What happened to this Rutgers basketball team? The answer is messy
A look at why Rutgers is historically underachieving with Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey
www.app.com
Carino Lights Us Up
- Thread starter Salvi's Headband
- Start date
Honest question - is it time for a serious staff shakeup?
I wondered if bringing Jay Young back was a mistake - don’t know if it impacted the dynamics to bring a confidant back.
I wondered if bringing Jay Young back was a mistake - don’t know if it impacted the dynamics to bring a confidant back.
Don’t worry. Knight will be gone after this season.
It isnt a light up. Pretty on point. It is what it is.
Hate to be right, but it is exactly what i said when we fot them
Hate to be right, but it is exactly what i said when we fot them
Tried to install D and toughness?
Absurd take.
WHat the problem has been is that Pike has thrown out the "D and toughness" identity and deferred to the 2 freshman and allowed AAU ball to be played at Rutgers. And AAU ball doesn't win against TEAMS. TEAMS are a whole different thing.
Caleb Ron and Geo were a team. THis squad is not a TEAM.
Pike has to look in the mirror and choose either:
-1.CONTINUE DEFERRING (and allow Bailey to shoot whenever he wants wqithout consequence, out of bounds open cuts and layups, Jwill to dribble in circles, Bailey to clearly be taking it (leading to 4 standing around)
OR
-2. STEP ON TOES and demand D and rebounding, ball movement and shots within the offense and not forced iso-NO MATTER who it is so the squad can turn into a TEAM. In essence, make this years version play like every OTHER version he has coached at RU.
Hope he chooses 2. We will see some POUTING if he does, but the players will either come around to being a TEAM member, or they will cause issues.
Ace and Dylan have shown the skill set (and the maturity of those skills and bball IQ levels) already. They dont need to showcase that further. They would have a choice on whether winning matters. As will everyone else.
Absurd take.
WHat the problem has been is that Pike has thrown out the "D and toughness" identity and deferred to the 2 freshman and allowed AAU ball to be played at Rutgers. And AAU ball doesn't win against TEAMS. TEAMS are a whole different thing.
Caleb Ron and Geo were a team. THis squad is not a TEAM.
Pike has to look in the mirror and choose either:
-1.CONTINUE DEFERRING (and allow Bailey to shoot whenever he wants wqithout consequence, out of bounds open cuts and layups, Jwill to dribble in circles, Bailey to clearly be taking it (leading to 4 standing around)
OR
-2. STEP ON TOES and demand D and rebounding, ball movement and shots within the offense and not forced iso-NO MATTER who it is so the squad can turn into a TEAM. In essence, make this years version play like every OTHER version he has coached at RU.
Hope he chooses 2. We will see some POUTING if he does, but the players will either come around to being a TEAM member, or they will cause issues.
Ace and Dylan have shown the skill set (and the maturity of those skills and bball IQ levels) already. They dont need to showcase that further. They would have a choice on whether winning matters. As will everyone else.
In thinking further, if Carino is even partially factually correct that D principles were taught to some degree, then the choice is that stark---continuing deferring OR step on toes of anyone who is not playing TEAM ball by pulling them.
The iso 2 on 5 attack hasnt worked. It's time to get back to having the team play like Rutgers during the Pike era, which will hurt some feelings, but will give the squad it's best chance to win.
The iso 2 on 5 attack hasnt worked. It's time to get back to having the team play like Rutgers during the Pike era, which will hurt some feelings, but will give the squad it's best chance to win.
Basically everyone stinks at team defense and no one plays as a team on offense either
Honestly feel like that article goes easy on Pike
It goes easy on Pike in the sense it's blaming him for not adapting to the landscape well enough.
Really the issue is that he has a fairly awful record of identifying/acquiring talent, especially in recent years
Really the issue is that he has a fairly awful record of identifying/acquiring talent, especially in recent years
Only assistant coach who should return is Jay Young.
Knight is overrated. There is a reason why he has yet to become a HC
Thompson and Smoke are a dime a dozen.
If Knight should become a HC - Smoke will be his top assistant.
Pike needs to make CEO decisions at the end of this season - not decisions based on loyalty. .
Knight is overrated. There is a reason why he has yet to become a HC
Thompson and Smoke are a dime a dozen.
If Knight should become a HC - Smoke will be his top assistant.
Pike needs to make CEO decisions at the end of this season - not decisions based on loyalty. .
Carino is on point with this one.
Pike is a slow-cooker coach that is now living in a fast-food world. Adapt or fade away.
Pike is a slow-cooker coach that is now living in a fast-food world. Adapt or fade away.
We need an offensive mind on the staff.
💯 and since Pike isnt going anywhere, Rutgers should hire a GM to deal with the portal and NIL fund distribution. It's not Pike's strength
Yes please
This should have happened years ago
I don't think that was lighting us up. Really just matter of fact.
