New Tramel article with Evans quotes addressing his inexperience

[StoopsBros]

Midwestern State,the team that beat UCO in the conference championship,was the defending champ and seeded #6. They beat the #3seed,#2 seed,and #1 seed (UCO) to get to the Elite Eight where they barely lost to Bellarmine. Bellarmine won the Div II championship.
MSU has gone to back to back Elite Eights and won the Lone Star conference in 2010. No shame in losing a close game to them.

You've convinced me. Joe, hire Grant McCasland.

 

[Sooner Clint]

Unfortunately,Abilene Christian just stole McCasland away from MSU.

 

[TEvans4Three]

Midwestern State,the team that beat UCO in the conference championship,was the defending champ and seeded #6. They beat the #3seed,#2 seed,and #1 seed (UCO) to get to the Elite Eight where they barely lost to Bellarmine. Bellarmine won the Div II championship.
MSU has gone to back to back Elite Eights and won the Lone Star conference in 2010. No shame in losing a close game to them.

UCO also beat them in the regular season...

 

[Sooner Clint]

UCO also beat them in the regular season...

That's correct.

 

[Mr.B!!!]

It would totally suck to get a young coach that has won everywhere he has been and has ties to the school that is actively saying that this is his dream job and that he'll put everything into it. Seriously, if this is our "Plan B" then things aren't all that bad.

 

[Section31]

I agree. If he seriously has wanted this job, and he knows what the problems are, then he would have gone to a D1 school as an assistant and hopefully gotten a head coaching job at a mid-major or such. He may well be a great D1 coach but not many BCS ADs would go out on a limb like this. There are always exceptions to the rule, but I don't see how he could become the coach of the Sooners at this point!

Extreme situations call for extreme measures.

BTW, Iowa St just did it...and he had LESS experience than Evans...

 

[DenverSooner]

No disrespect to Coach Evans, but UCO is not a Top 150 school amongst Division I programs. I do agree with him that when it comes to backcourt players, there isn't much difference between the bad low-majors and Division II schools. With that said, the frontcourt differences are night and day. My Junior College team played a Division II school in a scrimmage (one that will soon be in UCO's conference I believe) and we crushed them. Mainly because our frontcourt was physically superior.

The D-II guards are comparable, without a doubt. Now, some of those guards are in Division II due to academic restrictions, so the talent is there, they just can't qualify.

Love Evans' passion for OU and he's going about it the right way by selling himself through the media, fans and message board posters are all over this idea now.

I tend to agree with this but I also think some of the better DII teams could beat some of the bottom third of DI. I just think 150 is a bit too high. The 150 range is the bottom third of the Big XII. For example Tech was 165, OU was 126 and ISU was 138 at the end of the season. Providence, South Florida (Big East if you don't know), Arizona State and Stanford were all above 150 at the end of the season. When you get above 200 you stop seeing teams from the power conferences. (I did notice that Oregon State was above 200 and Indiana was close to 200)

http://web1.ncaa.org/app_data/weeklyrpi/2011MBBrpi1.html

 

[Section31]

No disrespect to Coach Evans, but UCO is not a Top 150 school amongst Division I programs. I do agree with him that when it comes to backcourt players, there isn't much difference between the bad low-majors and Division II schools. With that said, the frontcourt differences are night and day. My Junior College team played a Division II school in a scrimmage (one that will soon be in UCO's conference I believe) and we crushed them. Mainly because our frontcourt was physically superior.

The D-II guards are comparable, without a doubt. Now, some of those guards are in Division II due to academic restrictions, so the talent is there, they just can't qualify.

Love Evans' passion for OU and he's going about it the right way by selling himself through the media, fans and message board posters are all over this idea now.

Good insight, camp!

One question I would have though. Was the team you scrimmaged an elite 8 D-II team? I don't think Terry was says ALL D-II teams are that good, but competing and coaching is all relative. The players at the D-I level are just bigger, stronger, faster, etc in most cases. The Xs and Os are the same.

