Was the 2021-22 Basketball Year a Success??

[KentuckyBoiler]

This has been a thread that I have been thinking about writing ever since we were eliminated from the tournament. However, I wanted to give it about a week and a half or so to reflect on this last season.

Was this last season a success? That is hard to answer. It depends on how you define success.

It was a great and fun season. We had some many positive moments. We were ranked #1 for the first time in our history. We had 29 wins, and we had another Final 16 appearance in the tournament.

However, we did not win the BT Title and/or Tournament Title this year. Those were definitely both in our grasp, but we failed to make it happen. It was great to get to the second week of the tournament again. However, the Final Four appeared to be in our sight finally this year, but again it did not happen. What made it worse was that one team that we beat early in the season got to the Finals. It seemed like our team peaked too soon and never recovered that momentum that we had early in the season.

To me, it was a satisfying season and one to be proud of. However, I am not sure if I one would classify it as a complete success. I guess I had higher aspirations in my mind on what this team could do. Maybe I was looking through rose colored glasses.

What does everyone else think of this season now that we have had some time to evaluate it?

 

[BoilerAndy]

This has been a thread that I have been thinking about writing ever since we were eliminated from the tournament. However, I wanted to give it about a week and a half or so to reflect on this last season.

Was this last season a success? That is hard to answer. It depends on how you define success.

I probably think the season was more of a success than the players and coaches do. I expect that they did not achieve a single major team goal that they set coming into the season.

 

[user18563]

My take would be that it was a slight disappointment. I think having 2 of the top 3 players at the same position gave an illusion of extra talent Purdue couldn't really show. Another factor was that Purdue didn't have any 5th year or transfer players that some other teams were more capable of bringing onto the team. If this team was built in a prior year, it probably would have been a low 1 or high 2 seed, as teams like Villanova wouldn't have had Gillespie or Samuels, Kentucky wouldn't have had Tshiebwe etc that really gave them a boost. Same thing with the Big Ten, I think Purdue likely wins the conference without Illinois and Wisconsin having good pieces from fifth year transfers. But meeting lofty preseason expectations isn't easy. Teams like Texas, UCLA, and Michigan were ranked ahead of Purdue but had less successful seasons. The tournament loss obviously looks bad, but less than half of 3 seeds even make a Sweet 16 all time. I think the disappointment stems more from missed opportunity than actually severely underperforming. The season's success would really look a lot different if we could trade Harper, Phinisee, Hepburn, or Davis all making shots that go in less than 15% of the time for a single wide open Gillis 3 vs St. Peters, but that's not what happened, and that's the reality of variance in such a short season. I think that it's better to be lucky than good, and Purdue's next Final Four run will be unexpected like 2019 almost was.

 

[BoilerMaker P]

Hard to call it a success when the only hardware they won was a silver bowl of CheezIts in November. A pretty good team that maybe raised expectations to a level that was destined to disappoint. They were #1 in the country for one game. Wisconsin and Illinois basically begged Purdue to share the title with them, but they simply refused. Made it to the conference tournament final and lost. And of course, the cherry on the sundae losing to a 15 seed in the sweet 16 who were then easily dealt with and dismissed by the 8 seed that Purdue had beat earlier in the season.

Personally, and it seems cynical, but I did not really enjoy this season as much as some in the past and I think it’s because the expectations made every game stressful: wins were basically just a sense of relief and losses seemed more painful.

 

[BoilerMaker P]

Purdue's next Final Four run will be unexpected like 2019 almost was.

I definitely think this is true.

 

[BoilerAndy]

Personally, and it seems cynical, but I did not really enjoy this season as much as some in the past and I think it’s because the expectations made every game stressful: wins were basically just a sense of relief and losses seemed more painful.

This.

 

[mathboy]

This team was great fun to watch when they were on. Great plays, exciting passing, and players that were having a good time playing with each other. I enjoyed watching them, and they enjoyed their game. The NCAA tourney is a crap shoot until you get to the final four, and then it’s decided by talent, referees, and which way the wind is blowing.

I can’t wait for next year!

