Jennings to Europe Official

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Wow. Touchy. Is it really that unreasonable for an ASU fan to be glad something like this happens to UofA? There were no insults in the Commish's post.

Not my fault he's saying dumb things. If anything the fact that Arizona Basetball is still goes to the NCAA every year while recruiting at a high level after going through all the drama over the last several years (Lute's absence from program, death of Bobbi Olson, headcases off and on the court, the LOA and divorce, underwhelming performance on the court, questions regarding Lute's age and health, Kevin O'Neill hire, Pastner departure, Emmanuel Negedu, Olson/Livengood fued, Christine Torretti, and now Brandon Jennings just to name a few) should tell a saavy sports fan you how strong UA Hoops truly is. Not many programs could survive what UA has gone through in recent years let alone achieve the benchmark for success in NCAA Basketball every season.

 

[Lefty]

Not my fault he's saying dumb things. If anything the fact that Arizona Basetball is still goes to the NCAA every year while recruiting at a high level after going through all the drama over the last several years (Lute's absence from program, death of Bobbi Olson, headcases off and on the court, the LOA and divorce, underwhelming performance on the court, questions regarding Lute's age and health, Kevin O'Neill hire, Pastner departure, Emmanuel Negedu, Olson/Livengood fued, Christine Torretti, and now Brandon Jennings just to name a few) should tell a saavy sports fan you how strong UA Hoops truly is. Not many programs could survive what UA has gone through in recent years let alone achieve the benchmark for success in NCAA Basketball every season.

I wouldn't worry about what he said. He is one of those guys who likes to get a certain response out of something he obviously doesn't have much a clue on. The best thing to do is ignore the post and move on.

 

[Russ Smith]

Speaking of Sonny Vaccaro, he was on radio a few minutes ago and compared Jennings to Curt Flood and said he was the first one brave enough to challenge the oppressive rule against HS straight to the NBA.

If he was Curt Flood wouldn't he have actually challenged the rule in court rather than simply going to Europe because he didn't qualify?

 

[Dback Jon]

If he was Curt Flood wouldn't he have actually challenged the rule in court rather than simply going to Europe because he didn't qualify?

Yup.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Did Lute really want a kid who was only in it for the money?

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what an idiot. what happens when the dude is 60? still "young" money? cripes. idiots abound.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

regardless of attitude, this is a tremendous loss for uofa for the reasons mao provided. moreover, it is just a continuing saga of bad news for the program. it's a program that's seemingly teetering on the edge of falling into the muck that is the second tier of ncaa hoops. a difficult place to climb back out of (see michigan). just another in a long (recent) line of bad trends.

 

[PoolBoy]

what an idiot. what happens when the dude is 60? still "young" money? cripes. idiots abound.

young money= new money.

i think its saying he wasn't born rich. he made his life with his skills and hard work.

that aside, i think its very funny how excited all of you guys were for brandon jennings, and now that he left the dysfunctional program that is Arizona basketball, you guys think you are better off. get real.

 

[Dback Jon]

what an idiot. what happens when the dude is 60? still "young" money? cripes. idiots abound.

Hmmm - maybe he's already made too much money from Hoops to qualify for the NCAA....

 

[Chaplin]

young money= new money.

i think its saying he wasn't born rich. he made his life with his skills and hard work.

that aside, i think its very funny how excited all of you guys were for brandon jennings, and now that he left the dysfunctional program that is Arizona basketball, you guys think you are better off. get real.

Slow down there, turbo. At the time when we were excited about him, we had no idea he was this much of a "me-first" guy. Things change, just like opinions. Maybe you should get real.

 

[PoolBoy]

Slow down there, turbo. At the time when we were excited about him, we had no idea he was this much of a "me-first" guy. Things change, just like opinions. Maybe you should get real.

if you want to see real "me first", take a look at your coach real quick, if you can find him.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Slow down there, turbo. At the time when we were excited about him, we had no idea he was this much of a "me-first" guy. Things change, just like opinions. Maybe you should get real.

