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Its time to fire Chris Mooney

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Ben Samuel

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Nov 13, 2017
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The games aren't even competitive anymore. Haven't been to the NCAA tournament since 2011.
The upcoming schedule with UAB, Wake Forest, Georgetown, Vermont.

Favored by 11 point against Delaware lose by 13
Favored by 2 points today lose by 33 both home games

Its time to go....
 
If we win two OOC games before January 2018 I will be surprised. We look like a deer stuck in headlights. Now granted we are missing
Fore and two key players from last year, but our ball movement is sluggish and our defense is slow to react. This is a tough OOC schedule
but we got to figure out our defense first. I will hold opinion on making a coaching change until after we get into conference schedule and see
how much we are improved.

Sherod starts so damn slow every game and Buck feels he must take the game over for the sake of the team. These two guys need to get on
the same page and start producing. How many shots off screens did we have? Hardly any that I remember. I thought Paul looked good for the time
he was in the game and unfortunately missed some easy close in shots, but he was in the right spot and moving well off a pick an roll. Played their
big center well when in.

I do not see fire or intensity and I wonder if some of the players have put too much pressure on themselves. OOC schedule killed our NCAA bid last year,
and it will put an end to it this year also.
 
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If we win two OOC games before January 2018 I will be surprised. We look like a deer stuck in headlights. Now granted we are missing
Fore and two key players from last year, but our ball movement is sluggish and our defense is slow to react. This is a tough OOC schedule
but we got to figure out our defense first. I will hold opinion on making a coaching change until after we get into conference schedule and see
how much we are improved.

Sherod starts so damn slow every game and Buck feels he must take the game over for the sake of the team. These two guys need to get on
the same page and start producing. How many shots off screens did we have? Hardly any that I remember. I thought Paul looked good for the time
he was in the game and unfortunately missed some easy close in shots, but he was in the right spot and moving well off a pick an roll. Played their
big center well when in.

I do not see fire or intensity and I wonder if some of the players have put too much pressure on themselves. OOC schedule killed our NCAA bid last year,
and it will put an end to it this year also.
Carolina I agree with 90%. My only disagreement is with the OCC schedule. Everyone of us, even Ulla, have always known we had to win the A-10 tournament to go to the NCAA this year..
 
Carolina I agree with 90%. My only disagreement is with the OCC schedule. Everyone of us, even Ulla, have always known we had to win the A-10 tournament to go to the NCAA this year..
Many here picked us to go 8-4 OOC maybe good enough to keep us in the mix for NCAA consideration but that included two wins Del and Jax St. We were complaining about how weak the OOC schedule and that was going to hurt our chances, was now it appears to be excessively difficult.
 
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Yeah, this was supposed to be the easy part of the schedule. The hard part is yet to come.

That said, last year we looked bad (not THIS bad) and then almost beat Maryland, which was ranked. So who the hell knows. Watch us beat Cincinnati in a week.
 
I thought Paul looked pretty darn solid too. One of those misses I feel like he faked the guy in the air and drew some big contact with no call, but that is the way it goes. Yes, missed some chippy's but that will come.
Cayo looks like a good active body in there, liked some of the glimpses from him.
Sherod seems a little lost so far.
I feel like Solly can be a nice contributor once he gets comfortable.
It does seem like whatever Mooney is doing is not connecting with the team so far. It will be interesting to see how the team responds. Did Mooney show much emotion on the sideline? I couldn't tell on tv, I just saw him shaking guys hands as they came off.
 
Listening to him on the postgame show, you'd have thought everything went almost exactly as he expected it to. I get that you can't throw your entire team under the bus, but come on man. A little emotion after you just got your brains beat in by two low-level conferences at HOME to start the season? I really don't want to hear about how young we are after I heard all summer about how we were "young" but very experienced.
 
