And we are being trolled heavily on social media. This is a terrible look for this program, and more specifically for this coach... making an already tough recruiting job damn near impossible.
Pike-hating: so predictable and wrong.
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I'd cut him if I could. He had a nice game today and I was rooting for him but he's been a massive whiff against legit conference opponents.
Agree about the weak defenders. But they aren’t good offensive players either. I can’t get over how the 2023-4 NEC player of the year can’t even dribble with his head up. And as bad as he is, he’s the best of the portal pickups. Harper is great, Ace and Williams have their moments and the rest of the team with the occasional exception of Ogbole and Lathan are beyond weak players.
Another great take…. 2025 class is ranked 27 in the country. Far far far cry from “damn near impossible”. You all want to be annoyed at what is quickly becoming a very disappointing year go for it but some of these statements are just not true.
you might be right but I think a lot of it has to do with the offense - the coaches do literally NOTHING to give players like Hayes opportunities. , for example, I wonder what he would do if a few plays a game were set up to get him open 3s. I mean there are NO PLAYS to get players open in our offense - Princeton did it literally all game long (got their players in position to score/ succeed)
It’s not about freshman class anymore. It’s about your portal class
Yup. Where do you draw the line? How bad does it have to get? Do we have to slide back to where we were when Pike got here? If that's the case, what a waste of time and resources. The point should be to stop the cycle of letting the program crater before action is taken.
I would bet Hayes would score in bunches and open up our offense compared to watching JMike shoot the ball. I cringe everytime he touches the ball on offense
Yeah, that’s a horrible take. After the final, that was the game of the tournament. And ND won their next game.
if he doesn’t win now with 2 top players, when will he win?
This is such an annoying post man.
First of all, everyone will still be at the RAC despite this bad start. Just like we were during last season's shitshow. It was rocking for some pretty damn meaningless games last year. But it's just so unlikely that all of a sudden this team is going to start playing competent defense. I feel like it would have happened by now.
And the fanbase is grateful for what Pike has done here over the years. But it's just not good enough anymore. He doesn't have the luxury of coaching up kids like Myles or Caleb over a few seasons. That's his strong suit, his competitive advantage.
But that's gone now in the world of the portal. And we're left with what you've seen this year and last.
It sucks and I feel bad for him cuz he's a good guy and we've had some good times with him. But it's the truth.
The 2025 class was already signed by the time the alarm bells started going off. So, their commitments weren't impacted by the current state of things. My point is the perception of this program is taking a major hit based on the number of eyeballs that are on it now. Eyeballs that are witnessing a team with 2 NBA lottery picks play like they'll be sitting at home in March.
If we don't see a miraculous turnaround in the team's level of play this year, particularly on defense and with rebounding, it will most certainly make recruiting top talent more difficult going forward. And yes, it's always been tougher to recruit top talent to RU. Some might say damn near impossible when it comes to 4 and 5 star players.
bingo....how many freshmen in the country will stay 4 years at one school anymore...not any talented ones
I genuinely feel bad for the guys who transferred here and coach has no idea how to use them.
That 27 ranking is because we have signed 4 recruits - one 4 star and three 3 star. Most of the other B1G teams have signed only one or two hs recruits…usually a 4 star and sometimes a 5, but I don’t think anyone but us has 4 recruits and the number of recruits counts in the rankings. Many other schools are getting most of their talent from the portal and only recruiting very highly rated hs seniors, who can contribute right away. Most 3 stars should now be going to mid-majors. We’re still recruiting like it’s two years ago. What’s the point? If they can’t contribute right away, they are just taking up a scholarship. If they develop in two years, they transfer out anyway. Regardless, when all is said and done, and the portal is included, I doubt we’ll be close to 27.
He's a way below average major college basketball coach. There is nothing his teams do well that is considered good "fundamental" basketball - historically ... we don't box out, we don't move the ball on offense, we can't shoot free throws. And now the old fallback of "at least he gets his teams to play defense" has disappeared as an excuse, too. Harper and Bailey were the worst thing to ever happen to Pike because they took away all of his supporters' excuses - if he can't create a championship-caliber team (I'm talking about the conference, not the whole country) with two lottery picks, then he shouldn't be coaching a major college basketball program.
This entire team looks like Pike just rolls the ball out on the floor at the start of practice and lets them coach themselves.
This entire team looks like Pike just rolls the ball out on the floor at the start of practice and lets them coach themselves.
He is that kid from a couple years ago who was good on D but couldn't shoot the ball and wound up transferring. If you can't score as a guard you can't really stay here. I like his defense though.
Don't hate him, but 9 years in with 2 5-stars and struggles still to get a W means that this is the best he and his teams have. He is probably a great guy (only met him once; was nice) and deserves credit post Hill, Rice, Jordan to make us somewhat relevant. However, its now time for the next level and we are seeing he and his staff will not get us there. Sure its only December so I may be proven wrong, but Pikiell's recent history exhibits otherwise. If no NCAA this year then it is time to move on.
The point is we don’t have the money to compete for high end transfers every year so you take some and develop them even if that means a not up to expectation year while they are young and develop. Same story with football.
It’s still a graveyard. I’m afraid people dont understand what the competitive landscape is. Rutgers is the worst big ten basketball coaching job. The rac is a good home court advantage but guess what it’s not better than tons of others. And it’s not just big ten teams. Creightin, Providence, Marquette pretty much everybody in the acc. Rutgers is a joke. People think Rutgers is great because they’ve never seen anything else. Good luck if things don’t work out with pike and I agree it’s a possibility. You’re dreaming if you think this is an attractive destination relative to about 70 other places that are better.
Tell me you're clueless without telling me...
I don’t think you truly appreciate what other places have. The rac is a dump.
There are not 70 better jobs than Rutgers maybe 12 years ago but not now, you really are clueless
He is a good, decent man and I am proud to have him as our coach.
That said if he misses the tournament for a third year in a row it’s fair to ask questions. No the season is not over. But still.
It is our version of Fenway Park and is a top 10 home court in America. I was at the Prudential today. Nice arena, would not trade it for the RAC in a million years.
Go Google top home courts in NCAA and you will see us mentioned many times.
Not only is it a dump but it’s in a very shitty location.
I hate this board a vocal segment. Rarely come over here. Lou should STFU already.
I love Pike
His coaching this year has been beyond incompetent on so many levels
Both things can be true
His coaching this year has been beyond incompetent on so many levels
Both things can be true
IMO, that does not mean you get rid of him if this season is a bust. Ludicrous take by some here.
He won't slide back that far. But he can't elevate us beyond this either. Very low variance between floor and ceiling with Pike
I mean a huge part of the problem is that one of those lottery picks isn’t actually helping us win.
I’m not sure the point of recruiting one and dones (or why they are rated so highly in the first place) if they are so raw as to not be great college players in their one year. I would be ****ing ecstatic to have Ace if he would be here 3-4 years. As a one and done I am not so sure.
