What is the current view of the Todd Lee era at USD?

[kiyoat]

Please don't misconstrue this as a "Fire Lee" kind of thread.  Personally I am voting for option 4.  I think he needs more time.  I just figured that there has been a good deal of discussion on the topic, so.... may as well have a poll.

Enjoy.

(BTW, it is an anonymous poll)

[kiyoat]

Well, looks like the board is voting pretty strongly to give him more time. Which is good, considering we have no power to fire him...







...

[Coyote Fan]

Feb 11, 2022 2:22:29 GMT -6 Coyote Fan said:

Option 4 is the typical excuse that non winning programs give. All sports teams have their fare share of adversity. The good programs get through the adversity, the mediocre to bad programs make excuses for them. I can practically guarantee if the Coyote Women had twice the adversity the men had they would still just keep on winning and finishing 1 or 2 in the conference. The Jacks are on their third coach all because of other coaches moving on and up. The Jacks don't skip a beat (and yes they do lose players to injury or whatever) but when the Yotes lose their only good coach in D1 they fall apart. The Coyote Women's program has their 4th coach including Lavin since they were D2. Not only do they survive and thrive but they keep upping the ante. I know I keep bringing up the Jacks but most fans would consider them the #1 rival and they are very similar in school size, budget and city. They have a little bit more of all of the above but not that much more. If we want to call them the biggest rival than we need to have an expectation of being closer to their level in the biggest sports. If we just continue to say that we cannot match what they are doing or exceed it than can we please not call them the biggest rival anymore. The comparison in accomplishments in (the top 2 sports) football and men's basketball are laughable. This isn't taking a shot at the Coyotes or lifting up the Jacks but this is based on facts, results, perception and most of all reality.

There is no great excuse for this program. Everything that has happened to them should be able to be overcome but instead the excuses start flying Like flies on s**t. Good programs make their own luck. NDSU is the #2 program (for most of the last decade) behind the Jacks and it is not luck that they always seem to find away to pull these games out of the fire. They are a mentally strong team. The more pressure the fans and alumni put on administration the more likely they are to make changes when needed. When there is no pressure from alumni there really isn't any pressure to win. I feel that is where we are right now. The sports world is a different animal then life. You either win or your job is in jeopardy. That is just the way it is. There is always an up and comer ready to take someone's job that is underachieving.

I am not calling Todd Lee a horrible coach. He is just mediocre. Some are fine with the program being middle of the pack. I would like to think more should strive and expect a higher level. When you consider the pretty good momentum that Lee was handed including a great new arena he should be getting better players and having better results. At least we are talking about this without getting at each others throats. That alone is progress. Now lets watch curling and sing kumbaya.

Almost everyone would have expected better by now since the first year the new facility opened.

[Coyote Fan]

I do think with the average Summit League and the good arena that the Coyotes should be able to attract a pretty good candidate. Maybe an up and comer from D2 but whatever someone that can instill promise into the program again and bring back excitement.

[yoteforever]

I’m going to preface my comments by saying I’m not a basketball guy. Nothing more than any other fan that attends a lot of games. The X’s and O’s are not my strength, but I can see to some degree talent, development, heart, and hustle. Regarding Coach Lee, my buddies that are “basketball guys” say he is a hell of a coach. He knows the game, and is good at developing talent. I accept that because I certainly don’t know. And my for what it’s worth evaluation of this team is the talent has been increased, which I guess means it’s being developed.

Fact 1, we lost the potentially POTY when AJ went down late last year. You can argue that the woman’s team would keep going on without missing a beat. But you take Hannah out, and we would in my mind miss more than a beat. It would be devastating. So losing AJ was huge and impactful. Secondly, Stan goes to Arkansas. Huge loss. Think if AJ and Stan were on this team, isn’t it reasonable to assume we would be competing for the title? I feel that way, but maybe I’m wrong.

Then throw in the Covid makeup games where we e had to travel to North Dakota twice for one game stints. Then we go to Western Illinois only to have that game postponed, so we head to Minneapolis, play a game, then DRIVE back to MaComb. Then DRIVE home. Like it or not, that’s a lot. Fatigue.

I see this team as one that’s much better now than in November. They are getting an identity. From a novice perspective I would call this team dangerous heading into tournament play. Will they win it? Unlikely. Can they win it? Punchers chance, yes.