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I thought Paul looked pretty darn solid too. One of those misses I feel like he faked the guy in the air and drew some big contact with no call, but that is the way it goes. Yes, missed some chippy's but that will come.
Cayo looks like a good active body in there, liked some of the glimpses from him.
Sherod seems a little lost so far.
I feel like Solly can be a nice contributor once he gets comfortable.
It does seem like whatever Mooney is doing is not connecting with the team so far. It will be interesting to see how the team responds. Did Mooney show much emotion on the sideline? I couldn't tell on tv, I just saw him shaking guys hands as they came off.
Didn't Solly practice with the team all last year and Nick played how long does it take to get comfortable? CM was pretty benign
 
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CM has been a less than adequate coach for years. The post-game excuse show was sadly hilarious. He keeps playing that same O and D that is ineffective and baffling to his own team. Not so baffling to opponent. I refuse to accept his youth excuse because that is of his own making. Had over a decade to establish the program and recruit.
 
I never watch the postgame show just because no one asks any good questions. It just seems like everything is fine.
 
Here's what dawned on me today: When we are on offense, this is what happens...

The ballhandler dribbles to one of 3 or 4 preset spots on the court and waits for everyone else to get in position. Unfortunately, this also allows the defense to get set, too. Then, we make a bunch of pre-determined passes, guys run weaves through the lane, everyone seems very reluctant to try any decisive 1-on-1 moves, and we end up hoisting up a terrible contested shot.

Meanwhile, when we are on defense...Our opponent dribbles down the court and CONTINUES MOVING THE BALL TOWARD THE BASKET unless we offer resistance. Which Friday and today WE DIDN'T! Or their ballhandler makes some aggressive moves or cuts, to which our guys terribly overreact, and now two or three guys are wide open for easy shots under the basket or beyond the arc.

The reason it seems like there's a lid on the rim for us is because we are doing NOTHING to surprise the other teams. We're just playing mechanical basketball as if programmed by a computer. Delaware and JSU played basketball.
 
Here's what dawned on me today: When we are on offense, this is what happens...

The ballhandler dribbles to one of 3 or 4 preset spots on the court and waits for everyone else to get in position. Unfortunately, this also allows the defense to get set, too. Then, we make a bunch of pre-determined passes, guys run weaves through the lane, everyone seems very reluctant to try any decisive 1-on-1 moves, and we end up hoisting up a terrible contested shot.

Meanwhile, when we are on defense...Our opponent dribbles down the court and CONTINUES MOVING THE BALL TOWARD THE BASKET unless we offer resistance. Which Friday and today WE DIDN'T! Or their ballhandler makes some aggressive moves or cuts, to which our guys terribly overreact, and now two or three guys are wide open for easy shots under the basket or beyond the arc.

The reason it seems like there's a lid on the rim for us is because we are doing NOTHING to surprise the other teams. We're just playing mechanical basketball as if programmed by a computer. Delaware and JSU played basketball.
This is on target. Force the square peg in the square hole (at all costs dammit) seems to be the coaching philosophy. The help defense is atrocious for the same reason. Too much focus on scheme and not enough on natural instinctual flow. Over thinking.

All about coaching.
 
Our offense was uncomfortable to watch today. Buck took things into his own hands coming out of an early time out, but then we reverted to form. JSU was catching the ball ready to shoot. We catch the ball ready to get it to the next guy and the next guy. I am coaching a fall high school team - we have a bunch of guys that just have not played a lot of basketball. They do the same thing - catch the ball looking to get rid of it or pound it not getting anywhere. We obviously have some guys that can make plays, but seem more intent on not messing up the offensive set than attacking. I realize you have to run an offense, but it just seems the guys are not comfortable enough to make plays off of it.
 
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I never watch the postgame show just because no one asks any good questions. It just seems like everything is fine.
Paul needs to play. Mooney has no clue how to use the personnel he has. As strange as it sounds, after two games, an admittedly very small sample, I would be playing Paul and Grant together with three guards. Scrap that nonsensical, non productive perimeter offense which generates ZERO shots and start running a double stack or two low post offense. At least then there MIGHT be some chances for an offensive rebound.
Obviously defense is also a big problem right now and the "coach" needs to realize that MAYBE, just maybe teaching these guys to play a zone might help to slow down the deluge of layups we have given up in two games. Even if the zone is just thrown in there to change things up a bit.
One of the best examples of how totally clueless Mooney is (one of many) is with five minutes left, down 30 in the second game of non-conference play, Mooney is still playing Grant, Buck and Sherod instead of as many bench players as he can get in there to give them some minutes, not seconds to get some experience.
All that being said, I like most of these young kids and think with better coaching they could be much more competitive. Unfortunately after watching him for five years Mooney seems unwilling or more likely, incapable of making the changes to help this team improve.
 
