Tate: Weber's under the whether
If you are one of those writhing in anguish, Mike Thomas understands. He is a quick learner. For a new guy, he reads the Illini Nation pulse better than you might imagine.
So you can fire at him from 360 degrees with the consuming Illini basketball question, and he is prepared. His answer will be the same as it was Saturday.
He will "filter out the emotion" and make a levelheaded, season-ending evaluation of coach Bruce Weber based on the overall body of work, the current trend, attendance and recruiting, with compliance and academics thrown in ... just as he did in football ... just as he will for all sports.
Back when Ron Zook's Illini opened 6-0 in football, Thomas was pressured to give him a contract extension. He declined, preferring to let the season play out. It turned out differently.
"We're about championships," he emphasized. "You don't use mediocrity and championships in the same sentence. My expectation is that Illinois be relevant for Big Ten championships.
"Is that realistic for all sports every year? Not likely. But we want to be part of the discussion. We want that kind of excitement. It is important to be relevant at the highest level."
Thomas said he wants the fans asking where the basketball team will be seeded, not whether. As of Sunday's showdown at Michigan, the Illini are in danger of falling two games under .500 in the Big Ten race. The question of "whether" is growing, much as it has been in recent NCAA "bubble" seasons.
Short order
It seems counterintuitive, but if you want to win basketball games, go small.
Bigs look nice warming up and in carrying the coach off the floor. But speed and playmaking lead to better shot opportunities. Shorties are producing victories against bigger teams from coast to coast.
Missouri turned to four guards and is everybody's favorite. Ohio State's power forward is 6-foot-7 Deshaun Thomas, a catlike deadeye. As we saw in consecutive losses to Northwestern and Indiana, the Illini broke out of a shooting slump by topping 50 percent in both games but lost. They couldn't defend either of them. The Illini scored 70 and 71 points and were soundly beaten.
Here's the bad news. Michigan "went small" at midseason a year ago and turned a 1-6 Big Ten start into a 10-5 season finish that included two Big Ten tourney wins (60-55 against Illinois) and a 30-point demolition of Tennessee in the NCAA. Beware! The Wolverines are doing it again.
Home cookin'
Wolverines coach John Beilein has replaced 6-9 sophomore Evan Smotrycz with 6-3 senior Stu Douglass in a lineup that still features 6-4 trey shooter Zack Novak at the 4-spot. The Wolverines host Illinois on Sunday with a lineup bubbling with penetrators (Trey Burke, Tim Hardaway) and three-point shooters. Michigan's only Big Ten losses since mid-January were at Ohio State and Michigan State, and the Wolverines remain unbeaten in refurbished Crisler Center.
"Everyone is playing small ball these days," Weber said. "Indiana spread the floor on us and attacked the basket and got us in foul trouble (30 fouls and three foul-outs). They shot 42 free throws."
The refs were calling them close, and the Illini didn't or couldn't adjust. Dribble penetration has been an Illini bugaboo.
"We made fouls that we didn't need to make. We've tended to do that all season," Weber said.
"Michigan spreads the floor, and Jordan Morgan is shooting 65 percent on the inside. Burke (freshman from Columbus, Ohio) is the key because he runs the team, gets the ball to the shooters and is a scorer himself.
"Defensively, they pack the lane. Their man-to-man defense is a good staple, and they also use 1-3-1 and 2-3 zones."
Illinois needs a rapid reversal of form to avoid another difficult afternoon.
Having a (foot)ball
The Leaders Division of the Big Ten Conference does not include Michigan.
Otherwise a modern version of the "Big Two and Little Eight" (or whatever number) could be developing in future years. The recently completed football recruiting season by the Wolverines and Ohio State put the conference on notice. They brought in more top players than the rest of the conference combined.
Ohio State did so well on short notice that new coach Urban Meyer had to deal with cries of cheating because his staff influenced eight new Buckeyes to decommit from other schools.
You might not see the pending dominance of Ohio State next year because the Buckeyes are barred from postseason play. They can't participate in the Big Ten title game. That clears the way for Wisconsin to repeat against badly damaged Penn State and the trio of Illinois, Indiana and Purdue.
But only an ostrich would be oblivious to the enormous drawing power of Michigan and Ohio State as they swamped the field in the quest for elite football talent. It is amazing how quickly a disastrous coaching change at Michigan (Rich Rodriguez) and NCAA sanctions at Ohio State could be set right. The Wolverines, with former Illini Jeff Hecklinski as recruiting coordinator, picked off seven of the state's top-10 prospects and padded the line with nine huskies, two of whom have five-star ratings.
Meanwhile, Illinois, in desperate need of defensive line depth and with an offense that faltered chiefly due to line shortcomings, managed to attract just two offensive and two defensive linemen, and no four-star players on the entire list.
Before you tell me that "stars" don't matter, which class is more likely to be successful: the UI signees or those headed for Michigan and/or Ohio State?
