Oh wow...I was moved

[AUChizad]

I never thought you were being facetious. Anyone who loves Auburn, basketball fan or not, knows what happened in that press conference yesterday was a good thing.

You could say the same about hiring Malzahn as OC, landing the Outback Bowl, our top ranked recruiting class, and a plethora of other things that Kaos somehow found a way to bitch about.

[AUChizad]

OK. I'll point out the difference for you since all you do is see who can be the first to bash the post.

WTF?

I wasn't bashing the post, I was genuinely curious what Barbee said different than Chizik since one brought him to tears of joy and one made him want to vomit uncontrollably.

I still don't see a difference in the content of the two speeches.

[Kaos]

The middle portion is the only thing you said that I can level with and understand where you're coming from. I'll just ignore the rest. What they said was essentially the same, the difference is you had determined Chizik was incapable of delivering on his statements based on his head coaching record at Iowa State.

That's fair, I guess.

It's a little more than that, really.  

Barbee's delivery showed enthusiasm and intelligence.  He was articulate.  Read the outsider perception, not just mine.  

Chizik comes off as boring and banal.  Even his SEC Media Days effort was roundly ridiculed for being nothing but a string of cliches delivered woodenly.  

It may just be that Chizik isn't a good communicator.  Barbee clearly is.  His remarks yesterday exuded confidence and competence. He didn't rely on "coachisms"

And finally, a big part of my initial reaction to Chizik was that he seemed to be reading exactly the same script he used at ISU with almost no variation.  

I'm not sold on Barbee being able to do all that he said.  I hope he can.  I got great satisfaction out of the string of Bama fans that called both Finebaum and the Mobile radio show to piss and moan about his remarks.  In their every barb I sensed raw and naked fear.  Our guy is better than their guy (always has been and we had LEBO) but the guy yesterday didn't just elevate Auburn basketball, he elevated Auburn as a whole.

THAT'S what moved me, I guess. The press conference yesterday wasn't just a win for the moribund AU basketball team, it was a win for Auburn overall.  

Good hire by Jacobs.  Probably as good a hire as the Chizik hire was bad. (And I'm talking hire not subsequent performances.  Now all Barbee has to do is live up to the promise just a little.

[Kaos]

You could say the same about hiring Malzahn as OC, landing the Outback Bowl, our top ranked recruiting class, and a plethora of other things that Kaos somehow found a way to bitch about.

Just because I don't wear the same cheerleader skirt you do, it's hardly bitching. 

I didn't complain about any of the things you noted above.  All I tried to do was offer a grounded perspective.

There was no bitching about Malzahn. Should I refer you to the article I wrote three weeks in?  My only caution was that his offense had struggles against the better defensive teams we played and bogged down at critical times.  That's got to be fixed -- whether it's personnel or playcalling.

There was no complaint about the Outback or its result -- other than Roof's sometimes flailing defensive plans and the idiotic turnovers that kept things going and going.  I did refuse to hoist Jacobs on my shoulders for getting Auburn the bid because it wasn't just him.

Don't think you'll find any complaints about the recruiting class. I'm happy with it and hope it translates well.

This is what I'm talking about when I say you make up arguments in your head and then argue against things that were never said. 

[War Eagle!!!]

I agree with Kaos on this thread...

But other than that...the ONLY bad thing about this hire, in my opinion, is that coaches like Barbee don't stay around Auburn very long. In my opinion, he has every intention of making Auburn a winning team for the short term, and then moving to where basketball is king. He can say that he is proud of the other sports and particularly of football, but what is it going to be like when he gets the program where he wants it, and basketball is still #2. Because it will be.

This guy seems to be damn good. Kaos, you nailed it with your review on the presser. It was almost flawless. Guys like that, if they are successful, don't stay 2nd fiddle for long...

[AUChizad]

Is there an audio or video link to his press conference somewhere? 

http://videos.al.com/birmingham-news/2010/03/tony_barbee_talks_auburn_baske.html

[Aubie16]

I am glad I was wrong Kaos. I just got so used to you doing nothing but offer up snide comments, I wasn't expecting a serious post about you being happy.

[Tiger Wench]

I just got so used to you doing nothing but offer up snide comments, I wasn't expecting a serious post about you being happy.

Certainly was not expected. 

[jadennis]

I agree with Kaos on this thread...