Not going to happen, he's too busy jocking the greatness of NIT quarterfinal fodder such as Syracuse and ASU to get real. If Arizona is such a mess, I'm not sure what he'd call these programs who Arizona continues to outperform and outrecruit even in a down cycle?

And for all the talk about falling into an abyss, Arizona has made it into the Tourney every year since the Reagan Administration and continues to recruit at a very high level. Yeah, things are what they once were and at Lute's age expecting such is unrealistic. But to suggest Arizona is the next UNLV, Michigan, or NC State (three programs that were quickly derailed due to heavy NCAA sanctions which UA has stayed away from during Lute's tenure) shows a lack of understanding of college hoops history. I supposed you could argue that Arizona could gradually fall off a la Depaul but Lute's lack of support from the administration won't allow that to occur. Lute has too many enemies in Tucson right now that he'd get forced out before the program slid too far. Hell, it wouldn't shock me if he got let go after this upcoming season if they don't advance to the Sweet 16 and 2009 recruiting falls apart.

 

[PoolBoy]

Not going to happen, he's too busy jocking the greatness of NIT quarterfinal fodder such as Syracuse and ASU to get real. If Arizona is such a mess, I'm not sure what he'd call these programs who Arizona continues to outperform and outrecruit even in a down cycle?

And for all the talk about falling into an abyss, Arizona has made it into the Tourney every year since the Reagan Administration and continues to recruit at a very high level. Yeah, things are what they once were and at Lute's age expecting such is unrealistic. But to suggest Arizona is the next UNLV, Michigan, or NC State (three programs that were quickly derailed due to heavy NCAA sanctions which UA has stayed away from during Lute's tenure) shows a lack of understanding of college hoops history.

1. I dont think Syracuse had a great season by any means. I think they had a very average year with some bright spots, and will be a contender next year in the tourney.
2. ASU did have a great year.

and if you are outrecruiting and outperforming ASU, then why did Brandon Jennings bolt to Europe, where he will not be on ESPN, CBS, and FSN, and certainly won't be coached by such a wonderful coach as lute, wheras a great players like James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph stick around and grow as players in a growing ASU program. face it, the tides are turning.

 

[Chaplin]

1. I dont think Syracuse had a great season by any means. I think they had a very average year with some bright spots, and will be a contender next year in the tourney.
2. ASU did have a great year.

and if you are outrecruiting and outperforming ASU, then why did Brandon Jennings bolt to Europe, where he will not be on ESPN, CBS, and FSN, and certainly won't be coached by such a wonderful coach as lute, wheras a great players like James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph stick around and grow as players in a growing ASU program. face it, the tides are turning.

You read, right? I'm assuming you do, but then I would think you'd read what has been said not only on this thread, but in newspapers and on websites all over the place. The kid 1) is not smart enough to actually get into the school, and 2) is getting advice from scumbags like Sonny Vacarro. That has NOTHING to do with the University.

 

[SO91]

It says something about a program's status and expectations when you consider making the NIT a great year.

 

[Skkorpion]

One thing remains true. UA hoops is continuing to provide a lot of entertainment.

 

[The Commish]

Not my fault he's saying dumb things. If anything the fact that Arizona Basetball is still goes to the NCAA every year while recruiting at a high level after going through all the drama over the last several years (Lute's absence from program, death of Bobbi Olson, headcases off and on the court, the LOA and divorce, underwhelming performance on the court, questions regarding Lute's age and health, Kevin O'Neill hire, Pastner departure, Emmanuel Negedu, Olson/Livengood fued, Christine Torretti, and now Brandon Jennings just to name a few) should tell a saavy sports fan you how strong UA Hoops truly is. Not many programs could survive what UA has gone through in recent years let alone achieve the benchmark for success in NCAA Basketball every season.

