Inside Texas Basketball

Great post, a lot to digest there.

He talked about last year’s collapse and how it motivated him to put everything he believed about basketball under the microscope.

That’s awesome.

Holy shit. Great stuff.

Bummed to hear about the J’Crappy attitude. Kid could be a great college player.

Thanks for sharing.

Quite a contrast to the football program. Great read, Scipio—thanks for the write-up.

Encouraging. I still will need to see results. I was convinced after last year Barnes had gone as far as he could at Texas and it would be a long spiral down considering that he isthe best thing to happen to ut basketball during my life.

When he didn’t change staff and bring in a specialist to take over for the offense I figured it was more stubborness. We shall see if he has what it takes to get it turned around, but at least he has acnowledged the problem.

thank you bob knight.

Outstanding. Could we ask for any more? Incredible. Maybe I’ll get over last season’s scars yet. Sure appreciate this update, Scip. Between this and news on other fronts this is shaping up to be one of the most optimistic Longhorn days in a very long time.

Awesome Scip, just awesome.

If you think Barnes is being too hard on J’Covan, consider those little vignettes. Jai Lucas will continue to play because he gives consistent effort and always works his ass off.

At some point — if you are in it for the long haul — a coach will have to play a Jai over a J’Covan just because of what you wrote. This is big-time college basketball, but it isn’t the NBA (where talent triumphs over everything else).

At this stage you have to believe that all of the player are still teachable at some level, and that playing time can be dependent on effort and putting team first.

Thank you for giving us some tangible items to help us look forward to the next few months.

Holy shit, what a breath of fresh air. That was needed.

Dang Scipio, that was first rate stuff and insight into the program. The only negative I came away with was J’Covan. Unfortunately we’ve seen negative attitude from him early in the season. Good thing is that after displaying it early in the second game he did close out the game much better mentally. But those anecdotes of him are a big discouraging.
Other than that just a ton of positives to glean from the piece. Hmmm, Barnes realized the problem was looking at him in the mirror and in an effort to fix them he sought the counsel of great basketball minds/organizations. I hope another certain HC at the school realizes you can actually seek counsel from someone other than your wife.

Good stuff. So it was true that the only thing that was going to save us last year was to run? It’s going to be the case this year I’m afraid. If we try to play halfcourt with KSU we’re going to get squashed.

Again, thanks for posting. Really great read.

Sally would have fired GD a long time ago.

Great get, Scipio. Someone should give Mack’s phone number to Bobby Knight, pronto.

So we go from random junk to the Utah Jazz offense? That alone should buy twenty wins, right?

Awesome stuff. Any insight on Joseph behind the scenes?

Wow – glad I checked the site to read this. Why aren’t print articles this good? Fantastic stuff.

Awesome to hear that Barnes followed the steps he did to try to correct the situation. Takes a big man to do all of that.

I thought about going to this thing. As it turned out, I couldn’t, but it would have been worth it.

Amazing. Usually at that level blind spots just tend to get blinder (Mack) due to these people’s egos. I’ll be at the Illinois game and can’t wait to see what this team can do against legit competition.

When people made a big deal about the comment that RB made last year re: wanting to put players in the NBA over winning championships, I just laughed. Trust me, nobody wants a title worse than RB, and he has vowed to bring one to Texas. His offseason come-to-Jesus is evidence enough of that.

Awesome stuff. Thanks for sharing, Scipio.

Scip, did Barnes talk at all about recruiting strategies? Is he going to be recruiting specifically for this new system, and, if so, what kind of players does it demand?

Also, any insight into why Barnes didn’t have an offensive system before this year and what exactly he was running and trying to accomplish?

Damn good read, much better than all the negative crap I’ve been reading elsewhere. RB did a smart thing: he took it all upon himself, sought the counsel of smart and trusted people, and then followed through with their advice. Now, that’s humbling, surprising, and self-evident motivation to get better — to become the best. Good stuff.

This is absolutely incredible news and the timing of your post, Scip, could not have been better given the sad sack state of affairs on the gridiron. Just fantastic insider takes and thanks for the share.

