn’t have a single clue what he’s doing from game to game. Sure, there may be some nights where a guy who typically doesn’t play much gets hot and you ride the hot hand. That’s not what’s happening here.

The best college basketball teams play the same 7-8 guys every night and that’s it. There is no guessing. And what bugs me the most is that every time Bill Riley presses him about his inconsistent lineups, his answer has been that we have 7 guys we are comfortable playing every night but that how much they play will vary. And as if that answer isn’t bad enough, it’s also a total lie because you look at our box scores and we consistently go 10 or 11 deep. Last I checked 10 doesn’t equal 7. Just infuriating, and I’m only watching. Imagine how the players feel.

[NashvilleUteFan]

Would love to see an analysis of the average swing in minutes played from game to game for our top 10 players and compare that against the same calculation for every other P5 team. I guarantee we’d be top 3 if not #1.

[Ute Dub]

Which players do you want to see play less and more?

[NashvilleUteFan]

I’d like to see Mason play way more. The guy is shooting over 40% from three. He needs to be getting 25-30 min a game, and should definitely be getting minutes over Hunter and Miro

[alexsmith]

Miro yes, Hunter no. I know it’s an unpopular opinion, but Hunter plays fairly good defense and has been a clutch player for us this year. I’d like to see Mason take Miro’s minutes completely.

[Ute Dub]

I feel like Utah started winning more when Sharamjavits went to the PG. He might not be uber productive on the offensive end, but defensively, a 6’8″ Point Guard adds an annoyance to the defense.

[Minnesota Ute]

I can not endorse this post high enough, you are exactly correct. Not to make this about me, but as I’ve relayed in other posts, my middle son went through this exact thing in high school. Like Craig, he had certain players that played consistently (for Craig that seems only to be Gabe), but the rest of the lineup is a crap shoot every night.

My son almost quit halfway through his senior season after having been a starter on a state tournament team just two years before as a sophomore, all because he couldn’t take the emotional rollercoaster of never knowing if he would start, if he would play, and if he played, would it be 5 min or 25 min. He was a good player, so he was generally productive almost every time he was on the court, but there never seemed to be a reason he could understand for the differences. It was pretty obvious it wasn’t just something he wasn’t getting when he started getting questions from his teammates and we were getting questions from other parents about what he did or didn’t do for why he wasn’t playing or playing limited minutes on any given night.

My only thought is that craig is tanking the season on purpose so that he can get out of his stadium contract and move the team to Florida.

[The Miami Ute]

“My only thought is that craig is tanking the season on purpose so that he can get out of his stadium contract and move the team to Florida.”

You lost me with this comment. Can you elaborate?

[AZUTE]

Movie references

“Major league” – 1989

The new owner of the Cleveland then Indians try’s to tank the team on purpose before it was a thing in professional sports because if attendance drops below a certain amount the contract with the stadium and city is voided and she can move the team to Miami.

[Minnesota Ute]

Hopefully when Gabe realizes it, he says: Well, there is only one thing left to do…

It’s been on my mind because I watched a youtube video that provided the only rational realistic explanation that I’ve heard for the Luka Donzic (or however you spell it) trade. As the theory goes, Mavs tank, so that the franchise can move to Vegas. Good for NBA, good for Hollywood, good for Lakers, good for LeBron, good for the Mavs current owners (who have huge ties to Vegas and casinos, maybe even live there), good for Vegas, good for everything Vegas is and represents. And the current Mavs players and fans take it in the shorts. No idea if there is any truth to it, but it’s certainly a lopsided trade and therefore it’s highly likely that it was the result of some backroom dealings. So the only real question is why would the Mav’s management subject themselves to such a lopsided trade in a backroom deal. They had to be getting something more out of it that isn’t meant to be public.

What does that have to do with Utah Basketball, maybe everything…

[NashvilleUteFan]

I happen to be a huge Mavs fan. Lived in Dallas for 8 years. Just devastating for the fan base. Definitely reeks of conspiracy, this new ownership group is slimy.

