Game6Conley
Well-Known Member
5 of 6 final fours.
The funny thing is that before Cal won the chip all the national pundits and peer coaches said you simply cannot win by reloading freshman every year. Lack of experience, chemistry, etc. That was the mantra.
Then he wins and the spin goes turns to pfft.. why haven't you won every year.
lol
Truth is winning with freshman was a major feat, regardless. Looking back with the 20/20 stuff is what makes the losers and also-rans poke.
Coach Cal changed the college game we see today, that's undeniable at this point. He forced the competitions hand, they had to try and beat him at his own game, which is an ultimate sign of respect. Many big time coaches/programs got upstaged in the process, like a loooooooong list..
That old Duke formula, that Dickie V thought was bullet-proof, has been proven obsolete (in a rather short span of time - IMO)... Duke abandoned it years ago(I can't blame them either, parts of it were based in smoke & mirrors anyway).
Most of the Duke fans I know, told me they didn't think they'd have any chance to win the Chip last year(preseason), because they lost Jabari and Hood.. Duke fans were' really hopeful Jabari would return(clearly not in his best interests) and they got bummed out when he declared.. Right?? That's how my friends were.. They told me "we'll see" when I said you can count on Winslow from day 1..
College is about prepping for later on in life.. Coach Cal's players are going to have a billion dollars in contracts collectively, Kentucky has the most players on NBA rosters in the 15-16 season... I think that's a bigger success than counting some recent championships -- that's just my personal opinion though, I don't like to get caught up in lore, thats not why I'm a fan - I actually just appreciate good old fashioned competition.
There's actually people out there who would love for the masses to think UK's last season, which had 1 loss, was some sort of disappointment. Think of how ***-backwards that is... The team produced 4 lottery picks, That's insane!! It's unprecedented, and if some college can somehow match that eventually - it's going to be must-watch TV as well..