Wojo is a heck of coach......

[KenoshaWarrior]

I agree with mug644.  His speeches in the huddles are underwhelming.  I don't see the value in yelling "we've got to fight" over and over again.  Or "we're not playing smart."  How about some X's & O's?  Actual strategy.  Never thought I'd say this: I miss Buzz.

I have missed buzz  for the past 2 years

[Golden Avalanche]

I have missed buzz  for the past 2 years

Grow up and deal with it.

[MU82]

The optimistic Scoopers who think Wojo actually might turn out to be a good coach are totally clueless. Delusional. Or as the leading GOP presidential candidate would say, "Stooopid."

I mean, there is no freakin' way he has a snowball's chance in hell at being half as good as his mentor, Coach K.

Just look at K's record! He wasn't some crappy coach with a barely-over-.500 record in his second season at Duke!!!

Wait? What's that? K was some crappy coach with a 10-17 record in his second season? And he followed that by going 11-17 the next season?

No way! That's impossible! Wojo is the worst coach ever and he's better than that! Everybody knows that young coaches, like young players, NEVER improve!

I demand a recount!!!

[WarriorPride68]

The optimistic Scoopers who think Wojo actually might turn out to be a good coach are totally clueless. Delusional. Or as the leading GOP presidential candidate would say, "Stooopid."

I mean, there is no freakin' way he has a snowball's chance in hell at being half as good as his mentor, Coach K.

Just look at K's record! He wasn't some crappy coach with a barely-over-.500 record in his second season at Duke!!!

Wait? What's that? K was some crappy coach with a 10-17 record in his second season? And he followed that by going 11-17 the next season?

No way! That's impossible! Wojo is the worst coach ever and he's better than that! Everybody knows that young coaches, like young players, NEVER get improve!

I demand a recount!!!

You are on fire today

[crazyfannyboy54]

WOJO and staff maybe stuck in there ways.. Stubborn coaching shows in losses like last night..

[wadesworld]

WOJO and staff maybe stuck in there ways.. Stubborn coaching shows in losses like last night..

Yeah the first thing I think of when Wojo goes to a zone defense having been around Coach K for 20 years is "This guy is too stubborn and stuck in his ways."   

[connie]

At least Mike Deane would drop F bombs on his players even though the talent was not there.. #motivated coaching without the talent.

Wow, if you think Wojo isn't dropping f-bombs like a B-52 over Cambodia you are not paying attention.  MU had a defensive lapse to allow DePaul to bring the score to 4-2 last night and the dude absolutely lost his sh!t.

[GGGG]

WOJO and staff maybe stuck in there ways.. Stubborn coaching shows in losses like last night..

You have been on this board for just over an hour.  11 posts.  All negative.  A number inaccurate. 

[mug644]

WOJO and staff maybe stuck in there ways.. Stubborn coaching shows in losses like last night..

Actually, I would say that last night shows the opposite. He changed the starting lineup, and gave Heldt more run than normal (of course, that was partly due to Fischer's foul trouble early), and put in Anim for the first time since the opening game of the conference season.

I think we're seeing Wojo trying to adjust, but he's got so many moving (read: inconsistent) parts that the performance isn't there. I don't think that Wojo can/should be held accountable for that, especially in any one game.

I do wish, though, that we were seeing more consistent, high-level effort from the team, and that's something I would think that Wojo could influence game in and game out. And, frankly, I'm surprised that we're not seeing it, given the type of player he himself was. (And knowing that Travis D is also on the bench, and had the same mentality.) Still, I take a long-term approach, and am not ready to give up on Wojo, not at all.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

WOJO and staff maybe stuck in there ways.. Stubborn coaching shows in losses like last night..

The night after wojo changes the starting lineup and substitution patterns is the day you say he's stuck in his ways?

[MU82]

The night after wojo changes the starting lineup and substitution patterns is the day you say he's stuck in his ways?

You and your facts.

NEVER let facts get in the way of unbridled, knee-jerk anger!

[Dawson Rental]

Step away from the ledge...

Screw that. Jump!

Please.

[vogue65]

Lessons learned from previous games:
1.  No taunting
2.  No technicals
3.   Fewer if any b.s. hook shots,
4.   Fewer 3 point shots early in the clock
5.   Better but not great protection of the rock
6.    ?

Lesson learned last night
NEVER LET A TEAM GET A 3 POINT PLAY (TWO AND) AT THE END OF REGULATION, BEAT THEM IN OVERTIME, PERIOD......LET THEM HAVE 2 OR A 3 FROM DOWNTOWN IF NECESSARY.....

I SEE IMPROVMENT, SLOW IMPROVMENT

[CTWarrior]

Lesson learned last night
NEVER LET A TEAM GET A 3 POINT PLAY (TWO AND) AT THE END OF REGULATION, BEAT THEM IN OVERTIME, PERIOD......LET THEM HAVE 2 OR A 3 FROM DOWNTOWN IF NECESSARY.....

I will say this.  When it happened live I thought, "I can't believe we were dumb enough to foul that guy on the drive."  When the replay started I thought, "Let's see who the idiot was that fouled him."  After the replay I thought, "Nobody fouled him!"

[tower912]

Luke didn't foul him.  Luke wasn't able to stay close enough to foul him.  The official who made the call was looking through a number of players and thought he did.   I said last night, the end of the game felt like a Detroit Lion's game. 

[mug644]

I will say this.  When it happened live I thought, "I can't believe we were dumb enough to foul that guy on the drive."  When the replay started I thought, "Let's see who the idiot was that fouled him."  After the replay I thought, "Nobody fouled him!"