 

[Indy_Rider]

When your biggest achievement was going down in the record books as the first team to lose to a 15 seed in the sweet sixteen, no, it was definitely not a success. Couldn't have asked for things to break better in the tournament and then absolutely under achieved.

 

[Tommaker]

Success. First number 1 ranking, top ten ranking all year, 29 wins, high amount of press for the brand, players and coach, have now had two premier players that have exceled at a non-blue blood school, clean program, low transfers, pushed a lot of narratives (Mackey is the toughest place to play in the country, Big Man U, Painter is a coaches coach) expanded the sports footprint of the University and oh yeah, a lot of fun to watch (as a recording, after I knew we had won the game...weak sauce. I am nothing but weak sauce. ) with a bunch of great kids, coaches and fans.

 

[Dryfly88]

Success? No. Didn't achieve any of the 3 goals that CMP himself set: B1G Regular, B1G Tournament and FF.

I loved November and December. Fun team to watch and I fell for the hype. I knew in my head that we turned it over too much and didn't play good enough defense. But damn was I excited to have the #1 team and the depth was intoxicating. Reality started to hit in January and like others have said, it became hard for me to watch.

I know this may sound strange, but this was the most unsatisfying 29 win season I can imagine.

 

[boilernuke]

Good question. I would say Purdue had a good season. Not really a great season. Would have to say that it was not particularly a success because as mentioned above, no major goal was achieved. Purdue started out so dominant, that maybe expectations were adjusted to be a little high, but Purdue still had a good season for what they were able to accomplish compared to all thr other basketball teams in the country. They were ranked top 10 the entire season, so it was satisfying from that aspect.

 

[Jbigler1986]

I probably think the season was more of a success than the players and coaches do. I expect that they did not achieve a single major team goal that they set coming into the season.

There was nothing successful about this season. Who cares about being ranked #1 for less than a week. Our record was good overall but that's it.

 

[Aamesker]

Is it possible to be both a success and a disappointment? We were ranked top-10 the whole season, got up to number 1, had an All-American and one of the most athletic and exciting players to play for the program. But we fell one game short of notable achievements, B1G champions, B1G tourney, E8 appearance, 30 wins

 

[purduepat1969]

Is it possible to be both a success and a disappointment? We were ranked top-10 the whole season, got up to number 1, had an All-American and one of the most athletic and exciting players to play for the program. But we fell one game short of notable achievements, B1G champions, B1G tourney, E8 appearance, 30 wins

I agree with this. This team was fun to watch in November. Then it got to the point where they didn't play defense and regressed down the stretch.

I would say it was a pretty big disappointment in that this team couldn't bring home a B1G championship (tourney or regular season) or get past the Sweet Sixteen.

 

[Aamesker]

I agree with this. This team was fun to watch in November. Then it got to the point where they didn't play defense and regressed down the stretch.

I would say it was a pretty big disappointment in that this team couldn't bring home a B1G championship (tourney or regular season) or get past the Sweet Sixteen.

Biggest issue is nothing tangible to remember the entire team for. JI is going to get his banner and he deserves it but the team deserved something to be remembered by too

 

[cautiouslyoptimistic]

This team was great fun to watch when they were on. Great plays, exciting passing, and players that were having a good time playing with each other. I enjoyed watching them, and they enjoyed their game. The NCAA tourney is a crap shoot until you get to the final four, and then it’s decided by talent, referees, and which way the wind is blowing.

I can’t wait for next year!

Only lost to one team, Wisconsin, in Mackey. Keeps the home atmosphere loud!!!

 

[Gman544]

For Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, not getting to FF is unsuccessful. For Purdue what is it? Lots of regular season wins and no championships? I have long said Purdue has a “nice “ program. They play by the rules, win a Big Ten Championship here and there ( not the tournament except 2009) and get to sweet 16 often, counter balanced by getting knocked out early by lesser teams often. Pretty sweet, very good, but not great. I am not saying Purdue should or could be where the aforementioned programs are. But what should expectations be? FF every 10 years and win the the BTT and regular season a few times a decade Sound ok?

 

[BoilerDeac]

This has been a thread that I have been thinking about writing ever since we were eliminated from the tournament. However, I wanted to give it about a week and a half or so to reflect on this last season.

