Underachieving Days of Lavins

by HK Bruin on May 10, 2007 3:06 PM PDT

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=2865999

Thanks to Steve-16, UCLA got one vote for the most underachieving basketball school for the past 10 years. Too bad we did not get in the final Top 10. I'd love to hear ESPN ripping into its own college basketball analyst. I would imagine it would go something like this.

UCLA

Despite having loads of high school McDonald All-Americans and future NBA ballers, UCLA is the one school that can be best summed as "doing the least with the most resources available". With the deepest and biggest college basketball legacy, one of the most beautiful campus/weather/co-eds in the entire nation, and an amazing opportunity of education, UCLA should've been in the Top 10 of the best school in the past decade. Instead, it is perennially stuck in the mud of mediocrity. Plagued by poor coaching and discipline, players would rarely improve during the years spent in Lavin's "motion[less] offense". Despite flash of brillance in the tournament where talent alone was enough to push them to the round of 16 multiple times, the not-so-mighty Bruins always get stopped short of the ultimate prize by better coached teams with far less talent. That by definition is under-achieving.

The bright side of this diary is that in 10 year, we will most likely be Top 10 on the opposite list! As said many times in this website, thank God for Coach Howland!

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.

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The list to look out for on ESPN

is to be posted tomorrow - the top ten list of teams best set for the next few years. Despite it being ESPN, I still cannot fathom being any lower than #1 on the list.

by melliott2 on May 10, 2007 4:40 PM PDT reply actions

It's ESPN

North Carolina will find their way to the top.

by SuperBruinMan on May 10, 2007 4:55 PM PDT up reply actions

Followed by Duke

And then a few more undeserving schools before UCLA finally gets mentioned around #7. Wouldn't be too surprised to even see Arizona before us, this is ESPN.

by Rhapsode on May 10, 2007 11:56 PM PDT up reply actions

Yeah

Probably too optimistic on my behalf - for ESPN coverage, anyways. I think it's I myself that cannot fathom putting any team but UCLA number one.

On a side note, I do believe that our lack of respect in the national media works to our advantage. Not as any sort of extra motivation to us, but instead performing higher than the opposing team's expectations. The continued disbelief in how we win games (Kansas immediately springs to mind) is also a good thing for us, no matter how infuriating it may be to listen to game after game. Just as long as we (the UCLA fans) know what happened, we can pat the team on the back for a job well done, and ignore whatever comments there are about our supposedly deficient style of play. Because unlike in college football, continued winning in basketball will lead to a championship.

Besides, if after a whole game playing against us you still can't figure out why you lost, you're never going to be able to beat us.

by melliott2 on May 11, 2007 1:19 AM PDT up reply actions

#3

Behind UNC and Florida. Idiots.

by Nars on May 11, 2007 8:39 AM PDT reply actions

The comments are interesting

There's an essay by a Kansas fan about how certain schools will always be good (Kansas, Kentucky, UNC) and certain schools are just good right now (Florida, Ohio St, UCLA, Louisville).

"UCLA: Basketball will likely always be the #1 sport at UCLA, but the school is still located in LA. That means that there is always nice weather, beautiful beaches, a large city filled with celebrities and people trying to be famous, loud clubs with long lines, etc. What all that adds up to me is a dispassion for basketball and a huge passion for 'like nothing man'. I hear (may be a rumor) that you don't fill the stands for every game; that would never happen at you know where."

by SuperBruinMan on May 11, 2007 5:39 PM PDT reply actions

LMAO

at that.

UCLA can only hope to attain the recent and historical success of Kentucky or Kansas. HA HA HA HA HA

"when you've seen how big the world is, how can you make due with this?"

by silverlakebruin on May 12, 2007 2:31 PM PDT up reply actions

Sad little Jayhawk

His article should say "Despite being located in LA., which means that there is always nice weather, beautiful beaches, a large city filled with celebrities and people trying to be famous, loud clubs with long lines, etc., UCLA still has more basketball championships than any other school in the country. What all that adds up to, to me, is that they can have their cake and eat it too. Because for me, if it weren't for basketball, I would have nothing to do except picnic in corn fields and make love to Welma, my sheep."

by tasser10 on May 12, 2007 2:56 PM PDT up reply actions