To take this a step further, in retrospect, this is why we produce good teams every 3 or 4 years – it takes the guys that long to master Mooney's offense. And it can be a GREAT offense if everyone has it mastered, but unless you have a couple senior leaders who are really adept at it (Harp and KA, TJ and SDJ), it's very difficult to win consistently with it.

I know the current roster of players on this team is talented enough to finish in the top-4 of the A-10. But I don't think it's possible in this offensive scheme. It demands too much perfection, and it's frankly just not attainable with enough regularity.
 
Mooney needs to go now. This has been a long time coming. We need to make the move now so we can take care of the buyout and have a lot of time to make the best possible hire at head coach. Who should we hire? Any ideas?
 
Would assume the buyout is somewhere north of $4 million -- maybe more with the extra year tacked on recently.

Mooney buyout + contract for new coach? Going to be very expensive.
 
I don't think the offense is as confusing/complicated as the defense is, nor do I think it doesn't work. We've had incredibly productive offenses the last several years after a long period of slow-roll, downtempo offense early in CM's time here. I do think we've got guys who are uncomfortable, that much seems evident. From what I understand, we have 5 guys who can all shoot reasonably well, and at least a couple who can play on the block or get to the rim. The lack of production on O is mostly about confidence and decisiveness, and a willingness to just shoot when ready.

I think that's fixable more quickly. The D problems just seem to be there every year when it used to be such a strength. I can't understand why we can't get it right, either with the traditional D or a revised version. We have good athletes that I think are also reasonably heady. I mean, come on.
 
To take this a step further, in retrospect, this is why we produce good teams every 3 or 4 years – it takes the guys that long to master Mooney's offense. And it can be a GREAT offense if everyone has it mastered, but unless you have a couple senior leaders who are really adept at it (Harp and KA, TJ and SDJ), it's very difficult to win consistently with it.

I know the current roster of players on this team is talented enough to finish in the top-4 of the A-10. But I don't think it's possible in this offensive scheme. It demands too much perfection, and it's frankly just not attainable with enough regularity.
Do you mean this season they are talented enough to finish in the top 4 of the A10?
 
I know the current roster of players on this team is talented enough to finish in the top-4 of the A-10. .
we're not so talented that we should be better than 10 A-10 teams. we're raw and it shows. yeah, we're excited that we have nice pieces. but our PG just played his first 2 college games. our starting big forward just played his first 2 college games. our big man is a redshirt freshman. and on top of that, any team missing a Khwan Fore is going to struggle a little.

there's talent, but it's going to take some time for this particular group to gel, not that anyone wants to hear that or is willing to give them.
 
Richmond cares about athletics, but not to the tune of 3+ million to fire Mooney, and then the additional probably 700K+ you will have to give a new coach (depending on who they are). They will let him coach another 2 years for sure to get that buyout down.
 
Richmond cares about athletics, but not to the tune of 3+ million to fire Mooney, and then the additional probably 700K+ you will have to give a new coach (depending on who they are). They will let him coach another 2 years for sure to get that buyout down.
the problem is we fans are putting down thousands of dollars, spider club, tickets, travel etc a year in the mean time.
 
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Do you mean this season they are talented enough to finish in the top 4 of the A10?
Yes. look around this league. There are a lot of mediocre programs with less individual talent than us.

Granted, I was assuming Golden would be a productive player, which so far he has not been (I'm not counting garbage points in blowouts as productive, and he's been lost on defense). So far, I've been most disappointed in him and Sherod. When they play like that, we are not a top-4 team. But I could see us pulling a repeat of last year and somehow flipping a switch once the league season starts.
 