I'll add in the comment that I posted elsewhere that I was more nervous when Garrett had the ball outside the arc, as I feared a 3 ball to win the game. As soon as he drove, I felt more at ease, though worried that he might look to kick it out to Henry, "knowing" that a 2 would only bring overtime.

I'm little surprised that we're not hearing more outrage at the phantom foul. He blew past Fischer so quickly and didn't get touched by Johnson. Who was the foul actually called on? I sure hope MU is contacting the BEast to protest the call, if only to highlight (another?) weak bit of officiating this year.

[jesmu84]

As mentioned, the coaches know the "huddle cam" is on and they purposely don't say anything specific about strategy. Just like in the NBA, all those timeout cameras in the huddle are just terrible clichéd speeches. I can't believe this is where people are judging wojo.

[naginiF]

I am not in the fire Wojo camp by any means - he has room and means to turn this around. 

However, as someone who makes a point to watch every game (and have for the most part since the BE entry), I do have concerns. Namely the brand of basketball this team is playing is not fun to watch.

I hope Wojo is different off screen but those segments are not doing him any favors because it is one more thing that makes me question what is going on.

Last thing I will say is I hope Wojo starts coaching like he may be fired -- Buzz had that sense of urgency early in his career and it made things fun and frankly it is the mentality these guys have to have to be successful in today's college bball world.

Are you that big of a donor that it would matter? 

I think Wojo, the administration, and the BOD have a plan and a schedule that they are following to build the program to a sustainable level of great quality.  Shockingly, that might not be the same time frame that you have in mind.  I'm not sure they care that the radicalized 5% of the "fan" base thinks it should happen sooner (unless you are a big enough donor that Wojo should worry about how his made for TV clips come across)

[willie warrior]

Are you that big of a donor that it would matter? 

I think Wojo, the administration, and the BOD have a plan and a schedule that they are following to build the program to a sustrightble level of great quality.  Shockingly, that might not be the same time frame that you have in mind.  I'm not sure they care that the radicalized 5% of the "fan" base thinks it should happen sooner (unless you are a big enough donor that Wojo should worry about how his made for TV clips come across)

Sure would be nice to see that plan so that scoopers can properly critique it. Anybody have a copy of that power point pitch?

[RushmoreAcademy]

BUT HE JUST YELLS CLICHES.

[79Warrior]

As mentioned, the coaches know the "huddle cam" is on and they purposely don't say anything specific about strategy. Just like in the NBA, all those timeout cameras in the huddle are just terrible clichéd speeches. I can't believe this is where people are judging wojo.

Absolutely right.

[KenoshaWarrior]

As mentioned, the coaches know the "huddle cam" is on and they purposely don't say anything specific about strategy. Just like in the NBA, all those timeout cameras in the huddle are just terrible clichéd speeches. I can't believe this is where people are judging wojo.

I am as skeptical about Wojo as anyone, and I cant even get on board  with the "Huddle Cam" argument.   

[bilsu]

I basically have not liked Wojo from the start. However, I am very torn on this. I like the character of the players coming in. I do not see as much talent as the rest of you do. We are getting killed on the boards in the Big East. I am not sure if that is a lack of athleticism or a lack of coaching. Maybe it is both. I am not sure whether our cupcake schedule was a good idea or not. It got us some wins, but I do not think it prepared us well for the Big East. The players seem to like Wojo and I think that is important. I hated transfers out of the program, so I think it come down to this for me. We do not have any transfers at year end and then I will give Wojo another year to prove me wrong. He should be fired, if players start transferring.

[MU82]

I basically have not liked Wojo from the start. However, I am very torn on this. I like the character of the players coming in. I do not see as much talent as the rest of you do. We are getting killed on the boards in the Big East. I am not sure if that is a lack of athleticism or a lack of coaching. Maybe it is both. I am not sure whether our cupcake schedule was a good idea or not. It got us some wins, but I do not think it prepared us well for the Big East. The players seem to like Wojo and I think that is important. I hated transfers out of the program, so I think it come down to this for me. We do not have any transfers at year end and then I will give Wojo another year to prove me wrong. He should be fired, if players start transferring.

I'm sure Wojo will be relieved that an interwebs fansite dude is willing to give him another year.

[Meathead]

It's not fun because we aren't winning.  If we beat Seton Hall and DePaul at home this place would be flying high at 14-5 and 4-3.  The least of my concerns about Wojo is whether is "brand of basketball" is "fun to watch."  Bo Ryan's "brand of basketball" was a snoozer for all but 2 years of his career.  I'd take a mirror of what he did at Marquette any day of the week.

Half of our team is made up of freshman.  Look at teams like Xavier and Butler to see what happens when talented freshman turn into upperclassmen.

Trying to decide how Wojo is as a coach based on 5 second "in the huddle" segments in which FS1 literally cannot show anything that discusses a team's strategy is like trying to determine how good at his job a CFO or accountant is while discussing his son's 2nd grade algebra with him.  Watch an NBA game on TNT sometime.  They'll go "inside the huddle."  You'll hear almost exactly the same stuff Wojo says from Pop.  I guess Pop is a cliché clueless hack of a basketball coach, too. 

Like I said, this place is awesome.

You seem to be a knowledgeable poster so I am curious:  Did you make a prediction for this team prior to the season starting?  Just curious to know if your expectations have been met, or are on track to be met?

If Henry leaves as many expect he will, and with no other true 4 on the roster/recruiting class at this time, will we be much better next year?

How would you grade Wojo's coaching performance thus far in his tenure?