Athletic Story on Hillsman

[Orangefan1]

This whole thing is one sad story. I wondered why a team with such great talent would under perform the way they did. I think we have a lot of those answers today.

you have all the answers today and there is no way with all that talent that we played so damn poorly. Beyond this I said when we had 11 people transfer that it was time for Q to go. No way 11 kids transfer without something brewing it’s crazy. Even with Tiana’s story I don’t see how he makes it out of this with his job

 

[Dcuse]

Anybody remember the guard- about say 7 or 8 years ago maybe- that accused Q of s e xual harrassment and transferred out? Not too much mentioned about it as it appeared to be a case of a angry player not playing much.

Lynnae Lampkins | Just Sports & Just Us (wordpress.com)

 

[hoopsupstate]

you have all the answers today and there is no way with all that talent that we played so damn poorly. Beyond this I said when we had 11 people transfer that it was time for Q to go. No way 11 kids transfer without something brewing it’s crazy. Even with Tiana’s story I don’t see how he makes it out of this with his job

Remember, four of these girls were suspended for violating team rules so they might not be unbiased. My only point with Q is he‘s a lousy in game coach when utilizing the talents of his teams. He doesn’t play to his teams strengths and their half court defense is awful. Cardozo didn’t touch the ball for entire quarters and they kept bombing from three when they weren’t good shooters. He always tried to bring attention to himself that was not always flattering. I also question some of the “players” he recruited. It sounds like some of the talent had “attitude” issues. This is someone who only watches their games and not around the program. Personally, I’ve never been a fan of his antics or coaching. I could never get paste the stupid tie clasp that was attached too high on his tie. It looked stupid. With the current situation, I guess it’s pretty meaningless.

 

[Lrschill24]

The fact you had players on the team thinking that Tiana was milking her recovery from cancer illustrates that there was a toxic culture around the program. Players being suspended for violating team rules then leaving the program happens everywhere but when you see your top players leaving like the team did after this season that furthers the narrative of issues within the locker room.

I can see based on that why Tiana is supportive of Coach Hillsman based on how he supported her over the last two years but when the outside investigation of the program completes I suspect that as quietly as quiet can be in 2021/2022 there will be a settlement with Coach Hillsman leaving the program. I don't see an outside investigation leading to the status quo of the staff remaining.

 

[knicks07]

Remember, four of these girls were suspended for violating team rules so they might not be unbiased. My only point with Q is he‘s a lousy in game coach when utilizing the talents of his teams. He doesn’t play to his teams strengths and their half court defense is awful. Cardozo didn’t touch the ball for entire quarters and they kept bombing from three when they weren’t good shooters. He always tried to bring attention to himself that was not always flattering. I also question some of the “players” he recruited. It sounds like some of the talent had “attitude” issues. This is someone who only watches their games and not around the program. Personally, I’ve never been a fan of his antics or coaching. I could never get paste the stupid tie clasp that was attached too high on his tie. It looked stupid. With the current situation, I guess it’s pretty meaningless.

This pretty much sums up how I have felt about the guy. His in game coaching has always sucked! Time to go Q

 

[OttoMets]

It’s the least surprising thing ever that some players are coming to Hillsman’s defense.

Personally, I’ve worked with many people who are extremely polarizing, eliciting strong reactions both of love and hate. Why would this circumstance be any different than what most of us encounter among friends, family and co-workers every day?

Do I really need to explain that just because some people had good experiences with him doesn’t mean that he couldn’t have been awful to others?

Especially your stereotypical narcissistic college athlete.

In my limited interactions with Hillsman (and second-hand reports about him), he is the most kind, engaging guy.

But it's also not hard to believe that he'd be a huge AH under other circumstances.

Grownups can make this distinction. Young people with loyalty to the guy, not so much, unfortunately.

 

[Ozone!]

