does anyone know?

[primetimealvey#3]

does anyone know why coury starts?

[ryanebelhar]

I don't know. It's an issue that hasn't really been raised yet.

[wanderingcat]

Perhaps pitiful+hustle=starter, whereas, talent-hustle=bench

[pbqblue]

Perhaps the options are very limited right now,and the kid does give all that he has.

[CatFanInTheBathtub]

apparently, how well these guys play in the Joe Craft center outweighs all.

I don't know if I agree with that but BG knows more than I do.

[jkeller]

apparently, how well these guys play in the Joe Craft center outweighs all.

I don't know if I agree with that but BG knows more than I do.

Maybe we should play our home games in the Joe Craft Center? lol

But seriously, teams who practice where they play a lot of times shoot better because of the familiarity.

[matt57]

i've said this over and over and over again. you can't ask a coach who's lead two of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball to change what he's been doing just because he's at kentucky. he wants all out hustle during practice. if you don't give it you won't play. that's what has made him who he is, to question that or to ask him to change that would be asking for a different coach. this guy's way works. it's been proven at places like UTEP and texas a&m. just imagine what's going to happen @ UK when he gets a team full of guys who buy into it. BCG is my coach and i fully support everything he's doing right now. how bad would it look if he broke his word during his FIRST season here. give the guy some time and watch what happens.

[UKhoov]

i've said this over and over and over again. you can't ask a coach who's lead two of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball to change what he's been doing just because he's at kentucky. he wants all out hustle during practice. if you don't give it you won't play. that's what has made him who he is, to question that or to ask him to change that would be asking for a different coach. this guy's way works. it's been proven at places like UTEP and texas a&m. just imagine what's going to happen @ UK when he gets a team full of guys who buy into it. BCG is my coach and i fully support everything he's doing right now. how bad would it look if he broke his word during his FIRST season here. give the guy some time and watch what happens.
EXACTLY!

[countrycat]

i've said this over and over and over again. you can't ask a coach who's lead two of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball to change what he's been doing just because he's at kentucky. he wants all out hustle during practice. if you don't give it you won't play. that's what has made him who he is, to question that or to ask him to change that would be asking for a different coach. this guy's way works. it's been proven at places like UTEP and texas a&m. just imagine what's going to happen @ UK when he gets a team full of guys who buy into it. BCG is my coach and i fully support everything he's doing right now. how bad would it look if he broke his word during his FIRST season here. give the guy some time and watch what happens.

Atta boy. You hit the nail on the head. A good coach playes the players that produce in practice. Even though to quote AI "its just practice" . Coach is going to do what he thinks is best for this team and to show what will be required in practice for future teams.You may as well accept it because thats the way it is going to be and if UK fans are going to do keep questioning this it is going to be a long season for those who are already down on BCG.

[reggis]

i've said this over and over and over again. you can't ask a coach who's lead two of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball to change what he's been doing just because he's at kentucky. he wants all out hustle during practice. if you don't give it you won't play. that's what has made him who he is, to question that or to ask him to change that would be asking for a different coach. this guy's way works. it's been proven at places like UTEP and texas a&m. just imagine what's going to happen @ UK when he gets a team full of guys who buy into it. BCG is my coach and i fully support everything he's doing right now. how bad would it look if he broke his word during his FIRST season here. give the guy some time and watch what happens.

UTEP and Texas A&M are a big difference than coaching at UK. Clyde is in unfamiliar and unproven ground at UK. Can he succeed, i hope so but i fear he will have to be willing to change some thinking or he won't survive.

[wildcat74]

i've said this over and over and over again. you can't ask a coach who's lead two of the biggest turnarounds in college basketball to change what he's been doing just because he's at kentucky. he wants all out hustle during practice. if you don't give it you won't play. that's what has made him who he is, to question that or to ask him to change that would be asking for a different coach. this guy's way works. it's been proven at places like UTEP and texas a&m. just imagine what's going to happen @ UK when he gets a team full of guys who buy into it. BCG is my coach and i fully support everything he's doing right now. how bad would it look if he broke his word during his FIRST season here. give the guy some time and watch what happens.