The first couple of games were pop quizzes. We’ll find out about their study habits after the Thursday night exam. The Illini come in with a 13 rank and start 4 seniors. Their playmaker guard, McCamey, is making 6 out of every 10 shots and is a 41%+ 3pt shooter in 3 games. Needless to say he comes into MSG on a roll. The game will be a stern test for sure.

Good stuff from you, Scipio, and great news about the program and Barnes. Thanks for the report.

I was introduced to an immediate family member of one of Barne’s assistants this summer and asked his opinion on Rick’s future at Texas. One thing he felt that was working against Barnes was that the stories we have read at times about Rick lightening up, trying to be less of a red-ass, listening to his players more, etc. weren’t accurate, and that his manner of coaching was still too intense/unforgiving for a lot of kids.

It is fantastic to hear that he is willing to evaluate his approach to the game so honestly, but did you learn anything from your source about Rick adjusting his general philosophy for reaching his players?

Well, it’s official, I’m excited about basketball again. I hate you guys.

Spending time with the Jazz, you say? As a Houstonian I hate the Jazz on principle, but you have to give it up to Sloan. That war horse routinely does more with less (black players) than anyone else.

Somebody get Todd Wright a raise. Also, have him work with Yao on that foot yoga stuff.

That J’Covan bs just pisses me off. Somebody needs to bring in Vaccaro for some pick-up games. I used to root for J’Covan to somehow morph into Van Exel, but forget that. He can EABOD.

Excited for the game Thursday. Anybody who wants to watch Trips Right school that Open Thread, we’ll be at Hooters on 45 and 1960. Sydney Carton will be supplying the Flintstone-esque Moose Lodge headwear.

Great stuff Scipio, appreciate it.

So proud of Barnes for humbling himself and accepting just how terrible his offensive system was. We look like we’re firmly back on track to where we want to be. If we can get a recommit from DeAndre Daniels and get started on 2012 and 13 (as in get some early commits), we’re cooking big time. Let’s get the juggernaut churning.

PS: Is anybody allowed at these things, or do you have to be a certain coach/invited?

Great stuff, Scip. Wonderful to see a commitment by RB to an actual, designed offense that eschews over-dribbling and streetball that characterizes the NBL nowadays.

J’Crybaby may skulk his way to the pine if he doesn’t shape up. Teamwork and chemistry over potential, no matter how potential.

Upcoming game against the University of Chief Illiniwek ought to be a good measure of progress.

I love UT. Love football. Love basketball. This year, 2010, basketball & football have ripped my heart out.

Thank you for giving me some optimism about the future.

Regarding J’Covan. His immaturity is ironic considering the perseverance and patience he needed to get to this point. It’s’ that journey that gives me hope he’ll be a great one by the time he leaves UT.

Great read. Thank God we are probably going to be a Basketball school again. I really look forward to seeing Texas develop an identity on offense.

What is your guess on our FT shooting this year? Geese we left a lot of points on the court last year with so many clunkers, especially the fornt ends of 1 and 1’s.

We’ll find out about their study habits after the Thursday night exam.

I’m not gonna worry about anything that happens in November, and I’m not going to be fazed if they take beating from UNC and MSU.

I’m really encouraged about what Barnes says he did to change things. I’m discouraged about the report on Brown. It’s one thing to have an attitude, and entirely different to be an ass.

Absolutely fantastic article and insight. Couldn’t quite figure out what we were doing on offense in the first two games. I actually thought it was the old Flex offense most teams run in junior high..

Just the fact that there is a system in place now increases my hopes for this season by a factor of three.

I’m a huge fan of both Jerry Sloan and Bobby Knight. It does not matter if the horns run a relatively simple motion O, it will still be a huge improvement. Have the bad shooters set screens for the good shooters, everybody shoots only the shots that they actually have a good record of hitting. Astonishing humility by Barnes. It is going to be much less frustrating watching the horns this season.

