bear2be2 said:
Ewalker80 said:
bear2be2 said:
Ewalker80 said:
It's time to admit it. NIL has destroyed Baylor sports.
Baylor's inability to adjust to NIL has destroyed Baylor sports.
Other programs with no more resources than we have seem to be doing just fine.
We're just behind the times and unable to adapt.
It's not about adaptation. It's about money. Scott drew was on the paying players band wagon day one. Football was about being slow to adjust but basketball shows we don't have enough money. If we had 3.5 million to keep rob wright this season doesn't happen. We didn't have it and it happened. It's really that simple.
Money isn't the issue with men's basketball. We've had enough to money to consistently bring in some of the best freshmen in the country and have consistently attracted sought-after transfers.
Our issue is that we can't evaluate talent or build a damn roster. A there's no accountability in our program to set or maintain any sort of championship standard. Since winning the title in 2021, Scott Drew has been chasing shiny things instead of trying to find and develop the types of gritty overachievers that made our program what it was.
We've been devolving into a soft, entitled program since, and we finally hit a rock bottom that's been a long-time coming. I, personally, have been ringing these alarm bells for years. Everyone who argued with me for years has slowly come around to realize that I was right all this time.
I agree, I think the demise has been our misses in these gritty overachiever types that we all love. CSD has tried to recruit and develop these types players the past several seasons....Loveday, Turner, Bonner, Lohner, Little, etc. but these developmental players have not panned out.
The bigger issue since the portal opened up is that we have taken a band-aid approach with the portal. I lay this squarely on CSD. One year players like RayJ, Omier, Wright, combined with the one-and-done freshmen have killed program continuity. To make matters worse we did the same thing this year with Obi and Rataj who suck ass in their one year with us. Double whammy. Our talent evaluation has been complete hit or miss. Carr was a great find. I am a big fan of Williams and Powell so those were great finds. I would love a roster of productive players like them Powell and Williams to build around for multiple seasons. But for every Williams and Powell we get a Celestine or Rataj.
Potentially the biggest downfall in our program has simply been bad luck. I know most everyone on this thread is out for blood and wants to put 100% accountability squarely on CSD, but our bad luck has been unprecedented. Injuries to EJ, Cryer, Love lowered our ceiling for multiple seasons. This year it was Wright leaving at the last second and injuries to Bodo Bodo and Perez. I know Wright wasn't an injury but his last second, unexpected decision to bolt the program left us scrambling and sabatoged our season before it even started. Part of the bad luck cycle has also been getting players who have been TOO good and left before expected: Sochan, Missi, and now Carr. I think CSD's model has been bring in one one-and-done freshman every year and surround him with talented, experienced players. For multiple reasons it has not worked out that way and our roster has been a revolving door of misfitting parts. BTW I am not absolving responsibility for CSD by referencing our bad luck. He is still ultimately accountable for the awful product we have on the floor this season.
Sadly I don't see a glimmer of hope for next year either. CSD doubled down on bringing in one year rentals in the portal and with Tounde. They will all leave and we will be back to square one. Will CSD will take another band-aid approach for next season? He looks tired. I'm not sure if he has the energy to try a legit rebuild versus another quick fix. Is he willing to find those diamonds in the rough like Williams who can potentially develop over a 2 or 3 year window? Or more one year fillers like Omier, Rayj, Obi, Rataj. As a fan I hate college hoops in general and specifically the current product we have on the floor. The transfer portal / NIL and how we have managed it has killed my enjoyment of the game.