Instead of focusing on recruiting at a high level, Euuu of Ehhh should focus on performing at a high level. I'm not going to sit here and compare ASU hoops to the Euuu of Ehhh - we're not on the same playing field. But to me it is pretty evident that one program is on the rise and one program is on the downslope. Will we ever get to the standard that you guys have set over the past 2+ decades? Doubtful. Will you guys fall into the abyss that we've been in for the past 2 decades? Doubtful. But don't act like the current state of your program is anything but a mess.

PS - No need to PMS because I'm having a little fun twisting the knife a bit. It's called a rivalry.

 

[Mr. Boldin]

Jennings leaves and UA signs the #5 C for their next class...

Jennings leaves and ASU fans are enamored with Renardo Sidney...

Great players such as Harden and Pendergraph stick around to become better while Budinger, Wise, and Hill cant hold their jock strap...


I can keep the parody coming.

Fact is Jennings is the difference between a Final Four birth and a first weekend exit. There is no doubt we are better off with him on the court than we are with him in Europe. Sure, for the sake of our program we might be better off with Jennings leaving town and Lute promising not to recruit guys like him anymore. Both sides are right, but with Jennings we had a LEGIT chance at a Final Four birth despite UA "spiraling" out of relevance.

 

[Chaplin]

Instead of focusing on recruiting at a high level, Euuu of Ehhh should focus on performing at a high level. I'm not going to sit here and compare ASU hoops to the Euuu of Ehhh - we're not on the same playing field. But to me it is pretty evident that one program is on the rise and one program is on the downslope. Will we ever get to the standard that you guys have set over the past 2+ decades? Doubtful. Will you guys fall into the abyss that we've been in for the past 2 decades? Doubtful. But don't act like the current state of your program is anything but a mess.

PS - No need to PMS because I'm having a little fun twisting the knife a bit. It's called a rivalry.

With your idiotic UofA acronym, how do you expect anyone to take you seriously?

 

[The Commish]

Jennings leaves and UA signs the #5 C for their next class...

Jennings leaves and ASU fans are enamored with Renardo Sidney...

Great players such as Harden and Pendergraph stick around to become better while Budinger, Wise, and Hill cant hold their jock strap...


I can keep the parody coming.

Fact is Jennings is the difference between a Final Four birth and a first weekend exit. There is no doubt we are better off with him on the court than we are with him in Europe. Sure, for the sake of our program we might be better off with Jennings leaving town and Lute promising not to recruit guys like him anymore. Both sides are right, but with Jennings we had a LEGIT chance at a Final Four birth despite UA "spiraling" out of relevance.

Withy is the #8 C according to both Rivals and Scout.com. Not to mention he looks like a Kirk Walters clone so let me know how that goes.

Bayless = Jennings and you guys are returning essentially the same squad so I don't see how you had a LEGIT Final Four chance unless you argue that Lute would be the difference. Anything can happen in the tourney so I can let that slide for now.

 

[Russ Smith]

Withy is the #8 C according to both Rivals and Scout.com. Not to mention he looks like a Kirk Walters clone so let me know how that goes.

Bayless = Jennings and you guys are returning essentially the same squad so I don't see how you had a LEGIT Final Four chance unless you argue that Lute would be the difference. Anything can happen in the tourney so I can let that slide for now.

I think he meant Greg Smith who just verballed to UA recently.

I do think some people in this thread need to go back and look at some of the older threads and what they said there about Jennings before they go too far in the rivalary stuff. UA is a rival but not instate for me and I take no pleasure in having been right about Jennings but I do still remember quite vividly being told repeatedly I didn't understand big time college basketball if I really thought it was possible Brandon Jennings wouldn't qualify, and I also remember vividly threads after Brandon played on ESPN where I questioned whether he cares about winning because he seems more interested in playing And 1 mixtape ball. More than one UA fan told me I was wrong and that Jennings was the #1 rated recruit in the country for a reason.

I think a lot of opinions changed here not because Jennings changed but because the longer this dragged on the more UA fans saw the real Jennings that fans of other schools had been talking about for awhile.

