Next Year...

Agree, Johnnyfan.  The other stuff is noise and deflection for the most part.  If you're watching games with an unbiased eye, then you have a damn good idea what is going on. 

This is how I view some of our fans.... 

Sure, some are.  I think Chris should go as well.  The point being made is that's not going to happen, so what can be done given that.

Some of you are talking around the issue at hand here.

The real issue is the head coach. He does not know how to coach. Stop talking about more resources, more funding, etc.

Those are all tertiary reasons. The main crux here and the primary problem is the lack of coaching that's happening.

All coaches are not created equally. There's plenty of coaches around the country (mid major, high major) who are have proven to be more effective than Mullin.

The problem St. John's has is hiring the right one. All of the other stuff follows if you get the right coach who knows how to implement his plan and his system.

This is a hiring problem first and foremost.

So who are you bringing in?

Attendance and donations are up with Mullin at helm. That up from Lavin too which they went up during his tenure.

There isn't a coach out there I'm excited about outside of Rick Pitino which won't happen.

Sure, some are.  I think Chris should go as well.  The point being made is that's not going to happen, so what can be done given that.

Maybe, he doesn't go anywhere after this season.  That's besides the point.  Sort of a red herring.

It still doesn't mean folks should ignore the elephant in the room, which I suspect several are doing just that. 

So who are you bringing in?

Attendance and donations are up with Mullin at helm. That up from Lavin too which they went up during his tenure.

There isn't a coach out there I'm excited about outside of Rick Pitino which won't happen.

Attendance was up due to the casual fan getting word we had a potential top 25 team AND with Mullin leading the way.  Do you believe attendance will stay up, along with donations, if this thing falls apart?  Again, next season isn't looking too hot at this moment. 

But you know what else would get attendance and donations up?  Simply winning games.  It doesn't matter who is coaching.  If you're winning games, those things will be like nature taking its course....  It'll happen, regardless. 

I understand the pessimism after a tough night but why are we assuming next year is going to be a train wreck? Let’s see who comes back first. If Heron and Simon are back we will return 3 out of top 4 scorers and add some much needed size plus Mack. Might as well not add to the doom and gloom.

I understand the pessimism after a tough night but why are we assuming next year is going to be a train wreck? Let’s see who comes back first. If Heron and Simon are back we will return 3 out of top 4 scorers and add some much needed size plus Mack. Might as well not add to the doom and gloom.

Who in the BE had a better 1-3 in Ponds, Heron, and LJ? Throw in the Defensive player of the year in Simon and we still finished in 7th place. Considering how down our league was this year if we don’t bring everyone back and make changes to the staff we will have a bad year.

Attendance was up due to the casual fan getting word we had a potential top 25 team AND with Mullin leading the way.  Do you believe attendance will stay up, along with donations, if this thing falls apart?  Again, next season isn't looking too hot at this moment. 

But you know what else would get attendance and donations up?  Simply winning games.  It doesn't matter who is coaching.  If you're winning games, those things will be like nature taking its course....  It'll happen, regardless. 

So you’re crediting the job Mullin did for the attendance going up?

Can’t say it went up in spite of him and casual fans recognize Mullin more so than some random coach.

Don’t think things “fall apart” next year. I like the guys coming in a lot and assuming majority come back they’ll be in the mix.

So who are you bringing in?

Attendance and donations are up with Mullin at helm. That up from Lavin too which they went up during his tenure.

There isn't a coach out there I'm excited about outside of Rick Pitino which won't happen.

How about Jr?

Who in the BE had a better 1-3 in Ponds, Heron, and LJ? Throw in the Defensive player of the year in Simon and we still finished in 7th place. Considering how down our league was this year if we don’t bring everyone back and make changes to the staff we will have a bad year.

I think you are right in everything you said but let’s recognize 1 game separated 7th and 3rd.

We ::should:: have won 2-3 more games in conference conservatively. Also had winning record against top 2 teams in conference.

Team had enough talent but the inconsistency has to fall on staff. We got figured out in conference and didn’t adjust at all.

How about Jr?

Wouldn’t be mad at it. I think he’d do better here than Minnesota which is honestly a tough place to win.

I can assure you guys that Justin Simon is coming back.

So you’re crediting the job Mullin did for the attendance going up?

Can’t say it went up in spite of him and casual fans recognize Mullin more so than some random coach.

Don’t think things “fall apart” next year. I like the guys coming in a lot and assuming majority come back they’ll be in the mix.

Yeah, I said he played a role ALONG with our potential ranking.  But how long do you think that'll last with a mediocre to poor product on the floor?  People can get disinterested quickly. 