This is a very difficult situation to be in for any Coach. If the investigation reveals abuse then the university should terminate his employment. If, on the other hand, there is no evidence of abuse of power; the damage to Q has been done. Now there are numerous articles opening him and his program to speculation. Unfortunately, in the times we live in rumors and speculation create an atmosphere that makes it very difficult for an accused individual to recover.
If it’s shown he did not abuse any of the players; where does he go to get his reputation repaired? Typically, the press will do only minimal reporting and many will assume it’s a cover up or the old, “where theres smoke there is fire”
Being different should not be punished and yet it is.
I don’t have any stake in this; only justice for all concerned.

 

[AZOrange]

The man has 200 pairs of glasses. That's not normal.

He also wears a suit and vest at games. Red flag!

 

[AZOrange]

Our AD is so bad at handling this kind of stuff. Love ADJW but you cannot be caught flat footed and blame the players here. 11 players transferred out! We should absolutely know why

 

[Eric15]

This is a very difficult situation to be in for any Coach. If the investigation reveals abuse then the university should terminate his employment. If, on the other hand, there is no evidence of abuse of power; the damage to Q has been done. Now there are numerous articles opening him and his program to speculation. Unfortunately, in the times we live in rumors and speculation create an atmosphere that makes it very difficult for an accused individual to recover.
If it’s shown he did not abuse any of the players; where does he go to get his reputation repaired? Typically, the press will do only minimal reporting and many will assume it’s a cover up or the old, “where theres smoke there is fire”
Being different should not be punished and yet it is.
I don’t have any stake in this; only justice for all concerned.

The odds that all these girls are involved in a highly coordinated conspiracy (involving disrupting their own lives by transferring out of SU) to all make Q look bad are incredibly small.

 

[Ozone!]

Who mentioned conspiracy; certainly not me.

 

[Eric15]

Who mentioned conspiracy; certainly not me.

I know you didn't use that exact word. But if this is truly all nothing, then I don't see how the word conspiracy wouldn't apply.

 

[Ozone!]

Eric, I never said this was all nothing. My hope is that the firm that has been hired will conduct a comprehensive investigation and then forthrightly report their findings. Some former players have come forth in support of the Coach. When all of those players sought transfer; I was very concerned for the state of the program. Many challenged me, at that time.
I have seen how despicably women are and have been treated when they report abuse and it sickens me.
I have also seen cases where someone was accused and later exonerated and yet public option was locked in.
My desire is only for the university to do the right thing and for the women’s program to flourish and all to be treated fairly!

 

[llandz]

I'm looking at a program that will probably be burned to the ground and that upsets me. If the allegations are true then it should be. I won't lie, it's devastating. The disparity in women's college basketball is palpable, a total redo of the program will be long lasting.

I would love to have you join me for a game, llandz has a seat next to me courtside. It would be great to have you both in town to go to a game. No hard feelings here, I hope none on your end too.

I guess now would be a good time to have a beer or plenty.

I was going to offer my seat to Troop so you 2 can watch a game together. And hey is this a thread about women's basketball, possible actions that could throw a terrible light on the university and our sports teams, or is it a jump all over Kelly thread because she expressed an opinion that somehow seems more important to you all then the real issue at hand here. Right or wrong, let's not use this as an opportunity to dump on Kelly. I get where Kelly was going in that we are passionate women's basketball fans, and we all need to be careful before we throw around accusations, believe accusations or whatever. I happen to know a lot about what went down, but once again it is information that came to me confidentially. In some case only known to 2-3 people so my source needs to be protected. I'll say definitely some real falsehoods here, and some real concerning things. So I am on the fence. An investigation would be good.

 

[JKinPhilly]

Bernie Fine suggests we wait for the investigation to be completed before we call for Q's head.

In reality - I think a suspension is warranted pending the results of the investigation. Verify the claims and if true terminate. I suspect where there's smoke there's fire, but time will tell.

 

[JustPherU]

Bernie Fine suggests we wait for the investigation to be completed before we call for Q's head.

In reality - I think a suspension is warranted pending the results of the investigation. Verify the claims and if true terminate. I suspect where there's smoke there's fire, but time will tell.