Yes. look around this league. There are a lot of mediocre programs with less individual talent than us.

Granted, I was assuming Golden would be a productive player, which so far he has not been (I'm not counting garbage points in blowouts as productive, and he's been lost on defense). So far, I've been most disappointed in him and Sherod. When they play like that, we are not a top-4 team. But I could see us pulling a repeat of last year and somehow flipping a switch once the league season starts.
Hmmmm..... you don't work in any industry like medical, law or investment selections do you? I don't think I'm going to be taking your predicitons for any large life decisions.

I hope you are right but.......
 
Yes. look around this league. There are a lot of mediocre programs with less individual talent than us.

Granted, I was assuming Golden would be a productive player, which so far he has not been (I'm not counting garbage points in blowouts as productive, and he's been lost on defense). So far, I've been most disappointed in him and Sherod. When they play like that, we are not a top-4 team. But I could see us pulling a repeat of last year and somehow flipping a switch once the league season starts.
I think a lot of the preseason hype had us assuming best case for everything. we've never seen Solly, but he's going to be a top of the A10 forward. Grant's a redshirt freshman, but he's ready to be all-league.

then Khwan got hurt. we knew that was brutal but told ourselves "Khwan's out? no big deal". Julius has an ankle? meh, he's just the 6th man anyway.

we needed best case of everything. we didn't get it. now the fan base is imploding and the team's confidence is shot. no swagger. gotta get it back.
 
Richmond cares about athletics, but not to the tune of 3+ million to fire Mooney, and then the additional probably 700K+ you will have to give a new coach (depending on who they are). They will let him coach another 2 years for sure to get that buyout down.
It's got to end sometime. We can't keep perpetuating the problem with 1 year extensions to "cover" recruiting. The madness needs to end and end now. It should be the first order of business for the new AD.
 
Hmmmm..... you don't work in any industry like medical, law or investment selections do you? I don't think I'm going to be taking your predicitons for any large life decisions.

I hope you are right but.......
Ha, I didn't say I thought it would happen, just that it could. After our terrible OOC last year, who thought we were going to suddenly play great and finish in the top-4? No one. It seems far less likely this year, but this is the Mooney way – disappoint early, shows signs of life, ultimately fall a little short of the goal.
 
The narrative before the season was that we are a young team, but not an inexperienced team. I think it was even an article in the newspaper. Reason being - because we had Sherod, Buckingham, and Fore returning and there were some very high expectations and hype with Solly and thought Grant, even though he missed last season with his medical issue - would be a stud coming through this year. Not to mention - we always think our frosh will be great.

But reality is - we are a man down with Fore, Solly has shown nothing in 2 games (and yes it is only 2 games) to prove he will have an impact this year or next year, and Grant is essentially a frosh after missing last season. Not to mention - we are running a system that relies on shooting first and in the first 2 games on our home floor - we are shooting 40% overall and 20% from 3 point land.

It is only 2 games and I like to look at the season in 4/5 game stretches - but I don't think anyone thought we would lose these 2 games and basically get blown out in both. And the idea that we are young is no excuse. Guess what - Delaware was young too. They started 1 junion, 2 Frosh, and 2 Sophs. On just a pure talent level - we should be able to beat them. If we play poorly and they play great, it should be a close game - not a 33 point lead we are trying to erase.
 
+1 Spiderman. Nice to see that the entire board is not going off the rails, and that Spiderman always has a few sage words to share.

I really do not like that our defense seems to be so ineffective, and that it is giving the other team such easy shots, consistently. Our guys seem to be "lost" or confused, or tentative, out there on defense. If we have a defense that guys can't learn well in a full year (Solly and Grant are examples of guys who red-shirted), then I think we need to simplify our schemes. If playing "man" defense is going to allow our guys to play more effectively, then I am for it. It may be time to gather input from the players and assistant coaches and see what ideas they have. Sticking with a formula that is not working will need to end soon, but I am willing to see what happens in the Caymans before going into panic mode.