Don’t know if the marathon practices are a good idea. Might be better to break it into two a days to let the bodies recuperate some to reduce injuries. More cross training might be a good idea to reduce repetitive stress and impact injuries.

You can tell a lot about people from the way they treat underlings. If J’Covan disrespects the ball boy, that is pathetic.

wow…..great read. I fear Brown may be a very talented cancer, the worst kind for a team. What a friggin baby….

Great read.

Excellent point about Hamilton and Brown feeding off of each other last season in terms of poor attitude. You can get away with one problem child, but two poisons the whole bunch.

See: Willie Warren and OU basketball after they lost the Griffins and added TMG and Tiny Gallon last season. By the way, those two going pro has to be one of the stupidest moves I’ve ever seen … they could have been solid NBA guys if they had worked on their games in college … threw away a lot of money; I’m sure the Sooners were making sure those guys (and their families) weren’t starving.

Maybe Barnes can give Mack pointers on self analysis.

A generalized comment: I agree with Bob that I’m not using Illinois as a litmus test for any of this stuff. Barnes knows that this is a process. In fact, I expect to lose handily because Illinois’ ability to ball pressure guys running a new system will create indecision and easy turnovers.
 
Michigan State should be able to do the same. I’m interested in how we’re playing in January and February. Or in 2011.
 
srr50 -
 
Exactly. Not to mention that Barnes is not a guy who ever let the inmates run the asylum.
 
Kevin -
 
Basically, everything you said last year in your write-ups is what Barnes concluded in the offseason. Everything. The cool thingis that Barnes decided to act on it.
 
Vasherized -
 
No real insights. Just that he’s a much better raw athlete and defender than we expected. Not a great shooter, but he some offensive game. It should come.
 
Bob -
 
You really should have gone. You might have been expecting a dog and pony show. It was anything but. I’m so pissed I couldn’t attend.
 
mashtun -
 
Recruiting didn’t come up specifically, but if you look at our 2011 class they very much fit what we’re trying to do. Everyone can pass, handle, and the big men are all active and can face up. Also all of the kids are unselfish – exactly what you want in that kind of offense.
 
As for our past offenses, the last two years were really the biggest disappointment. Barnes has had excellent offensive teams, but they always required a creator stud at PG. He wants to be able to run good offense with a system approach rather than relying on pure talent.
 
Blake B -
 
I believe you have to be a coach.
 
beowulf –
 
A big key to FT shooting is having the right guys take them. I expect us to be marginally improved. Getting our littles in transition and into the lane can only help.
 
tjarks -
 
I remarked the same thing as the story was related to me.

What a fascinating read.

Barnes has an offensive philosophy. I don’t even care what it is, this is significant progress. Very impressed that he has the confidence to step back and identify what’s not working.

This season just got a lot more interesting.

This says volumes about the difference between a coach, Rick Barnes, and a cheerleader, Mack Brown. Maybe Mack should have attended. He certainly could have learned (or at least heard) something he could use.

Thanks, Scip. What an awesome read.

We could all learn from Rick Barnes. Whether it works or not, his sold-out commitment to changing for the better is a great example.

One thing about Rick is I think he is a pretty straight shooter. No whining in his world.

Very encouraged he took such a hard look at his faults. Lots of people talk about stuff like that but it is very tough to actually man up for it.

Kinda discouraging on Brown. The whole ball boy thing tells me he is probably too far gone. We shall see.

More Todd Wright and less cowbell. You want to be great, thats how you do it.

Oh, and excellent post. If you can read this content anywhere else I havent found it.

Great stuff. Hard to imagine that J Brown’s upside is sufficient to put up with that kind of stuff. I just don’t see him as an elite talent who might make you want to bend a rule or two to keep him on the floor.

Todd Wright’s emphasis on foot injuries reminded me of one of the best parts of John Wooden’s book (They Call Me Coach): the famous story where he is tired of losing practice time to blisters, so he starts the first practice of every season by teaching his players how to put on their socks and shoes properly. I’ll bet you any amount of money Todd Wright has read the book—he and Wooden both strike me as being ahead of their time.

