Goodbye Tyler Kolek

[mason89]

DP's failure at Mason was caused by the lack of a football team. There was one at Bucknell and there's one at Holy Cross. If Mason had a football team, he would have taken us back to the Final 4. (there's off-season logic for you )

 

[GMU79]

If we want to praise Dave for Tyler Kolek and Jordan Miller, which we should, we can't go into the conversation without discussing the several failures or lack of quality talent that he brought in to try and compete at the A10 level especially towards the end of his tenure (TJ Gladsden, Daddy Haidara just to name a few).

Its not to say Dave didn't find diamonds in the rough, he did, and he did a decent or better job with guys like Kier, Miller, Livingston etc.

However, he didn't recruit enough guys at a high quality of talent, and was not able to coach up his existing talent enough to save his job. I know his defenders like to say "Well he was just getting going with Kolek and Miller", but anyone who watched 6 years of Paulsen's teams, know that it would have been led to another mediocre or disappointment year. I agree with @gmujim92 that Miller and Kolek have surrounded themselves with high level talent that is coached up, in high major leagues, to get the attention. Neither one of them would have gotten the same amount of attention at Mason, even if Mason started to win.

Paulsen did many good things for Mason, he came in, stabilized the program and raised the floor. However, he was unable to take the next step that most coaches need to take in years 4, years 5, years 6 of the program. In addition, when the landscape started changing, he refused to take any risks with transfers. I am glad that we moved on when we did, took our chance with English which has now led us to Tony Skinn.

I'm still a fan of Dave and I'm thankful for what he did for the Mason basketball program. However, it was time to move on. I have no doubt that he will do well at Holy Cross, which is more suited to his abilities as a coach and recruiter.

I hate the offseason.

Very well said. I am also a DP fan. I guess my biggest irritant was his always promising "next year" (ie, 2 year team), but next year never materializing.
Best of luck at Holy Cross.

 

[GMUgemini]

The NBA will find talent. DeAndre Bembry made the NBA from a very mediocre St. Joes team. Gary Neal made the NBA (undrafted though) from an even more hapless Towson team. I don’t think DP would have held either player back if they had NBA talent.

 

[jessej]

Reference point
only 1 A-10 player drafted in the 1st 58 picks/ 2 rounds
Pick #52 - Camara - Dayton - Phoenix Suns

2023 NBA Draft Results: Picks 1-58

The complete 1-58 order of selection for the 2023 NBA Draft. The NBA Draft will be held on June 22, 2023.

www.nba.com

 

[MasonFanatic]

I think Jordan Miller absolutely could have stayed at Mason and still reached the NBA. It was possible, and even an occasional topic of discussion. But going to Miami (and going to the Final Four with Miami, more significantly) certainly increased his odds.

Kolek is a tougher call, because DP wasn't using him at PG at all, and we have no idea if that would have changed (despite Tyler being our best passer as a freshman).

However, I don't think DP would have found enough talent to surround Jordan and Tyler to build a winner. He always hit on a couple of diamonds in the rough that no one else saw, but he wasn't bringing in Mason's fair share of more widely recognized talent to surround those finds.

 

[GMUgemini]

I think Jordan Miller absolutely could have stayed at Mason and still reached the NBA. It was possible, and even an occasional topic of discussion. But going to Miami (and going to the Final Four with Miami, more significantly) certainly increased his odds.

Kolek is a tougher call, because DP wasn't using him at PG at all, and we have no idea if that would have changed (despite Tyler being our best passer as a freshman).

However, I don't think DP would have found enough talent to surround Jordan and Tyler to build a winner. He always hit on a couple of diamonds in the rough that no one else saw, but he wasn't bringing in Mason's fair share of more widely recognized talent to surround those finds.

Was just thinking about this and the team wouldn’t have been super deep but last years team would have been: Polite, XJ, Kolek, Miller, Frazier, Gadsden, Haidara, Gray, Malik, Oduro.

Four out of five starters are definitely A10 quality, with three being all conference level players. And depending on how you feel about Otis Frazier he could have been a serviceable 5th option on that team.

Now granted the bench sucks and there’s no way you go more than 7 deep, but a starting five of Polite, Kolek, Frazier, Miller, Oduro should have enough talent to compete for top four in the A10 we’ve had over the last two years.

 

[EXpatriot13]

Holy offseason.

 

[jessej]

Holy offseason.

looking forward to opening night

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyFjD1zPHZo&t=6s&ab_channel=PSCHighlights

 

[jessej]

 

[GMU79]

View attachment 1866

Good for him. Wish him well.

 

[jessej]

https://cbbreview.com/2023/09/07/big-east-basketball-top-point-guards-2023/

 

[jessej]

 

[Junkees9]

Great for him but for Mason fans that visual is extremely hard to view.

 

[GMUSSTN]

Great for him but for Mason fans that visual is extremely hard to view.

Is it? There's almost no evidence to suggest he would have changed positions and progressed as much as he did if we kept DP around. I'm happier where we are now. Good for Tyler. Dude clearly deserves to be where he is now.

 

[GMUgemini]

Is it? There's almost no evidence to suggest he would have changed positions and progressed as much as he did if we kept DP around. I'm happier where we are now. Good for Tyler. Dude clearly deserves to be where he is now.

Definitely would have wasted two years on DP teams…the potential of starting Kolek with Coop, Schwartz, and Gaines though had he stuck around? That’s an interesting thought experiment.

Don’t begrudge him leaving at all, though.

 

[mkaufman1]

Happy for Tyler. Goes to show you (if you read this thread from the beginning) that none of us know jackshit about recruiting and what a kid will turn out to be.

Also, how about Jahmir Young being on this top 20 list too.

Hopefully in a few years we'll have a guy on a list like this again for point guard. Maybe Okojie. I believe Josh Oduro was on a top 30 center list last year.

Let him go to PRovidence with Rafael Castro and wreck shit in the Big East. I'll root for them.

Just found this post looking back in this thread. LOL

I at least got the league right...

 

[ephoops]

The Athletic - Tyler Kolek is the Best Guard in College Basketball

The Athletic ranks Kolek as the #1 guard in college basketball.

 

[GMU79]

The Athletic - Tyler Kolek is the Best Guard in College Basketball

The Athletic ranks Kolek as the #1 guard in college basketball.

I have mixed feelings on this. Happy for him, but, what could have been.

 

[Old Man]

I have mixed feelings on this. Happy for him, but, what could have been.

"But would it have been with the coaches he had?" is the question with a mental answer of No that makes me happy for him at Marquette.

 

[GMU79]

"But would it have been with the coaches he had?" is the question with a mental answer of No that makes me happy for him at Marquette.

I know. Probably not. But it still is kinda upsetting that we had him.
But yes, I am happy for him and hope he knocks it out of the park. Sorry for the mixed metaphor.