Not in final 8 for Scruggs

[TC4THREE]

To blame one player on your team for missing the tournament is uncalled for in my opinion and unfair.

Well, in my opinion it is totally fair. He was a selfish player who didn't listen to coaching. Might have cost us Nic Moore too. Was he the entire reason that we had such poor seasons? Probably not. We might make the tournament in spite of him if the talent level were high enough around him. While he was not the only reason, he was still the biggest reason.

I rarely speak ill of the departed but in my view he sabotaged two years of Purdue basketball and it was due to the way he conducted himself rather than just a lack of talent. I have no interest in romanticizing his role in Purdue basketball history.

 

[SoCalFan]

Well, in my opinion it is totally fair. He was a selfish player who didn't listen to coaching. Might have cost us Nic Moore too. Was he the entire reason that we had such poor seasons? Probably not. We might make the tournament in spite of him if the talent level were high enough around him. While he was not the only reason, he was still the biggest reason.

I rarely speak ill of the departed but in my view he sabotaged two years of Purdue basketball and it was due to the way he conducted himself rather than just a lack of talent. I have no interest in romanticizing his role in Purdue basketball history.

Of course you have an interest, or you would have never responded to me. "He sabotaged two years of Purdue basketball"...that is just pathetic and says more about you than it does him.

 

[TC4THREE]

Of course you have an interest, or you would have never responded to me. "He sabotaged two years of Purdue basketball"...that is just pathetic and says more about you than it does him.

I said I have no interest in romanticizing it. I'm happy to tell you my reality-based feelings on it which is that he was a team cancer and that he sabotaged two years of Purdue basketball. If you find the truth "pathetic" then that says much about you.

 

[sluggo69]

Wait, I remember reading on here several times how Ronnie was better than Yogi.

 

[TC4THREE]

Wait, I remember reading on here several times how Ronnie was better than Yogi.

I was never in that group but there was a point in their careers where Yogi wasn't nearly the player he developed into and the difference between the two wasn't that great. Ronnie, on the other hand, never listened to the coaches, never got better, and got exposed for what he was.

 

[mathboy]

Of course you have an interest, or you would have never responded to me. "He sabotaged two years of Purdue basketball"...that is just pathetic and says more about you than it does him.

SoCal, I don't think I would be as harsh about TC#'s post as you. Ronnie does take some of the blame for the performance of the team during that time. However, I think T3 places way too much of the direct blame on RJ.

I do think that Ronnie contributed to 2 bad years, but there were other circumstances that made those years so bad. I still contend we went through a period of just awful recruiting in all our major sports. We did not have any other good players, except RJ and his brother, for much of that period. RJ's performance and lack of coach-ability was a factor, but the missing talent around him was more to blame for those 2 bad years.

 

[SoCalFan]

SoCal, I don't think I would be as harsh about TC#'s post as you. Ronnie does take some of the blame for the performance of the team during that time. However, I think T3 places way too much of the direct blame on RJ.

I do think that Ronnie contributed to 2 bad years, but there were other circumstances that made those years so bad. I still contend we went through a period of just awful recruiting in all our major sports. We did not have any other good players, except RJ and his brother, for much of that period. RJ's performance and lack of coach-ability was a factor, but the missing talent around him was more to blame for those 2 bad years.

Of course he had a poor year, but this is a team game. I just don't think it is fair to blame one player for less than expected results. I admit that I am biased - my son plays football for USC...and I know that no one player is to blame. I remind myself that they are either teenagers are young 20-something year old men doing the best they possibly can. Not one of them tries to play poorly...they play as hard as they can. As I said, I am biased.

 

[TC4THREE]

Of course he had a poor year, but this is a team game. I just don't think it is fair to blame one player for less than expected results. I admit that I am biased - my son plays football for USC...and I know that no one player is to blame. I remind myself that they are either teenagers are young 20-something year old men doing the best they possibly can. Not one of them tries to play poorly...they play as hard as they can. As I said, I am biased.

And I never said that all the blame was on Ronnie. I just put far more on him than anyone else and if you actually watched that year and the subsequent fallout it is not hard to see why. It is not a coincidence that we rebounded from last place to make the NCAA tournament the very next season when he was gone.

 

[SoCalFan]

And I never said that all the blame was on Ronnie. I just put far more on him than anyone else and if you actually watched that year and the subsequent fallout it is not hard to see why. It is not a coincidence that we rebounded from last place to make the NCAA tournament the very next season when he was gone.