[The Miami Ute]

It is extremely fishy and is just another nail in the NBA’s coffin. No way, no how, any team trades THE player of his generation unless they don’t give a rat’s ass about winning. And, this might be an example of that…a new ownership in it expressly for the purpose of making money above everything else.

It kind of reminds me of the Miami Marlins situation especially when Jeffrey Loria was the owner of the team (even though the new ownership isn’t much better). Anytime the Marlins had a player that they developed into a star, that player was traded almost immediately and before he could make the really big bucks…Miguel Cabrera, Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich, J.T. Realmuto, Marcell Ozuna, etc…they all started their careers as Marlins.

Anyway, the point is that these new guys in Dallas might just see the potential of massive profits (based off TV contracts) by keeping the payroll relatively low.

[The Miami Ute]

You know, I actually saw that movie at the theater when it first came out. I remember some of the plot details but couldn’t remember the part about moving the team to Miami.

[Tony (admin)]

Imagine not knowing the right players to play 70% into the season…

[AZUTE]

The team is talent poor and Smith is grasping at straws.

Little and Sharavjamts have don’t next to nothing at PG

Gabe has had a down year

I think Asur has been about what was expected of him 12-15 pts a game and some athleticism in the post

Dawes should be getting 25 minutes a game period. He’s long athletic and the team’s best rebounder.

Whalin has shown so flashes but is inconsistent.

The fact Erickson is getting 20 minutes a night tells you everything you need to know about the talent level of this team.

Lohner, and Keller are worthless

Lovering is living proof that just because you are tall doesn’t mean you’ll be good at basketball.

I think most nights Smith is trying to find the hot hand and go with that which is why his lineups and minutes are so inconsistent.

I used to be in the camp that Craig Smith would be back next season because Harlan just doesn’t care about basketball but in talking to some barring a miracle he will be fired soon after the season is over. I think he knows it as well.

[concerned]

I thought Keller played pretty well last night. He is getting better. Much better with the ball than Lovering. At least he can dribble and move to the basket.

I agree about Craig. I dont see how you can bring him back next year. There is no reason to think the team will be better next year than this; probably worse. Season ticket renewals may be pathetic.

But nothing much will change unless there is a major infusion of $ and support from the admin in hiring a new coach.

[The Miami Ute]

Season ticket renewals may be pathetic.

I’ve been a season ticket holder for the past few years and I can guarantee you that I’m not renewing if Smith is still the head coach next season.

[TomahawkCruise]

I actually think that’s why Smith will be back next year. Because Utah isn’t really taking basketball seriously right now, there is no appetite for buying out another coach and go looking for another (who most likely won’t do any better because he faces the same obstacles Smith did).

I fully expect Smith to be back next year. And I think I’m OK with that. I think he probably deserves one more year, with the ncaa tournament an absolute must. Anything short of that and he is dismissed.

The only way I see him getting fired in March is if big money donors influence that decision and/or a highly desirable candidate (like Miller or Jensen) are available and want the job.

Short of that, Craig will return.

[alexsmith]

I actually disagree, I still think that he will be back next season simply because Harlan doesn’t want to do anything with it.

Theoretically, we win 3 of our 9 remaining games, plus a game in the conference tournament as we will be around the 10 seed playing against the second worst team. This puts us finishing with a 17-16 record and above the last-place projected finished and Harlan will say “Smith led us to a winning record in a very difficult league.” Because of this, he will (unfortunately) be back.

[alexsmith]

That being said, some coaches I would like to be hired:
– Ryan Odom (VCU). This is unlikely though because he was at Utah State last year and people would say that it was the lazy hire.
– Richard Pitino (New Mexico). Big name hire, winning in Albuquerque.
– Anyone who can get us back to the tournament

[The Miami Ute]

Richard Pitino couldn’t do much of anything when he was at Minnesota and eventually got canned. He kind of reminds me of a Coach K hire….

[AZUTE]

The next coach will be someone with ties to the program.

It has to happen. It will energize the fan base but most importantly will energize the NiL donors

[alexsmith]

I do think you’re probably right, my guess is Burgess.

[AZUTE]

No. He burnt that bridge.

