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Just an 8/9 game, but it's doing my heart good to see Danny D's last D1 coached game

HoopaFan

He took a top 10 team to a one-and-done. YIKES

It wasn't really all that shocking. Ever since Dakich took over the team slowly became terrible. I can't say it's all Dakich's fault. You certaintly have to blame Sampson and the players' effort. At the beginning of the year if you told me the Hoosiers would lose in the first round I would've laughed in your face. But hey, the Dakich experiment is over. He will be an assistant at IU for a year or two then will coach at low Mid-Major. I don't even see a MAC school calling for his services.

This played out exactly how I thought it would. He lost that team a while back. In a way, I was torn. I know there is a ton of angst towards Dan, but I really have no ill-will towards him. I kinda thought it would be nice to see him take IU on a run.
However, being married to an Arkansas grad, I'm happy to see my wife enjoying her alma-mater moving on. I don't see it happening, but the Hogs beat LSU in football when they were ranked #1. Could it happen in hoops? Anything is possible. I'm pullin' for Arkansas vs. UNC, although it would kill my entire bracket. Who cares. I love my wife...and underdogs..so I'd like to see the Hogs pull it off.
As for Dakich...his "dream job" has ended. No way they bring him on as the head coach. He had an outside shot if he took them deep into the tourney, but a one and done won't sit well with the Bloomington faithful.

How many more T's to DD get in the game?

Pardon me for not shedding any tears or feeling sympathy. Seriously folks, how in the world can you have ERIC GORDON, CRAWFORD and the #1 JUCO kid in America and blame recruiting! "We just have to recruit better" after the game.

Or the other thing Dan, is Mr. Superstar needs a coach that can figure out ways for him to score when he faces kids just as athletic as he is.

I'm tired of the excuses and people are going to start seeing patterns and trends. Dan was credited for many of Bobby's recruits, yet couldn't recruit very well on his own being very dependent on the slow, unathletic kids that had very few other competitive offers and just like Bobby, when you get to the shallow end of the talent pool, it's time to switch the lifeguard and get out. I sincerely think after 7 botched years of BGSU after the Morgantown experiement and his tryout in the Big Time that was botched his next stop may be Andrean High School

Not a defense for DD, but take a look at the IU record in the NCAA's over the last 4-5 yrs. of the Knight "regime"... seems to me there were at least a couple of "one and dones"...very seldom past the 2nd round.
So this is not an unusual thing for IU...I had them winning the 1st round game on one of our sheets, more for sentimental reasons, as I hoped DD would get at least one win in his NCAA career.

Dan's dream job is likely over now. I had them winning one just because I thought DJ White & Eric Gordon would be good for a victory over Arkansas. I was wrong. Gordon played one of the worst games of his life, probably, and I never really felt they had a chance at winning.

I wished him luck, but I'm not surprised at all how it turned out. That team tanked after he took over. Not sure it was entirely his fault, but he'll shoulder the blame.

I didn't hear his postgame, but to blame recruiting would be pretty far fetched. They were definitely the more talented team on the floor yesterday, they just didn't play up to their abilities. Maybe they should've tried a zone (yeah right) rather than sit back in their stubborn man and watch ARK destroy them...they shot well over 50% from the field!

Oh well they were going to get destroyed by UNC anyways.

Oh Danny Boy....the pipes, the pipes are calling........

I think Dakich just saw his dream job go down the tubes.

I really wish things would've gone a little better for DD...I liked the guy...that being said, I picked Arkansas to win. I wish him all the best and I hope he can find something good in the future. He CAN be a good coach, he just has to remember how to do it. He needs to quit trying to take pages out of the Bobby Knight Book of Anger.

It wasn't his team and the players played like they missed their coach. Dan wasn't going to be able to be himself and be that hard-nosed tough guy that would sit you for taking bad shots or not playing hard. He couldn't do that because they were all Samson big ego hot shot recruits. He won't get the job but he wasn't in a very good situation to start with.

VDub26Falcon wrote: He needs to quit trying to take pages out of the Bobby Knight Book of Anger.

This is DD's problem. He worships at the alter of Bobby Knight and while he continues to do so will never be able to earn the love and admiration of todays top tier talent. Knights style worked fine 25 years ago, unfortunately for both Knight and DD those days are long gone.

cowboyjoe wrote:It wasn't his team and the players played like they missed their coach. Dan wasn't going to be able to be himself and be that hard-nosed tough guy that would sit you for taking bad shots or not playing hard. He couldn't do that because they were all Samson big ego hot shot recruits. He won't get the job but he wasn't in a very good situation to start with.

If Dan wasn't going to be able to be himself, and knew that the player did not want him as a head coach (They wanted Ray) He would not have taken the job IF he was serious about winning and not just getting his face in the spotlight. He took a potential final four team and ran it into the ground. Ultimately Sampson gets the blame, but it is clear as day the players had no interest in playing for him.

If Dan is so hard-nosed and takes people out for taking bad shots, why didn't he do it at BG (Samarco). Blaming so called "hot shot recruits" is weak. Those players were studs all year long. Why would DJ White and Eric Gordon or the team respect Dakich as a head coach. His record at BG? His career as a player? His experience as a head coach of first round draft picks? Dakich has people fooled. He actually stated in a press conference this week that he has their team playing the best defense they have played all year, so good they lost their last three. Two of the teams had no business being within ten points of them.

Dan's idea of good defense is holding the ball on offense for the entire shot clock to limit the possessions and artificially deflate the points against statistic. His teams were absolutely HORRENDOUS defensively in BG, and IU was the same when he took over. Does he deserve all the blame for IU's fall? No, probably not, but watching that IU team looked a helluva lot like his final 5 years in BG.

His team was full of hot shot ego recruits that wouldn't play for him? Funny, seems none of his players in BG wanted to play for him either.

Judging by Dan's track record as a head coach, I'd say him NOT being himself would have likely been the best course of action.

hammb wrote: His team was full of hot shot ego recruits that wouldn't play for him? Funny, seems none of his players in BG wanted to play for him either.

Judging by Dan's track record as a head coach, I'd say him NOT being himself would have likely been the best course of action.

It's funny, because Dan comes across as glib, funny and personable giving interviews and interacting with people in a non-basketball setting, definitely a contrast to the mumbling cliches offered up by many of his peers. However, that persona apparently changes come practice and game time, and such brutal honesty and hard coaching wears on the players over the weeks, months and years, particularly when losses are mounting up.

I think it's unfortunate that players have become so pampered after years of being told how great they are, but it's reality and coaches must adapt or risk the mental letdowns and constant transfers that plagued Dakich.