OT: Diamond Johnson Update
- Thread starter srru86
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Sort of felt that way. She didn’t think RU gave her the stage she wanted, which is probably indicative of how other recruits feel. The luster is off of the program.
Interest in the WBB program has to be close to an all time low. Hobbs just cannot crack the CVS conundrum and she just does not seem to be inclined to retire gracefully. Whoever eventually replaces her will have a major rebuild on their hands. Did not have to be this way.
couldn't read article because I used my my free allotment.
But from the comment she knew she would transfer and big stage one would be destinationm:
I feel it's a shame HS talent go to a program and instead of trying to make it highly noticed they leave for one they feel already is
Rutgers can be one again and looked on the way last year and the year before.
Maybe Diamond didn't see it the same way I did?
But the fact is CVS didn't do the program any favor by reuppimg and staying away once the ink was dry.
Not going to fight over that or go into reason
Rutgers due to its location can be a big stage program if it plays like it did when it was a top Big East program that was looked at as automatic NCAA invites and able to fight for the National Championship most seasons.
But from the comment she knew she would transfer and big stage one would be destinationm:
I feel it's a shame HS talent go to a program and instead of trying to make it highly noticed they leave for one they feel already is
Rutgers can be one again and looked on the way last year and the year before.
Maybe Diamond didn't see it the same way I did?
But the fact is CVS didn't do the program any favor by reuppimg and staying away once the ink was dry.
Not going to fight over that or go into reason
Rutgers due to its location can be a big stage program if it plays like it did when it was a top Big East program that was looked at as automatic NCAA invites and able to fight for the National Championship most seasons.
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Hobbs is a lawyer and he got outsmarted by CVS. How does a former Dean of a law school give a golden Parachute contract? Mulchahey was just as bad . None of his contracts had a moral clause, if they did we would not be paying Rice. Even Bannon's contract did not have a moral clause.
Agree 100%. She passed up a great opportunity. Fair, she couldn't see who was coming in to help this year, as regard to transfers, but if she had stayed and got Zippy to stay, she would have the keys in her hand. She would get all the minutes she could handle and all the shots she'd choose to take. She would have been close enough to home for family to see every home game.
Just watching the nostalgic documentaries on the RU women's championship team and the 76' men's team, and the fan frenzy created by them, I think we were building toward a top 15 or better team again if Diamond stayed and kept our momentum going forward. She was the centerpiece of any hopes of a true resurgence, which we were hinting at with the Laney/Copper/Scaife and Arella years.
I'm with you Mad, .....It would be much more impressive and rewarding to me to be at the center of bringing a program back to prominence than to join a team that is already an elite, championship contender so I assure myself of going far in the tourney and maybe getting a ring. It's like Kevin Durant and Golden State. To me, the rings while with them don't do anything for his legacy. They were already a dynasty team. If he had come to the Knicks and brought them back to greatness and won a championship, he may likely be considered the best to ever play after people would have witnessed the frenzy of NYC fans and The Garden.
The RAC is not MSG, but you all get the idea.
We’ve been treading water for a number of years now postponing the inevitable. I understand the attachment to CVS as she has done so much for the program but that sentimental mentality was not in the best interest of the program (if you’re serious about being a perennial top 25 team). We have simply kicked the can down the road.
I wonder........is interest for RUWBB at an all-time low?...... or is belief/faith in the current staff at an all-time low? Is covid maybe even exacerbating the situation, in terms of attendance numbers? Yes, the numbers have been low for a while now, but if this team were playing well and winning, and there was no Covid, I'd be at every home game. I like the group of players on this current roster.....it's just the coaches can't get it together.
I also think it is past time for the program's marketing department/specialists to try to expand the fan base. The diehards that have held it down for the last few decades can't be the only ones that are counted on to fill seats. It's a diverse state, ....they need to reach out to different demographics. Bring even more excitement to the RAC experience. Make it even more of a desired, accessible, and affordable family entertainment outing.
No doubt, more top-level Jersey HS players on the roster would help.
I also think it is past time for the program's marketing department/specialists to try to expand the fan base. The diehards that have held it down for the last few decades can't be the only ones that are counted on to fill seats. It's a diverse state, ....they need to reach out to different demographics. Bring even more excitement to the RAC experience. Make it even more of a desired, accessible, and affordable family entertainment outing.
No doubt, more top-level Jersey HS players on the roster would help.
I'd say we were a little better off than just treading water over the last 4 years. I think we may have been in the top 25 in each of the last 4 seasons(as high as the upper teens a few times). We just always seemed to peak early and couldn't get past Iowa or Md in the BigTen tourney. We'd go into the NCAA tourney 1st rd without any momentum behind us. Yea, that was on coaching to deal with team chemistry issues that seemed to derail the team down the stretch of seasons, but I can't dismiss the high level at which those teams played for the larger part of those seasons. It's just unfortunate and frustrating that they couldn't maintain it for the most important part of the season.