I'm glad the "newcomers" decided to come to St. John's, but I'm not exactly giddy about 'em.  "In the mix" for what (particularly, if Ponds and Heron departs)? 

So who are you bringing in?

Attendance and donations are up with Mullin at helm. That up from Lavin too which they went up during his tenure.

There isn't a coach out there I'm excited about outside of Rick Pitino which won't happen.

A new coach needs to have the following resume:

-Head coaching experience at a D1 college
-Success as a head coach
-A successful philosophy

Every other candidate should kindly go F themselves.

I think you are right in everything you said but let’s recognize 1 game separated 7th and 3rd.

We ::should:: have won 2-3 more games in conference conservatively. Also had winning record against top 2 teams in conference.

Team had enough talent but the inconsistency has to fall on staff. We got figured out in conference and didn’t adjust at all.

We did have a winning record against the top two teams.  We also was 0-4 against the 8th and 10th place (last) teams.  We finished the season losing 6 out of our last 8 games (lost those six games by 9 or more points).  Never lead at any point in last night's game, and was the only team in Dayton to never have a lead at some point or another. 

If the same staff is retained, then you're likely gonna see the same stuff next season.

Who in the BE had a better 1-3 in Ponds, Heron, and LJ? Throw in the Defensive player of the year in Simon and we still finished in 7th place. Considering how down our league was this year if we don’t bring everyone back and make changes to the staff we will have a bad year.

This season reminds me of 94-95 where Mahoney had 4 NBA players and couldn’t win a game in the NIT.

Mullin and Mahoney have a lot in common as coaches. Both had their players just standing around.

Don’t think things “fall apart” next year. I like the guys coming in a lot and assuming majority come back they’ll be in the mix.

We lose an all BE caliber player in Ponds. Clearly Heron and his family aren't happy with how it went here this season. He's almost definitely gone too. Mack will take time to adjust. Eli Wright might be serviceable but will be far from a guy that can carry the scoring load for a good team. I'm not expecting much of anything out of Caraher. Steere will be a good piece, but another guy that isn't a game changer.

Unless we find guys again that aren't currently on the radar that can play immediately, it's hard not to see how we don't completely fall off a cliff next year.

That's why despite his comments I wouldn't be surprised if Mullin does step down. His top and only recruiter is likely leaving. He'll probably be forced to overhaul his entire staff one way or another. Plus he's looking at another multi-year rebuild, something I'm sure he doesn't want to do. But we'll see.

We lose an all BE caliber player in Ponds. Clearly Heron and his family aren't happy with how it went here this season. He's almost definitely gone too. Mack will take time to adjust. Eli Wright might be serviceable but will be far from a guy that can carry the scoring load for a good team. I'm not expecting much of anything out of Caraher. Steere will be a good piece, but another guy that isn't a game changer.

Unless we find guys again that aren't currently on the radar that can play immediately, it's hard not to see how we don't completely fall off a cliff next year.

That's why despite his comments I wouldn't be surprised if Mullin does step down. His top and only recruiter is likely leaving. He'll probably be forced to overhaul his entire staff one way or another. Plus he's looking at another multi-year rebuild, something I'm sure he doesn't want to do. But we'll see.

Where is Heron going? He's going to transfer somewhere else? Or head to Europe?

Heron eligible right away should he leave?

Heron eligible right away should he leave?

He shouldn’t be. He’s been in college for three years.

So who are you bringing in?

Attendance and donations are up with Mullin at helm. That up from Lavin too which they went up during his tenure.

There isn't a coach out there I'm excited about outside of Rick Pitino which won't happen.

Seriously?? You make it sound as if it's Pitino or bust. Quite frankly, I'd probably pass on him because of the ridiculous amount of baggage he comes with. That said, there's a lot of talented candidates on the talent scale between Pitino and Mullin.

Who would I bring in? I'd start with Nate Oats. He's proven, young and hungry. They just signed him to an extension but if I were SJU I'd cover the buyout and bring him in. However that's not the way SJU operates so they would never do this. It's a shame but it is what it is.

After Oats, I'd go after Musselman, Odom (UMBC), Miller (UNC-G), Moser (Loyola - Chi), and Brannen (Northern Kentucky).

There's plenty of names out there who have proven themselves and built winning programs from nothing.

It's not like you don't get rid of Mullin because there's no one better out there. From Mullin's record we can see that is not the case.

I only listed some names off the top of my head. There's more qualified names out there either as head guys or assistant coaches.

If Cragg is worth his salt, he'll have a plan to target his guy. That's how I'd go about it.