Expectations in Year 1

[richard levy]

NBA expansion bid

 

[Cusefan95]

Nobody nationally was paying a lot of attention to Syracuse football in Fran Brown’s first year. However - guys like Josh Pate were calling Syracuse a dark horse with a lot of potential upside. I don’t really care if Syracuse is preseason top 25 - but if we’re not hearing from reasonable insiders in the sport that Syracuse basketball could be surprisingly good - I’ll be concerned going into the season. What’s happened over the last few years is a total lack of respect from insiders while the optimists here were convinced we were a tourney team…hopefully we are not starting next season the same way.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

What? How?
A “great” coach with a crap roster is not going to have “great” results. He will make the team some order of magnitude better than “crap,” but a coach can’t overcome or control everything. John Wooden with a roster of ten of Me isn’t going to get results you’d associate with John Wooden.

The roster is a reflection of Gerry's acumen.

 

[benjams77]

My expectation first and foremost is a team that plays with high competitive energy always and improves thru year .. I except Gerry to win all the games he supposed to .. So this years schedule we beat Hofstra, BC, VaTech and Pitt .. That makes us 19-13 and doesn’t doesn’t get rolled by 20+ .. if we can win a couple 50/50 games we’ll be right there over 20 games wins
To me it will be very apparent if he’s better and we are better team

 

[orange79]

I except Gerry to win all the games he supposed to ..

This will not happen. It never does. W T Fudge losses happen at every school.

Last season, Siena lost to St. Bonaventure in Olean (ok - tossup) and at home to Sacred Heart (brutal).

 

[orangefog]

This will not happen. It never does. W T Fudge losses happen at every school.

Last season, Siena lost to St. Bonaventure in Olean (ok - tossup) and at home to Sacred Heart (brutal).

We lost to Rutgers our championship year!!!

 

[orange79]

We lost to Rutgers our championship year!!!

Herve Lamizana

 

[orangefog]

Herve Lamizana

 

[Geode]

Show us there's an actual program direction, a style, discipline, and a team that doesn't quit on itself.
A tourney bid would be nice, but not necessary.

Stopping the program embarrassment is a good start.

 

[Eric15]

Syracuse has to make the NCAA tournament, and not the play in game.
That is the bare minimum expectation EVERY year, and now especially true with new coach GMAC.

I would sign up for the play-in game in a second. That represents a major step forward.

 

[HyattsCuse]

Show us there's an actual program direction, a style, discipline, and a team that doesn't quit on itself.
A tourney bid would be nice, but not necessary.

Stopping the program embarrassment is a good start.

No tourney bid = continued program embarrassment IMO (barring some crazy bad luck like a bunch of injuries).

 

[baggerbob]

GMac’s got until the start of the ACC schedule. We’ll know by then.

We will have a fairly good idea where we stand after the tournament in Las Vegas. Win a couple of games there and a competitive loss which we have a chance to win towards the end , and we should be OK year one. That kind of team should end up in the top 25 or close, and that would be a sucess.

 

[Cusefan95]

To be clear -- I didn't want only GMac because he was family. I wanted GMac because I think he was the best person out there. My point is I think it is incorrect to say that people who wanted GMac did so only because he was family.

Awesome. So what would you consider “success” next year? And if it’s not at least making the NCAA tournament (with an expanded field most likely) - did you not think there was a single coach available who could do that? Are we that terrible a program that mediocrity is all we should expect?

I am 1000% certain that there are some who wanted GMac specifically because he was family, and went through great pains here to deny that. And those are the ones who will be content with mediocrity as long as there’s a “Syracuse guy” on the sideline still. I’m checking to see if - in spite of your denials - you are one of them.

I don’t have an issue with anyone who wanted GMac whose position now is NCAA tourney or bust. I’m noticing that many of the people most adamant he be hired are either trying to temper expectations or have remained noticeably silent. I remain deeply suspicious of the “I didn’t just want him because he’s a Syracuse guy, I thought he was the best fit”! narrative as a result.

 

[Newhouser]

Show us there's an actual program direction, a style, discipline, and a team that doesn't quit on itself.
A tourney bid would be nice, but not necessary.

Stopping the program embarrassment is a good start.

This is sort of where I am at. Obviously tournament bid is goal, but not being blown out and pulling an upset or two would be a nice change.
I want a competitive team, exerting effort, and improving.

 

[Orangezoo]

Awesome. So what would you consider “success” next year? And if it’s not at least making the NCAA tournament (with an expanded field most likely) - did you not think there was a single coach available who could do that? Are we that terrible a program that mediocrity is all we should expect?

I am 1000% certain that there are some who wanted GMac specifically because he was family, and went through great pains here to deny that. And those are the ones who will be content with mediocrity as long as there’s a “Syracuse guy” on the sideline still. I’m checking to see if - in spite of your denials - you are one of them.

I don’t have an issue with anyone who wanted GMac whose position now is NCAA tourney or bust. I’m noticing that many of the people most adamant he be hired are either trying to temper expectations or have remained noticeably silent. I remain deeply suspicious of the “I didn’t just want him because he’s a Syracuse guy, I thought he was the best fit”! narrative as a result.

Let me just say this - you won’t hear it from him or the staff but Gerry expects a protected seed and a tourney run right out of the gate. That is who he is and what he will push for while letting the media and others debate like we are. Every loss is bad even if you can learn from it. He won’t put visions of grandeur into the heads of the kids he coaches he will present what he expects from them and what is possible if everyone does what they are asked and more. No guarantees on anything. That said if you listen closely where he mentioned the close losses at Siena last year ( 8 losses by 6 pts or less), the expectations he has of himself to accomplish are not going to be just getting by to make the tournament. That’s not the mindset of a competitor nor the way he thinks. He’s just smart enough to not put a box around the goals.

 

[Zelda Zonk]

Even in this new era, doesn’t the head coach have something to do with roster construction?

Of course he does. “Something.” But he can’t control it all. He can’t decide for the kid or manufacture money to combat a higher bid, he can’t scout every player. Not every wanted player wants to come to this program—they didn’t at our zenith and certainly not now.

He also can’t control injuries.

 

[bnoro]

This is sort of where I am at. Obviously tournament bid is goal, but not being blown out and pulling an upset or two would be a nice change.
I want a competitive team, exerting effort, and improving.

Not being blown out and missing the tourney while going 18-14 is really gonna get the whales excited about donating more NIL money

 

[MSOrange]

Not being blown out and missing the tourney while going 18-14 is really gonna get the whales excited about donating more NIL money

Exactly. It's a huge year to show donors their money was well spent and not just flushed down the toilet.