I’m tired of hearing about how the freshmen play defense like freshmen.
Let’s take Ace Bailey for a second, after the KSU game where he had 1 rebound, his rebound line has been 4, 4, 10, 7, 15, 7, 12, 8, 8, 7, 7. He has definitely bought in when it comes to fighting for boards.
Then you have Harper. Harper is a five star guard who will be a high pick. Obviously he was not brought in for his defense, but this is why you have rim protection. Every team can get away with okay defense by one or two guards if you actually have rim protection.
It’s astonishing the decision that Pike made at the 5. It also still blows my mind that he thought a certain transfer from the Ivy League was going to play the 4 in the B1G.
We can sit here all day and talk about how the landscape of college bball changed.
But for the 1000th time, we’re in this mess because of poor recruiting from 2021-2023. And then the people who missed on those recruits went out and got players who were not better than the ones they lost. There are several schools out there who did not need to hit the portal hard. It can still be done
Let’s take Ace Bailey for a second, after the KSU game where he had 1 rebound, his rebound line has been 4, 4, 10, 7, 15, 7, 12, 8, 8, 7, 7. He has definitely bought in when it comes to fighting for boards.
Then you have Harper. Harper is a five star guard who will be a high pick. Obviously he was not brought in for his defense, but this is why you have rim protection. Every team can get away with okay defense by one or two guards if you actually have rim protection.
It’s astonishing the decision that Pike made at the 5. It also still blows my mind that he thought a certain transfer from the Ivy League was going to play the 4 in the B1G.
We can sit here all day and talk about how the landscape of college bball changed.
But for the 1000th time, we’re in this mess because of poor recruiting from 2021-2023. And then the people who missed on those recruits went out and got players who were not better than the ones they lost. There are several schools out there who did not need to hit the portal hard. It can still be done
Yep. Need to go external for staff upgrades.
I’m more fearful however of what the future holds.
Pike and the program may not recover from this collosal nightmare
Yes re getting an offensive mind on the staff for next year.
But this year Pike needs to make the tough decision and have those who play defense, rebound and shoot within the scheme of the offense play and anyone who is not sit. The team will compete at a better level, so rather than having remarkable shots or plays, they will be stretches of defense and stops.
A change has to be expected, and the staff has to do what’s best for the squad rather than present it as a showcase.
But this year Pike needs to make the tough decision and have those who play defense, rebound and shoot within the scheme of the offense play and anyone who is not sit. The team will compete at a better level, so rather than having remarkable shots or plays, they will be stretches of defense and stops.
A change has to be expected, and the staff has to do what’s best for the squad rather than present it as a showcase.
As much as people are killing Pike and deservedly so, there is no way B. Knight comes out of this untarnished. He has been here for all of this and is paid handsomely for his work (good and bad). There seemed to be the view that he would eventually leave for an HC job at a P-5 or P-4 level. The belief was he so good at what he does he could skips the proving ground stops at St.Peters and Wagner that Holloway and Hurley made. I never understood that and it certainly less likely to be the case after the past couple of seasons. The guy who is looking like he might have been a bigger loss that originally thought was Karl Hobbs.
Knight won't have trouble finding a new assistant coach gig with a new coach at another program ,but the days of thinking he was the sure fire heir here or a candidate for a top job elsewhere (other than maybe Pitt) are over.
Don’t forget, Hobbs brought Baye Ndongo with him. Which as poorly as this roster is constructed, he’d make a massive difference down low.
Broken players in a non-existent system with no accountability. You’re asking JV players (except for Dylan and Ace) to score against the varsity with no plan and no attention to detail. The half-assed and silly screens, lazy cuts and passes, and terrible shot selection, is all allowed with no repercussions. Alternating planned mass substitutions for no reason with mind-boggling random substitutions (often when players are hot) have to have every player on this team totally confused also. Momentum killing plays like switching to a grammar school version of a zone after showing the first signs of life is beyond bizarre. Total disaster.
Last edited:
Rutgers needs to make CEO decisions! You fire the individual in charge not provide them excuses with the staff. Pike chose the staff, Pike has the final say on what we run or don’t run. Pikes the problem
That might be true but we have all we need to run an effective offense here now. Wisconsin and Purdue with Blackwell and Smith running the show ran pick and role or pick and pop ( Wisconsin 5 men hit 5 threes) . Simple fundamental basketball, a hard screen , either Smith tonight with 13-14 assists or Blackwell the other night , then Smith if open hunts his shot and if over hedged a simple bounce pass to the big for the roll.