Was this last season a success? That is hard to answer. It depends on how you define success.

It was a great and fun season. We had some many positive moments. We were ranked #1 for the first time in our history. We had 29 wins, and we had another Final 16 appearance in the tournament.

However, we did not win the BT Title and/or Tournament Title this year. Those were definitely both in our grasp, but we failed to make it happen. It was great to get to the second week of the tournament again. However, the Final Four appeared to be in our sight finally this year, but again it did not happen. What made it worse was that one team that we beat early in the season got to the Finals. It seemed like our team peaked too soon and never recovered that momentum that we had early in the season.

To me, it was a satisfying season and one to be proud of. However, I am not sure if I one would classify it as a complete success. I guess I had higher aspirations in my mind on what this team could do. Maybe I was looking through rose colored glasses.

What does everyone else think of this season now that we have had some time to evaluate it?

There were successes, but the season, as a whole, was not a success, particularly considering the expectations of the coaches, players, and fanbase.

No conference title. No conference tournament title.

Didn't take advantage of a golden opportunity to reach the Final Four.

 

[GeistBoiler]

This has been a thread that I have been thinking about writing ever since we were eliminated from the tournament. However, I wanted to give it about a week and a half or so to reflect on this last season.

Was this last season a success? That is hard to answer. It depends on how you define success.

It was a great and fun season. We had some many positive moments. We were ranked #1 for the first time in our history. We had 29 wins, and we had another Final 16 appearance in the tournament.

However, we did not win the BT Title and/or Tournament Title this year. Those were definitely both in our grasp, but we failed to make it happen. It was great to get to the second week of the tournament again. However, the Final Four appeared to be in our sight finally this year, but again it did not happen. What made it worse was that one team that we beat early in the season got to the Finals. It seemed like our team peaked too soon and never recovered that momentum that we had early in the season.

To me, it was a satisfying season and one to be proud of. However, I am not sure if I one would classify it as a complete success. I guess I had higher aspirations in my mind on what this team could do. Maybe I was looking through rose colored glasses.

What does everyone else think of this season now that we have had some time to evaluate it?

If you were a casual sports fan looking at Purdue's Season from more of an outsider perspective you would undoubtedly call it a success. If you were close to the team as either a member, coach, or fanatic, I think it would sit somewhere between failure and high level disappointment. The more you had invested the more of a disappointment you will remember it as.

 

[indyogb]

...I think that it's better to be lucky than good, and Purdue's next Final Four run will be unexpected like 2019 almost was.

I definitely think this is true.

Yes. We're way overdue for a fluke run of our own. 🙂

 

[icewind7]

The combination of (1) falling to the small and low seed school the Nth times + (2) have not been to final 4 for so long + (3) a good chance to make to final 4 this year make this an disappointment season.

 

[Wolegib]

just ask any packers fan if they thought the last 2 years were a success. Winning their division and 12 games were supposedly a given and a starting point. anything less than the super bowl was a failure.

we had a guard projected to be drafted in the top 5 in the NBA, yet he couldn't carry our team.

Edey outplayed holgrem in the youth tournament but couldn't translate that success to starting. The platoon hurt both edey and tre. it reminded me of when brady platooned at QB for michigan with that other QB. it didn't work out well for michigan or brady that year either.

We had one of the best recruiting classes in the nation, but they contributed almost nothing. Duke's freshman became their star player as did Gonzaga's and many other freshman on top 20 teams. Is it too much to ask or expect our freshmen to at least start or be major contributors? rather than sit and watch?

I saw absolutely no growth or development by any player on this team. UNC had tremendous growth and development of their players during the year.

Purdue played to the level of their opponent. there were many teams purdue should have blown away but they allowed them to stay in the game. None of the games that purdue lost on last second shots should have even been close.

Free throws. we talk about it every single year for the last 4 decades. purdue is not and never has been a clutch FT shooting team. Purdue probably led the nation for the 15th time in the amount of times it missed the first FT on a 1 and 1.

