There are some ominous signs for sure, but I agree with Marillac that it's still too early to give Lavin a grade. He's positioned us so that at worst - we're a competitive NIT team. All things considered, we've seen a lot worse. That doesn't mean I'm pleased. I think he's done a piss poor job preparing this team so far this season. There is simply no continuity or identity on offense; no reliable play; and no method to the madness late in the game. And, the defense is equally astray most of the time, but our athleticism in-part makes up for it. Nevertheless, I don't think it requires a genius to coach basketball, and I think at the end of the day coach knows enough to change course when something isn't working. For that reason alone, I remain hopeful that he'll find a winning formula at some point this year.
What I will say, however, is that Monasch gets off with way too easy around here. People are critical of coach, including myself, but at the end of the day coach reports to the AD. We can't call Lavin in to the office and say the offense looks lost, what's going to change the second half of the season? We didn't meet with the staff in the offseason and hear them layout what they were preparing to run this season and why. And we can't force coach to make changes to his staff; Monasch can.
At the end of the day all the things we complain about after bad losses are questions that the AD is not only allowed to ask his head coach, but in many cases it's actually his job to question decisions that don't work out. I don't get the sense that that is happening at all.
And while I like that coach doesn't berate his players and keeps a positive attitude, it would be refreshing after a loss to sometimes hear coach say "That was a very disappointing performance, we can and we must play better. The way we played is unacceptable, and I expect to see better practices this week".
I don't get the sense that there is accountability. And that needs to start at the top of the Athletic Department.
