Unfortunately both here and at UCLA Lavin has started slow almost every season. But at UCLA his teams came along very strongly in the end, not so much at STJ yet.
I definitely think there is a sense of urgency with the players right now. Jordan is trying to go pro, Harrison and Greene know it's their last chance to do big things here, so I think maybe that could lead to a good early start. It's unpredictable, but we will see.
I think that sounds very nice to say, but both Sanchez and Sampson were supposed to have a sense of urgency to enhance their chances at going pro, and that didn't turn out very well. For us to get out of the gates quickly and become a tourney team, there needs to be significant change. I can understand Marillac's opinion that Sanchez/Sampson loss is addition by subtraction, but the talent level of those who are replacing them is in question.
To me at least the substantive change necessary to become a winner has to be the maturation of Jordan as a player. The torch has to be passed and Jordan must log a lot of minutes and have the ball in his hands. We've seen how he can slice up defenses, and create easy baskets for his teammates. We can't have Greene/Harrison holding the ball too much. Our front line must rebound and defend. Pointer must be so much more than an occasional positive contributor. If Harrison yields to Jordan's superior overall ability, he can have his best season yet, as he can be the prime beneficiary of Jordan's ability to dish.
Can this team win? Yes. Will they? We shall see.
I understand your point from a Sanchez POV, but honestly I've been seeing a lot of Sampson hate on the board and I don't understand it. He had a bit of crisis in the beginning of the year, taking threes, trying to show off. Then for the most part he played solid for us all year. One of our best rebounders, and other than Harrison, our most consistent form of offense was his elbow jumper. Sampson was a solid player for us, and I know some want to spin it differently because they are still mad he prematurely left, but he played well for us for two years.
Obviously Sampson's season is not the topic of discussion, but I just feel like the idea of him "showing off for pro scouts" the entire season has been accepted as a fact when I don't think it's true. Remember the article about Sampson at the end of the year where he backed up the claims I'm making now?
But anyway, the rest of your post I agree with 100%, but had to get the Sampson thing off my chest.
Sampson was a tough case. His athletic ability and potential were out of this world, but he killed any chance of chemistry with his jumpshots at any time, place he wanted to take them. We would have almost always been better off with him screening for Jordan, Branch, or Harrison and letting them shoot with him going for the rebounds instead of having our guards going after rebounds. He also played lousy defense 95% of the year and didn't do the little things that a PF has to do to make his team better: screening, passing, establishing position, etc. Having Sanchez next to him only made things much worse.
He was a beast on the glass when he wanted it, and I think he could and should have led the country in offensive rebounding, but his heart wasn't in it to be that kind of player.
We'll certainly miss the 2-4 dunks made almost every game with his athletic ability. What sucks is not having the player he could and should have been this year. The soph version, though, was not what this team needed on the court. Thomas might not have 1/2 the athletic ability, but could end up being better for this team if he brings it on defense.