But for people to be calling for his head at this point in my opinion is unfair and unjust. And please don’t say to me that being mediocre is acceptable and our fan base accepts mediocrity. That’s not true. Playing the role of Tough Guy every time a team performs at a level lower than championship status is nauseating. It’s tiresome. Give Coach Lee a little more time,I personally think we’re closer than you think.

In closing, certain posters comments on this board would carry more weight IF they would buy tickets. If we sold more tickets, we would have increased revenue, and we could do things like charter to games instead of busing for 6-8 hours each way. SDSU charters, we bus. Big difference

[usdguy99]

Feb 11, 2022 8:37:52 GMT -6 yoteforever said:

I’m going to preface my comments by saying I’m not a basketball guy. Nothing more than any other fan that attends a lot of games. The X’s and O’s are not my strength, but I can see to some degree talent, development, heart, and hustle. Regarding Coach Lee, my buddies that are “basketball guys” say he is a hell of a coach. He knows the game, and is good at developing talent. I accept that because I certainly don’t know. And my for what it’s worth evaluation of this team is the talent has been increased, which I guess means it’s being developed.

Fact 1, we lost the potentially POTY when AJ went down late last year. You can argue that the woman’s team would keep going on without missing a beat. But you take Hannah out, and we would in my mind miss more than a beat. It would be devastating. So losing AJ was huge and impactful. Secondly, Stan goes to Arkansas. Huge loss. Think if AJ and Stan were on this team, isn’t it reasonable to assume we would be competing for the title? I feel that way, but maybe I’m wrong.

Then throw in the Covid makeup games where we e had to travel to North Dakota twice for one game stints. Then we go to Western Illinois only to have that game postponed, so we head to Minneapolis, play a game, then DRIVE back to MaComb. Then DRIVE home. Like it or not, that’s a lot. Fatigue.

I see this team as one that’s much better now than in November. They are getting an identity. From a novice perspective I would call this team dangerous heading into tournament play. Will they win it? Unlikely. Can they win it? Punchers chance, yes.

But for people to be calling for his head at this point in my opinion is unfair and unjust. And please don’t say to me that being mediocre is acceptable and our fan base accepts mediocrity. That’s not true. Playing the role of Tough Guy every time a team performs at a level lower than championship status is nauseating. It’s tiresome. Give Coach Lee a little more time,I personally think we’re closer than you think.

In closing, certain posters comments on this board would carry more weight IF they would buy tickets. If we sold more tickets, we would have increased revenue, and we could do things like charter to games instead of busing for 6-8 hours each way. SDSU charters, we bus. Big difference

Minus the COVID year, do you know if revenue has increased or decreased? In my opinion, the ticketing office and marketing department are doing a heck of job trying to get butts in the seats. I'd be very interested to see the actual revenue numbers.

[yotesbacker]

I look at all 350+ D-1 teams and see a lot tougher coaching problems than we have. A Lot! Was anybody optimistic about this team; minus Stanley & AJ? I go to games, and see the veterans have all improved their skills, the new guys are contributing, and can anybody say this team lacks fight? Give Coach Lee and his staff some legit credit for the results so far. I am looking forward to what the Yotes can accomplish in the last month of this season. Regardless, I will have greater expectations next season.

[elcoyote]

Well said, backer and forever. After the two loses to the XDSUs the knives seemed to come out. I get that the loss in Fargo was really frustrating, unforgivable and unexplainable; I'll admit I was as pissed off as anyone. As for the bunnies, like it or not SDSU is just really good this year and possibly the best Summit team in the past decade. Do I hope they get upset in the SLT? Sure. Do I think they will? Nope. Nobody's beaten them so far and it's really hard to go undefeated. Anyone who's ever played or coached at a competitive level knows that. Coach Lee hasn't climbed the mountain yet, but no other men's coach we've had here has either, so I just don't get the mantra that it's cratered under Lee. While I'll definitely agree that Smith was a good coach and brought home one Summit regular season title, his teams fared poorly in the league tournament, no better or worse than Lee's. I do think that Lee is better at player development than Smith was. Recruiting remains to be seen.

[lynn]

I think coach Lee is honestly an excellent coach. My only complaint would be recruiting strategy at this point. First year was a loss and not his fault based on timing. Was going heavy foreign and now seems to have switched to more local which I like. Part of that has been driven by some changing assistants but the staff feels more stable now. Kutcher was a nice sign and kraemer seems like he will be one as well. Had a nice find in Tasos who has developed from a walk on very nicely. Just got to keep adding offensive fire power and we will be good. I do believe he can get us where we want to go if recruiting continues on upward trajectory.