Tate's tidbits
— Illini Sam Maniscalco conferred with his former Bradley coach after Jim Les won his first game against a Division I opponent at UC-Davis. With 20 losses, Davis was the lowest of 344 teams in the Rating Percentage Index last week.
— Joe Gilbert and Ron West were two of the unhappiest and outspoken Illini football aides when they left to take jobs at Alabama-Birmingham and New Mexico, respectively. Now, guess what? Gilbert has accepted an offer from the Indianapolis Colts, and West will move to Arizona State as co-defensive coordinator. Privately, these coaches don't feel a need to be loyal because they can be arbitrarily fired at any time.
Loren Tate writes for The News-Gazette. He can be reached at ltate@news-gazette.com.
Mike Thomas expects to compete for championships and will do a thorough review. The question is, "Why didn't Ron Guenther do the same?" In my view, this entire basketball situation went bad with Bruce Weber's most recent contract extension.
There is no Rod Strickland (Kentucky) or Danny Manning (Kansas) to appeal to recruits. Each year becomes further from Deron Williams, the NBA star of that 2005 team. Or Dee, our wonderful Chicago connection, as the program slowly slipped without anyone being held accountable.
Bill Self played the assistant "game" perfectly by hiring Sergio's dad. But 11 years later, we have grandpa McClain still pacing the sidelines, along with big man coach Jay Price. McClain's experience was as a high school coach, and Price was with Weber under Keady. Are you kidding me??? Nothing says less fresh perspective like this pair. Throw in Coach Weber, who virtually everyone says is stubborn to a fault, and we wonder how long it would take to climb away from the annual bracket bubble.
The major assistants, less Howard, could all be replaced without even registering the Richter scale. I'd expect this move as a minimum to be asked of Weber. I'm not sure if even the 05 runner up finish provides him with enough equity to say no to any of Thomas' requests now.
I've always felt that in football and basketball that assistants were undervalued under Gunther's reign until he seemed to wake up at the tail end with Zook. I noticed it right away when he took over and the wheels started coming off for Tepper. Most pointed to the offensive side of the fence but he had defensive coaches going elsewhere. I think the AD needs to be keeping an eye on these sorts of things...not micromanaging but simply paying attention enough to hold the head coach accountable. The goals between the AD and head coach should be the same thus they should be able to recognize what is and isn't working if staff is an issue.
If your bigs play like bigs and post up you'll beat a 4 guard lineup all day long. The small team may have an advantage outside, but I'd rather have an advantage in the paint. The problem comes when your big 4 stands out at the 3 point arc and doesn't take his man inside to post him up. You're big 4 isn't taking full advantage of his size out there, and is out of position for offensive rebounds. Leonard has been more effective at the 5 because he's been more consistant about posting up and going to the rim off of screens. Also, the other guys are getting better at getting him the ball. Leonard and Griffey could be dangerous in a 2 man game against a 4 gaurd lineup if Griffey posted up drawing the one big, and then dropped the ball off to Leonard who should be rolling to the basket since he'd be covered by a gaurd at that point.
In a half court game I'd agree on the offensive side. On defense though where we play the other 50% or so of the game we've had trouble against quick players as well as just getting down the floor fast enough.
People will complain about schemes, going big, going small, or whatever all day long but the thing I've questioned for years with Weber is how accountable does he make his players. Discipline both on and off the court has always seemed lacking. The players just don't seem to do as often as they should what he wants them to do. If they won't move when they're suppose to, yank their sorry butt out. I don't care if they're a jr or sr...he certainly doesn't hesitate to yank the younger players which I am ok with.
If Weber gets out coached again today like he did against Penn St, Minnesota, Northwestern and IU it's time to cut him loose and let Howard finish the season as interim coach. Tate might argue that Weber deserves the chance to see this freshman class through four years of development. Then again we're still waiting for the development of McCamey, Tisdale, Davis, Paul and Richardson...
Strange...of the players you've mentioned...Richardson is probably the one who has shown the least development but he was in pretty good shape his freshman year. The others developed pretty well over the years and we still have one more year for Richardson and Paul. Did they develop into what many wanted to see? Of course not. It was a pretty bad fit of recruits with no toughness whatsoever. Development was one of the least of issues.
He will…. There was a debate earlier this week about English professors vs. coaches pay I didn’t get into.. you know the saying. . “that’s why they get the BIG bucks” if you want to coach at the highest level and be paid millions, you got to take what goes with the territory… and tenure doesn’t.. that’s why it kills me when people feel so bad about someone who was fired after 7 years of making 2 million a year and another 2 ½ million to buy out the remainder of their contract.. if you don’t want the heat stay mid level or below…
Thomas said on a talk show yesterday that it's not about getting just into the NCAA tournament, it's more on where Illinois is seeded. Thomas also talked about Illinois being relevant both in the Big Ten conference and nationally. Being currently 7th in the Big Ten conference, not ranked nationally and in definite danger of being on the bubble still again this season and very possibly missing the tournament, Weber is good as gone. Thomas will not award Weber a 10th season and will fire him immediately after last game. Take it to the bank!
