2016-17 illinois
john beilein hot seat possibility

Illinois 85, Michigan 69 Comment Count

Ace

Kipper Nichols entered tonight's game with season totals of two field goals and two offensive rebounds in 18 minutes played.

Against Michigan, the Illinois freshman scored 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting and pulled down five offensive boards, one more than the Wolverines had as a team. Center Maverick Morgan, who averages 9.4 points per game, had 12 at halftime. At that point, the Illini were 20-for-32 from the field and had rebounded half of their missed shots; Michigan was shooting 64% and losing by 13. The second half played out in similar fashion, with Illinois stretching the lead out to 20 on four separate occasions before easing up late.

I've found the questioning of John Beilein's job security to be somewhere between reactionary and absurd for much of this season. With the defense looking unfixable even after the offseason hire of Billy Donlon, however, it's time to at least bring up the discussion, one that will only grow louder if the team continues to resemble the one that sleepwalked through tonight's game. It's a shocking development for a coach who resurrected the program, made a national title game, and won his second Big Ten title only three years ago. Beilein's offensive prowess is unquestionable; his recruiting and defensive coaching may lead to a change sooner than anyone could've reasonably expected not so long ago.

Comments

thevetdoc1

January 12th, 2017 at 12:25 AM ^

They are the best players on this team. Great example of his recruiting- mediocre to poor freshmen who become mediocre seniors. He just does not know talent. We were fooled by Nick Staulkis and Caris. They were the exceptions not the rule. The rule is that his players are just not talented enough. If he was in the NBA and someone could draft for him that is one thing but part of coaching in college is recruiting and he is just poor at that part of his job. We all thought all the late signings were good because of Caris but they were really just marginal recruits for power schools. And think about his judgement the past two years in not offering seniors an additional year IU says thank you. A Final Four squandered. Tragic. Good man. He is just done. Ready for life on a beach

Joined: 12/29/2013

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ijohnb

January 12th, 2017 at 9:17 AM ^

showed exceptional promise his freshman year and even against for the beginning of his second season.  I remember actually thinking he reminded me of a stronger Jason(Jay) Williams of Duke.  One foot injury was all it took. He never regained form after that.  I don't know what happened with him.

Joined: 09/21/2009

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Maynard

January 12th, 2017 at 9:03 AM ^

It won't be a change to the program until the change is one from a soft style to one of toughness. Recruiting has to improve. Being a nonfactor in Detroit and Chicago is unacceptable. This year should be the last year. Even if the results were better next season no one would be watching anyway because apathy is starting to set in. And that is the worst place to be, when a lot of us don't have interest in watching anymore. 

Joined: 02/19/2016

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BlueinGeorgia

January 11th, 2017 at 11:51 PM ^

The fact that he went to a National Championship and Final Four and this is where he is now is pitiful.  He has absolutely squandered any recruiting chances he had and we're left with these players that can't play defense and have a hard time generating offense.  I know it's tough to get five star recruits, but it seems he's looking at only a few four stars and the rest diamond in the rough players that don't pan out.

Joined: 09/28/2016

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alum96

January 11th, 2017 at 11:57 PM ^

LOL stats

 

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thevetdoc1

January 12th, 2017 at 12:11 AM ^

Two programs in opposite directions. JB read too many of his press clippings and thought he could coach anyone up. His past 4 recruiting classes have been poor. People are down on the seniors but they are the best of the four classes. If I was the AD I would support him publicly but be quietly looking and ready to move if a proven coach is available. Please no promotion of unknown assistants. Next year will be a total disaster with the best two players leaving. Frankly JB looks like a coach at the end. No energy to recruit and just deceives himself into believing he has good recruits. Maybe he gets re energized but it is hard to have faith in his talent evaluation after the four busts in this years class which he described as a "Great class". And before you say it, freshman are ready to play if they are going to be impact players with the exception of a few big men. Look at the power schools. His pattern is to take bench riding freshman and turn them into mediocre upperclassmen. Final Four and a great new basketball center were just squandered. A real tragedy. Thanks for the great three years and resurrecting the program JB. I trul hope you enjoy retirement.

Joined: 12/29/2013

MGoPoints: 92

BornInA2

January 12th, 2017 at 12:31 AM ^

His system is great...when he hits the three-star lotto. Dribble around a bit and try a three is workable when a Stauskas falls out of the sky into your lap. But counting on that to happen is just dumb. And defense? I think we'd do better if we just set an actual picket fence out on the floor. Warde is coming up rapidly on a big decision. Let's hope he pulls a Hackett.

Joined: 02/15/2014

MGoPoints: 12802

Z_Wolverista

January 12th, 2017 at 12:40 AM ^

is tired.

Maybe the Harbaugh downwind just became too much.

Maybe with some R & R he can come back.

But right now, he just seems to be out of steam.

Tonight either leads to a pivot / turning point or is the beginning of the end.

I fear the latter but will pray for the former. Still have love for our coach... wishing the best for him & for us all.

#goBlue! 

