The intent shouldn't/doesn't matter. The NCAA didn't let us get away with anything by taking the postseason ban early. First, it was far far from a foregone conclusion that we wouldn't have gotten in. The team had work to do, but certainly could have won a few of those games towards the end of the season if they were playing for something. Second, what does it matter if the ban comes in a season when we're good or bad? Last I checked, being good enough to make the postseason isn't a requirement for a postseason ban to take effect. We still banned ourselves from the ACC Tournament and NIT, which isn't nothing. Hell, if we took the ban this last season instead, people would have said we wouldn't have made the tourney then either, so it's the definition of a moot point.