But other than that...the ONLY bad thing about this hire, in my opinion, is that coaches like Barbee don't stay around Auburn very long. In my opinion, he has every intention of making Auburn a winning team for the short term, and then moving to where basketball is king. He can say that he is proud of the other sports and particularly of football, but what is it going to be like when he gets the program where he wants it, and basketball is still #2. Because it will be.

This guy seems to be damn good. Kaos, you nailed it with your review on the presser. It was almost flawless. Guys like that, if they are successful, don't stay 2nd fiddle for long...

Here's the thing about him staying at Auburn.  If he can build us into a winner, and we're willing to pay him, then there won't be too many reasons for him to leave.  The new arena and his salary shows him that he's at a place that wants to win.  If the fans/community get on board (and if he wins, they will), then there won't be many places where the grass is actually greener.

He's the fifth highest paid coachin the leage now, behind only Kentucky, Florida, Tennessee, and Alabama...and those Kentucky and Floria salaries are the two highest in the country.    At $1.5 million, he's already not far from the highest paid coaches in the entire country.  Guys like Bob Huggins, Roy Williams, Rick Barnes, etc only make $2 million.

So, with all that going for him, if he can win here, the only thing that would lure him away would be the select few historical programs like North Carolina, duke, Kentucky, Indiana, UCLA, etc.  Those are the kinds of places you go to even if they don't offer you more money....just for the opporunity.

But if he's winning here, getting support, doing it in a top notch facility, and getting paid big time for it, we may actually be able to keep him for the long haul.

[GH2001]

Actually, and ironically (just to piss Kaos off), he did say blueprint during his presser.

Now thats funny

[jmar]

But Barbee left a whole team of starters at UTEP. Lebo left Sullivan and some hopefuls. In six years one would hope Barbee could get Auburn to the NIT's at least twice and the NCAA's at least once. (I'm saying twice)
If he leaves Auburn with three starters and the new coach retains two signees from Barbee's class and the AD makes another good hire then Auburn is still better off.

[Kaos]

Now thats funny

He only said it because Jacobs requires it.  Blueprints are porn to him. 

[Tiger Six]

But Barbee left a whole team of starters at UTEP. Lebo left Sullivan and some hopefuls. In six years one would hope Barbee could get Auburn to the NIT's at least twice and the NCAA's at least once. (I'm saying twice)
If he leaves Auburn with three starters and the new coach retains two signees from Barbee's class and the AD makes another good hire then Auburn is still better off.

I will be disappointed if we only make it to the NIT twice and the NCAA once.  After the end of the third season, we should make the postseason in some shape or form every year. 

No excuses.

It's not like football.  You need three things - good guard play, rebounding and defense.  With Lebo, we struggled with all three. 

You only need three superstar players to contend for a national championship.  If we have Frankie Sullivan and decent role players, we should at least contend for the SEC West by the end of year two. 

If Butler can do it with kids from Homewood and Cornell can do it with kids from Altamont, why can't we keep those kids in state?     

Year three, postseason is expected and the NCAAs are a reasonable goal. 

Don't settle for average just because you always have before.

[Tiger Wench]

I will be disappointed if we only make it to the NIT twice and the NCAA once.  After the end of the third season, we should make the postseason in some shape or form every year. 

No excuses.

It's not like football.  You need three things - good guard play, rebounding and defense.  With Lebo, we struggled with all three. 

You only need three superstar players to contend for a national championship.  If we have Frankie Sullivan and decent role players, we should at least contend for the SEC West by the end of year two. 

If Butler can do it with kids from Homewood and Cornell can do it with kids from Altamont, why can't we keep those kids in state?     

Year three, postseason is expected and the NCAAs are a reasonable goal. 

Don't settle for average just because you always have before.

It makes me hot when you get all "breakin' it down" an' stuff...

[Kaos]

Don't be so negative, Nelly.  When I started campaigning for change after Lebo's second season I was told repeatedly by some of the crew around here that it took four or five years to build a basketball program.

And here you go making EXACTLY the same arguments I made in reference to Lebo and frame them as expectations  for Barbee.

Damn you are negative.  Freaking Eeyore up in here.

I will be disappointed if we only make it to the NIT twice and the NCAA once.  After the end of the third season, we should make the postseason in some shape or form every year. 

No excuses.

It's not like football.  You need three things - good guard play, rebounding and defense.  With Lebo, we struggled with all three. 

You only need three superstar players to contend for a national championship.  If we have Frankie Sullivan and decent role players, we should at least contend for the SEC West by the end of year two. 

