All is not well in Arizona Basketball at the moment. Hall of Fame Coach Lute Olson has taken a leave of absence for the entire 2007-2008 season, and Kevin O'Neill has since stepped in as substitute teacher for the young Wildcat hoopsters. Going one step further, Mr O'Neill has been named as Lute's successor when the living legend decides to retire.
Coach Olson has expressed the desire to return for the 2008-2009 season, but it looks very su####iously like a fairwell tour more than anything - particularly with AD Jim Livengood having already removed the interim tag from O'Neill and slapped him with the "head coach in waiting" title.
That smells of Lute's impending retirement after next season, which in all honesty, most of us UofA fans and alumni realized was in the very near future anyways. Eventually at some point there will be a transition to a new era of Arizona basketball, and that transition will probably be a bumpy ride.
All of that aside, the current team has fallen on tough times as of late. Early in the season, the 'Cats handled all of the uncertainty surrounding Coach Olson's sudden departure and the subsequent shift required to adapt to Coach O'Neill's style of game with amazing resolve. The early season was marked by some gritty wins and a valiant effort against the Kansas Jayhawks at Phogg-Allen Fieldhouse.
Then came the injury to point guard Jerryd Bayless.
It doesn't seem like much when written as a line item like that, but in reality that injury truly changed the dynamic of this team. Swingman Chase Budinger is a tremendous player with loads of talent, but he just doesn't seem to be a team leader. We wondered about his toughness last year, and we're still wondering this year. That's not an accusation, that's just an observation.
Some dudes are comfortable being "the man", while others don't possess that sort of personality. Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Chase, and he most definitely comes across as a "team comes first" type of player. For a team to win consistently and build valuable team chemistry, it's pretty much a requirement that the players are unselfish.
To some extent playing point guard makes Jerryd Bayless a team leader by default, it's just the nature of the position, but there's more to it than that. Even as a freshman, in critical situations, Jerryd has shown incredible toughness. Arizona is a different team with JB on the court, and while Nic Wise has filled in admirably at the point, again, he's just not quite on the same level as JB.
And it shows.
The Pac-10 is loaded this season, from top to bottom. There will be no easy games at all during the conference schedule, and with back to back losses to Oregon and ASU, the 'Cats have stumbled out to a 1-2 start in Pac-10 play. Now, it's not time to push the panic button just yet, but there's certainly alot of cause for concern. Washington State, UCLA, USC, Cal, Stanford, and Oregon are all capable of making a Sweet Sixteen run in the NCAA tourney, and ASU, Oregon State, and Washington have also proven that they will make noise if a spot in the Big Dance is in their future.
That's my point.
From what I've seen so far, every team in the Pac-10 is actually capable of getting into the NCAA tournament, although of course that won't happen. Teams will knock each other off as the season goes along, and only the strong will survive.
But that's a good thing. The teams that do emerge will definitely be battle tested.
Here's our history lesson for the day: Back in the 1996-97 season, Arizona struggled mightily with inconsistency and key injuries and limped to a fifth place finish in the Pac-10. Then (at the right time) everything seemed to come together. A blitzkrieg thru the tail end of the Pac-10 schedule was followed by one of the most impressive marches thru the NCAA tournament as Arizona defeated Kansas, North Carolina, and Kentucky (all No.1 seeds) to claim the National Championship.
There are some similarities between this current team and that '97 squad, such as a tough freshman point guard and an undermanned frontline and the struggles with injuries. It's early in conference play, and only time will tell if this version of Arizona basketball has what it takes to regroup.
BC - did you go to AZ? I graduated in 94. I too, am very concerned about the latest turn of events. Nothing like a loss to ASU to put things in dire straits. While I would love to see them pull off a Champ run like our 97 squad had, I just don't think they can pull it off without Lute.
I for one, was not prepared for Lute to walk away for the entire season...I hope he gets his divorce finalized and comes back to Dance with us.
klvalus.... sorry but i think lute is gone... yes a fine basketball coach i cant say he isnt!! but i think he has so much going on now he wouldnt be able to consintrate fully on the kids!!! whitch i tip my hat to him shows class!!!
klvalus, this is very cool. I graduated from the UofA in May of '94 with a degree in mechanical engineering. It's always great to come across a fellow Wildcat, and especially one that was on campus the same time as me!
Good to have another UofA alum here on the blogs.
Nothing like a loss to ASU to put things in dire straits.
