The team has quit.

This is a talented team. But it lacks leadership that Augustin used to provide. No one has stepped up and been the guy to hold them accountable. In the past, we've had leaders like Royal Ivey, T.J. Ford, Augustin, and others who were clear leaders. You need those guys because Barnes can't go on the court and help them.
In watching the games, I've never seen Rick Barnes more visibly frustrated with any of his teams than this years. Last night, I could hear him say, "C'mon Damian, move!"
 
I don't think they've quit. They are just really unsure of themselves because there is no cohesion on offense. There is no cohesion because we don't have a point guard and nobody is shooting well right now.

On the bright side, Pittman had his coming out party last night, and became an big time offensive force in the middle. He's not pretty, but a huge body that can take it to the hole has to be respected. Now if Abrams can get his shot back, maybe we can get some sort of an inside/outside game going if Pittman can learn to dish out to the perimeter on occasion when they collapse on him.

Maybe that's something to build on.

Bottom line is this team does not have many good shooters. And the ones who can shoot are ALL in a slump right now. Combine that with the lack of distribution that a good point guard would bring, and it's really not hard to figure out why we suck right now.

But I don't think they've quit. If this team had quit, i.e. not played solid defense, we would have been blown out by 20 in both of the last two games.
 
Maybe Barnes is a great coach when the team is really talented.Maybe not such a great coach when he has average talent..Whatcha thank...
 
i agree with a lot of the comments on this post, but i don't believe this team has quit. i also believe that even if this team had quit, quitting on them is not acceptable. there is no energy or leadership. i said it at the beginning of the season that this team would go as far as the point guard play would take them. that was true then, and it is still true now.

even without a polished pg, rick needs to find a way to generate a consistent offense. between aj, damion, gary and dex, there is the potential for a solid outside, mid-range and inside game. rick has options. i think rick barnes is a fantastic coach, but he is not coaching to his potential, and consequently he is not getting the potential out of his players.

this is a frustrating and confusing team. the struggles on offense seem to have negatively affected the defense. players like conner and justin seem to have regressed on both sides of the ball. this is not rick's most talented team, but there is still the potential to put it together and make a nice run--especially in this year of weak teams. will that happen? i don't know, but i hope so. i know that i won't quit on this team though.
 
It's a shame that we are regressing. This team will get into the NCAA tournament, but you can forget about UT advancing beyond the second round.
 
They DID NOT quit.

This team just isnt very good and is not playing well together, but i still saw a lot of heart and hustle on the floor.
Atchley and Mason have lost thier confidence but are still playing their butts off.

What is killing this team, other than lack of a floor general, is that nobody on this team can consistantly create their own shot, and with only 1 legitimate outside threat this team is VERY easy to defend.
 
Husker I can't blame you as mentioned. One point of caution on your end, or for optimism on our's, is that this Texas team plays noticeably better on the road than at home. I will say that a home game in Austin is never an intimidating venue for opposing teams. The Drum is rather sleepy in most games. For that matter, so is Royal Memorial stadium imho, wine and cheese and all I guess But I'm sure Wednesday the energy was even lower due to most fans caring more about signing day results. I'd imagine Lincoln is the same way about football, but there is less to do in Lincoln. maybe your home court adavantage is better? In any case this one is a must win for Texas and opinions being like ********, Texas 71 Nebraska 68! Hookem......
 
I may be crazy for this but: So what if Rick isnt getting it done this year. Hell, he's not God...Every program has had down years in the wake of kids moving on to the NBA after one or two years. You can't expect a coach to be able to piece together a top 10 team every year from what's leftover after kids consistently bolt for the NBA (which they have a right to do). This team is severely lacking on the offensive side of the court...It lacks shooters and another, more consistent playmaker. It would be great to have DJ or KD on the team but we are program now that puts kids in the pros. You are going to have some years where you are burned by that...But most of the time you will be on top of the world with that talent....This just happened to be the year for us that the cupboard was a little bare in key areas.

So, yes...I'd like this team to be playing better..But I also had reasonable expectations of this team at the beginning of the year. Rick is a great coach and has done great things. He will continue to do great things as he gets another talent influx next year and the years after that.
 
I'm still hopeful with this team, although I don't know if I have sound reasoning. The pieces of a solid team are there, but they desperately need to get back to basics. Too many times, this Texas team settles for mid to long range jumpshots, shooting too early in the clock, and not moving the ball around. A lot of this can be attributed to the lackluster point guard play, but beyond that, the fundamentals of this team seem flawed. Barnes can coach, and we all know that, so there is still hope that this team can rally and be relevant in the Big 12 and NCAA tourneys.

Hopefully, we can come out of Lincoln with the W and start righting this ship.
hookem.gif
 
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