However, overall, this group on potential alone may be a bit overrated.
I'm starting to wonder, whether this roster was poorly constructed or not (I mentioned this a bit earlier).
Your posts often make a lot of sense. You are one of the better posters on here.
I want to be very fair in this breakdown of Lavin's recruiting.
Year 1: Lavin had an entire roster to fill, and had to recruit for a program completely in the dumper. He was literally starting with virtually no program - a ten year record at the bottom of the Big East, and was going after guys that other coaches had a 2 or three year jump on. Hauling in Harkness and Harrison as the prizes, Lindsay (who tanked here), Garrett, Greene etc was a pretty nice start, along with Team Lavin turning NRs losing team into an NCAA tourney squad. All in all an A plus job or rebuilding
Year 2: Slowed by cancer, he comes up with Sampson, Branch, Obepka Balamou, Bourgault, Can't overstate how much the loss of harkness hurts. Sampson, Branch, Obepka are nice addditions, and with Harkness here, and Sampson as a third option (with offense from Greene and Branch) we could have beena tourney team.
Year 3: So far we haven't struck gold for next season, and that is a concern.
When you look at it this way it doesn't look horrible at all. Had Roberts left a squad with 3-4 underclassmen of Bif East ability (at the talent level of the starters that was on LAvin's 1st team) we'd be talking entirely differently today. So yea, as much as I'd hate to admit it, we are still in the hole that Norm left us in, and it will likely be felt until at least next year, and possibly won't be gone until the following year.
