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  1. #191
    Supporting Member GoMuskies's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Muskie4106 View Post

    Hell who knows maybe we can make a run like Miller did winning 4 games in 4 days and one of those wins was blowout against #1 undefeated St. Joes. Is it likely NO but anything can happen.
    Man, we need to do Xavier history lessons around here. :)

    That was Matta's last season. 4 in 4 with Miller was in his second season, but there were no notably good teams in the A-10 that year and we played #3 seed Gonzaga close before losing as a #14 seed.

  2. #192
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    Quote Originally Posted by 94GRAD View Post
    This is laughable!!! Might as well say "I don't know if the team not all wearing the same shoes is a factor or not." I bet the arm or leg sleeves that some of the players are wearing is a factor as well.
    Huh?

  3. #193
    Supporting Member 94GRAD's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jumpin_Jamal_Forever View Post
    Huh?
    Read the bolded part of the quote I copied.
    Mama always told me, stupid is as stupid does. @danagardens

  4. #194
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    Quote Originally Posted by IM4X View Post
    Do you mean “silly to question his current appoach” or “silly to question his ability as a head coach?”

    It may be silly to read into what is going on now and say “Steele will never have what it takes to be a very good head coach.” On the other hand, I do not think it silly to question his approach at this point. It simply isn’t working. To be a successful head coach one not only has to be able to recognize what is and is not working, but find a way to get his players to fix it. Steele is saying a lot of the things you’d expect a “knowledgeable coach” to say to show he sees the problems with the team. He has not yet shown he can teach them the right things to do to fix it.

    In fairness,(as you have pointed out) Steel does not have the depth or overall talent of last season’s team. Mack knew this year’s team was never going to have quite the success of last year’s team. But there is enough talent on this team to be winning more games than they have. This team has shown they can play well enough to compete with and beat most of the teams they’ve played, if they could just stop making so many stupid decisions.

    Therein lies the question: whose fault is it that these players are not playing to their potential as individuals and as a team? Whose fault is it that the team does not have the chemistry or discipline now that we were lead to believe they would had? Whose fault is it that they do not appear to be getting even a little smarter with their decisions or a little more tenacious with their play in every game. This team shows laziness with the ball even during the beginning of a game (so tiredness is not always an excuse).

    I don’t know if the headband thing is a factor or not, but this team has looked more like a bunch of thrown together parts with no one seeming to understand their role or where they should be. If that is not something to question a coach about then I don’t know what is.

    So I can appreciate that Steele has less to work with than last year (included a few key 3 point shooters), but the BE competition is not what it was last year and there is a bit more talent on this roster than the performances and results we’ve seen would suggest.

    Steele may still end up being a great coach for X, but he’s going have to get his hands dirtier to really mold this team. I am not going to judge him on whether this team makes the NCAA tournament but rather on how much better he can make THIS team each game. How much better the chemistry of THIS TEAM gets. How much better the decision making gets during THIS SEASON. I believe that will help tell a lot about Steele and his ability to coach.
    Having re-read your post, I don't find it laughable or unreasonable. While I do not, for a minute, believe the wearing of headbands (or the banning of them) says anything about this team, I think your final paragraph is a reasonable way to assess this year's team and Steele's performance. Are we getting better? I would add that improvement (if it occurs) may be a little choppy. We may see some positive developments show up in one game but disappear the next.

    I subscribe (as it seems, do most on this board) that the talent level is lacking a bit on this team. But, I also look at the performance of the Core Four and think I see a bit of a decline from last year. I'm not positive about that as an earlier post noted we had four really good seniors last year who did much of the heavy lifting. So, maybe Naji, Q, Tyrique and Scruggs seemed to be more effective when they were part of that mix than now, when they are being asked to lead.

    Nevertheless, I think its an interesting argument even if an academic one. The thinking we share on this board is not going to change the performance of this team. We just need to tough this year out. But, like IM4X, I want to see what Steele is able to accomplish with this group. I want to see whether he can get them to play smarter with fewer turnovers and dumbass shots; how he can get Tyrique to respond, whether Harden, Kennedy and James can mature and get better. I'm O.K. knowing we are NOT winning the B.E. this year but let's not give Steele a complete pass and blame everything on lack of talent. I still think a good coach will find a way to get even average talent to perform better. Let's see what he does.

  5. #195
    Junior IM4X's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 94GRAD View Post
    This is laughable!!! Might as well say "I don't know if the team not all wearing the same shoes is a factor or not." I bet the arm or leg sleeves that some of the players are wearing is a factor as well.
    Uh... I was not suggesting the headbands might be causing player to be playing poorly.

    My headband remark was a reference to the thoughts some others made on the board about Steele, allowing players to get away with doing things they believe Mack never would have allowed and how that may have been the beginning of a slippery slope to him losing control and players just doing things their own way.

    I was just saying, I have no idea if that decision had any connection to the lack of focus and discipline with this team.

  6. #196
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    Quote Originally Posted by IM4X View Post
    Uh... I was not suggesting the headbands might be causing player to be playing poorly.

    My headband remark was a reference to the thoughts some others made on the board about Steele, allowing players to get away with doing things they believe Mack never would have allowed and how that may have been the beginning of a slippery slope to him losing control and players just doing things their own way.

    I was just saying, I have no idea if that decision had any connection to the lack of focus and discipline with this team.
    Exactly! I originally mentioned the headbands, not as a physical issue with headbands but as a potential control issue.

    One other thing...Steele in his previous role as recruiter would vist the kids and tell the everything they wanted to hear. How good they were, how they would fit in at X, how much playing time they would get etc. Selling the school and program so they come to X. As head coach, you often tell players what they are doing wrong; things to change, make free throws, play better defense, things they don't want to hear to play better and win games. It's a different role. Takes time to transition especially since Steele moved over one seat, like Miller and Mack.
    Last edited by SkyWalker; 01-07-2019 at 02:13 PM.

  7. #197
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    I do not have an agenda. I just expect Xavier teams to play with discipline and heart. Maybe we have been spoiled for too long with our teams. Good programs do not rebuild, they reload. Look at programs like Gonzaga. Sure they have had more consistency at the head coaching position, but they play in a crap conference and are located in a not very desirable location. Don’t get me wrong, I cheer for and support other Jesuit schools when they are not playing Xavier. I just hate watching players quit, and this team has quit a few times this year. I believe that starts with the head coach.

  8. #198
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    Last edited by username; 02-27-2019 at 07:37 PM.

  9. #199
    Senior X Factor's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by username View Post
    I'm not sure where I stand on the headband issue, but I'm definitely against all the in-game celebration that takes place. This was an issue under Mack too. I'm pretty sure our BE tournament loss to Providence last year featured the Jones shoulder shimmy that's being played in the promos now. We took a huge lead that game and then started dancing around as the other team stayed focused and clawed their way back. We celebrate fairly minor stuff and then we hang our heads and curse at our shoes after missed shots etc. I don't recall ever seeing Villanova dwell on the most recent possession like that. They seem to focus on the current one.
    I watch a ton of college basketball, and I have to admit, Xavier players seem to do more dancing, mean mugging, shoulder shaking, and screaming when they do something good than most teams.
    Last edited by X Factor; 01-07-2019 at 08:17 PM.

  10. #200
    Supporting Member bleedXblue's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by X Factor View Post
    I watch a ton of college basketball, and I have to admit, Xavier players seem to more dancing, mean mugging, shoulder shaking, and screaming when they do something good than most teams.
    I would like to see the demeanor change a bit. All business and taking more of a serious tone. Also the head hanging MUST be addressed......ridiculous its coming from captains

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