With all due respect, there could be dozens of reasons why the team played better the next year. The truth is that you probably have no idea and are just venting and looking for someone to blame. We just disagree...I don't blame an individual player for the success or failure of the team, nor do the players and coaches.

 

[TC4THREE]

With all due respect, there could be dozens of reasons why the team played better the next year. The truth is that you probably have no idea and are just venting and looking for someone to blame. We just disagree...I don't blame an individual player for the success or failure of the team, nor do the players and coaches.

Stand by what I said before. It's not hard to see if you've watched Purdue basketball under Painter and have an understanding of the game. The truth is that there are reasons we dipped to last place with that team and most of those reasons have names attached to them. You want to call it "blame" then so be it. There are people responsible for the outcomes of that team and every other Purdue basketball team over the years. You can bet your ass that Coach Painter identified those reasons and made changes even if he didn't call out individuals in public. Some people (you...apparently) may need him to do so in order to recognize the reasons but those of us that have watched Purdue basketball under Painter and have even a basic understanding of the game can certainly tell what the major issues were by observation. Ronnie Johnson was the biggest problem. You could, by extension, blame Painter for bringing in RJ to begin with I suppose if you wanted to go the route that everything that happens in the program ultimately falls to the head coach.

By the way, I was a premium subscriber up through last year. My feelings on this matter were more or less validated at that time by the people that write for this website. As much as you want to absolve all blame from a particular player for whatever reason, people who watched or covered the program saw it and noticed. Just because the players and staff didn't blast him on the way out the door doesn't make it not so. There was nothing to gain for them to point fingers instead of concentrating on correcting their own faults and they also likely didn't want to create friction with Terone by singling out his brother. They handled it correctly.

 

[SoCalFan]

Stand by what I said before. It's not hard to see if you've watched Purdue basketball under Painter and have an understanding of the game. The truth is that there are reasons we dipped to last place with that team and most of those reasons have names attached to them. You want to call it "blame" then so be it. There are people responsible for the outcomes of that team and every other Purdue basketball team over the years. You can bet your ass that Coach Painter identified those reasons and made changes even if he didn't call out individuals in public. Some people (you...apparently) may need him to do so in order to recognize the reasons but those of us that have watched Purdue basketball under Painter and have even a basic understanding of the game can certainly tell what the major issues were by observation. Ronnie Johnson was the biggest problem. You could, by extension, blame Painter for bringing in RJ to begin with I suppose if you wanted to go the route that everything that happens in the program ultimately falls to the head coach.

By the way, I was a premium subscriber up through last year. My feelings on this matter were more or less validated at that time by the people that write for this website. As much as you want to absolve all blame from a particular player for whatever reason, people who watched or covered the program saw it and noticed. Just because the players and staff didn't blast him on the way out the door doesn't make it not so. There was nothing to gain for them to point fingers instead of concentrating on correcting their own faults and they also likely didn't want to create friction with Terone by singling out his brother. They handled it correctly.

My friend - I am not absolving anything nor anyone. I am just telling you that your opinion is simplistic...and just that...your opinion of which you are entitled to. As for the premium board being the arbiter of truth and knowledge, you are really misguided if you believe that. My son reads the USC premium boards through my account and laughs his head off at the misinformation. Outside of the team, few people know the truth. Feel free to respond (I know you will), but I am finished with this thread. Best of luck.

 

[TC4THREE]

My friend - I am not absolving anything nor anyone. I am just telling you that your opinion is simplistic...and just that...your opinion of which you are entitled to. As for the premium board being the arbiter of truth and knowledge, you are really misguided if you believe that. My son reads the USC premium boards through my account and laughs his head off at the misinformation. Outside of the team, few people know the truth. Feel free to respond (I know you will), but I am finished with this thread. Best of luck.

It seems to me that the simplistic thing to do would be to fault nobody (or everyone equally which is basically the same thing) and then nobody has to take any responsibility for finishing last place. That is certainly the easiest and simple-minded approach. If you've ever had the task of improving something you should know that you have to identify problems in order to fix them. You can continue to pretend that it was a mere coincidence that RJ left and the next season the entire team was much better or you can wake up to the reality that he was a major problem while he was here.

As for GBI, there's a reason I'm no longer a premium subscriber but that's because of poor and unprofessional football coverage in recent years. The basketball coverage was always well done and Brian knows what he's talking about. If there were a way to make sure the premium money only went towards the basketball coverage, I'd probably still be subscribed. If you've never been a premium subscriber, there would be no way for you to judge how this site operates.