I would add a similar thing happened with Kevin Love. Before he played at UCLA lots of people were telling us his dad is a jerk, he's one and done only cares about the NBA etc. While he had a great year and seems to be a good kid who I'll pull for in the NBA I have to admit I wish he'd shown up in better shape(I realize he couldn't work out 8 hours a day in college like he is now) and I agree his dad is a jerk and I wish Kevin would have bothered to withdraw on time so as not to hurt UCLA's APR. I don't hate the kid but I certainly like him a little less now after his time at UCLA than I did before because I realize he really was a rental player.

IN the long run it's probably good for UA that Jennings didn't get in.

 

[Dback Jon]

Once again, Russ hits the nail on the head.

 

[ajcardfan]

Once again, Russ hits the nail on the head.

Yep.

I thought the "you don't understand big time college basketball" line was special for fans. It was actually used on a rabid UCLA fan?


Don't make Russ go back and find those posts Cat fans, you know he can! He's trying to be nice.

 

[Mr. Boldin]

Withy is the #8 C according to both Rivals and Scout.com. Not to mention he looks like a Kirk Walters clone so let me know how that goes.

Bayless = Jennings and you guys are returning essentially the same squad so I don't see how you had a LEGIT Final Four chance unless you argue that Lute would be the difference. Anything can happen in the tourney so I can let that slide for now.

First of all we just signed the ceneter, which would make that player Greg Smith for 09. If you think Withey is a Kirk Walters clone then you have never seen Withey play a game. Not only did Withey set the California single season blocks record, but he finished 2nd all-time in the state in blocks and averaged 20, 10, and 8 his senior season. Ill just end the argument there.

Comparing last year's team to this year's team minus Bayless and plus Jennings might be the worst compairson in a long time. There is no KO, Lute is not on a LOA, Arizona is a much deeper team this season even without Jennings and Bayless and I think its safe to say Hill, Wise, and Budinger will develop into better players than they were last season, not to mention Withey taking the starting center position and sliding Hill back to PF. But Withey is the next Kirk Walters... so nevermind about that.

Either way, UA's chances of a conference title and a Final Four birth took a huge hit with Jennings opting not to come. UA will miss him sorely next season, because we had the chance to make a deep run. Not saying that still can't happen, but it is less likely without Jennings and that is a fact.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Yep.

I thought the "you don't understand big time college basketball" line was special for fans. It was actually used on a rabid UCLA fan?


Don't make Russ go back and find those posts Cat fans, you know he can! He's trying to be nice.

I can also go back and find where Russ said he wished UCLA and Howland had recruited Jennings because of his ridiculous talent so his 'I told you so' rant is for the most part hindsight. You want me to find those posts and PM's?

We were all very aware of the situation with Jennings but because of the one-year rule I felt he was worth it because he was locked into Arizona (this was obviously before Europe was even thought about). I was wrong, but Russ and ASU fan acting high and mighty on this situation is pretty hypocritical especially because Renardo Sidney is about to bounce to Europe and waste months of Sendek and staff's recruiting efforts. So does that mean you and your fellow Tempe people are as clueless as we are since you all have been talking him up since he showed interest in ASU despite the red flags Russ and I have pointed out?

 

[Chaplin]

I can also go back and find where Russ said he wished UCLA and Howland had recruited Jennings because of his ridiculous talent so his 'I told you so' rant is for the most part hindsight. You want me to find those posts and PM's?

We were all very aware of the situation with Jennings but because of the one-year rule I felt he was worth it because he was locked into Arizona (this was obviously before Europe was even thought about). I was wrong, but Russ and ASU fan acting high and mighty on this situation is pretty hypocritical especially because Renardo Sidney is about to bounce to Europe and waste months of Sendek and staff's recruiting efforts. So does that mean you and your fellow Tempe people are as clueless as we are since you all have been talking him up since he showed interest in ASU despite the red flags Russ and I have pointed out?

And we have a winner!