ACC Coach Of The Year Race: Grading Steve Donahue's Performance
by Brian Favat on Mar 3, 2011 3:58 PM EST
in Boston College Basketball
Email
PrintLet me start by saying I have no problem with awarding this year's ACC men's basketball Coach of the Year award to either Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and North Carolina's Roy Williams. Both have done a great job this year and either coach is certainly deserving of the award.
However, it's a rare occurrence when the best coach in the conference actually comes home with the Coach of the Year award. How else can you explain the fact that Krzyzewski hasn't won the award since the 1999-2000 season?
The ACC is in a down year. No question. Duke and North Carolina play for the regular season crown on Saturday, and it's very much been "Duke, Carolina and everyone else" this season. So if there was ever a year to right this wrong and give the Coach of the Year award to either Krzyzewski or Williams, this is the year.
That said, the News & Observer's Caulton Tudor takes this point about the COY race, puts his usual Tobacco Road spin on it, and doles out some rather ridiculous letter grades for the remaining 10 ACC coaches (emphasis added):
"It's virtually unheard of for only two coaches to get votes in the ACC postseason awards derby, but that should be the case this year.
Other than Duke's Mike Krzyzewski and North Carolina's Roy Williams, there's just not another viable candidate.
If grades were assigned, those two would get As. The other 10 coaches would get Cs, Ds and Fs."
I'm glad I never took a course with Professor Tudor at Boston College. Tough grader.
I'll be the first to admit that I have some lingering doubts about how Donahue will perform in the ACC longer term, but to suggest that he should get a C, D or F for this year's coaching performance is absurd.
Donahue has already won more games than last year's Eagles team ... against a tougher schedule ... with a roster that has less talent than it did a season ago. Not to mention a team that gives significant playing time to not one, not two, but three walk-ons. The fact that Donahue has BC in position to win 19 regular season and 9 conference games is a testament to the job he has done in his first year on the Heights.
As a reminder, this was a program that was picked to finish 10th in conference in the preseason. Even the most optimistic (unrealistic?) preseason projections had BC winning just 18 games, going 7-9 in conference and playing in the NIT. Apparently, surpassing even the most optimistic of preseason expectations is good enough for just a C.
Ever heard of grading on a curve?
19 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
At least a solid B or B+. For now, Donahue has pretty much brought this team back from the dead.
Soaring to Glory: BC's voice of insanity
absolutely B+
I’d like to point out that after your “optimistic” preseason prediction of 18-12 (7-9) you said that those results would be enough for us all to consider the season a success. I completely agree going into this season I thought 8th seed was likely but also optimistic, and I would have been totally satisfied with that record in year one. Not only was Donahue inheriting a team with a ton of underperforming seniors and very few underclassmen, we also lost Sanders who was arguably the most talented (albeit extremely inconsistent) player on the team. Donahue has done a great job maximizing talent we didn’t even know we had (Biko can shoot threes?), and it has paid off in a winning ACC record. I just hope everyone doesn’t turn on him when we graduate everyone next year and are back to square one.
You’re absolutely right. This team is probably going to blow next year minus Biko, Trapani, Raji, et al., so hopefully the fans won’t completely hold it against him.
Soaring to Glory: BC's voice of insanity
by SoaringtoGlory on Mar 3, 2011 5:26 PM EST up reply actions
Not nessicarily Donahue has brought in some good recruits and we may have Reggie back next year. IMO if Reggies back 18-12 if not 15-14
by TheSpecialOne on Mar 3, 2011 6:05 PM EST up reply actions
Even with Reggie, I’m not going to count on a team full of freshmen and sophomores to win 18 games. If they do, then Donahue is truly a basketball genius.
Soaring to Glory: BC's voice of insanity
by SoaringtoGlory on Mar 3, 2011 6:14 PM EST up reply actions
Don't forget Humphrey
Oregon transfer Matt Humphrey will be a junior, FWIW.
http://www.bcinterruption.com/2010/7/2/1549111/more-on-bcs-matt-humphrey-from
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
I did remember Humphrey when I was thinking about it, yes, but the only upper-classmen we’ll have will be Reggie, Humphrey, Elmore, and Rehnquist as a walk-on. We’re losing 8 players next year — 57% of the current roster. With that much turnover there are bound to be some growing pains.
Soaring to Glory: BC's voice of insanity
by SoaringtoGlory on Mar 3, 2011 11:07 PM EST up reply actions
In my opinion, I think that Reggie is coming back without a doubt. He’s a mid-to-late second round pick this year, and if he comes back next year to a more experienced team that should win more of these close games, his leadership and experience could bring him up to a late first-rounder.
thought the same thing about tyrese rice
and then when he came back his senior year he had no one around him, the team had a significantly worse season and he’s playing in greece the last i heard
Good point
I’m pretty surprised Tyrese Rice didn’t get drafted. He may find his way back into the NBA if he keeps playing though. Maybe that’s just me being hopeful.
What he needs to do to get an A
I would have given him an A if he got the team to play defense, didn’t get blown out by the top competition, and when the 3’s aren’t falling coach the team to a win.
I do think Donahue benefited from a down ACC, but definitely overachieved based on last year’s record. Good Job getting someone to step up in all of our wins. If we make the tourney, which i think we will, he’ll get an A- from me. tentatively B
The only things keeping him from in A in my book.
Is the complete lack of defense for the greater portion of the season (although, for some strange reason, we learned how to play much better pressure defense in a few of the more recent games), and the early season losses to poorer teams.
Wins over Yale, Harvard and Rhode Island (games we should have won talent-wise) would have instead put us at 21-8 on the season. A much more formidable out-of-conference record (13-1) would have looked very good on our resume for the dance. Also, if we had one merely one of the two games against a weaker Miami squad, we would be talking about Boston College as the 4 seed in the ACC. If this had occurred this season, no doubt Donahue would not only be given an A in my book, but the Coach of the year award.
Instead we let a few of these games slip out of our fingers, but that’s to be expected out of a young team and a coaches’ first season. A solid B for me right now, and with a few wins in the ACC tourney, or even 1 win in the dance, and this grade goes up to at least a B+
This Senior class is 0-3 against Harvard. Hard to pin that loss only on the Don. He inherited a team that absolutely has the Crimson inside their heads.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
I still can’t believe the ivy sweep this year. Imagine if the team was 20-9, without the Ivy blemishes. So ya, I can’t help but blame Donahue for not having the team ready, at home.
Re: Harvard, I blamed/credited Jeremy Lin for their past wins. That, and those prior BC teams being lifeless.
Plenty of close calls other than the losses to the Ivies
Reggie Jackson’s last second three pointer against UNC …
North Carolina’s first-half bucket that should have been called goaltending / basket interference …
A 2-point loss to Rhode Island …
Guarding Miami on the Canes’ last-second three pointer at the end of the first half in Coral Gables …
Turn any one of those Ls to Ws and BC is probably safely in the NCAAs at this point.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
Can’t believe that a Tobacco Road beat writer can’t find another ACC coach besides Coach K or Roy Williams to give an A or a B to … (sarcasm)
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Related FanPosts on BC Interruption
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