Defense. a purdue trademark - where was it? One would think with our bench, our starters would be more aggressive and commit and risk more fouls. how many times did Edey or Tre ever foul out? how many times did anybody ever foul out? We had all the versatility, yet our starters seemed too concerned about not fouling.

I guess if you're from Rutgers or northwestern purdue had an awesome season. but 20 wins is a given for purdue every year. it's not something to be proud of . Being third place is nothing to brag about. being in the sweet 16 is also sort of a given.

But the biggest disappointment was there was absolutely no development of any player on his team as the season progressed. Our best basketball was played in our first 5 games while our opponents were still evaluating and developing their players. There was no way purdue would have been able to beat UNC in the tournament. We beat them early in the year because this was their coach's first year and he was still adjusting his players.

Disappointed? not any longer. this is the typical season I expected. We played good enough to lose to somebody we should have blown away. When has that ever happened t o purdue in the past? We looked forward to the future and didn't play one game at a time. and I predict next year will be more of the same.

 

[Aamesker]

We had one of the best recruiting classes in the nation, but they contributed almost nothing. Duke's freshman became their star player as did Gonzaga's and many other freshman on top 20 teams. Is it too much to ask or expect our freshmen to at least start or be major contributors? rather than sit and watch?

2 freshmen made meaningful contributions for the Final 4 teams, both for Duke and one is a top-3 pick in the NBA draft. It's a different game now, teams are having success with older, more experienced players. Sure a lottery pick freshman is going to always help but 3/4 Final 4 teams didn't have that.

We had essentially 1/3rd of our freshman class actually playing, reserve judgement on them until the entire class actually plays.

 

[BoilerMaker P]

That might be the best Wole post ever.

 

[beenhummeled?]

This has been a thread that I have been thinking about writing ever since we were eliminated from the tournament. However, I wanted to give it about a week and a half or so to reflect on this last season.

Was this last season a success? That is hard to answer. It depends on how you define success.

It was a great and fun season. We had some many positive moments. We were ranked #1 for the first time in our history. We had 29 wins, and we had another Final 16 appearance in the tournament.

However, we did not win the BT Title and/or Tournament Title this year. Those were definitely both in our grasp, but we failed to make it happen. It was great to get to the second week of the tournament again. However, the Final Four appeared to be in our sight finally this year, but again it did not happen. What made it worse was that one team that we beat early in the season got to the Finals. It seemed like our team peaked too soon and never recovered that momentum that we had early in the season.

To me, it was a satisfying season and one to be proud of. However, I am not sure if I one would classify it as a complete success. I guess I had higher aspirations in my mind on what this team could do. Maybe I was looking through rose colored glasses.

What does everyone else think of this season now that we have had some time to evaluate it?

Not a success. Purdue has a lottery pick and had arguably the easiest path to the elite 8 that any team will ever have and got pushed around by a 15 seed. Our guards were outplayed by a white guy with a mustache named Doug. I honestly can’t see how anyone could see this season as successful.

 

[Bleedinggoldandblack]

This has been a thread that I have been thinking about writing ever since we were eliminated from the tournament. However, I wanted to give it about a week and a half or so to reflect on this last season.

Was this last season a success? That is hard to answer. It depends on how you define success.

It was a great and fun season. We had some many positive moments. We were ranked #1 for the first time in our history. We had 29 wins, and we had another Final 16 appearance in the tournament.

However, we did not win the BT Title and/or Tournament Title this year. Those were definitely both in our grasp, but we failed to make it happen. It was great to get to the second week of the tournament again. However, the Final Four appeared to be in our sight finally this year, but again it did not happen. What made it worse was that one team that we beat early in the season got to the Finals. It seemed like our team peaked too soon and never recovered that momentum that we had early in the season.

To me, it was a satisfying season and one to be proud of. However, I am not sure if I one would classify it as a complete success. I guess I had higher aspirations in my mind on what this team could do. Maybe I was looking through rose colored glasses.

What does everyone else think of this season now that we have had some time to evaluate it?

Nope

 

[Erock_94]

An embarrassing disappointment, unfortunately.

