Zagsblog on MU - Future is Bright

[MU/Panther]

. They will be missing Stevens impact then.

You know Butler won before Stevens. Question should be will the new staff recruit at a Big East level.

[Nukem2]

You know Butler won before Stevens. Question should be will the new staff recruit at a Big East level.

Yes they did, but Brad Stevens took it to an altogether much higher level. Prior to him, mostly winning the Horizon orwhatever and getting bounced in the first round with a couple of exceptions mgoing to the Sweet 16. So, it's really the same question. Btw, Chrabascz is also a Stevens recruit. Time will tell.

[MU/Panther]

Let's not downgrade making the tournament or getting to the round of 32 or getting to sweet 16's, that silly. They did get at-large births as well out of the Horizon League. As I've said for two years, they will be fine! It's the "Butler Way"

[Nukem2]

Let's not downgrade making the tournament or getting to the round of 32 or getting to sweet 16's, that silly. They did get at-large births as well out of the Horizon League. As I've said for two years, they will be fine! It's the "Butler Way"

Let focus on the future, thats the topic here. Can Butler recruit well enough post-Stevens' recruits to be successful in the BE....?

[TheSultan]

Let focus on the future, thats the topic here. Can Butler recruit well enough post-Stevens' recruits to be successful in the BE....?

Sure. What would prevent them from doing so? Good school. Nice basketball tradition. If the new coach can't do it, that's on the coach. Not Butler.

[Goose85]

Being in the Big East sure helps.

[MU/Panther]

Let focus on the future, thats the topic here. Can Butler recruit well enough post-Stevens' recruits to be successful in the BE....?

That is the future. That's the point. Butler has done it with different coaches Collier, Matta, Lickliter, Stevens, so there is no reason why that won't continue. Now, you add in that they are in the Big East, the "Soul of College Hoops" and FS1'S TV money.

[unclejohn]

Yes they did, but Brad Stevens took it to an altogether much higher level. Prior to him, mostly winning the Horizon orwhatever and getting bounced in the first round with a couple of exceptions mgoing to the Sweet 16. So, it's really the same question. Btw, Chrabascz is also a Stevens recruit. Time will tell.

I take nothing away from Stevens, he is probably the best coach Butler has had. But they have had a succession of good coaches. Tournament performance is IMO very overrated. Of course it is impressive to reach the finals two years in a row, but so much depends on match-ups and luck. Look at the teams that make the Final Four. Most had some close games in early rounds. A bad bounce or an off day and they are gone. Or perhaps they run into Austin Croshere. The first year Butler made the final, they were about a 6 seed, and definitely survived some scares. They caught lightning in a bottle. The next year, they returned a veteran team, which helped. Still a major accomplishment, but other teams and other coaches could have done it with some luck. I do not know if it was as impressive as UConn finishing 9th in the Big East, then winning 11 in a row to win it all.

Starting shortly after Marquette and SLU left the MCC behind, Butler started taking basketball seriously. It helped that Xavier and Dayton jumped ship soon as well, and they were the biggest fish in a diminishing pond. But they won consistently. That is why they were coveted by the CAA. Before they were given an invite to the Big East, other schools gave them a complete look. They were only going to let in a private school with a commitment to playing basketball and competing at the highest level. Butler was. I have said it before. There are no easy outs in this conference. All the schools know that they have to be competitive for the conference to succeed, so they are all committed to doing it.

[mufan2003]

Being in the Big East sure helps.

Agreed. If Holtmann cannot recruit like Stevens, he at least has the Big East to sell whereas Stevens had the Horizon league and A-10 for a year.