Well said

 

[FreakTalksAboutSU]

I don't need a suspension yet. But I wish Wildhack was a bit more measured in his notes of support until we really know what is going on.

 

[Lrschill24]

i suspect that the administration knows a lot more than what was in the story and is probably weighing how to move forward with a clean start that doesn't burn the women's bball program down but sets it up for more success in the future post Coach Hillsman.

I expect when the 2022-23 season starts there will be a new women's basketball coach, it will be a question if there is an interim coach for this season. What you have is an ACC program that could easily be and should a conference contender every year with the right coach (balance of recruiting and in game coaching)

 

[crazycassie]

My concern is for the women that are members of the team now, who's watching out for them?

 

[SUbear]

I was going to offer my seat to Troop so you 2 can watch a game together. And hey is this a thread about women's basketball, possible actions that could throw a terrible light on the university and our sports teams, or is it a jump all over Kelly thread because she expressed an opinion that somehow seems more important to you all then the real issue at hand here. Right or wrong, let's not use this as an opportunity to dump on Kelly. I get where Kelly was going in that we are passionate women's basketball fans, and we all need to be careful before we throw around accusations, believe accusations or whatever. I happen to know a lot about what went down, but once again it is information that came to me confidentially. In some case only known to 2-3 people so my source needs to be protected. I'll say definitely some real falsehoods here, and some real concerning things. So I am on the fence. An investigation would be good.

Although I have attended only a few of their games in person, I have been watching them on TV pretty regularly. My thoughts on Hillsman have always been, recruits well but his coaching is meh. He was smart enough to have some assistants who helped him out with actually coaching.
I thought he really coached poorly this year in particular and that may have been a result of new assistants.
I thought the transfers post season were highly suspiscious and bad for this teams prospects going forward. I thought he should be on notice at the very least for his running of the program.
It seems there are more issues than I was aware of, and after an investigation if even some of this is true he should definitely be terminated. Even if the investigation reveals nothing serious I believe his future employment at Syracuse should be re-evaluated simply on the basis of poor job performance.
No coaches job should be above the good of the program.

 

[llandz]

To address the transfers somewhat.

There were 5 who probably were not welcomed back as they violated team and university rules (speculation on my part only and with some knowledge I have). You know 4 were suspended right before the NCAA tournament.

5 of them were graduate transfers who stayed with our program for 3-4 years and all earned their degrees and most also earned a masters degree. They are pursuing other educational opportunities by going grad transfer. Why stay at SU for another degree when they had more options by looking elsewhere. This has gone on for years. If Kiara was drafted, for ex, she would not be going to any college. She is getting a very specific 2nd masters at Clemson. If life under Q was so horrible why not leave beforehand? They all stayed in the program for the duration of their main education. They also could have been gone by just graduating and being done with playing.

So that leaves only 2-3 who are truly leaving the program for other reasons. COVID was very hard for many of them, especially with New York State being stricter and some of their friends at other schools had more freedom and parents who were able to see some games at the end of the season.

So stop with the transfer numbers. That is NOT really the issue when you break it down. COVID and new transfer rules and what I point out above makes this an exception for this season.

This is not saying there are not potential issues with Q or with the program, but please don't keep looking at the transfer numbers from this season as a big part of the equation.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

To address the transfers somewhat.

There were 5 who probably were not welcomed back as they violated team and university rules (speculation on my part only and with some knowledge I have). You know 4 were suspended right before the NCAA tournament.

5 of them were graduate transfers who stayed with our program for 3-4 years and all earned their degrees and most also earned a masters degree. They are pursuing other educational opportunities by going grad transfer. Why stay at SU for another degree when they had more options by looking elsewhere. This has gone on for years. If Kiara was drafted, for ex, she would not be going to any college. She is getting a very specific 2nd masters at Clemson. If life under Q was so horrible why not leave beforehand? They all stayed in the program for the duration of their main education. They also could have been gone by just graduating and being done with playing.

So that leaves only 2-3 who are truly leaving the program for other reasons. COVID was very hard for many of them, especially with New York State being stricter and some of their friends at other schools had more freedom and parents who were able to see some games at the end of the season.