 

[BoilerInChiTown]

This team was great fun to watch when they were on. Great plays, exciting passing, and players that were having a good time playing with each other. I enjoyed watching them, and they enjoyed their game. The NCAA tourney is a crap shoot until you get to the final four, and then it’s decided by talent, referees, and which way the wind is blowing.

I can’t wait for next year!

We played like crap in the sweet 16. Worse game plan I've ever seen. Almost worthy of a firing except CMP has bought him some grace with his overall resume.

Good team with a game plan make their own luck so stop with the excuses already...We choked our best chance for a F4 in 40 years.

So a big NO to the OP's question.

 

[amhutchison91]

no

 

[Dekezar]

I agree with this. This team was fun to watch in November. Then it got to the point where they didn't play defense and regressed down the stretch.

I would say it was a pretty big disappointment in that this team couldn't bring home a B1G championship (tourney or regular season) or get past the Sweet Sixteen.

Speed quickness talent is hard to overcome add a tough season and conference games where you are not a mystery to your opponent and this year where 1-10 could be beaten and what you see was what you got

 

[ImRonBurgandy?]

What the team accomplished from my perspective as a fan, no.

 

[ImRonBurgandy?]

Hard to call it a success when the only hardware they won was a silver bowl of CheezIts in November. A pretty good team that maybe raised expectations to a level that was destined to disappoint. They were #1 in the country for one game. Wisconsin and Illinois basically begged Purdue to share the title with them, but they simply refused. Made it to the conference tournament final and lost. And of course, the cherry on the sundae losing to a 15 seed in the sweet 16 who were then easily dealt with and dismissed by the 8 seed that Purdue had beat earlier in the season.

Personally, and it seems cynical, but I did not really enjoy this season as much as some in the past and I think it’s because the expectations made every game stressful: wins were basically just a sense of relief and losses seemed more painful.

Your last paragraph is exactly how I felt during the season.

 

[3ZSDAD]

No is my answer. Purdue played to the level of the competition once they achieved the #1 ranking. No leadership from players in pressure situations. Part of reason why I don't want Hunter to come back. It would stunt the development of the younger guards. Next year will be a season like 20-21, about 4th in conference and a 4 seed but hopefully they find some leaders on the floor and everyone is more comfortable in their roles. We lost the 2 players that tried to make the number 1 play on Sports center everytime they had the ball. So hopefully we are a more unselfish team and commit less turnovers because of that.

 

[Casey and his Brother]

This has been a thread that I have been thinking about writing ever since we were eliminated from the tournament. However, I wanted to give it about a week and a half or so to reflect on this last season.

Was this last season a success? That is hard to answer. It depends on how you define success.

It was a great and fun season. We had some many positive moments. We were ranked #1 for the first time in our history. We had 29 wins, and we had another Final 16 appearance in the tournament.

However, we did not win the BT Title and/or Tournament Title this year. Those were definitely both in our grasp, but we failed to make it happen. It was great to get to the second week of the tournament again. However, the Final Four appeared to be in our sight finally this year, but again it did not happen. What made it worse was that one team that we beat early in the season got to the Finals. It seemed like our team peaked too soon and never recovered that momentum that we had early in the season.

To me, it was a satisfying season and one to be proud of. However, I am not sure if I one would classify it as a complete success. I guess I had higher aspirations in my mind on what this team could do. Maybe I was looking through rose colored glasses.

What does everyone else think of this season now that we have had some time to evaluate it?

A sweet 16 is a Purdue Final Four. An elite 8 is a title game. An actual final four would be a banner. Same as every season.

 

[johnboiler123]

A sweet 16 is a Purdue Final Four. An elite 8 is a title game. An actual final four would be a banner. Same as every season.

Probably about right. Though, I don’t ever see us reaching a final four under painter.

 

[wallyboiler79]

I agree with several statements in this thread. Some of the positive ones and some of the negative ones. It is certainly disappointing that we beat NC and Villanova early and it appeared that we probably would have lost to either one in the tournament. I also agree that it was very stressful to watch some of the games because the expectations for this team were very high.
But there were many, many enjoyable games and moments. I do not agree with those who say that we played our best basketball in November. I would not rank the NC and Villanova games in our top 5 for the year(probably top 10 yes). Just off the top of my head I would rank both Illinois games, at Iowa, Rutgers, Mich. St.(BTT), and Texas as better played games. We certainly did improve, but we were not consistent enough and we did not improve as much as some teams.