Word!

[wildcat74]

UTEP and Texas A&M are a big difference than coaching at UK. Clyde is in unfamiliar and unproven ground at UK. Can he succeed, i hope so but i fear he will have to be willing to change some thinking or he won't survive.


I say if he could turn those two around, the just think about what he could do at UK!!!!! A & M is ranked 12th in the country now, when was the last time you saw that from then?

[matt57]

UTEP and Texas A&M are a big difference than coaching at UK. Clyde is in unfamiliar and unproven ground at UK. Can he succeed, i hope so but i fear he will have to be willing to change some thinking or he won't survive.

thank you. you just made my arguement for me. UTEP and A&M are light years from UK basketball. if he could turn those places around in two years. just imagine what he's going to do with the resources he has here. the guy's a winner and it's really sickening to see and hear some of the stuff being said about him after 8 freaking games. you add that to what some people have been saying about recruits and i really wonder why anyone even considers UK. dakotah euton's dad had a post on another forum stating he was beginning to see why parents wouldn't want thier kids @ UK.

[leroybyrd]

Coury is starting because he works hard, hustles and most imortantly IMO to Billy, because he is a TOUGH kid. From want I can determine so far from watching and listening to Billy, he values toughness a great deal and is trying to toughen up this team. For the most part, the kids who are playing are the ones COMPETING in practice and showing that toughness in practice. It is not always coming out in the games but I believe that is a big part of it. I think that is why coach loves Harris so much. Harris and Coury are competing and bringing toughness in practice. He wants that to infiltrate the rest of the team. Bradley has it. Porter, while also limited physically, has it.

IMO there are a lot of similarities to Bob Huggins in Billy. I think we may see some different kinds of kids here than what we have seen in the past. Tougher kids, kind of like those Cincy kids that Huggins had. He said it himself, he is "totally committed to a smash mouth kind of man to man defense." Its why he seems so stubborn to playing zones. Zones do not bring the toughness Billy wants to eventually have in this team. It is the reason Crawford is not starting and hitting it off with Billy, it is partly why, IMO, Carter is not playing. No toughness. If you don't bring toughness, you will not get far with Billy G. I think he totally disrespected Legion after his affair and why he did not give him the time of day, really after he left initially.

Maybe none of you will agree, but to me, I think I have figured something out about him and it is the toughness issue. IMO, he is a street fighter at heart, not Mr. nice guy like Tubby and his teams will eventually reflect this. Good things are coming, possibly later this year if we get some guys healthy, but even though I have been critical, I think this guy has a master plan and it revolves around a (his words) "smash mouth" style that will take a lot of time to build and may not happen this year because of injuries. It will not always be pretty but I think we wil have a lot of success under Billy, but it will take patience on the fans part. Just IMO of course.

[CatClaws1]

Who else is going to start over Coury?

[teamchemistry09]

Coury is probably the hardest worker on the team. He hustles every time down court. Although he isnt the most talented, who else starts? Carter? Stevenson? Williams? Harris? Stewart? Carter and Williams are well, Carter and Williams. They are obviously too far behind at the moment to start and contribute. Stevenson is getting there. He needs to be more physical and work harder. Harris, well, was it 15 minutes and 4 TOs? He doesnt even try to score or rebound. Stewart, only coach knows what the deal with him is. Coury IMO is a good option for us. He plays good D and gets his rebounds. He only scores like 4 a game, but if he starts looking for a shot more he will keep some of the double teams off of Patterson

[catdmd]

I hope I am wrong but nothing is going to happen with this player. He's in way over his head at UK. It's not his fault and I definitely don't fault his effort. I think there are some better options. I'm not against him playing but against some other big guys not getting any time.