So stop with the transfer numbers. That is NOT really the issue when you break it down. COVID and new transfer rules and what I point out above makes this an exception for this season.

This is not saying there are not potential issues with Q or with the program, but please don't keep looking at the transfer numbers from this season as a big part of the equation.

It's similiar to co-workers who bad mouth their boss every day for ten years but never leave because all in all the plusses outweigh the negatives. Same thing in college except this year made it so easy to transfer so they all left. Doesn't make any of it right though.

 

[rhcuse]

I’m glad you posted this llandz. I’ve had similar thoughts on the roster and transfers.

The only players I was alarmed to see transfer were Engstler, Djaldi-Tabdi, Cardoso and Hueijbens. Emily and Q’s relationship has always seemed strained so not surprising, but devastating from a b-ball perspective. D-T brought experienced versatility as a 4/5 and was a big loss with all the other roster size leaving as well. Camilla’s size and potential is obvious, so no brainer. Hueijbens again just because it means no depth at center.

As for Strautmane, Finklea, Lewis and Tiana — I never expected them back anyway since they had fulfilled degree requirements. Just because everyone was gifted a “do over” year I was actually hoping none would take it. I think one of the problems has been this group was never going to max out much better than they did. Partly from Q’s inability to either scheme for the talent or get the right talent for the scheme. Take your pick sports fans.

As for the young guns who got suspended, unfortunately they just did not seem to me to ultimately be SU caliber players (except Fisher). Whatever the circumstances regarding the suspensions was, it gave Q an opportunity to cut bait with a portion of the roster after a year (more with Washington) of evaluation. I was in favor of this development.

So IMHO, the departure of 8 of the transfers (or non-returning players) was beneficial.

I guess the concern for me is why did the 4 at the top of my rant leave? Problems with Q’s conduct, his coaching deficiencies, NYS / SU Covid issues, or just For a fresh start?

 

[SoBristol]

To address the transfers somewhat.

There were 5 who probably were not welcomed back as they violated team and university rules (speculation on my part only and with some knowledge I have). You know 4 were suspended right before the NCAA tournament.

5 of them were graduate transfers who stayed with our program for 3-4 years and all earned their degrees and most also earned a masters degree. They are pursuing other educational opportunities by going grad transfer. Why stay at SU for another degree when they had more options by looking elsewhere. This has gone on for years. If Kiara was drafted, for ex, she would not be going to any college. She is getting a very specific 2nd masters at Clemson. If life under Q was so horrible why not leave beforehand? They all stayed in the program for the duration of their main education. They also could have been gone by just graduating and being done with playing.

So that leaves only 2-3 who are truly leaving the program for other reasons. COVID was very hard for many of them, especially with New York State being stricter and some of their friends at other schools had more freedom and parents who were able to see some games at the end of the season.

So stop with the transfer numbers. That is NOT really the issue when you break it down. COVID and new transfer rules and what I point out above makes this an exception for this season.

This is not saying there are not potential issues with Q or with the program, but please don't keep looking at the transfer numbers from this season as a big part of the equation.

Right, good to look at the overall picture, not just the number of transfers. Might also consider that Q reloaded the team with transfer in, and has a solid, full roster (maybe the in-coming kids were unaware of culture issues?).

Still, SU admins need that outside investigation to get a fuller picture of the behaviors. Over the years, until this past season, a lot of Q’s players stayed the course.

 

[Rautins07]

The fact that he has no idea how to utilize his players to the fullest is reason enough to get rid of him. He’s all show and no substance. This along with the allegations should immediately get him suspended.

I've always had the same opinion, all about his clothes and glasses and flash. How can you recruit all of that talent and teams play so poorly, when players first started leaving I didn't think that much about it, Engstler was very tough, loved her game this year and potential for next season, Q is lucky she didn't kick his a** Lewis I didn't think too much about, but when Cordoso left I thought something isn't right, it was her team. They have to start with Reiss and end with Reiss.