 

[SCBoiler1]

First of all I think Painter is a great coach and this is all in hindsight. I'm not trying to second guess Painter because he knows more about the game then I ever will but I wonder if he's reflected on the following.

Reflecting back it seems like Painter may have played it conservatively and it didn't payoff. A few examples:

• Giving up on playing Williams/Edey together before the season started
• Electing to give the major off the bench guard minutes to Morton over Newman
• Sticking with Gillis at the 4 while limiting Furst minutes and redshirting TKR

It seems like each of these decisions where focused on the short term. What was working or who was playing the best in the moment. Who was Painter more comfortable with on the floor.......Making a different choice on any of the bullets above could have resulted in worse short or even long term results but if they worked out could have given the team a higher ceiling. For example:

• Painter could have tried to have Williams and Edey play together for 5 or 10 minutes a game for a month or month and a half to give it every chance to succeed. If there wasn't improvement, he could have easily moved away from it prior to the B1G season.
• Morton was obviously playing better than Newman in early January, but the Newman we saw in 2020-2021 had a much higher ceiling than Morton.
• There is no doubt that Gillis was outplaying Furst in December. But again was Purdue's ceiling higher with Furst or Gillis? What's lost on some people on the board is that Furst started against Villanova and North Carolina and averaged 10 points and 4 rebounds in those two games. Furst averaged 9 points and 7 rebounds in November in 7 games. Gillis moving Furst out of the lineup seemed to have an adverse affect on Furst confidence and play. People forget how good he was at the beginning of the year.

Would things have been different? Who knows, but I just think Painter thought he had enough to stick with the safe play on many of his decisions and unfortunately it didn't work out.

 

[pubill]

Probably about right. Though, I don’t ever see us reaching a final four under painter.

Because we were .4 of a second from doing it on a miracle in 19?

 

[mathboy]

At the start of 5he season, before any of the early success, I said a sweet sixteen and a top 20 ranking would be what I considered as a successful season. Of course, when we ripped through the preseason, my expectations rose. Never the less, I will fallback on my initial position and say yes, this season was successful.

Of course, I am an optimist in almost all situations.

 

[FirstDownB]

First of all I think Painter is a great coach and this is all in hindsight. I'm not trying to second guess Painter because he knows more about the game then I ever will but I wonder if he's reflected on the following.

Reflecting back it seems like Painter may have played it conservatively and it didn't payoff. A few examples:

• Giving up on playing Williams/Edey together before the season started
• Electing to give the major off the bench guard minutes to Morton over Newman
• Sticking with Gillis at the 4 while limiting Furst minutes and redshirting TKR

It seems like each of these decisions where focused on the short term. What was working or who was playing the best in the moment. Who was Painter more comfortable with on the floor.......Making a different choice on any of the bullets above could have resulted in worse short or even long term results but if they worked out could have given the team a higher ceiling. For example:

• Painter could have tried to have Williams and Edey play together for 5 or 10 minutes a game for a month or month and a half to give it every chance to succeed. If there wasn't improvement, he could have easily moved away from it prior to the B1G season.
• Morton was obviously playing better than Newman in early January, but the Newman we saw in 2020-2021 had a much higher ceiling than Morton.
• There is no doubt that Gillis was outplaying Furst in December. But again was Purdue's ceiling higher with Furst or Gillis? What's lost on some people on the board is that Furst started against Villanova and North Carolina and averaged 10 points and 4 rebounds in those two games. Furst averaged 9 points and 7 rebounds in November in 7 games. Gillis moving Furst out of the lineup seemed to have an adverse affect on Furst confidence and play. People forget how good he was at the beginning of the year.

Would things have been different? Who knows, but I just think Painter thought he had enough to stick with the safe play on many of his decisions and unfortunately it didn't work out.

Furst was playing with a foot injury that required surgery. Maybe you heard. It is reasonable to assume that it had a role in reducing his minutes as the season went on.