And I think what Mad is saying really is not about holding on to CVS sentiment. It's about what any upcoming coach and star players can do with the fertile infrastructure that has been laid here a RU. Facilities, recruiting grounds(HS/AAU), knowledgeable fans, ......FACILITIES!!
It won't be hard for a good coach and recruiter to have RU up in the mix again in no time....Just like Banghart(UNC), Lawson(Duke), and Fortner(GaTech). The RUWBB situation has similarities to that of UNC and Duke before they found their "keeper" coaches. Similarities in terms of once great programs that suffered a fall from upper-echelon and all coached by high profile coaches.
Of course everybody here knows that I would have hoped CVS could have brought us all the way back, but it doesn't seem to be in the cards. I'm just happy that she was given a fair chance to see how far she could go with the success of the last four years and the use of the new facilities. She deserved that much and it was granted to her. That said, it becomes more clear with each game that it is time for new leadership.
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And Barnes-Arico at Michigan. (Both Barnes-Arico and Banghart could have easily been here, but we let them slip away.)
Disagree on h Barnes-Arico. in 2012 when she went to Michigan from St.John's RU was stll reverent and after she became the Michigan HC, I doubt Rutgers would pay what it took to get her.
Stringer's salary wouldn't be matched and going the cheap route probably would be the payscale for replacement.
As for Courtney: agree missed opportunity , though Stringer seemed like she was starting to get the program headed back to what it once was, Banghart would have been better for the long term
( not what I would have said in 2019, but recent developments made an attitude adjustment concerning replacing CVS )
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She's done a great job at Michigan but I didn't include her because Michigan wasn't a part of the upper echelon of WBB before she got there. Also, hers has been a slow build up to where she is now. The ones I mentioned have had immediate turnarounds within 1-2 years.
Don't get me wrong, I wasn't slighting the RAC at all. I was just giving respect to the history of events and people that have passed through MSG and memorable moments that sit at the top of all-time sports and entertainment lore.
The RAC's uniqueness makes it a gem on the college level.
Speaking for myself, I haven't been to a home game in a while. I don't even follow the team as closely as I used to. Part of it is the roster turnover. I enjoyed seeing the home grown players, especially when we had Shakena and Essie from the shore, but all of the NJ/NY/Philly area players. The style of play is outdated, predictable, and not exciting. And affordability is also a factor.
I think the answer to your above questions are yes. The interest in the program has been fading for many years. Even in the glory years home attendance was lacking. The support of the current staff is an issue that, I agree, has been exacerbated in the last couple of years. Even prior to covid.
I do not think you can put all of the blame on the marketing department. The diehards are the ones that should be counted on to fill seats. The problem is there are way fewer diehards than in years past. The best marketing department is the coaching staff. And when the coaching staff does not ingratiate themselves to the surrounding community then there are less fans.
I don't know what the marketing department is doing these days as we have been away 10 years now, but I have never been impressed. No, they can't take all blame, but . . .
A lot of the diehards are either missing due to Covid or old age, I fear. I find it hard to blame the coaching staff, again I don't 100% know, but we were closely involved fans during the Vivian years from her hire through our 2011 moving away. The coaching staff was always relatively popular with the fans, but I don't really remember them being particularly outgoing or ingratiating themselves with the surrounding community. They brought success, and that was really enough, I think, for the bulk of the fanbase. All, including Vivian, were very pleasant in person, at fan club events and the like.
Marketing department as a whole at Rutgers is subpar. Athletics marketing is improving but is still very far behind the competition. But they are not too blame in this instance. The coaching staff "was"pretty popular with the fans sums everything up. They were popular with the fans and that support has been waning since the time you have stepped away. The issue is they have not done anything to attract new fans and local grass roots support. I have mentioned on different threads that I am friendly with some of the girls High School, AAU coaches and trainers in the Central Jersey and Shore area. Not saying they will always have targets for Rutgers, but Rutgers competition is forever in contact with them. Inviting the group to events. Rutgers staff not so much. That's how you grow the brand. Take a look at Scoot Goodale, Brian Brecht and Mike O'Neill. They have grown their fanbase and fan attraction from nothing, with little to no support from Rutgers marketing. They hustled with the various youth organizations and bringing in local talent.
Your second sentence here is what I was referring to when I made the statement below.
I was saying without saying........you can't continue to just count on the earlier generations of RUWBB fans to be your only diehards. Time passes on and you have to birth new diehards to keep anything going. There really hasn't been a strong effort by the University to promote the program across the tri-state area or even just the state of NJ. I'm talking similar to the football program over the last ....maybe ten years. Billboards, bus murals, etc.
