If they get rid of Mullins in year five for no NCAA bid we have become Illinois! The college game has changed due to COVID and NIL. SIU will be stuck in the ludicrous situations of having fans and supporters that do not have reasonable expectations. He has changed the culture and is building something that can last. As far as I am concerned he has 6 more years no matter what!
What’s your reasonable expectation here? For SIU to have a bunch of good students and beat up on a bunch of lower teams and barely get to Saturday in St. Louis? Because that’s what they’ve done for 4 years.
I think Mullins has done a great job getting good kids that are great in the classroom but it’s about winning and this is Southern Illinois, not Harvard. I’m not saying Mullins needs to put us on an APR bubble like Lowery did that Hinson had to work his ass off to clean up but you can take chances on talented guys that might not be the best students. I assure you that when Bruce Weber built his program, he had guys that were not getting A’s or B’s in the classroom but nobody cared because they won.
Mullins’ first full recruiting class was Dalton Banks, Kyler Filewich, and Eric Butler. Does anyone remember Butler? He’s currently at a D2 program shooting 39% and he’s the 3rd leading scorer there as a Junior. And the other 2 are now gone.
It’s not the AD. there are factions that say post season or bye. I don’t make the rules around here and my opinion is not considered. I just relayed what I was told and it’s legit
Wait a minute…is this donor lead? Trying to force the AD’s hand? Like no postseason and you don’t fire him we are pulling our money?
That seems insane to me.
That’s insanity. If he finishes 2nd in the valley next year they’d fire him? He would be employed in about 10 seconds as a head coach elsewhere. If we are awful next year then fine, if we have a decent season in and the program looks to still be trending up it would be insane to let him go. Alienate half your fanbase with that kind of BS and your AD would be looking for a way out too.It’s not the AD. there are factions that say post season or bye. I don’t make the rules around here and my opinion is not considered. I just relayed what I was told and it’s legit
Look, I try to be a realist about this program as a whole. We haven’t done anything in 15+ years. Going from one of the premier mid-major programs in the country to a middle of the pack team in a perennial 1 bid league has been a very tough pill to swallow. There’s very few things I want more in this world than for us to be a really great basketball program again. Some of my favorite memories of all time are remembering how I felt in the mid 2000s being a part of our run. It really was magical for a basketball-loving kid from Southern Illinois.
We have REALLY nice facilities, a loyal fanbase, and tradition. Will we ever do what we did in the mid 2000s? Probably not. In 2008 if someone would’ve told everyone in SalukiTalk that we wouldn’t have sniffed a NCAA tourney or NIT bid all the way through 2023 I bet NO ONE would’ve believed them. But not getting to either of those tournaments in 15+ years is just flat out not acceptable.
A lot of stuff has happened since 2008. Our university has half the enrollment of what it did then. We had to claw out of APR hell. A pandemic happened. Now the landscape of basketball has changed with the portal and the NIL.
All that being said, I know everyone is disappointed after getting our hopes up last year. Firing Bryan if he doesn’t win next year just doesn’t make sense to me. I feel like the fan base strength and morale is consistently higher than it ever has been since the glory days. Now, if things don’t go well for a couple more years then sure fire Mullins. But he should have some time to adapt.
Look, I try to be a realist about this program as a whole. We haven’t done anything in 15+ years. Going from one of the premier mid-major programs in the country to a middle of the pack team in a perennial 1 bid league has been a very tough pill to swallow. There’s very few things I want more in this world than for us to be a really great basketball program again. Some of my favorite memories of all time are remembering how I felt in the mid 2000s being a part of our run. It really was magical for a basketball-loving kid from Southern Illinois.
We have REALLY nice facilities, a loyal fanbase, and tradition. Will we ever do what we did in the mid 2000s? Probably not. In 2008 if someone would’ve told everyone in SalukiTalk that we wouldn’t have sniffed a NCAA tourney or NIT bid all the way through 2023 I bet NO ONE would’ve believed them. But not getting to either of those tournaments in 15+ years is just flat out not acceptable.
