[Oskee] Ouch - Is Weber another Turner?

Tue Jul 17 15:15:58 EDT 2007

Shumpert is gone. I think we have  decent shot at Suggs, but the longer he waits, the less confident I will be.

I agree it's too early to write Weber off, but I felt this is a key season for him, both on the court and with recruiting. I thought he made a nice recovery from the Gordon fiasco, and a good class this time around would be a great step forward. So far, it's not looking good for that to happen at this point. It does seem odd to me that he seems to have better success outside of the state as opposed to in state (and Chicago in particular).

On the court, he's basically got a team of his own recruits now (Randle is the last Self recruit). Last year was a disaster with injuries and other assorted troubles off the court, a strong season this year would really be a boost for the program. The biggest problem I see is that we are still going to struggle to score, especially if Jamar is not back on the team. So it seems likely that we have a repeat of last season - the team will hopefully be healthier but less experiences and it looks like the schedule is more difficult so it may be a wash. While you never know who may step up or suprise you, right now it's hard to believe the results will be a whole lot better than last year.

I think Weber's at a crossroads and has time to get back on track, but figuring out how to fix the recruiting is going to be key.

----- Original Message ----
From: Anthony L Hooker <hooker at cs.uiuc.edu>
To: Fighting Illini Sports Enthusiasts List <oskee at heins.net>
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 12:34:57 PM
Subject: RE: [Oskee] Ouch - Is Weber another Turner?

So, you're basically saying that because one kid changed his mind, we
should throw Weber under the bus?  If IDKWTI had stayed true to his
commitment, we wouldn't be having this discussion, period.  Shumpert
hasn't committed.  Suggs hasn't committed. Miller hasn't committed.
They may all go elsewhere, but they haven't YET.  He won 23 games last
year with half his team in the infirmary and you want wholesale change
because he's missed on some high profile recruits?  

They didn't offer Humphrey last year because his play didn't warrant an
offer, and he felt slighted.  I say too bad for him.     

In closing, I think we should at least see McCamey, Watkins, Alexander,
et al. play collegiately before deciding that he's not getting the job
done on the recruiting front.  I think we're going to be pleasantly
surprised by how good they are.  

-----Original Message-----
From: oskee-bounces at heins.net [mailto:oskee-bounces at heins.net] On Behalf
Of Chad Kahl
Sent: Tuesday, July 17, 2007 12:27 AM
To: oskee at heins.net
Subject: [Oskee] Ouch - Is Weber another Turner?

I want to post this thought here, rather than throw more bait into the
pack 
of hyenas on Orange and Blue...

I keep hearing that the class of 2009 and 2010 are going to be great,
but 
isn't that what we've been hearing as Weber misses top target after top 
target?

Between the style of play we saw last season where it got to the point I
had 
to make myself watch the games and the inability to land top recruits 
(Jereme Richmond is a long ways off), I'm really starting to worry.

I know Weber's Xs and Os are top notch, but something has to change when
it 
comes to recruiting.  We have to start landing the top ten/twenty type
of 
player.

My fear when Weber started was that we were going to become another
Purdue.  
I envied their success year in and year out, but they rarely did
anything in 
the tourney, because they rarely had the top, top shelf talent.

Weber needs to change his staff and figure out what he's doing wrong, 
because the list is growing, with Dunigan and Schumpert (Humphrey is
good, 
but not great) added to Gordon, Collins, Wright, Rose...  While a number
of 
them may have taken a deal during recruitment, the guys we just lost out
on 
where the type of young men and stable families that were supposed to
end 
Weber's dry spell.  I also heard that Weber needed time to establish 
himself, because we did not have the track records of Duke, North
Carolina, 
etc.  However, the recent guys had Weber on their trail from the start
and 
they recognized the Illini staff for that.

Before everyone starts mentioning all the recent recruits at me, just 
remember that most of them are in the 75-150 range.  That's great, but
you 
need the occasional great player and Weber has failed miserably at 
recruiting them to Illini.

I'm really at a loss.  You can't possibly fire someone with his track
record 
on the court, but he also will have difficulty sustaining Illinois'
program 
if he can't land the elite players (before the 2010 class).

Chad, AKA UofIx3

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