I was hoping it wasn't true but X is back to being a stepping stone program, just in a different way. I'm convinced players choose X because they get a year or 2 to play in a nice arena and get Big East exposure. They use that to showcase their individual skills so the following year they can get that big ass payday from a bigger school. I don't blame the kids, but the fact roster turnover is so high just blows up what we knew to be the Xavier way when we were growing up.
We loved watching guys grow and develop for 4 years and how those teams cohesion and teamwork helped them pull off many amazing runs. Now it's a group of talented guys who just play for their next check. Its sad to see. I know lots on here may not agree, but I had to vent. I bet Sean Miller is beating his head against the wall starting at square 1 year after year.
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12-21-2024, 01:59 PM #1
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Back to being a stepping stone program.
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12-21-2024, 02:39 PM #2
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Pump the brakes, how many players have we had in the last 10 years that transferred out, hit it big, and entered the league.
The reality is that Miller needs to really adjust how he operates in the NIL/Portal world. He will need to look at teams that succeed and teams that don't. We can play what if all we want, but teams play harder when they win. For 35 mins this team looked like they were going through the motions and getting paid for it. For 5 minutes they fought like they had a chance.
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12-21-2024, 03:34 PM #3
X has lost 3 games in a row by a combined 10 points. We have lost two big men for the season. And somehow we have competed against the #11 and #9 team. Went to the sweet 16 two years ago. We are now a stepping stone? Yeah…NO
If I was going to school for school, I wouldn’t have picked the University of Cincinnati. Dontonio Wingfield
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12-21-2024, 03:43 PM #4
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12-21-2024, 03:45 PM #5
We went for it this year and I thought it was a good strategy. traore going down was obviously a huge loss.
Free going down….well at some point maybe you just have to recognize that the guy is fragile and injury prone. This is now the 3rd season in a row where an injury to Free has changed the trajectory of the year….
But I did think we were built to give ourselves a chance at a deep run.
One thing I didn't expect was that we haven’t been able to coax out more from Hugley, swain, green or Maddox…..maybe that’s coaching?
In any event this year was a “go for it” year. The roster was not built with and eye towards the future. But I would take that trade if we got an elite 8 or Final four out of it.
But since it didn’t work (or isn’t currently working), the implications are huge.
Next years roster is looking pretty damn thin, and we won’t be coming off a huge year to recruit our next wave of guys.
And further, can we go back to the well on the fundraising that got us the NIL for this year? I mean, I’m sure a lot of people dug a little bit deeper that they had in the past because they were bought into the promise of being able to restock and compete this year. Those people are currently looking at a “low” return on that investment. I skeptical that we can sustain the NIL levels without some corresponding success.
The alternative is a 2-3 year rebuild. Bring in as many freshmen as you can get and possibly grab some high quality YOUNG transfers that may not have previously had a chance to show what they can do (Nzeh as an example). Take your lumps for a year while the freshmen get some experience. Try to rebuild a core that can compete as juniors. Keep an incoming stream of 2-3 freshmen a year, and maybe 1-2 transfers to fill needs. This approach can work, but you have a razor thin margin if your freshmen aren’t the right guys….
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12-21-2024, 03:48 PM #6
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Takes a lot to fix the Steele mess. Sean will be fine. 3 for 3 on losing an all big east player for the season. 2/3 years losing the starting bigs. Xavier can absolutely compete in the NIL era. But can’t compete while losing multiple key pieces every year. Some big programs can sustain that hit, I don’t think X can.
Things need to change recruiting wise, IMO, But we’re in good hands. Just wanted to include context in the “we can’t compete” narrative
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12-21-2024, 03:51 PM #7
I do not miss Desmond Claude's fucked up shots. He can step off wherever the hell he went.
"We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm."
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12-21-2024, 04:22 PM #8
We should still make dance this year. 21-10 is very possible. Should win next 5 or n paper. Lose one of those then we are prob in serious trouble
If I was going to school for school, I wouldn’t have picked the University of Cincinnati. Dontonio Wingfield
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12-21-2024, 04:40 PM #9
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12-21-2024, 04:55 PM #10
Yeah….but.
Sean fell short at Arizona. That’s a top 10 program and he was there for what, 12 years? He had the players, he had the rankings, and he had the CHANCES. But for whatever reason he fell short.
I don’t think his tenure at X is turning out to be a real resume builder. His successful season came with almost exclusively steeles players. His recruiting and portal guys have been spotty (+ for Boum, Q, & Conwell so far. McKnight is solid but unspectacular, and the rest have been meh). He hasn’t really developed anyone. Swain is just the same guy from last year, but playing more. I’ve been looking at the stats of our players from the last few years that transferred and several of them are flourishing. Maybe that due to having more than experience. Maybe it’s due to “dropping down” a level or 2. Or maybe it’s due to lack of development while at X.
Bottom line is I don’t see you scenario as bing realistic. He’s got about 20 years of experience and his best years are far behind him. MAYBE his best years are actually ahead of him, but he’s gotta put up a couple successful seasons before anyone makes a serious run at him.Last edited by MHettel; 12-21-2024 at 04:58 PM.
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