Also, what if Terry were to bring in say, Paul Hewitt and a Jeff-Webster-type (a guy with AAU ties) assistant?

I'd assume Terry works well with guards and as long as he brings in a coach that is know for coaching "bigs", I'd assume the stretch might not be as big.

 

[Dem Coltz]

You've convinced me. Joe, hire Grant McCasland.

LOL quality post.

 

[skyvue]

The Xs and Os are the same.

Not necessarily. Could a quality high school coach make the jump to the NBA and thrive, just because the Xs and Os are the same?

That's a stretch of a comparison, I'll admit, but the level of the competition varies from Div. II to Div. I not only in the athletes you're coaching and facing, but also in the level of the coaches you're going up against. I have to feel that most of the coaches Evans has faced at UCO are not of Big 12 caliber, and frankly, the last thing I want to do is bring in another coach who will require patience on the part of fans because he has a learning curve to overcome.

It's been said over and over, but let Evans pursue a mid-major job in advance of making the leap to a program like OU.

 

[campbest]

And as far as the D-II player is concerned, playing a team that is D-II is not like playing the team Terry coaches. I could say I played D-I Providence and it is nothing like playing a team in the same conference. (poor comparison)

Team we played made the national tournament, lost in the first round.

Wish there was more film, I love his coaching style but prove that I know the guy and I am biased. I trained with him and watched him coach from the bench. Just watch more than one game before you go around talking like you know his style of coaching. Everyone has a bad game...I mean geez he was 30-4.

Everyone does, but that doesn't explain the fact he has one Elite Eight in nine years at UCO. To deem him an "elite" coach ready for the D-I level is very misguided.

 

[campbest]

One question I would have though. Was the team you scrimmaged an elite 8 D-II team? I don't think Terry was says ALL D-II teams are that good, but competing and coaching is all relative.

Team we played made the national tournament (at-large) and lost in the first round. Obviously we played them early in the year and a lot can happen over the course of four months, but the physical limitations were definitely apparent.

The players at the D-I level are just bigger, stronger, faster, etc in most cases. The Xs and Os are the same.

Yes and no, the basics are the same obviously at any level, but there are quite a few differences as well. TE is going to employ a "run and gun" type system, similar to what he is accustomed to at UCO. His system relies heavily on the three point shot and quick shots to keep the defense off-guard. That's great, but how many run and shoot systems work that well in major Division I today? Very few. TE is not going to be averaging 80+ points and still win, you can't get away with that. Everyone two months ago was clamoring for some defense, that is not the recipe in Divions I to be a good defensive team.

Does TE have the ability to change his offense? Sounds like he's been running the same system all-along. The good ones do: Calipari got out of his "Dribble Drive Motion" offense a quarter a way through the season because he realized his personnel doesn't fit, now he runs more dribble handoffs and on-ball screens. Calhoun started the year with a Kemba-Oriakhi, outside-in game. Realized when they went into their funk mid year that it wasn't working, so he moved Kemba off the ball, brought Nappier in to run the point, moved Oriakhi to a weak side rebounding position and put Jeremy Lamb on the side KW runs curls to spot up.

Also, what if Terry were to bring in say, Paul Hewitt and a Jeff-Webster-type (a guy with AAU ties) assistant?

Webster isn't coming, think DAZE shed light on that. You have to remember that a lot of these coaches have egos, I highly doubt Hewitt (who has coached in a national championship game) is ready to jump back into the college game and take orders from a D-II coach. Could be wrong, but that's just the way I see it.

TE is a fine coach from what I have seen and heard...just don't see the merit in him deserving a job right now. I honestly don't believe he has earned the right to be OU's next bball coach.

 

[TEvans4Three]

Yes and no, the basics are the same obviously at any level, but there are quite a few differences as well. TE is going to employ a "run and gun" type system, similar to what he is accustomed to at UCO. His system relies heavily on the three point shot and quick shots to keep the defense off-guard. That's great, but how many run and shoot systems work that well in major Division I today? Very few. TE is not going to be averaging 80+ points and still win, you can't get away with that. Everyone two months ago was clamoring for some defense, that is not the recipe in Divions I to be a good defensive team.