A lot of stuff has happened since 2008. Our university has half the enrollment of what it did then. We had to claw out of APR hell. A pandemic happened. Now the landscape of basketball has changed with the portal and the NIL.
All that being said, I know everyone is disappointed after getting our hopes up last year. Firing Bryan if he doesn’t win next year just doesn’t make sense to me. I feel like the fan base strength and morale is consistently higher than it ever has been since the glory days. Now, if things don’t go well for a couple more years then sure fire Mullins. But he should have some time to adapt.
Good post. It’s premature and counterproductive for intense heat on Mullins at this point. Letting him go without being shown some patience and support would likely be a big mistake.
I would have gotten rid of him for playing JD all year and screwing over the other big guys. That is just the tip of the iceberg of poor roster management. His first 3 years Mullins could do no wrong and I would always support him or there would be a valid excuse. This year was a complete failure and there was no reason to see the rotations we did. The program will survive if he stays or goes. I wish him the best. That staff has a whole lot to prove, starting with playing the best players.
hey I never attended a practice but I know for sure those guys sitting the bench were better than the ones playing. What are you a JV junior kids parent who doesn’t play?I would have gotten rid of him for playing JD all year and screwing over the other big guys. That is just the tip of the iceberg of poor roster management. His first 3 years Mullins could do no wrong and I would always support him or there would be a valid excuse. This year was a complete failure and there was no reason to see the rotations we did. The program will survive if he stays or goes. I wish him the best. That staff has a whole lot to prove, starting with playing the best players.
I
hey I never attended a practice but I know for sure those guys sitting the bench were better than the ones playing. What are you a JV junior kids parent who doesn’t play?I would have gotten rid of him for playing JD all year and screwing over the other big guys. That is just the tip of the iceberg of poor roster management. His first 3 years Mullins could do no wrong and I would always support him or there would be a valid excuse. This year was a complete failure and there was no reason to see the rotations we did. The program will survive if he stays or goes. I wish him the best. That staff has a whole lot to prove, starting with playing the best players.
I
It’s amazing how many college level talent evaluators we have within the fan base. Do people really believe that Mullins would purposefully sit someone he thought would give him a better chance to win? I trust the people who saw them play day in and day out know better than me, despite my preference to see more from the younger guys.
Now you can argue that if those guys weren’t ready to play we have some development issues, but no coach is going to bench kids he feels give him the best chance to win.
But some fans and alumni feel like it could have been more, citing the team’s experience and depth. The Salukis felt all year their best basketball was in front of them but couldn’t produce it when it most mattered.
Expectations as of now will be lower than they were in November. There are talented pieces still on the roster but probably not enough of them to win a conference, even one that’s being gutted by the portal as much as the Missouri Valley Conference.
That's just a "captain obvious" statement by Bucky Dent who isn't exactly the worlds greatest investigative journalist. Our season will depend upon who we get to replace Domask, Jones, Muila, Brown, Newton, Banks and whoever else may leave. We already have Davis who looks to have the skill set to contribute right away. We need to get longer, more athletic players who can get their own shot and score. It would help if they can also play good defense. Davis has that skill set. If we get several more players with that skill set and our remaining players improve we have a chance to be good just like anyone else. Iowa State had nearly 100% roster turnover last year and made a deep run in the tournament, it can happen. Bradley has big roster turnover every year and always seems to compete for the MVC championship.But some fans and alumni feel like it could have been more, citing the team’s experience and depth. The Salukis felt all year their best basketball was in front of them but couldn’t produce it when it most mattered.
Expectations as of now will be lower than they were in November. There are talented pieces still on the roster but probably not enough of them to win a conference, even one that’s being gutted by the portal as much as the Missouri Valley Conference.
Mullins had to be prepared for both Domask and Jones leaving. He knew it was possible and had to have his eyes open. Muila not coming back opens things up for the other guys up front
Did I miss an announcement that Brown wasn't coming back?
Did I miss an announcement that Brown wasn't coming back?
I don’t know that there will be an announcement. Sounds like he isn’t planning to play basketball anymore, just graduate and move on with his life.