Joined: 01/19/2014

MGoPoints: 2673

Bertello NC

January 12th, 2017 at 12:53 AM ^

I think Beilein has lost his mojo, some of his passion, and it's gotten stale and mundane. There seems to very little "cool factor" with UM basketball right now. I understand that having a coach who is overly passionate, intense, or wears his emotions more on the sleeve than close to the vest doesn't always equate to wins but watching Beilein on the sideline just makes me yearn for someone like that. It's like the program is on the verge of flatlining. There isn't much of a pulse at the moment.
Much like Harbaugh has done, we need to break out the defibrillator and bring in someone to inject some energy into the program. There is no reason that Michigan basketball shouldn't be able to recruit better. We just don't have the athletes to compete with top 25-30 teams. Most of them anyway. To add to that, Beilein doesn't exude much toughness and has lost passion and intensity(although I don't think he's ever been a very intense coach to begin with) so it trickles down to the players and they seem so weak and soft.
Have to get someone here who can recruit and shake some things up. Because right now it feels like we are on life support



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Lil boy blue

January 12th, 2017 at 1:18 AM ^

Think outside the box We are not U.K., Duke, Indiana, MSU, Kansas, UNC, AZ, UCLA or even NC St Think beyond some dried, shriveled up former coach It has to be someone who can steal recruits from current Mt Rushmore. Someone recruits know and can relate to with a playing pedigree and assembled staff of NBA player personnel / coaches. Jay Williams for example - we all know he's not far removed from Duke and Chicago Bulls but recruits know him from ESPN. Pair him with ____ NCAA lead asst + retired NBA folk + Battier and you have a formidable opposition to the old, stuffy regime. That's the only formula I see better than what we have. As noted in this post we are 3 years removed from a B1G title. You've seen what hiring "up and comers" did to the football program. If you don't trust continuity try something no one else has that sets the edge against the top brass.

Joined: 12/30/2016

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TrueBlue2003

January 12th, 2017 at 1:40 AM ^

None of those programs are good when they don't have an elite coach, and just like our football program, none of those programs are simply entitled to a good coach.  See UCLA for the past 5 years, IU basically since Knight, NC St since uh, the 80s?, UK before Calipari, even UNC between Smith and Williams wasn't _UNC_.

To be great in college sports you have to have elite coaching (including the ability to recruit),  and there's only two ways to get elite coaching: 1) get lucky with an "up-and-comer" and hope to hang onto him as long as possible or 2) back the money truck up and pay the best proven coach a truckload of money.  Those are the only two ways (or cheat like Ole Miss Football but I won't consider that an option).  Jay Williams would be a complete roll of the dice as an up-and-comer.  I'd rather back the money truck up for someone more proven.

Joined: 01/05/2010

MGoPoints: 38075

SDCran

January 12th, 2017 at 1:53 AM ^

I have never seen bad calls lead to 7 point runs so often in one game.  (I guess that's not so surprising when the opponent scored on about 90% of their possessions. Which is on topic for the rest of this thread).

From Walton's charge call to about 12 minutes to go, there were about 4 terrible calls against UM.  In every one of them UI went on ~7 point runs.  Or maybe I should look at it as, there were 4 bad calls against UM while UI went on a 30-10 run?

The duo of the terrible charge on Walton (plus the technical) along with the charge on Wagner where the guy was both late and inside the arc was particularly frustrating in the 17-2 run to finish the half.  

This team just doesn't have it to bow their backs and stop those runs more quickly.

Joined: 01/27/2010

MGoPoints: 4685

pryoo

January 12th, 2017 at 2:19 AM ^

Ace, I agree with this comment.. I'm as frustrated with this team's recent slide as much as anybody, but I think it's too reactionary to suggest firing Coach Beilein at this point. 

I see Coach B constantly talking to his players on the bench and emploring them to show some grit and toughness. Defense is talked about ad nauseum and you can tell he's exasperated at the lack of progress. I think the fact that they haven't responded with more fire shows that the players are more to blame for this team's current results than the coaches.

That being said, I wouldn't be surprised to see this team turn it around and make the tournament. I was at the UCLA game and witnessed for 30 minutes what this group can do when they are playing with fire and confidence. It's really on the players to pick up the intensity and I'm hoping MAAR will take charge a bit more after a couple good games.

I also am encouraged by the recruits coming in, more athletic and should be able to defend better. That'll be when Donlan's influence will really show.

Go Blue! and Jay Williams??? wth.. 

Joined: 03/21/2009

MGoPoints: 1327

Maynard

January 12th, 2017 at 9:19 AM ^

pryoo- The tide has turned. It's just a matter of time now. There are a lot of us on here who have been taking fire for any criticism of JB for a while now. Good luck with the whole turn it around and make the tournament thing. We all want that but it's extremely unlikely.

With you on Jay Williams though, as in hell no on him. Do not want.