This brings tears to my eyes man!

Seriously, what a great read and what a great insight to Barnes’ commitment to excellence…wish it extended to other UT sports that shall remain nameless…

I’m sad to read the anecdotes about J’Covan. Last year my seats were right behind his parents and sister — they were good people.

Anyone have an opinion on how effective this offense can be considering the differences between NBA and NCAA rules? There’s no defensive 3 seconds and the 3-point line is closer, which I’ve always felt make college offenses much harder to execute. The teams that can score consistently have great ball movement coordinated with purposeful motion and players that can finish at the rim. Is that what Barnes is teaching?

Six weeks? Six weeks!?!?

Wow. I am impressed. One “bad” season and he performs a head to toe evaluation. And this “bad” season included a brief period ranked number 1, sucked a bunch, and still made the tournament.

After this “bad” season, Barnes made the following moves:
1) realized he was part of the problem;
2) sought criticism;
3) developed and executed a plan (calling all NBA teams re: toughest offense) designed to remedy the problems exposed by the criticism;
4) spent six weeks in Utah hitting the books;
5) began applying the lessons learned to his team.

Rick Barnes demands my respect. It shall be given.
Great write up, Scipio. Thank you for all this.

Halle-FREAKIN’-lujah.

I hope Barnes can pull this off. I like him as a person. Met and talked with him on several occasions. Unfortunately, I came to the conclusion a few seasons ago that he can’t take us to the promised land. He doesn’t/didn’t have the basketball chops to do it. If he makes these changes, and with the kind of talent he recruits, he can do it. There are two basketball tenets that make you a completive team season-in and season-out. 1) You have to have a system in higher levels of basketball (college and pro for both offense and defense) and 2) You have to run in basketball.

The argument for running in college basketball is very, very simple. Points are at a premium. because possessions are at a premium. Why? 1) games are shorter in college – fewer possessions right off the bat; 2) shot clock is longer in college – again translates to fewer possessions. All this and you haven’t even tipped yet so you can factor out turnovers and whatnot. Fewer possessions means each one means that much more. If you’re not scoring – go on a drought or are turning the ball over carelessly – you’re putting extra pressure on the next possession to get back on track. Your players feel that pressure and it makes them press. This is where the running and your offensive system comes into play. If they believe in the system, they won’t get as antsy because the ‘know’ the system will eventually work and they’ll get back to scoring buckets. If you run and get cheap points (arguably part of the system) you are taking pressure off those half-court possessions – relaxing the kids and making things flow easier. In the pros you can make up for not running because the shorter shot clock (extra possessions for free). What amounts to a possession ‘equalizer’ of sorts. Hell, look a the Spurs…Popovic is known as a defensive stalwart and even they have an opportunistic running game. Barnes could, and SHOULD!, be known the same way.

There’s no question that you can’t win without these two things in higher levels of b-ball (a system and commitment to the transition game). Period. It just can’t be done. Barnes has never believed this before now. Even if he ‘knew’ it, he never instilled it in any of his teams. If he sticks to his new, self-realization guns it will work out for us. And save his BUTT. If he gives in mid-way through the season because it hasn’t yet started to show dividends, he’s done.

 I’m rooting for him and the program over the players. I can’t stand J’covan Brown. Such a waste!

Scipio, nice work. Really good read.

As a basketball junky I love this stuff. Would love to have attended this. Not to be too negative, but how does one become a Head Coach in the Big East, ACC, and Big 12 without an offensive system?

Can anyone recommend a good resource for practice drills for coaching fundamentals to kids?

Chip Brown basically stole this and read it aloud this morning on the radio, and credited “his sources”. Granted I’m sure they attended the same event, but you’d swear he was just reading off his screen.

“Can anyone recommend a good resource for practice drills for coaching fundamentals to kids?”

The kids really seem to take well to the And 1 Mixtapes. You’re welcome in advance.

nordberg -
 
That’s discouraging. If someone offered basic attribution for the info – as we do with anything we write or podcast – then they can have at it. All it requires is a simple “I saw some interesting info on _________” and then they can feel free to read it line for line.