Does TE have the ability to change his offense? Sounds like he's been running the same system all-along. The good ones do: Calipari got out of his "Dribble Drive Motion" offense a quarter a way through the season because he realized his personnel doesn't fit, now he runs more dribble handoffs and on-ball screens. Calhoun started the year with a Kemba-Oriakhi, outside-in game. Realized when they went into their funk mid year that it wasn't working, so he moved Kemba off the ball, brought Nappier in to run the point, moved Oriakhi to a weak side rebounding position and put Jeremy Lamb on the side KW runs curls to spot up.

TE is a fine coach from what I have seen and heard...just don't see the merit in him deserving a job right now. I honestly don't believe he has earned the right to be OU's next bball coach.

He hasn't been running the same system all along. (See MWC, UCO first few years) He ran a motion off ball screen system and ahigh/low post at MWC. Now he runs a more run and gun because of the recruits he gets. I would be fine with that. Stress shooting the ball and pushing the tempo.

A system that works well is actually in the Final Four. Kentucky. And coach Cal has not adjusted at all. It is the same team since game 5. They run a lot of one-one-one Iso with a top screen. Jorts stands down low and waits for either rebound or ballside help, then he dunks. They have freak athletes and don't have much of a formal "offense" at all.

I also don't think any coach is really deserving of the job. But see where many are coming from giving a D-II coach the ranks. He has built UCO into a very good program. I think if he can get the players from this region he could have some success. We wouldn't have lost the top Oklahoma players the last few years.

Should there be hesitation, of course. I am definitely biased because I know him personally. Would I be in your court if I didn't know him, absolutely. I guess my opinion differs because I have been there since MWC and know how he has developed his teams.

 

[campbest]

Jorts stands down low and waits for either rebound or ballside help, then he dunks. They have freak athletes and don't have much of a formal "offense" at all.

Good post, but the quote above is incorrect. They have moved Jorts away from the bucket more in a distributor role, but in a way that allows him to get to the cup for offensive rebounds. Primarily off the dribble hand-off.

http://tourney.si.com/2011/03/30/inside-the-final-four-offenses/

Gottlieb has also spent numerous bits on ESPN the past two weeks talking about their offense change.

 

[OKURanger]

“Look at our RPI. I would put ours up with Tulsa. I would put us ahead of ORU. To me, I’m already at that level. I know Joe would hire me if I was at Tulsa, but I understand the public perception.”

I'm not savvy enough about college basketball to state whether Evans's quote in Tramel's article is accurate or not; but, if it is then I really don't see what the problem with hiring him is. My guess is that if was coaching Tulsa or ORU and doing well, then we fans would think he was a great hire.

 

[TEvans4Three]

Good post, but the quote above is incorrect. They have moved Jorts away from the bucket more in a distributor role, but in a way that allows him to get to the cup for offensive rebounds. Primarily off the dribble hand-off.

http://tourney.si.com/2011/03/30/inside-the-final-four-offenses/

Gottlieb has also spent numerous bits on ESPN the past two weeks talking about their offense change.

I will concur that my quote in your above post was partially incorrect. It is half and half. I live in Kentucky now and have had the, wouldn't call it pleasure, to watch every game here with friends. My buddy is friends with Jorts and we are so happy for him. When watching the games he does set high screen and handoffs, but he does spend a lot of time on the low block away from the ball as well. That is why he gets a ton of easy buckets from their dribble drive. Help-side comes across and leaves Jorts wide open.

But I will say, I do appreciate a guy with good basketball IQ to discuss back and forth X's and O's in a civil manner. Haven't had that in quite some time. Kentucky fans are fans first, not as many basketball minds as you may think.

 

[campbest]

But I will say, I do appreciate a guy with good basketball IQ to discuss back and forth X's and O's in a civil manner. Haven't had that in quite some time.

We need more of this on the board, too many generalistic comments and critiques are thrown out when it comes to players/coaches...not enough strategy and actual game dynamics.