Stubborn Weborn,,,once again,,,is guessing as to who to play,,,Griffey, if given the chance to free lance is pretty good, but under strict rules of what the Weborn demands, will turn back into a passer. Weborn is a discovery whiz,,,finding out new things day in and day out about his team. And whats with Paul,,9 turnovers negates any big threes he shoves up to the hoop..There are no consequences to anyone that makes mistakes. This coach is clearly guessing. It is also clear, that Weborn is under stress to win, and the media has turned on him which makes things extra tough. Do not feel bad for him,,if he loses his job,,he will be paid 3.4 MIllion....He still finds ways to go to sleep at night.
Anyone who believed/believes that Weber will still be here after this season is over, do me a favor and put me on ignore, so you can still hide from the truth...Tate this includes you too.
He we are again, another year another, are we in or are we not in, and a bunch (too many to be real) are still thinking Weber is the right guy...Be paitent, see how the season plays out....*****NEWs FLASH***** regular season is almost over, and I know most of you will lobby for him and say "Well he beat MSU and OSU and the other were very close, most within 5 point"....And don't even realize that you are making the the best argument as to why Weber SHOULD be let go (he is it just has not been announced yet) Any team that can beat the top 2 teams in the B1G and then go on to lose 4-5 to the worst in conference teams is just pathetic.....Weber has embarrassed this team for hopefully the last time, and when I say that, I don't mean season....I mean game.
Anyone else notice today, John Belien actually bending down talking to the players he had just benched, instead of turning 8 different shades of purple - pink and then red, all while arms crossed staring at the players but never saying ONE WORD TO THEM...just got p!ssed , then he pouted...But never once did he use it as a teaching moment....He never does EVER, go look at all the replays you want, you will not find it because its not there....Oh ya there is the one where he grabs Demitri by the are to show him who the boss was...Or the one where he stops his feet like a child while trying to talk to Demitri again last season.....When other teams best chant is "SHUT-UP BRUCE !!!!" you know that your coach is a cry baby.....Look nobody want this guy around....he did not come in here and give it all he had....He jacked around creating a Matto chart...and seemed more worried about who won that, than anything else. Most the times he stands there with his nose pointed up in the air, what I would expect a guy making 1.7 mil per season to do, never run out on the floor to check a player when the get hurt, but has no problem yelling and screaming instruction while out on the floor yes standing on the 3 point line....This guy is milking the U of I for all its worth.....Bruce the reason most 90% of the fans don't like you is because you are taking advantage of the University and its trust and money, Look you know you are in over you head, you also know stepping down NOW would be what is best for the University, but you won't...You will demand your buyout, instead of manning up, admitting your in to deep, and going silently away...leaving the buy out check behind...To better the University that you have been scamming for the past 5 years...Just GO AWAY....
I certainly hope that Mr Thomas is looking closely at the development that is currently going on at University of Alabama where their young coach, Anthony Grant, took it upon himself to kick four of his starting five off of the team indefinitely for team rule violations prior to playing Lousiana State University. I admired the four young substitutes that coach Grant called upon to fill the shoes of the four starters that coach Grant suspended indefinitely. Even though Coach Grant didn't have four of his regular starting five, he still cheered on with positive coaching techniques the chosen four off of his bench to fill the shoes of these four starters that didn't want to abide by team rules. I'm sure University of Alabama fan base will be questioning Coach Grant's decision so late in the season, and may require the dismissal of this young, but very brave coach who believes in "Team Rules." I know I would be telephoning coach Grant at Alabama University to see if he would like to move a little bit further North and little further West.
Illinois should do well in the NIT tournament this year, because their record is rapidly going down the toilet and probably won't justify being invited to the NCAA Tournament. It's quite evident that Weber isn't going to change his style of coaching for the remainder of the season, due to his stubborness to change. I believe Anthony Grant would be the right addition to the University of Illinois Basketball Program, to give it that little boost for a winning season.
Yers, it does make sense for Thomas to fire Bruce Weber today and let Coaches McClain and Howard finish out the rest of the season and provide the underclassmen with hope. All of exiting staff will likely be gone when new coach is hired and just as well. Illinois needs a new spirit and eliminating all remnants left over from the Weber abomination is required. Get a new dynamic coach like the previous Self hire and let him fix the program, teach the players and recruit the elite recruits needed to make Illinois a national contender. Enough mediocrity!
Point well made,,,here is the problem ,Weborn will not sit Paul...for nothing,,,and Paul knows it, the team knows it,,we know it,,the other team knows it...only Weborn does not..ha ha...but a few games sitting,,, will wake him up. He is very lazy ,,watch him off ball, walks the ball up the floor,,and yet, ask Weborn and he will look you in the eye and tell you how great he is...Being a three shooter and a BAD PASSER means we will continue to lose.
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