I agree that winning goes a long way to bringing in fans but you can always use the help of the University's marketing dept. and local media(which is huge), along with the coaches having a good outreach strategy. RUWBB has never been covered well by local media for at least the last 20 years or more. Even when the team was decent, coverage was minimal.
An example to make the point is the comparison of the men's and women's BB results from the last few years. Look at the exposure, media coverage(locally and nationally) that the men have received. If you look at the overall success of both programs, you might say that they have enjoyed equal flashes of success with disappointing finishes to the season,,,similar records if not better for the women. Attention received by the women pretty much came from a few women in media and WBB that have the utmost respect for CVS and made sure that our women's recent success was recognized. Thank goodness for them and our WNBA vets and rising stars because local media has only been quick to cover her contract and now her absence.
She should have moved on years ago. We need to have a complete upgrade in the coaching staff and bring in someone that is motivated, knows the new game of Xs and Os, recruit and can manage the game. These young ladies deserve that, as well as the school, and the people footing the bill.
The problem is you cannot rely on the local media to create energy in the program. The program has to create it's own energy and it has done very little. The athletic department can only do so much. If the coaches do not engage the grass roots/ AAU/ High school teams in the area there is very little marketing or media coverage can do. If anything Rutgers womens basketball had some of the best coverage, billboards, bus wraps, tv ads and exposure over the years. When I lived in the city (1996-2010) ads were everywhere. They just didn't continue to cultivate and capitalize off of it.
Team chemistry was a problem last year,
And the younger players received so little playing time that they were not developed.
Viv couldn't keep Diamond off the court, especially when other than 'ella there was little hope for O contributions (T Mack had moments but was not a consistent contributor) Liz played some. But the rest? Diamond saw that there was little hope that Rutgers would ascend to the bigger stage she desired, so off she went.
Were there even 200 paying fans in the RAC last night?
I may be old and crotchety but when Rutgers sends me requests for money they now go directly into the recycling bin. If Rutgers Athletics has 5 million to give to Stringer they don't need my money.
And the younger players received so little playing time that they were not developed.
Viv couldn't keep Diamond off the court, especially when other than 'ella there was little hope for O contributions (T Mack had moments but was not a consistent contributor) Liz played some. But the rest? Diamond saw that there was little hope that Rutgers would ascend to the bigger stage she desired, so off she went.
Were there even 200 paying fans in the RAC last night?
I may be old and crotchety but when Rutgers sends me requests for money they now go directly into the recycling bin. If Rutgers Athletics has 5 million to give to Stringer they don't need my money.
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Is that her package? Seriously. Don't know the details. (check that. maybe I don't want to know)
Five year extension:
The contract guarantees compensation of $5.5 million, beginning at $1 million in the first year, plus performance incentives and retention bonuses.
Watched some of NC State game. D. Johnson is in great shape. Looks like she lost weight, and has been working out. She still isn't a starter there, imagine that. I think she had around 15 points in 25 minutes. And, that's the last time I mention her name.
Bigger platform not quite working out as expected (yet)? Count the number of B1G players on this list.
www.espn.com
Ranking the top 25 players in women's college basketball, version 2.0
ESPN's updated list includes a new (and unanimous) No. 1 and seven players who weren't on our preseason ranking.
Her omission is shocking to me. Just more of the same that she has endured since coming out of HS. Not even in the others receiving votes category.Bigger platform not quite working out as expected (yet)? Count the number of B1G players on this list.
Ranking the top 25 players in women's college basketball, version 2.0
ESPN's updated list includes a new (and unanimous) No. 1 and seven players who weren't on our preseason ranking.
She has enjoyed a lot more attention this year at NC State due to national TV exposure compared to RU's exposure last year. And she has played very well for the time that she is on the court after the slow start in game 1 against SCar. She's been getting rave reviews every time they come on TV.
All on the list are playing extremely well so far but you have include Diamond and Olivia Miles in the top 25 at this point. Miles has resurrected Notre Dame with the order that she runs the team with. Scores, assists, does it all in a good conference.
Ranking the top 25 players in women's college basketball, version 2.0
ESPN's updated list includes a new (and unanimous) No. 1 and seven players who weren't on our preseason ranking. www.espn.com
Both ladies could easily be considered in the top 20, if not 15. Diamond has to be judged differently by this panel of voters. They have to look at her production over low minutes in comparison to those on the list, who are playing most of the game.
Yes, Johnson is playing a bit over half of games, scoring a bit over 12 points a game and yes, generating rave reviews. NC State has a point guard, Raina Perez and what I read was the offense runs a bit more smoothly under Perez, but Johnson is more explosive. It looks like NC State is getting the best of both worlds. Perez averages closer to 30 minutes a game, and 9 points.
