Maybe so, I won't deny that they will be competitive next season, but LSU should be in a lot better shape. LSU hardly played to their supposed potential this past season and made it to the final four--without what many would call a "true" PG. With experience, talent returning and hopefully a newfound sense of pride, LSU is gonna be a quite a team next season. Kansas will be okay, but I just don't see how Arthur can go in there and have the imediate impact that he would have had at LSU, on the SEC's stage. Maybe Mom and Pop had something to do with it, which is a shame. I'm not in that position, but I'd never force my kid to go somewhere just so that he's closer to me-of course I've never been in the financial position to where it may be an absolute necessity. Oh well... LSU is going to be special with or without Arthur. Hopefully we can meet in the post-season and welcome him to the NCAAs Tiger-style.
1. We hardly played to our potential? 2. We loose two of those guys that hardly played to their potential and were stars for us. 3. Kansas looses 2 players, both of whom averaged less than 3 points a game. They were also a freshmen and soph. dominated team last season. How can Kansas not be as good as LSU but Arthur won't have as good of a chance to make an impact. Seems like he would have more of a chance if LSU has the better retunring players.
If ease of attending games was the issue, Kansas is a tough to get to from Dallas as anywhere else. Throw in the winter weather they get and it even makes it worse.
Man, you made me put my beer down, this is going to be long.... 1. For about 75% of the season LSU did NOT play up to its potential. I'm not saying that they played badly, I'm saying that they did NOT play up to their potential. Everyone knows this, and acknowledged it during the season, but because we were a final-four team people may have "forgotten" this little caveat. I'm NOT wrecking on the team at ALL, but they simply did not play up to their potential, which further supports my case. LSU had some GREAT games and DMitch hit some clutch shots, but I wouldn't call his senior year phenomenal. He was hit or miss. God bless him, I love him to death, and his years as a Tiger were GREAT, but he did NOT play up to his potential ALL of the time. I don't fault him for it either because VERY few players do. 2. Which is even more baffling. Just think if DMitch and T-Time had lived up to their potential. T-Time was IMPOSSIBLE to stop late in the season, but I remember some rough games for him earlier on. But still, Darrell and Tyrus are the two exceptions to my statement because both were extremely instrumental in our "run." In fact EVERYONE who played was, but that's beside my point. Darrell's last minute heroics were about as integral a part of the team as was Tyrus' defense and deft-defying throw-downs. 3. LSU loses, arguably, its best two players in Tyrus and Darrell. Kansas loses Vinson and Moody who were not, imo, KU's best players--not even close. The fact is, is that Arthur would have had a shot at stepping in at LSU and starting right off the bat. I guess if he's good enough (or at least thinks he's good enough) the same can be said of him starting at KU. I'll admit that I haven't really followed Kansas basketball last season, but I know enough to realize that they're probably in contention for a Big-12 title next season with Arthur. However, the SEC is going to have ALL eyes focusing in next season because of its success this past season. Plus, you'd better believe that LSU is going to be a media-darling this season upcoming. Darrell could have been in the limelight. I could sit here all day and list a multitude of scenarios, but when it comes down to it, we're still going to be stellar next season. When Tyrus got hurt, this team barely missed a beat, sure we lost to UF, but Magnum Rolle and Darnell Lazare stepped it up a notch. We have that Marquette transfer that's going to be eligible next season, along with a seasoned Rolle, possibly a determined Lazare, an all-SEC Mitchell, a HUNGRY Tack Minor, a possibly slimmer (AA?) Davis, what I think will be a GREATLY improved Garrett Temple, a seasoned Thompson...er..Voogd, etc. We will miss the imediate impact of a MCD's AA, but to hell with him, this team will be in contention of a NCAA title with or without him. For what it's worth, I think it would have been better for Darrell Arthur to have enrolled at LSU where he was almost guaranteed significant PT and where his name would have been mentioned (with inevitable skill comparisons) to the likes of TT and Big Baby (who, by the way, became household names this past season.) I'm having a hard time trying to find pluses for his choice of KU. Of course that's because I'm an LSU fan, but still... I'm bipartisan enough to at least be able to spot ONE measily advantage--but I can't. Who else were we recruiting/did we recruit this off-season? Surely there has to be someone else, right? No hard feeling towards you, Cajdav, but I think you misunderstood what I said a little. I'm not knocking the kid's decision, but can you honestly find one plus for him attending KU over LSU? I'm finding it extremely difficult--even with my purple and gold glasses in their case.
Oops, forgot one... LSU does NOT have the better returning players, that was my whole point in the first place. LSU lost, perhaps, its two biggest stars while Kansas did not. Maybe I'm missing something but it seems more likely to step on to a team sans its best players and have immediate impact--which was my original point. This, however, could all be futile and moot if come next season our players have progressed to how they're capable and play lights-out. In which case, you'd be hard pressed to expect Brady and Co. to bench PROVEN players to play a freshman phenom.
this is as far as i read. with your criteria, NO ONE has EVER played up to their potential. besides, youre high anyway, any team with that inexperience that wins a major conf (outright, dont forget---by two games, dont forget) AND gets to F4 did not just play up to their potential but surpassed it. i guess it may be impossible to surpass potential, by definition, but atleast they exceeded any expectations of rational fans. only a homer would have picked lsu to get to F4 before the season. btw. i infer from your post that you dont realize that KU won a share of the B12 reg season title. i'd say there is no doubt they are contenders---more likely favorites (perhaps pending tucker's and gibson's decisions.)
And I disagree 100%. This was team that many predicted was going nowhere after we lost Bass. And this team had one bonafide superstar in the making in Davis heading into the season. Many of other SEC teams had at least Again, I disagree completely, we all started that maybe this team would be pretty good because of our close losses. Hardly anyone expected anything up until those games. That just flies in the face of your previous statements about Kansas not expected to be good next year, but I think you just got your signals crossed when you were posting. Exactly, but he did play better than he had ever before, thus exceeding expectations for many. It will take several years of bigtime success for us to be at the level of Kansas in both real credibility and the media's eyes, and rightfully so. Kansas is one of the top 5 or 6 programs in the US. He wanted to gothere, most likely due to the longstanding rep that Kansas has acrued over the years and because he liked Self. And I think it's almost like deciding between Kathy Ireland and Heidi Klum, one is a beauty that has been around a while and the other is a fabulous newcomer to the scene. Cool, none from me either, this is a pleasant debate.