We cannot run pick and roll with Ogbole who cannot catch a bounce pass but we can run it with Sommerville and certainly can run it with ACE and we can also run pick and pop with ACE. . Both of them can catch a bounce pass or a pass on a roll and dribble and finish at the rim. Leaving ACE in the corner on any set is a stupid wasted possession .Having Dylan in the corner as a decoy ( or more likely because he has been still been ill ) has to stop.
Dylan has to control the ball , start the screens , play the 2 man game from here on out. No more 50 point games playing simple fundamental basketball. Allowing Jeremiah , Jordan or JMike make any isolation play is a disaster waiting to happen and either a turnover or a run out for the other team. Pike has to use his big 3 the proper way. For the life of me why it hasn’t happened with that talent only involves a simple tweak or adjustment and would likely get us more foul shots. Dylan and Sommerville shoot well from the line. Ace should but has not . It is really a no brainer at this point.
I agree with a lot of this. Dylan, prior to his illness, has been mature enough to overcome this mess and fend for himself but the misuse of Ace is tragic. Ace is not a mature player at all and is wasting an entire year here. He’s just picking up bad habits that the pros will need to correct.
This is why you saw some of the best coaches in the country jump ship the last few years
Guys like Jay wright and Tony Bennett are steeped in this mindset of development and culture and they saw it coming that it was just going to be very difficult to build 4 year trajectory programs
Pike did this to a lesser extent with geo Ron Caleb which culminated in the 2 ncaa berths and a win and probably would’ve succeeded cycling his next group through and then the landscape changed and it’s not his thing and we just need to acknowledge that and either give him help aka a GM or move on
Agreed.
There is no leadership on this team. Williams has shown that he is me first and immature. More interested in laughing during defeat and rolling around on the floor than doing what is necessary to win games and be a team player.
Not saying this season was ever going to be easy bringing in 9 new players in the roster. But you can’t worry about installing “d and toughness” in the summer when the concentration should have been on program. expectations and team,not individuality.
Pike’s way no longer works. Need to hit the portal hard for guys that can play. The age of developing players is dead.
Pike can’t do what you’re suggesting, He needs to go. Now.
There is a lot of Williams's game that is a problem, but he is a team player and is defintely not selfish.
We all know Pike never ran an offense in 9 years but this is the worst we have ever seen. Every other team and not so good team (Seton Hall) has out coached Pike by running real motion offense and pick and roll. It is head scratching how bad we are at defending the pick and roll. This is basic basketball. You can see what continuity of teams look like at Wisconsin and Purdue but they are also well coached. Not us. Only Rutgers can blow a major opportunity with 2 stud freshmen. Would like be better if Dylan had not got sick but the issues were apparent in out of conference play against much lesser teams.
The "2 STUD Freshman" issue is also one that needs some reality.
Harper, prior to sickness, has been that stud and a difference maker.
Bailey has not been. Indiana he was. Other times he was. But game in and out, we have not been playing with TWO studs. That perception is wrong.
We have had one, and the last two games with Harper sick, we have had NONE.
All the more reason Pike needs to get back to his D AND REBOUNDING STYLE regardless of the short term hurt feeling when pulled from a game or pouting. We have ONE great player, and one who on a given night can be, but not night in and out. Requires the TEAM concept more than ever. If we truly had two the discussion would be different.
Harper, prior to sickness, has been that stud and a difference maker.
Bailey has not been. Indiana he was. Other times he was. But game in and out, we have not been playing with TWO studs. That perception is wrong.
We have had one, and the last two games with Harper sick, we have had NONE.
All the more reason Pike needs to get back to his D AND REBOUNDING STYLE regardless of the short term hurt feeling when pulled from a game or pouting. We have ONE great player, and one who on a given night can be, but not night in and out. Requires the TEAM concept more than ever. If we truly had two the discussion would be different.
So a senior guard chosen to be captain should be laughing and carrying on while his team is being abused in multiple games? ( Purdue, Kennesaw, Princeton) A guard looked upon less for scoring and more for stability, leadership and distribution should be averaging 2.1 assists? He plays out of control and has no ability to finish at the rim. He looks to score first and dribble without a purpose versus looking to getting the open man the ball. That is me first and selfish in my eyes.
Last edited:
I did not like at all him smiling on the bench late in the game.....He has trouble finishing at the rim and his mid range game has desserted him this year. His perimeter shooting is awful and his D hasn't been consistent
However, I don't see him as a selfish player at all. Sorry. Contrary to what most think i think the ball needs to be in his hands more creating for others. The play I want to see more of is him driving in to the lane and whipping an opposite diagonal pass to Ace who drains the 3....(from last night)
JWill should have never returned. He is a point guard. He is a leader (defintely was last year). He has a lot of flaws. This is a terrible fit for him with Dylan.
Unless the $ was great, the fact that he returned knowing Dylan was coming to play his position shows to me a level of unselfishness.
Last edited:
