[PickWinnerAllDay]

They made the tournament and won one in it. Last Year they made the final four. C'mon man, all of your 0 national titles, 2 final fours and 3 elite 8's don't really stand up very well. (those numbers are from the modern era, you know - when the elite 8 didn't consist of simply making the tournament).

Hell, before last year, the last time Illinois did as good as VCU this year, (winning 1 game in the dance) was 2006. You guys haven't won 27 games in a season since 2004-05. Smart has done that each year at VCU.

GTFO with that non-sense. You're butt hurt that Smart turned you down, and publicly bitch slapped you. This is what happens when the AD has no clue what they're doing. The deal should damn near be signed before the public gets wind of it.

Good hunting. But Illinois best asset is its natural recruiting ground. And even then, out-of-towners can come in there an poach. Stevens and Smart are waiting to land at an elite position, and be a lifer with a huge paycheck.

Illinois almost ran Weber out of town last year for winning only one game in the tournament.

Winning one game in the tournament is a failure in Illinois.

If in the next 10 years, VCU adds 5 more tournament wins to the resume, that probably buys him a slight raise.

If in the next 10 years, Illinois wins 5 more tournament games... well, he doesn't make it to 10 years, he is fired.

They are different situations.

[WvGambler]

Shaka is obviously waiting for something better. Like UCLA. If he can handle UCLA, he sure as shit can handle little ol illinois.

I said this in the last thread and you thought I was crazy

[ChalkyDog]

I said this in the last thread and you thought I was crazy

I think it is crazy to pass up a 2.5 million offer on the table, for the hope UCLA opens up, especially considering the UCLA AD went on record already saying Ben isn't going anywhere.

[kmarinouofm]

Define elite? It isn't top 5, but its top 10 or top 15 depending on who you ask.

As for Shaka, hes made his choice. He'd rather stay in the CAA where there is no competition and he has no pressure because THIS was a successful season for VCU and that season for VCU would be a bad season for Illinois.

Maybe hes waiting for something better, but even UCLA is a much easier situation in the terrible Pac-12... I doubt he wanted to be in the best conference in the country with the best coaches.

top 15 schools i would put on my coaching list for college bball in no particular order because who the hell cares..

1. duke
2. north carolina
3. ucla
4. michigan state
5. syracuse
6. Louisville
7. Ohio State
8. kansas
9. georgetown
10. florida
11. Gonzaga
12. kentucky
13. indiana
14. uconn
15. marquette

according to this guy.. you are only 24 on a list of 50 as far as programs go

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/7...ms-of-all-time

I guess you have to actually win a national championship/ncca tourney to be considered an elite program..

[ChalkyDog]

Illinois almost ran Weber out of town last year for winning only one game in the tournament.

Winning one game in the tournament is a failure in Illinois.

If in the next 10 years, VCU adds 5 more tournament wins to the resume, that probably buys him a slight raise.

If in the next 10 years, Illinois wins 5 more tournament games... well, he doesn't make it to 10 years, he is fired.

They are different situations.

What happened during all those years in-between 2006 and 2011 in which you didn't even win a game in the dance? Which consisted of a Loss in the first rd, Miss post season completely, Lost in first rd, and NIT.

[kmarinouofm]

They made the tournament and won one in it. Last Year they made the final four. C'mon man, all of your 0 national titles, 2 final fours and 3 elite 8's don't really stand up very well. (those numbers are from the modern era, you know - when the elite 8 didn't consist of simply making the tournament).

Hell, before last year, the last time Illinois did as good as VCU this year, (winning 1 game in the dance) was 2006. You guys haven't won 27 games in a season since 2004-05. Smart has done that each year at VCU.

GTFO with that non-sense. You're butt hurt that Smart turned you down, and publicly bitch slapped you. This is what happens when the AD has no clue what they're doing. The deal should damn near be signed before the public gets wind of it.

Good hunting. But Illinois best asset is its natural recruiting ground. And even then, out-of-towners can come in there an poach. Stevens and Smart are waiting to land at an elite position, and be a lifer with a huge paycheck.

i love this guy

[t-wizzle]

Can't blame smart for not wanting to go to a school with a sports program that has gone down the toilet.

[PickWinnerAllDay]

What happened during all those years in-between 2006 and 2011 in which you didn't even win a game in the dance? Which consisted of a Loss in the first rd, Miss post season completely, Lost in first rd, and NIT.

Do you really not know? Bruce Weber was given a free pass because of the championship game run Deron Williams miraculously brought them to against Arizona.

Bruce Weber woudla been gone in 2008 if not for Deron Williams hitting that shot to tie it against Arizona. Truth. He also got a 'second chance' because of a couple of other unfortunate incidents in his tenure... like the Gordon incident and like the Smith incident...

It is hilarious you are in here when you don't even know all this.

[PickWinnerAllDay]

Can't blame smart for not wanting to go to a school with a sports program that has gone down the toilet.

The worst Big 10 capper on the board chiming in, huh?

[msutter]

Can't blame smart for not wanting to go to a school with a sports program that has gone down the toilet.

Yea man Illinois hasn't been relevant in years. Since 2000 they only have 9 NCAA Tournament appearances. 4 of which were sweet 16's, 2 Elite Eights, and a Runner Up. This program is horrible

[PickWinnerAllDay]

Yea man Illinois hasn't been relevant in years. Since 2000 we only have 9 NCAA Tournament appearances. 4 of which were sweet 16's, 2 Elite Eights, and a Runner Up. This program is horrible

Guy is a moron. On everything Big 10.

[ttwarrior1]

pitino jr

[d2bets]

Can't blame smart for not wanting to go to a school with a sports program that has gone down the toilet.

Isn't that essentially typically when jobs open up?

[t-wizzle]

Yea man Illinois hasn't been relevant in years. Since 2000 they only have 9 NCAA Tournament appearances. 4 of which were sweet 16's, 2 Elite Eights, and a Runner Up. This program is horrible

They haven't been relevant since 2005.

[msutter]

This video is awesome.

[msutter]

They haven't been relevant since 2005.

If they were relevant now Illinois wouldn't be looking for a new coach at the moment.

[PickWinnerAllDay]

They haven't been relevant since 2005.

You're a complete idiot and insist on proving it with every post.

[ChalkyDog]

Nah man, I was destroyed by that Arizona collapse. Grew up in Northern Illinois, and a lot of my family are illini fans, so I have some affinity towards their program. Went to school at Arizona for 7 years, so they became the focus of my die-hard fandom.

As a result, I resented Dee and Deron for a long time, still can't stand Deron.

I am a fan of the illinois program in general. Was real close to attending that school.

Your reaccount of the facts make sense. Hell, look what has happened with Ben Howland. The guy is still living off of back to back to back final fours. Which shouldn't mean much to the UCLA fan base, but for some reason it still has suction with the UCLA brass.

I'd start rolling with some reasonable and attainable targets, instead of swinging and missing on homeruns. Again, I would love to see what Romar could do with that proximity to Chi-Town.

[t-wizzle]

If they were relevant now Illinois wouldn't be looking for a new coach at the moment.

The point is that both the football and basketball programs are in disarray and my comment was why would Smart want to go to a program that has gone down the toilet, which it has.

[ChalkyDog]

Smart may be holding out for UCLA. But you gotta believe if he is holding out for a hire this year, it is UCONN.

[msutter]

The point is that both the football and basketball programs are in disarray and my comment was why would Smart want to go to a program that has gone down the toilet, which it has.

Your point is retarded. I have nothing wrong with Shaka Smarts decision. I also don't know why you're bringing up football in this conversation. Illinois has been to the tournament 9 out of the last 12 years. Since 2005 they've been to the tournament 4 times (2 more than Shaka). I guess I don't consider that going down the toilet. They're also a top 20 program that is in a major market and a member of one of the premier conferences in college sports. Shaka turned down the job because he was happy in Richmond. 95% of current college basketball coaches would leave their job to be the head coach at Illinois. Shaka's decision has nothing to do with the state of Illinois Basketball. By the way the Illinois football program has won two straight bowl games the last two years.

[d2bets]

The point is that both the football and basketball programs are in disarray and my comment was why would Smart want to go to a program that has gone down the toilet, which it has.

Football is meaningless to basketball. Illinois football has always been shit. Why would he want to go to a program that is a bit down? To build it back up. Happens all the time. Not like you're talking about a program that has never done it before. We're not talking Northwestern. No doubt a coaching staff that does a good job he can bring Illinois basketball back toward the top.

[t-wizzle]

Your point is retarded. I have nothing wrong with Shaka Smarts decision. I also don't know why you're bringing up football in this conversation. By the way the Illinois football program has won two straight bowl games the last two years. They've been to the tournament 9 out of the last 12 years. I guess I don't consider that going down the toilet. They're also a top 20 program that is in a major market and a member of one of the premier conferences in college sports. Shaka turned down the job because he was happy in Richmond. 95% of current college basketball coaches would leave their job to be the head coach at Illinois. Shaka's decision has nothing to do with the state of Illinois Basketball.

Ok fine let's leave football out of the conversation.

You manipulate your stats to support your point by including the last 12 years.



