At this point, the “John Groce just needs more time” crowd are on par with global warming deniers, creationists or the “President Barack Obama is a Muslim born in Kenya” camp.
In life you are entitled to your own opinions, you are not entitled to your own facts. It’s a fact that Illini basketball should never be this pathetic. No Illini basketball fan should ever be asked to tolerate what we saw Tuesday night. Or this past Saturday. Or in the visit to Michigan State.
Or versus Chicago State, UIC, North Florida etc.
We wrote over two months ago that this Illini basketball team is the worst edition since pre Lou Henson era. With a 1-5 Big Ten start, which has been every bit as dreadful as it sounds, Illinois is indeed living down to that early ’70s era description. (Google Gene Barrow and Harv Schmidt to get some historical perspective) I can literally say, without hyperbole or exaggeration, that I wasn’t even alive the last time Illini basketball was this non-competitive, interesting and disinterested.
They look like they don’t really even care anymore. That is 100% Groce’s fault. Is there any pride left at all?
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/689626241465520128
To be fair and honest, that look actually began last season, not this season. Injuries, Schminjuries when you get utterly annihilated by Michigan’s injury ravaged half a team in the Big Ten Tournament, and then follow that up with a complete no-show versus a meh Alabama team in the NIT.
The only guy they were missing for the Indiana game that they were supposed to have was Tracy Abrams, and I doubt his addition would have been enough to prevent the Hoosiers from scoring 61 points in a half and breaking the Big Ten record for single game three point field goals.
Yes, you could say Illinois was supposed to have Darius Paul this season too, but when you made yourself overly reliant on someone with a history of being chronically unreliable, then you get exactly what you deserve. You could also argue Thorne wasn’t himself yet. Leron Black was missing, and he would have helped a little bit, but you can’t use his absence as an excuse because he’s been more recruiting hype than actual production thus far.
The version of Illini basketball that we saw last March keeps rearing its ugly head this season, and that’s more than enough to make a John Groce buyout a necessity. Either they’re not trying because Groce can’t motivate them, or they are trying and the roster he’s assembled/managing/playing is laughably over-matched in way too many games this season.
#ItsNotIdeal
To borrow the infamous quote from Illinois Athletic Director Paul Kowalczyk on the Bill Cubit extension: “It’s not ideal, but I don’t think it will be put a dagger in the heart of the program.”
What might put a dagger in the heart of the basketball program though is retaining Groce for another year. In terms of simply on the court/on the field product, he’s easily Tim Beckman, if not worse. No one ever compares Groce to Beckman though because of the drastic difference between Groce and Beckman off the court/field.
Every time John Groce speaks in public he sounds like an unholy hybrid of your HR manager, the “practice your cliches” scene in “Bull Durham” and a run-of-the-mill corporate motivational speaker who’s been overly tested on focus groups.
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/690023011009851393
Versus Tim Beckman, whose public speaking style sounds like a frightening fusion of Sarah Palin, Matt Foley, Phil Davison and Elder Cunningham from “Book of Mormon.”
Then you have all those awful things Beckman did off the field. You read the report already so you know. So sure it makes sense that hardly anybody compares Groce to Beckman, but ask yourself this-
Did Illinois football do anything worse, on the field, 2012-2014 then this Illini basketball season? 2015-16 hoops is pretty much the same thing as ’12 football when you bottom line it. If and when the University of Illinois starts to show some interest in the idea of possibly hiring an Athletic Director someday in the very distant future, they should consider a new hoops coach too.
https://twitter.com/PaulMBanks/status/689284911040188416
If they maintain the status quo, then they’ve pretty much given up on having a program.
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and sometimes writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. The website is also featured on News Now.
Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, currently contributes to the Chicago Tribune RedEye. He also appears regularly on numerous talk shows all across the country. Catch him Tuesdays on KOZN 1620 The Zone.
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