My major concerns so far are the defense, Nick's play (and intensity) and how quickly Solly is adapting to the systems.

My major reasons for optimism are: 1) Jacob appears to be an outstanding player. I love both his offense and defense, and most of all his infectious intensity. 2) Grant looks to me to have a lot of potential. In today's game he showed a variety of post-moves, and handled the ball well. For what is essentially his second "real' game as a Spider, I thought he looked very good. I would gladly live or die on his inside game, if we can only figure out ways to get him the ball close to the hoop. 3) I really liked what I saw from Nathan Cayo today (Nate). I am encouraged that he can become a defensive "stopper" and can also develop offensively. The fact that he was given 22-minutes on the floor today (kudos to the coaches for this!) was probably my biggest positive take-away from an otherwise discouraging game.

Nick gets lots of love on this board, but I am seeing a guy who looks like he is "coasting" and is not giving 100% effort 100% of the time. He reminds me of a CD from the 70's titled: Living and dying at 3/4 speed (likely by John Mellenncamp). I am also not seeing effective defense from him. Count his number of floor-burns and charges-taken for the season, and will you come up with a number greater than 0? He could be so much better than he has shown in the first two games. Based on what I saw today, Nate would get more minutes and Nick fewer....
 
This Caymen Island tournament I think will be nothing be a distraction to the players.
We are gonna get blown out by ever team we face in Cayman's. After 13 years as coach this team is an embarrassment for Mooney to b putting on the court. An embarrassment!!! He should resign with class and forfeit the rest of his pay.
 
I have always posted my thoughts without sugar coating on this board, though that may come as a surprise to many of you. I think Mooney had some tough breaks since his sweet 16 run, Ced getting injured and Avila and Bernard getting denied by admissions took away 2 or 3 NCAA berths in my estimation. I gave him a pass based on these unlucky breaks and on the fact that he could hold our program at a respectable floor (top 100 kenpom!) even in our off years.

We are not a top 100 team this year. The first two games have shown, both statistically and through the eye test, that we may be the worst team in the country. That may sound like a crazy overexaggeration, but it is not.
Last year, according to kenpom, the worst team in the country had an efficiency margin of -30.3. So far this year we have an efficiency margin -34.3, and that hasn't even been adjusted for our home court advantage and the level of competition we faced, both of which would make our margin much worse. Even with Fore coming back I do not see us winning many games.

This is unacceptable to me. This should be unacceptable to everyone. There is no excuse.
 
Blah, blah blah... Look, we all know that when healthy, Khwan Fore is the type of player who not only is a threat to go off for 40 or 50 points a night by himself but also compile 8-12 assists, too. It's also known, at least to a smaller group of fans, that he wears the helmet with the communications device in it so that he can tell the other players where to align themselves on defense. Though possibly that's only a football thing, I'll have to check it out.

Anyway, without him here, these results were highly predictable. With him back in a week or so, we will be back on track for an NCAA bid.
 
We look unprepared. Do think things will improve as the season progresses and the frosh adjust to the college game but our performances to date have not been good - okay they have been pathetic. Why don't we start the last 5 players off the bench - we couldn't do much worse - maybe that would at least make the regular starters more motivated to get it done. Alright I know they are carrying out the coach's game plan but obviously it is not working. We need to do "something" to change the direction........................
 
Our offense was uncomfortable to watch today. Buck took things into his own hands coming out of an early time out, but then we reverted to form. JSU was catching the ball ready to shoot. We catch the ball ready to get it to the next guy and the next guy. I am coaching a fall high school team - we have a bunch of guys that just have not played a lot of basketball. They do the same thing - catch the ball looking to get rid of it or pound it not getting anywhere. We obviously have some guys that can make plays, but seem more intent on not messing up the offensive set than attacking. I realize you have to run an offense, but it just seems the guys are not comfortable enough to make plays off of it.

I have written this same post several times a year for several years!

We coach guys to play the system and coach out of them any attempt to make actual offensive plays!
 
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