[leroybyrd]

I hope I am wrong but nothing is going to happen with this player. He's in way over his head at UK. It's not his fault and I definitely don't fault his effort. I think there are some better options. I'm not against him playing but against some other big guys not getting any time.

Please read my post above and you will find out why Coury is starting and playing over others. IMO, Billy is trying to build an certain attitude, a certain way of going about your business and guys like Coury and Harris are part of that. IMO, he is not taking a quick fix approach to this and will sacrifice the short run do introduce HIS culture. To him, it is not 100%about playing ability right now and I am starting to come around to it.

[Lon25]

Am I missing something but I do not see toughness on the floor when he is playing. On defense I see a slower player that is pushed around and not very aggressive. Then he allows himself to get out of position and foul at Randolph Morris pace and is out of the game.
Stevenson does have the possibility to block shots but is too weak and pushed out of postion too and his hands are too weak to be a rebounding or offensive threat.
Stewart showed a little promise but he is crazy glued to the bench with Carter and Williams. If he wants toughness let Williams pick up his 4 fouls (due to lack of speed) in Courey's short time period. Or try to get something out of Carter.
Courey would be a good 7 -10 minute sub. Then he would only pick up 3 fouls.

[leroybyrd]

Am I missing something but I do not see toughness on the floor when he is playing. On defense I see a slower player that is pushed around and not very aggressive. Then he allows himself to get out of position and foul at Randolph Morris pace and is out of the game.
Stevenson does have the possibility to block shots but is too weak and pushed out of postion too and his hands are too weak to be a rebounding or offensive threat.
Stewart showed a little promise but he is crazy glued to the bench with Carter and Williams. If he wants toughness let Williams pick up his 4 fouls (due to lack of speed) in Courey's short time period. Or try to get something out of Carter.
Courey would be a good 7 -10 minute sub. Then he would only pick up 3 fouls.

What you are missing is that it is more about what is going on in practice than the games. The guys who are playing are competing and showing toughness in PRACTICE. Again, IMO he is trying to create an attitude and a culture for the long haul not for any specific games right now. That is one reason why you don't see adjustments. He is committing to a smash mouth style that includes a very tough, hard nosed brand of man to man defense. You don't see it now on the floor in games because you have to create that attitude and atmosphere in practice and it is not there yet. He is transforming these guys heads right now and it just takes time. Again, I have been very critical, but I believe I am starting to figure him out. I could be wrong though, maybe he is an idiot, but I'm trying to figure something out positively.

[UKBOO]

^^^
That is exactly what is going on. This will also serve UK well when more talented high schoolers role in. You earn your time like the rest. Guys that produce in practice plays..

I think it really is that simple.

[UKBOO]

I also agree with how he handles it in the press. A quick sentence covers it all. "Those that earn it get it..."

He isn't dragging guys through the media mud because they aren't producing as well as others in practice.

RP needs a lesson from BG on this, if you ask me..

[Doug Hardin]

From a fan's perspective it's easy to look at these games and ask questions like, "Why isn't Joe Crawford starting?" or "Why does Michael Porter/Mark Coury play so much?"

But if you look at it from a coach's perspective, it does make sense to stick to your "Earn your playing time in practice" principle. Your ultimate goal as a coach is to get the maximum amount of effort at all times from all of your players, especially those with the most talent. If you start and give the most minutes to the more talented guys who are not giving maximum effort, what's the incentive for them to give it their best effort in practice? By the same token, if a lesser-talented guy like Coury practices as hard as he possibly can but never sees the floor, what's the incentive for him to give his best effort?

I have no firsthand knowledge of this, but some suggest that the reason for the chemistry problems that plagued the 2005-06 team stemmed from Tubby's allowing Rondo to start or play starters' minutes based solely on his talent and not his earning of that playing time in practice.

[wildcat74]

From a fan's perspective it's easy to look at these games and ask questions like, "Why isn't Joe Crawford starting?" or "Why does Michael Porter/Mark Coury play so much?"