[TomahawkCruise]

I think Burgess is finished at Utah and he knows it. He had to have known that when he basically trashed the owners house on the way out the door.

I’d like to see Miller or Jensen as coach, or some up and comer somewhere.

[D T]

Most coaches would win at UNM….The real tell is how he did at Minnesota.

[Minnesota Ute]

Trust me, we do not want Pitino, he kind of seems like a neppo baby to me. I saw no evidence that he was much of a coach/leader at Minnesota.

[Jim Vanderhoof]

I’d like to see someone with NBA ties. Good players want to play in the NBA. It has worked for TDS so far. Bryant and Jensen have both Utah ties and NBA ties.

[concerned]

You might be right, but finishing .500 in your fourth year and never having been to the tournament and never having recruited a good player is pretty damning. The decision cant be based just on the team’s record this year, it has to be based on what the future looks like, and that is not good. There is no reason to think we will be better in the 5th and 6th years of smith’s contract than we are now. Unless Smith’s buyout is astronomical, you have to stop the bleeding.

[alexsmith]

I 100% agree, it’s been really frustrating to know that our Coach K put together a lineup with 3 NBA players plus a foreign league MVP and now less than 10 years later we have a coach that likely has a roster with less talent than Utah State. Especially when the program he’s coaching for is ranked 15th all time in wins.

[The Miami Ute]

Lovering is living proof that just because you are tall doesn’t mean you’ll be good at basketball.

I laughed out loud when I read this. When I was in high school in Miami in the early 80s, there was a guy who was 6’10” but who was a horrible athlete, and, by virtue of that, a horrible basketball player. He was so bad that when he scored his first two points in a game, that made it into the daily intercom morning announcements.

[Minnesota Ute]

My son’s experience echoed this as well. The kid he kept losing his minutes to was 6’8 and started playing late. My son was only 6’4 but twice as thick and had been playing post with this group of kids since they were in 3rd grade (going largely undefeated in school and traveling ball for years). The coach, who was new to town, seemed hell bent on making the taller kid into something, but he was just a frickin marshmallow with no skills. Meanwhile, my son who had some weird hip issues that run in my family ran a little awkward and didn’t have great hops, but he had quick hands, good handles, very good shooter, excellent passer, and knew how to use his big body to rebound. But he just wasn’t long and athletic looking, so it seemed like the coach just dismissed him. Thats what I see with Keanu, it just seems like there is something about him that makes Craig just dismiss him.

[UTEopia]

You have inconsistent lineups when you have inconsistent players.

[utefansince79]

Indeed pretty much all of our regular players have their outstanding games, but none of them have had consistently good performances and most of them have had a number of rather bad outings.

[Jim Vanderhoof]

Lack of talent and athleticism. Players roles have not been defined causing the variation in minutes played. I could see a complete revamp of the roster again next year.

[The Miami Ute]

With or without Smith? Personally, and I’ve said this a few times, I don’t see a realistic pathway for Utah to get rid of Smith after this season. I just think that there’s a kind of “buyout fatigue” and the university will probably just rather see him run out his contract instead of paying to go away. Now, the only way that changes is if Smith realizes that the university isn’t going to extend him, something that could well happen after this season but most certainly after next, and decides to jump before he’s pushed.

[Jim Vanderhoof]

I don’t think Smith is capable of recruiting Big12 talent Miami. He is coaching Mountain West caliber players. Other than Carlsen (coach K recruit) I can’t think of any NBA talent on roster in 4 years.

It will take a Dion type hire with deeper NIL pockets to turn things around. If we want to compete in the Big 12 and sell tickets it’s going to take talent.

[concerned]

I hadnt thought about this until just now, but the fact that that athletic dept. just announced a $17 million deficit due to Pac 12 Comcast settlement and the lesser revenue in the Big Xii may be a big factor.

But my brother and I have two seats that we took over from my parents in the 90’s. They had the seats since the SEC opened in 1969. We have had them through thick and thin, but are probably going to give them up next year becasue it is just too depressing to keep going.

I suppose that if you had to ask a donor to pony up for a Smith buyout you might as well use that money for NIL (legally).

[Author]

Posts