Joined: 02/19/2016

MGoPoints: 9888

HollywoodHokeHogan

January 12th, 2017 at 11:16 PM ^

These players cannot be a fault for years of poor defense that lately can't be covered up with good offense. Effective coaching is more than just talking to players on the bench. In fact, effective coaching in college includes recruiting players who do something other than shoot 40+% from three in high school.



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ca_prophet

January 12th, 2017 at 4:20 AM ^

And we're not firing him if we think there's sizeable improvement out there.  Firing Beilein to hire a non-Harbaugh level coach is a huge gamble.

That said, if we keep playing like this, Manuel will have an easy call at year's end.  Being out of the tournament by February after missing the tourny two years ago (and barely scraping in last year) is not a good trajectory; couple that with just flat-out uninteresting, poor play and all the goodwill that three-year peak bought him will be spent.

 

Joined: 09/07/2010

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I Love Lamp

January 12th, 2017 at 7:40 AM ^

We were staring mediocrity in the face, we didn't settle, we attempted to find someone better. It took a few times, but we landed Harbaugh and we are back in good hands. Basketball should be no different. Beilein has a good mind, is a good man, and had a few years of tremendous success. I am thankful for those years. I am thankful he runs a squeaky clean program. But this program is flat out stale anymore. It would be one thing if we were just caught in a bad season, but we are in a downward spiral, and there appears to be no other answers but to look elsewhere for new leadership.

Joined: 07/15/2014

MGoPoints: 8306

michfan84

January 12th, 2017 at 8:52 AM ^

To highlight the recruiting failures, Beilein and Izzo both brought in a 4-freshmen class this year. Our best freshman is not as good as their worst one.

Joined: 02/27/2013

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Richard75

January 12th, 2017 at 8:56 AM ^

Good write-up, although Beilein's offensive prowess *is* questionable.

The offense succeeds in large part because Michigan ignores several skills in its recruiting (shot-blocking, rebounding, defense in general) in pursuit of points. It's not like Beilein is magically getting shooting out of Brent Petway types.

It's like an NFL team spending all its picks on offense. If the offense turns out to be good and the defense is terrible, it's not because you're an offensive genius. It's because you built your team that way.



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Spontaneous Co…

January 12th, 2017 at 10:12 AM ^

This is the proper analysis of Beilein's offensive prowess.  As far as I can tell, we don't have a single player who takes any pride in defense and rebounding.  And sadly, those are two aspects of the game that are ingrained into the player's DNA.  Very few players become great defenders (expecially perimter players) or rebounders.  You reap what you sow - and this product is a direct reflection of the recruiting focus.  If Beilein was an offensive genius he should be taking kids that have natural ability at defense and rebounding and then turning them into offensive gems.

 

Joined: 01/04/2011

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Goldmember2

January 12th, 2017 at 10:25 AM ^

Spot on.  Our two year run was fueld by Jordan Morgan.  A guy that dug in on defense, communicated and worked his butt off to secure rebournds.  If we had 1 or 2 of him we'd balance the teams high skill level with some "grit" to push competativeness on def.  

Joined: 12/05/2011

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snarling wolverine

January 12th, 2017 at 11:48 AM ^

I wouldn't go quite that far.  We haven't necessarily been loaded with exceptional offensive talent over the years but we've usually been ranked very highly in offensive efficiency under Beilein.  His system does generate a lot of open looks.  

Our defense is fundamentally bad.  It's not just that we lack size or athleticism.  We screw up a lot of things that even untalented players can get right.  Guys miss rotations, don't keep their hands up, go under screens, hedge too far out, forget to box out, and so on.  These can be corrected but they're not.

Joined: 12/14/2011

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True Blue Grit

January 12th, 2017 at 8:58 AM ^

And this team plays way too soft and nice to win in the Big Ten.  The players are clearly not very inspired or motivated.  Warde Manuel has to do some thinking and have a very serious conversation with Coach B after this season - which is highly likely to end with a losing Big Ten record and no NCAA bid.  As others have said, this department has invested far too much money in the program to accept these kind of results.  Not to mention Michigan's basketball tradition and goals as an athletic program for excellence on/off the court.  

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L'Carpetron Do…

January 12th, 2017 at 9:29 AM ^

This team baffles me.  I think they're good - but they don't know how to win.  I've only seen them play hard in the Garden and against Penn State.  

I'm bummed - I'm a huge Beilein supporter but I think he may have lost it, maybe its time to retire.  

The only hope is that this team improves significantly towards the end of the season the way most Beilein teams do.  It would be a nice surprise if they go on a run and reel off a few games down the stretch with an upset or two sprinkled in.  But I don't see it with this team...

Joined: 03/15/2010

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CaliUMfan

January 12th, 2017 at 10:14 AM ^

I have been firmly in the defend Beilein camp through the last two disapointing years. I thought if  Wagner and Wilson became what they have become, this team would significantly outperform expectations. Halfway through the second half last night, I couldn't help but think that Beilein's seat has to be getting pretty damn hot barring a miraculous turnaround. I'd give him next year (he's bringing in a pretty darn good class) and then throw money at the biggest name available if they don't compete for a big ten title. 

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