Is it possible for someone to be disappointed in the staff and the direction they are taking the program and still root for the team to win?
I wanted Amaker gone but I still rooted for the team to win.
I wanted RR gone in football but not once did I root against Michigan. Same for Brady Hoke by his last year. It was clear the program was headed in the wrong direction. I still watched every game and rooted for a win.
Against OSU, I thought we had a chance to win that game late in the 2nd half. I wasnāt conceding anything. Even in the game thread on this site, I was posting we still have a chance even when people were conceding with 5 minutes left. I hang on until the end.
I understand what you are saying, believe me. I just find it hard to complain about everything for a team who is on the verge of being in the tourney. You canāt just look at all the bad when there is some good going on. I just do not get that part.
Thatās the difference. Being on the verge of being in the tourney is not ok. We should be locked up for the tourney fighting for seed position right now.
This is why our opinions clash. We have two separate set of expectations for this yearās team.
At this point, Iāll take crawling into the tournament but my expectations were much higher than that to start the season. In our blowout losses, some major flaws appeared and the writing was on the wall for the rest of the season.
With that being said, you are right, there is still time to right the ship. What you do in the tournament far out weighs what you did in the regular season. If this team is one of the last four in but makes the sweet 16, it was a great season. Iāll be rooting for it. I wonāt be counting on it.
Iād take that any day of the week then being a non-tourney team. You think we have it bad look at Rutgers or Illinois or Penn St. They have the rights to complain up a storm about their program. We are a team that is way closer to 20 wins then losses.
Thatās not what Iām saying, this season isnāt a wreck you just make it out to be one. I will not speak for anyone but myself but I find it hard to see why u refer to yourself as a Michigan fan you seem to hate them because all you do is talk bad about them. Is this season picture perfect definitely not but its good enough to be near the tournament field so stop complaining about every single little thing this team isnāt terrible
No, really a casual fan just starting to learn and appreciate the nuances of the game. Which is why I appreciate when posters like you are on point and talking strategy/evaluating players etc.
Wilson is 7 for 9 over the last 4 games. Iām not at all saying heās the answer, but itās not like heās been missing shots lately. He just hasnāt been playing outside of garbage time.
Maybe it is just me but Iāve noticed this team fails on a lot of little things that strong teams do on a regular basis. A few things that come to mind:
-Missing on And1ās: have noticed time and time again where players are close to converting or close to putting themselves in a position to convert a 3 point play but fail. Seems that Donnal/Doyle have had some bunnies where a touch foul has stopped them from hitting a layup to set up a 3 point play. Instead they get to the strip and split the pair. Maybe this goes back to the point made by numerous users that they just arenāt skilled enough or strong enough. Big time players will make that layup and head to the line for 3. Iāve also noticed when players do have a 3 point chance, they are missing FTās - Walton & MAAR numerous times throughout the year.
-Missing front end of 1 & 1: these hurt, just leaving potential points on the board.
-FTs from a few individuals: Would love to see Irvin get his percentage up over 70% as he was freshman year. Heās at 61% right nowā¦for context, Doyle is shooting better. I expect more from a junior who is a pretty good shooter. MAAR also struggled from the line but heās been better as of late, getting closer to 70%. Again, more points left on the board that really irk me.
Small things but the difference between 1 point and 3 or even 0 points and 1 can be big in starting/ending swings.
With the and 1s itās a combination of not only strength but concentration. You clearly have to be strong to get through the contact but concentration is just as important. Those bumps canāt hurt your concentration looking at the basket.
Similar to hitting 3s in practice Iām sure these guys finish through getting pounded with a blocking pad.
See I donāt think itās far fetched to think even with spike out there we could have won this game, you never known what spikes impact would be. In many games he could have changed the outcome. Heās a top three shooter on the team. In terms of consistency he may be the best shooter. When everyoneās cold he could come in and make a few threes and totAtly change the game. He also gets in the lane at will. Who knows how many lay ups he could create or open shots he could get by driving and dishing. His overall energy and flair/leadership can change everything. We really have no idea ehAt his impAct could be in these games imo. Also after you see a few shots go through by say spike it could turn contagious. Canāt underestimate his impact on the mental. This teAms issues are all mental to me, he hits a few then everyone gets pumped and the energy follows. Everyone starts hitting. Thatās how this team goes.
I feel like itās hard to tell just how much impact a player or two can have. Spike can change gAmes. He was a senior this year too so who knows how much a heAlthy spike could help. I mean he could be explosive at times. Such a knock down shooter, which weāve been missing over the last month or two.
All Iām saying is we hAve no idea just how good he would have been or we could have been. His skill and decision making was elite. And he clearly was our team leader and spark plug
Also as frustrated as I have been and up setting as that loss was to Ohio at yesterday, particularly because I have no doubt we are better then them, I still feel we can beat northwestern and them Wisconsin. It might sound crazy to take red hot badgers at kohl if we couldnāt beat the Buckeyes, but I believe we have the better team. We just need to show up and play hard. Letās just hope the good Walton shows up. If he is hot heās better than Koenig leaving Hayes as the only advantage Wisconsin would have. Derricks passing can be great to. Itās real sad we laid an egg there. Beating osu then northwestern then winning one game between badgers, Maryland and Iowa would have been a solid finish.
Letās just hope we bring fire to are last four games. More looks for rahkman and Aubrey. This offense should be very balanced/ even amount of looks. More action to the rim from rahkman Walton and Irvin. Offense always plays better this way. Best way to get out of slump is by getting to thev line or getting close looks
Wow Maryland losing here was the worst thing that could have happened. They are going to come to play hard and take it out on us. Knowing us we will not match their intensity and get blown off the court, especially with out shooting woes/ lack of confidence. This lack of confidence is why our seniors missing is huge.
Maybe or maybe Maryland continues to play like crap as they have for most of the recent weeks. They are not a good team with Trimble playing like this.
Their too good to lAy in egg again. Their going to come out on a tear and try and smack us. I just wish we could come out hot and match their intensity,and try and pull an upset. I just see a bad bad loss on deck.