But if you look at it from a coach's perspective, it does make sense to stick to your "Earn your playing time in practice" principle. Your ultimate goal as a coach is to get the maximum amount of effort at all times from all of your players, especially those with the most talent. If you start and give the most minutes to the more talented guys who are not giving maximum effort, what's the incentive for them to give it their best effort in practice? By the same token, if a lesser-talented guy like Coury practices as hard as he possibly can but never sees the floor, what's the incentive for him to give his best effort?

I have no firsthand knowledge of this, but some suggest that the reason for the chemistry problems that plagued the 2005-06 team stemmed from Tubby's allowing Rondo to start or play starters' minutes based solely on his talent and not his earning of that playing time in practice.

Great post!

[poodoo]

Coury is starting because he works hard, hustles and most imortantly IMO to Billy, because he is a TOUGH kid. From want I can determine so far from watching and listening to Billy, he values toughness a great deal and is trying to toughen up this team. For the most part, the kids who are playing are the ones COMPETING in practice and showing that toughness in practice. It is not always coming out in the games but I believe that is a big part of it. I think that is why coach loves Harris so much. Harris and Coury are competing and bringing toughness in practice. He wants that to infiltrate the rest of the team. Bradley has it. Porter, while also limited physically, has it.



BINGO, leroybyrd, to these statements AND your other post that says something about how you are trying to figure it all out POSITIVELY! :big_grin: I love analyzing, and I especially love trying to be POSITIVE, so I thus extremely like both posts. :icon_biggrin:

Yes, I happen to think that you are RIGHT on target. Too, notice that Bradley rarely sits down and that Porter only sat down a minute Saturday, while Coury and Harris are frequently rewarded with starts. Coach G highly values TOUGHNESS (and the hustle that is part of that). Those players evidently show just that, and Coach G seems to be proving that players MUST show the same to play.

Too, I agree that he is determined to start a NEW CULTURE here. Also, ironically, our former coach had very similar basketball values. Although some have desired to paint the two coaches as polar opposistes, Will and others (including me myself) have stated from the start that both coaches, based on Coach G's comments at his press conferences and our former coach's repeated comments through the years, similarly stress DEFENSE and REBOUNDING above all. Our former coach repeatedly bemoaned the lack of tough defense, rebounding, and TOUGHNESS in general from his players the past two seasons, saying they were not typical of his former teams. I just recently read a Gillispie assistant's comments that Coach G lokes the "blue-collar" guys. Hmmm. Does that not sound familiar?

So how is it a NEW culture? Our former coach (and I had prefer not even to mention him, but it is a necessity because of the topic) did not DEMAND such and make players SIT if they did not show that exceptional hustle and TOUGHNESS. You called him "Mr. Nice Guy." Coach G does NOT worry about being Mr. Nice Guy. Instead, he wants it clear that he is the BOSS, forgetting about appearing "nice," and that was seemingly needed.

What former player is the perfect combination of TOUGHNESS and being a NICE GUY? My answer is Chuck Hayes. While he played at UK, UK was ranked the top team in the nation two straight years and was the winningest program for three seasons. When Chuck's toughness and leadership was missing the past two seasons, well, where was the TOUGHNESS, then? Our former coach similarly WANTED it, but, as I see it, he did not DEMAND it. Talented players started and played, regardless. THAT no longer happening is the NEW CULTURE here.

Good job, leroybyrd, and good luck, Coach Gillispie! :)

[poodoo]

FWIW, after the Gillispie hire, but prior to the "boot camp" and practices, I had said that I worried most about Joe Crawford and Perry Stevenson in regard to those tough practices. Oh, don't get me wrong. I love both of those players. :) Yet, I think Coach G knows that we need BOTH of those young men to be TOUGHER in practice and on the floor. Notice that neither is often a starter.

Yes, it's largely about TOUGHNESS, and may Coach G be successful in instilling that much needed TOUGHNESS! Mark Coury is obviously showing it. :) GO CATS! GO MARK!