Whew, ain't that the truth. That was a wake up call!
I doubt anyone will match what the '97 squad did, that was incredible, but I think this team can still regroup and have a great season.
"Nothing like a loss to ASU to put things in dire straits" lol
Get use to it, Hardin is just a freshman.
Lute is a master recruiter and is one of the best game manager/motivator there ever was. Without him your team will struggle to stay competitive.
Go Devils
*above remarks were intended to keep the rivalry going and should not be interpreted as personel*
If Lute is gone for good, and i believe at 74 , he is. Life could be different for UofA fans. YOU GUYS HAVE TO REALIZE THAT YOU HAVE HAD AN INCREDIBLE RUN WITH LUTE OVER THE PAST 23 YEARS. Like the Bulls with Jordan/Pippen or the 49er's with Montana/Young, dynasties don't last forever. Good luck the rest of the way.
U of a will be okay. Even though this IS the pac 10, where we schedule cream puffs because we beat up on each other during the season. The conf. competition is the toughest, top to bottom better than ANY other conf. in the country!LOL! I have my hardhat on, bring it! Sounds like some #### ANOTHER conf. likes to use.
I fear we are in for an adjustment period down in Tucson!
It's inevitable. When Lute does retire, Arizona basketball will definitely go thru a gut check. I think it might be a rough ride.
I sure hope he comes back
Me too, at least for one more season. If nothing else, it will give all of us fans a chance to show our appreciation for all that Coach Olson has done for Arizona basketball.
dynasties don't last forever.
UofA has had alot of success with the basketball program, but I'm going to stop short of calling it a dynasty. You make a very good point that building a winning program is one thing, but staying there is definitely not permanent.
UofA softball, that might qualify as a dynasty.
where we schedule cream puffs because we beat up on each other during the season.
Sure, another conference may use that excuse *ahem* SEC *ahem*, but the Pac-10 (for the most part) does not schedule cream puffs. Arizona's non-conference schedule has been typically tough - as it should be.
u of a is struggling this year no doubt. the injuries have set em back, the loss of lute is huge. hopefully they can pick it up for the rest of the season and wreck shop in the pac10.
Very good point about the whole comparison to the 97 squad. Lets hope Hill turns it on like Bramlett did, and Wise steps it up the way Miles did. Also, I've noticed a sililarity between Chase and Dickerson. The way Michael struggled at times to score looks like Chase when he struggles. Also, need Walters to turn into a Bennett Davison type. Well, lets hope the cats get their act together against the Cougars this week.
the injuries have set em back, the loss of lute is huge.
Sometimes injuries can be a blessing in disguise by making other players step up their game, but I completely agree that losing Lute for the year is a big deal.
These young 'Cats really miss Coach Olson, and it shows.
Well, lets hope the cats get their act together against the Cougars this week.
Winning in McKale is extremely important this year, seeing how tough the Pac-10 is. Must hold home court.
I've not been overly impressed by Wash State - sure they have a tremendous record, but the Cougars don't really strike me as an "elite" team. Come Thursday night, we'll see if the Wildcats can play efficient halfcourt offense and solid defense because WSU likes the deliberate style of basketball.
Thank GOD we beat Cal
Amen to that. I hate to use the word "desperate" so early in the Pac-10 schedule, but the Wildcats desperately needed to win that game. The Stanford loss was a heartbreaker, and it was good to see Arizona bounce back in Berkeley.
Next up, the Washington schools at the McKale Center!
'A blitzkrieg thru the Pac-10 tourney' in 1997? There was no Pac-10 tourney between 1990 and 2002, but it sounded good. Good to see a writer doing his homework when presenting the 'history lesson for the day'. Dumb@$$.
Oh man, I really screwed that up! For some reason I had it in my memory that the 'Cats won the conference tourney that year. Whew, that's a bad mistake.
I'll edit that line to read "A blitzkrieg thru the tail end of the Pac-10 schedule was followed by ...."
Thanks for pointing that out.
Good to see a writer doing his homework when presenting the 'history lesson for the day'.
Yeah, some fact checking would've been a good idea before I posted this.
I'm a mechanical engineer and sci-fi geek by nature, and I love sports. Once upon a time I played some sports and was pretty good at them, but somewhere along the line I found I could actually make good money in the engineering business. So now I will write about sports and my goofy thoughts about them. Somewhere in these ramblings there might be some value for someone. I'm not sure.