“The kids really seem to take well to the And 1 Mixtapes. You’re welcome in advance.”

You mean how my 9 year old has me lift him up to the basket so he can hang on the rim and do the “Spider” dunk? I need a couple boys to imitate “The Professor” and we should role again this season.

Art -
 
Hopefully Trips sees this, because my basketball reading is mostly limited to Season on The Brink and hanging a tampon in his locker won’t really develop his skill set.

Scip, someone on another board said that later in the show Chip mentioned your article by name, as well as BC. Kudos to the BC interns for lighting up the phone lines at 104.9 with threats.

Good for Chip. Then I’m totally cool with it.
 
We’re committed to bringing information to the masses. Doesn’t matter the vehicle so long as attribution occurs.

Scip,

Not trrying to start a war, but do you have any response to Gerry Hamilton on 247 saying it simply is not true that Barnes and the staff spent 6 weeks with the Jazz. He seems to know his stuff better than anyone when it comes to ut basketball.

He goes on to say he knows 2 staff members for sure did not go and that he doubts any went.

nice work -
 
I answered you in the other thread.

Being a marginal Barnes guy for the last 2-3 years this is outstanding. Barnes did reach out and got some sound advise from Coach Knight. I wish that I could have been a fly in that room to hear Coach Knight and Barnes discuss basketball. Barnes was so up front about his own failures during the season, that was just a carry over from the season before is just amazing to me. Lots of guys on BC were dripping blood blogging about running 70-80% and still playing solid half court schemes.
Barnes just put me back in his stable at this point, this year may be a real joy to watch a system taking shape and watching some good basketball. Where are my orange tinted glasses I may have to use them this year….
Trips on target again !

Just for the record, I referenced the site by name on my show and mentioned that OB wasn’t the only place in the world where you’ll find quality UT sports reads.

For those worried that there was any c-blocking taking place.

Thanks for the clarification and appreciate the air play.

While I have to believe a lot of this, it’s written like a poster’s dream of what Barnes did in the offseason. Turns out the “six weeks” thing is total bullshit. Have to wonder what else in your friend’s retelling of the camp was exaggerated as well.

http://msn.foxsports.com/collegebasketball/story/Texas-Longhorns-learn-how-to-play-as-a-team-in-win-over-Illionois-Fighting-Illini-111810

PMan -
 
Feel free to fuck off. If you haven’t watched our first three games and can’t see that we’re running a different offense, then basically we’re not going to have much of a conversation.
 
as for the 6 weeks thing – I already addressed it in another thread and it’s a meaningless detail.
 
Here’s a snippet:

Peter Bean from BON asked me the same thing as he’d heard Barnes was only there for two weeks.

The guy who was at the event said Barnes told him that they spent 6 weeks with the Jazz. Or maybe I misheard it.

My assumption was total staff time – not Barnes parked in Salt Lake City for a month and a half. Obviously, he can’t do that. He did go to SLC for a lengthy time and for the reasons stated above. That’s the relevant issue.

Or, quite possibly, my source misheard "we traveled to Utah and spent 6 weeks on the offense." 4 of those weeks may have been in Austin doing the staff install, for all I know.

Passing on stuff from another party is like playing telephone, right? What you want to get right is the important info. Not counting all of the doorknobs in Zanzibar.

The clear takeaways of this story are:

1. Barnes self-reflected hard and came to the same conclusions about last year that we did
2. He took counsel from smart people
3. He sought out the Jazz and Sloan as the solution in a determined way – not some one day clinic chat
4. He’s implementing substantive changes – already evident
5. He wants to take the program to the top and not settle for good

More minor takeaways, but interesting nonetheless, would be J’Covan continued need for growth, Jordan’s change in ‘tude, why Jai plays, substantial practice reps to offense, what a Rick Barnes practice feels like, Todd Wright being a badass, and the interesting NBA-Lucas takes.

Your articles are for when it absolutely, positively, needs to be understood overhnigt.

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