Let me first caveat that I hope this post ages poorly...
That being said, this season is actually worse than most people realize in that in addition to watching a terrible team take the court, we're also watching Pike's career die. I had posted before the season even began that this was going to be the most important season of Pike's career - not just because he had a mega-hyped team with 3 future lottery picks, but because whether he wanted to admit it or not his career would be banking on the outcome.
If things went the way we thought, Pike would finally have that one thing he could lean on to elevate the program year in and year out - namely he could win with one and dones and move players into the NBA as high draft picks. If he does that, I truly believe the flood gates open and we start to be in conversation with a higher caliber recruit each year.
I had feared though if things didn't work out (and there was some concern before the season due to roster construction and the fact that Rutgers is gonna Rutgers), that this would be the end of Pike and the end of the Pike era at Rutgers. There's just no way any top-level recruit comes here - even with connections - after this debacle. It's just too easy for any other coach to look at a recruit and say, "You don't want to go to Rutgers. You'll be miserable. You won't win and you won't develop. Hell, Pike couldn't even win with two lottery picks, and honestly they were lottery picks before they even got to Pike. You could argue he actually stunted their growth."
And the sad part is that they wouldn't be wrong. I bet you RHS is thinking what could've been if Dylan went to Duke.
I like Pike. He's a good dude, but he blew it and he probably knows that. He's too loyal. He too trustworthy. There's no accountability. Hell, B Knight has been in charge of the offense for how many seasons and it's consistently been one of the worst in D1. No chance he'd be running the O if I were coach.
There's no shot that the younger Dercack comes here or any high-ranking recruit for that matter moving forward. Pike will revert back to what he knows. We'll have a lower/middle-of-the-pack team that is gritty and fun to root for, but I don't know if that's enough in this new era. I'd expect Pike to stick around a few more seasons before heading off into the sunset.
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