If Butler can do it with kids from Homewood and Cornell can do it with kids from Altamont, why can't we keep those kids in state?     

Year three, postseason is expected and the NCAAs are a reasonable goal. 

Don't settle for average just because you always have before.

[jadennis]

I will be disappointed if we only make it to the NIT twice and the NCAA once.  After the end of the third season, we should make the postseason in some shape or form every year. 

No excuses.

It's not like football.  You need three things - good guard play, rebounding and defense.  With Lebo, we struggled with all three. 

You only need three superstar players to contend for a national championship.  If we have Frankie Sullivan and decent role players, we should at least contend for the SEC West by the end of year two. 

If Butler can do it with kids from Homewood and Cornell can do it with kids from Altamont, why can't we keep those kids in state?     

Year three, postseason is expected and the NCAAs are a reasonable goal. 

Don't settle for average just because you always have before.

Speaking of Butler...I was thinking that maybe I wished just a little that we had waited to talk to that guy.  He won more games in his first three years than anyone in history.  He's now won 30+ games in two of his first three years as a head coach.  Three NCAA tournaments, including second round and Elite Eight (so far). 

But then I realized, he may just be perfect for Butler. He's a 33 year old white kid from Indiana, coaching....white kids from Indiana.  That doesn't mean he can't succeed in the SEC, but it is a different world (who and where he would be recruiting, etc).  If I were Indiana I would hire him the day they lose (which very well may be in the Final Four).

[AUChizad]

Don't be so negative, Nelly.  When I started campaigning for change after Lebo's second season I was told repeatedly by some of the crew around here that it took four or five years to build a basketball program.

And here you go making EXACTLY the same arguments I made in reference to Lebo and frame them as expectations  for Barbee.

Damn you are negative.  Freaking Eeyore up in here.

I know you're not talking about me.

If so, then this:

This is what I'm talking about when I say you make up arguments in your head and then argue against things that were never said. 

applies to you tenfold.

It's not EXACTLY the same thing. To say at the time of the hire that you'd be disappointed with only one NCAA tourney bid in 6 years...well, no shit. I agree with this completely.

Far different from "String him up by his ears and kick him out on the streets for only showing gradual improvement each year".

[jmar]

What I stated was what should have been the expectations when Lebo inherited a wounded program and never improved. Two NIT's and two NCAA tourney appearances are not unrealistic in six seasons considering next seasons not so imposing line-up possibilities. Sure Barbee should have higher expectations, everyone should.

[Aubie16]

Speaking of Butler...I was thinking that maybe I wished just a little that we had waited to talk to that guy.  He won more games in his first three years than anyone in history.  He's now won 30+ games in two of his first three years as a head coach.  Three NCAA tournaments, including second round and Elite Eight (so far). 

But then I realized, he may just be perfect for Butler. He's a 33 year old white kid from Indiana, coaching....white kids from Indiana.  That doesn't mean he can't succeed in the SEC, but it is a different world (who and where he would be recruiting, etc).  If I were Indiana I would hire him the day they lose (which very well may be in the Final Four).

He also already makes 1+ million a year and signed a 7 year contact extension with Butler after last season. He would have been very hard for Auburn to get.

[Kaos]

I know you're not talking about me.

If so, then this: applies to you tenfold.

It's not EXACTLY the same thing. To say at the time of the hire that you'd be disappointed with only one NCAA tourney bid in 6 years...well, no shit. I agree with this completely.

Far different from "String him up by his ears and kick him out on the streets for only showing gradual improvement each year".

You have no idea what I'm talking about.  Sometimes I think you just play dumb on purpose. 

As it pertains to Lebo, I said repeatedly (and you can look it up) that it only takes a good coach one season, two tops to show marked improvement.  You know what you have at the end of two and if it's not dramatically improved it's likely not gonna be. 

That's ALL I ever said.  Gradual improvement my ass.  Turn it around in two or you're not going to. Used Bruce Pearl as a classic example on a couple of occasions. 

I said you only needed one good player and a decent supporting cast to turn a program from nothing to respectable. Said it fifteen dozen times probably.

You -- and others -- laid excuse after excuse after excuse and tried to explain that I was just being negative, that he needed more time, blah-de-blow-de-frickin-blee.   Y'all were wrong.  Big surprise there.

So the Rider says EXACTLY what I've said for four long years -- that he should be markedly improved by year two "No Excuses"  and that it only takes one player to dramatically change the dynamic.  Yep. That's pretty much been my basketball matra verbatim for a fifth of a score.