CBI, NIT ?
- Thread starter cappy105
- Start date
When a kid with an eye on a payday is playing for a winning program, it's a lot easier to have a team-first mindset. When a kid with an eye on a payday(even a European one) is playing for a losing program, not so easy. Not judging, hell I'd probably feel the same way. Hope LoVett comes back, but comes with a different mindset next year. We will be a much better team with the added experience, combined with the new additions. He'll have ample opportunity to not only showcase his basketball skills, but his leadership qualities as well. And hopefully his leadership qualities will lead us right to an NCAA tourney appearance.
Yeah, I don't see it that way. The kid came in with the rep of a scoring point guard, which is what he turned out to be, while still ranking 4th in assists in the BE and having the best assist numbers for a STJ player since 08/09, not that STJ has been PG U recently but still.
westchesterjoe
Active member
Could not agree more.. Lovett certainly had the Game to be a big time PG, Except, who would he pass to? Yakwe? who fumbled, lost, or threw up a brick nearly every time Lovett got him the ball for a Bunny.
Ahmed? Nope, not there either.. Don't recall too many times Lovett got the Ball back , after passing to Bashir.
Ellison? Hardly. Ellison had the Ball way too many times for me. Which meant, neither Lovett or Ponds had it. Ellison is/was Not a playmaker, despite the Staff thinking he is..
I hope Lovett come back, because his game can be brought to a higher level by Mullin, Richmond, etc. I thought his outside shooting tailed off at end of season and, he seemed to get a bit out of control too. But, anyone not seeing the skills he has and can improve , isn't watching intently.
What I think has to be fixed by Mullin, is how to better coordinate Ponds and Lovett's Skills into a better team attack. it might be that both, need the Ball but, a Pro HOF guy like Mullin has to figure that out. Chris, Richmond and Hardaway all were able to understand there was only 1 basketball when they played for GS. Mullin needs to orchestrate that part of their games to maximize Ponds and Lovett's contributions. Ellison should not be part of that equation.
Lovett could learn a lot from reviewing Yogi Farrel''s rise to a 2 Year contract with the Mavericks. Yogi was a 4 year starter at Indiana but, barely 6'1 and 180 LBS. Nets drafted him in 2nd Round but, cut him before season began. He went to D league and played himself to a starting PG role with the Mavericks in late January and just signed a 2 year contract. Yogi had a better and longer Resume than Marcus at similar points in their career but, I still think Lovett can get his game to a higher level, if he stays. We'll see.. Yogi was a Mcd All american and probably top 50 player coming out of HS.
westchesterjoe
Active member
Very True and Very Painful for sure but, Nova is a Super Team. Our Guys barely got a Night's sleep before having to play a 12noon morning game. And, this after a emotional and physically draining game against G'town, 8 hours before.. We left our game and season on the Court in that game. There was nothing left in the Tank. Besides, Creighton , a good team, got whacked by 15 in the finals against Nova. So, our loss should not be magnified into a disaster.
Agree. For years i endorsed the baseball system where you could go pro out of HS/Prep school, but if you went to college you had to go for three years. But, sadly have come to realize that this would never work in basketball due to lack of minor league system with an expansive draft and the ability to leave to go overseas. Baseball doesn't have that option. It's generally MLB or bust.
redmen1969
Active member
And of course the NIT used to be THE tournament -
as an anecdote...
Circa late 1960s
then Heading Coach Bobby Knight once turned town an NCAA bid and instead brought his Army team...
To the NIT!
A bit of conflation. In 1970 Al McGuire turned down an NCAA tournament bid after being sent to Texas rather than to the Midwest regional. Marquette went to and won the NIT instead, beating in the final St John’s, despite 15 points and 17 rebounds from Billy Paultz. St John's beat Army in the semi finals, then coached by Bobby Knight. Marquette beat LSU in the semi final, Pete Maravich's last game.
UCLA (Henry Bibby, Sidney Wicks, Curtis Rowe) beat Jacksonville in the championship game of the NCAA. St Bonaventure made the Final Four but Bob Lanier (averaging that year a mere 29 points and 16 rebounds) got hurt in the regional final and didn't play. Interestingly I found in the wayback machine several messages from ye olde Bonnie forum dot com where well informed posters opined that Lanier's injury was addition by subtraction because he was auditioning for the NBA rather than playing within a team concept.
A great piece of history, thanks Fun.
That semi-final was one of the hottest tickets to date at the then young "new" MSG. Mostly because of Maravich. It was a great double header.
I may be wrong, but if I remember correctly, the decision by Al McGuire prompted the NCAA to require teams to choose their tourney over the NIT (with the option of not playing at all). This move led to the ultimate status the NIT now suffers and is why the NCAA tournament has never been played at MSG (since the 1950's). So the fact that the Eastern regionals are at MSG this year is all the more meaningful (as we all remember, the NCAA bought the NIT a few years ago).
beast of the east
Active member
And of course the NIT used to be THE tournament -
as an anecdote...
Circa late 1960s
then Heading Coach Bobby Knight once turned town an NCAA bid and instead brought his Army team...
To the NIT!
A bit of conflation. In 1970 Al McGuire turned down an NCAA tournament bid after being sent to Texas rather than to the Midwest regional. Marquette went to and won the NIT instead, beating in the final St John’s, despite 15 points and 17 rebounds from Billy Paultz. St John's beat Army in the semi finals, then coached by Bobby Knight. Marquette beat LSU in the semi final, Pete Maravich's last game.
UCLA (Henry Bibby, Sidney Wicks, Curtis Rowe) beat Jacksonville in the championship game of the NCAA. St Bonaventure made the Final Four but Bob Lanier (averaging that year a mere 29 points and 16 rebounds) got hurt in the regional final and didn't play. Interestingly I found in the wayback machine several messages from ye olde Bonnie forum dot com where well informed posters opined that Lanier's injury was addition by subtraction because he was auditioning for the NBA rather than playing within a team concept.
A great piece of history, thanks Fun.
That semi-final was one of the hottest tickets to date at the then young "new" MSG. Mostly because of Maravich. It was a great double header.
I may be wrong, but if I remember correctly, the decision by Al McGuire prompted the NCAA to require teams to choose their tourney over the NIT (with the option of not playing at all). This move led to the ultimate status the NIT now suffers and is why the NCAA tournament has never been played at MSG (since the 1950's). So the fact that the Eastern regionals are at MSG this year is all the more meaningful (as we all remember, the NCAA bought the NIT a few years ago).
I don't have time to check the boxscore, but I think Pete LaMantia may have guarded Maravich. If that's true, I think it was Maravich he used to refer to holding to 16 points or so. LaMantia became an Eastern League All Star in the days where the NBA was 8 or 10 teams, and with the Eastern League being the best semi pro league he reasoned that in later years that skill level would have put him in the NBA with 25+ team league. He was a deadeye shooter who averaged about 16 ppg in the Eastern league according to him.
Nice. And weren't they the overall #1 seed in the NIT?