Let's look at the last 7 seasons:

2005 - 06	Bruce Weber	26 - 7	11 - 5	2nd(T)	NCAA 2nd round
2006 - 07	Bruce Weber	23 - 12	9 - 7	4th(T)	NCAA 1st Round
2007 - 08	Bruce Weber	16 - 19	5 - 13	9th(T)
2008 - 09	Bruce Weber	24 - 10	11 - 7	2nd(T)	NCAA 1st Round
2009 - 10	Bruce Weber	21 - 15	10 - 8	5th	NIT Quarterfinals
2010 - 11	Bruce Weber	20 - 14	9 - 9	4th	NCAA 2nd Round
2011 - 12	Bruce Weber	17 - 15	6 - 12	9th

And now the previous five:

2000 - 01	Bill Self	27 - 8	13 - 3	1st(T)	NCAA Elite Eight
2001 - 02	Bill Self	26 - 9	11 - 5	1st(T)	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2002 - 03	Bill Self	25 - 7	11 - 5	2nd	NCAA 2nd Round
Bill Self:		78 - 24	35 - 13
Bruce Weber (2003–present)
2003 - 04	Bruce Weber	26 - 7	13 - 3	1st	NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2004 - 05	Bruce Weber	37 - 2	15 - 1	1st	NCAA Runner-Up

Wow now i see why you wanted to include the "last 12 years" to back up your point. I'm not even an Illini hater, I kind of like them to be honest but don't try and act like this team has done anything worth shit since that 04-05 run.

[msutter]

That is why they're hiring a new coach. The program is down and they still made the tournament 4 out of the last 6 years. So your point is that since Illinois hasn't gone deep into the NCAA tournament the last several years that is why Shaka has turned down the job? If we did go deep recently the job wouldn't even be on the table.

[t-wizzle]

That is why they're hiring a new coach. The program is down and they still made the tournament 4 out of the last 6 years. So your point is that since Illinois hasn't gone deep into the NCAA tournament the last several years that is why Shaka has turned down the job? If we did go deep recently the job wouldn't even be on the table.

If the program was elite like you claim it is, they would not have accepted 6 straight mediocre/arguably crappy seasons.

[PickWinnerAllDay]

That is why they're hiring a new coach. The program is down and they still made the tournament 4 out of the last 6 years. So your point is that since Illinois hasn't gone deep into the NCAA tournament the last several years that is why Shaka has turned down the job? If we did go deep recently the job wouldn't even be on the table.

Morons like t-wizzle are just dumb.

All programs are down when they fire a coach and try to hire a new one. That is the nature of the beast.

Idiots like him who gauge a team based on their last few seasons aren't real basketball fans. I spoke to someone today who said that VCU was a better program than Illinois, and he didn't just mean 'right now.' This is the kind of stuff you have to put up with.

[msutter]

Go find where I said the program was elite. I said it's a top 20 program a few posts ago. Where I disagreed with you is when you stated that Shaka wouldn't take the Illinois job because the program has gone down the toilet. Try to keep up.

[t-wizzle]

Go find where I said the program was elite. I said it's a top 20 program a few posts ago. Where I disagreed with you is when you stated that Shaka wouldn't take the Illinois job because the program has gone down the toilet. Try to keep up.

Top 20 out of like 300 or so teams isn't elite?

[PickWinnerAllDay]

Top 20 out of like 300 or so teams isn't elite?

Name 20 programs better dipshit.

[msutter]

Top 20 out of like 300 or so teams isn't elite?

Hey man if that's what you consider elite then in your version of elite Illinois is an Elite program. I consider elite top 5. Go find 20 teams that have done better than Illinois during the last 10 years. Rating programs based on only the last several years is worthless.

[PickWinnerAllDay]

Hey man if that's what you consider elite then in your version of elite Illinois is an Elite program. I consider elite top 5. Go find 20 teams that have done better than Illinois during the last 10 years. Rating programs based on only the last several years is worthless.

Dude we all know VCU is a better program than Duke.

[jackmyhoggoff]

SHAKA gets SMART and will sign with NEBRASKA ! Brand new facility and H.Hawks energy & natural gas $$$$!!

[ChalkyDog]

It's a pretty scary gamble by Smart. Something I know for sure I wouldn't do. There is a high probability that VCU becomes VCU again, and Smart is no longer on the top of the list for coaching hires.

2.5 mil, even if he used Illinois as a stepping stone, is a great opportunity.

[Mr. Doughnut]

Illinois almost ran Weber out of town last year for winning only one game in the tournament.

Winning one game in the tournament is a failure in Illinois.

If in the next 10 years, VCU adds 5 more tournament wins to the resume, that probably buys him a slight raise.

If in the next 10 years, Illinois wins 5 more tournament games... well, he doesn't make it to 10 years, he is fired.

They are different situations.

Just like you to compare what a coach does at a lowly school like VCU to what a coach could do with the unlimited resources and recruiting power of a school like Illinois.

You were gushing over this guy the other day. Now you're making him out to not be cut out for the job.

Typical PickWAD.

[Mr. Doughnut]

Name 20 programs better dipshit.

1 UK
2 IU
3 UofL
4 UNC
5 UCLA
6 Duke
7 Purdue
8 Arizona
9 Syracuse
10 Kansas
11 UConn
12 MSU
13 Georgetown
14 Villanova
15 Ohio State
16 Michigan
17 Arkansas
18 Oklahoma St
19 Cincinnati
20 Maryland
21 Memphis
22 Utah
23 Texas

Just to name a few. Now I'm not saying Illinois isn't top 20. I would personally put them in the Top 20 (but just barely), but to say it's they are CLEAR-CUT top 20 program is moronic.