[gopheryote]

I'm not sure I understand the angst - because 2 people said the want Lee out? With one of them calling for Lee's failure since the announcement he was hired?

Summit League Since Lee:

2018-19:

SDSU 14-1 (1st), lost in quarters

NDSU 9-7 (4th), won SLT

USD 6-10 (7th), lost in quarters

2019-20

NDSU 13-3 (T-1st), won SLT

SDSU 13-3 (T-1st), lost in quarters

USD 10-6 (3rd), lost in quarters (last second shot)

2020-21

SDSU 9-3 (1st-ish), lost in semis

USD 10-4 (2nd-ish), lost in semis

NDSU 11-5 (3rd-ish), lost in championship

It seems that the Yotes have improved each year under Lee until this year. It also seems to me this season is like the 15-16 season were Smith's Yotes went 5-12, but we all knew that next year would be better as the redshirt team was rumored to be beating the players on the court during practice. But instead of 5-12, it is 7-6 and still a shot at 4th. (We know AJ & Kutcher will be upgrades on offense, and imagine KPH & Archambault when teams have to double AJ.)

One thing worth noting - NDSU is built to win tourney games. SDSU has gotten more publicity because of its style of play (and one of our poster's obsession with them). But NDSU's defense-first, slow-and-steady pace is made for tournament play/officiating. Lee appears to be building a team/style that is closer to NDSU (focus on defense, offense gels by the end of the year).

Lastly, the SL is a much weaker league now than 5 years ago. The USD and SDSU teams from 17-18 would beat this year's SDSU team like a drum. The conference rank was significantly higher then, but the league lost some top players and coaches since then. We can't measure current teams against previous all-timers.

[elcoyote]

Very good stuff gopheryote.

[dbyote]

I would echo a lot of what gopheryote said. I watch a lot of basketball and I would say that Todd is a good coach when it comes to the x's and o's. His recruiting is holding us back (at this point). Craig Smith had a totally different philosophy which you can get away with when you have superior talent. His offense ran a lot of called sets to put those talented players in position to score. SDSU does much the same now although they run more more NBA style isolation and rely on players to make plays. Todd's offense relies on more on motion and flow and moves the ball until the defense is out of position in one way or another.

I've often thought that our team is really a mirror image of NDSU, except they are taller and have a guy in Griesel who can get you a bucket when you need one. Last year we had two of those guys in Stan and AJ and that is the difference between last year's team and this year's. It shows in the record. AJ affected the game in a different way too in that he was basically a coach on the floor and, to a certain degree, kept boneheaded things from happening, ala the NDSU collapse. The quick empty possessions don't happen when he is controlling the flow.

In the end the question is if Todd can generate enough excitement around the program to bring more of those players. I didn't like the hire at the time because I didn't know if he had that in him. I feel like Herbster went with the Dave Boots hire, a guy that has ties and would bring stability and not look to move up in the coaching world. I think he was burned by Craig Smith and the pendulum swung too far back the other way. Todd's success will be determined by the level of players he is able to recruit as trite as that seems. His player development skills and coaching ability won't hold the program back.

[burbankbob]

He gets a lot out of sub par talent. They play hard for him. This is a compliment to his coaching skills. Obviously, losing AJ and Stan is a big deal. He does need better recruits. We are still in the top third of the conference all the time. He has great hair, too.

[bigred]

Feb 10, 2022 14:26:23 GMT -6 kiyoat said:

Please don't misconstrue this as a "Fire Lee" kind of thread.  Personally I am voting for option 4.  I think he needs more time.  I just figured that there has been a good deal of discussion on the topic, so.... may as well have a poll.

Enjoy.

(BTW, it is an anonymous poll)

[bigred]

Feb 13, 2022 12:57:22 GMT -6 bigred said:

Feb 10, 2022 14:26:23 GMT -6 kiyoat said:

Please don't misconstrue this as a "Fire Lee" kind of thread.  Personally I am voting for option 4.  I think he needs more time.  I just figured that there has been a good deal of discussion on the topic, so.... may as well have a poll.

Enjoy.

(BTW, it is an anonymous poll)