JT3 in LA

[blueandgray]

This past Tuesday, JT3 was in Los Angeles actively recruiting some of the local players. While here, he hosted a dinner at the exclusive Jonathan Club in downtown Los Angeles. Georgetown's AD was there as well, where each of them spoke about the program followed by 20 minutes or so of Q and A. There were about 25 people who attended the event. (I was not one of the people present, however, two very close friends of mine did attend...got pictures of themselves with JT3... and gave me a very detailed breakdown of what went on.

The Upcoming Season:
To begin, Thompson is very high on this year's team. While going into last year he was a little tentative about saying just how good last year's team would be after losing Cook, Owens and Bowman... he said that this years team has the potential to be very, very successful. He expects the team to be very competitive. Moreover, he mentioned that he thinks that the contribution from the sophomores will be huge. More specifically, he is very high on Macklin and said that he is the most improved player over the summer. He said he is our big man of the future. Sidenote: With regard to Jeff Green he stated that Jeff would have listened to him had he told him to stay for his senior year but that in the end, he thought Green was ready to make the jump.

With regard to the incoming freshman, he said that they need a serious lesson in humility and he thinks that's exactly what they'll get once practice begins. He said that they have a lot to learn. I presume he's speaking of Wright and Freeman.

His Frustrations:

Apparently he was very vocal about his frustrations and that you could really feel the tension between he and the AD. While he didn't get so much into the lack of a real on-campus facility... he did say that it has made it almost impossible to recruit guys and bring them to McDonough because it is always occupied. He explained that time between now and Midnight Madness is the most critical in terms of recruiting and in that time the gym is only available for two weekends. He said that women's volleyball, along with a host of other teams and events have have the gym booked and that as a result he really has his hands tied. He was visibly upset by this.

Lastly, during the Q&A someone somewhat angrily asked the AD if Thompson was under contract beyond next week. Thompson actually fielded the question saying that he was under contract and that he is loyal to Georgetown. Unfortunately, I don't have much more to offer in terms of details on this last part.

[SFHoya99]

It's time to eliminate women's volleyball.

I'm only kind of joking. Thanks for the report.

[hoyatables]

I'm sure the University is working on improvements that will address JTIII's concern about facility space and will also benefit women's volleyball and a number of other sports.

[williambraskyiii]

I had women's volleyball liquidated you little SHT! They were insolent!

[Massholya]

hoyatables said:

The University is working on improvements that will address JTIII's concern about facility space and will also benefit women's volleyball and a number of other sports.

And you know this how?

[hoyatables]

www.cfa.gov/georgetown/agenda.html

Scroll down to submissions 5 and 6. Looks like something to me!

[Massholya]

I think I'll refrain from holding my breath.

[hilltopper2000]

hoytables -- I've been told the same and have given details to people off-line. This is the first step to eventually getting zoning approval. I have to say that I am concerned about the idea that there is tension between JTIII and the AD. They should be on the same page at all times. If there are frustrations, they should be shared--not between them.

[kchoya]

massholya said:

I think I'll refrain from holding my breath.

I agree. Why would anyone think anything different with this school is beyond me. Until there's a hole being dug, I refrain from believing something is being built.

Plus, it looks like they've already reviewed the MSF design in 04 and 05. I'll believe it when I see it.

[tgo]

I was there.

I didn’t feel tension between Muir and Coach or them being on a different page. Coach’s goals and plan include one team. Muir’s involve 27 teams. Muir thinks about hoops first thing in the morning and more often than any other program most days but he also cares about all 27 teams. That will inevitably lead to disagreements on finer points which does not mean there is disagreement on the big picture. This is unavoidable

They were very much on the same page, they demonstrated it with their answers and said specifically at least once.

To clarify slightly. On jeff green, coach said he could have convinced him to stay but that it wasn’t his role to push him one way or the other, he helped him gather information and stepped back for him to make his own decision, which was the right decision according to JT III.

Coach and Muir complement each other very well in this setting. Both very impressive men who inspire confidence. Coach rambles a little, tells lots of stories but gets to his point in the end. Muir I can see transitioning easily into politics should he ever choose to do so (I mean this in a good way) since he always knew exactly what he wanted to stay and effortlessly wrapped his answer together with his larger talking points no matter what the question.

[lichoya68]

hmmmm interesting report interesting go hoyas go jt3 ;D

[SirSaxa]

tgo said:

I was there.

I didn’t feel tension between Muir and Coach or them being on a different page. Coach’s goals and plan include one team. Muir’s involve 27 teams. Muir thinks about hoops first thing in the morning and more often than any other program most days but he also cares about all 27 teams. That will inevitably lead to disagreements on finer points which does not mean there is disagreement on the big picture. This is unavoidable

They were very much on the same page, they demonstrated it with their answers and said specifically at least once.

To clarify slightly. On jeff green, coach said he could have convinced him to stay but that it wasn’t his role to push him one way or the other, he helped him gather information and stepped back for him to make his own decision, which was the right decision according to JT III.

Coach and Muir complement each other very well in this setting. Both very impressive men who inspire confidence. Coach rambles a little, tells lots of stories but gets to his point in the end. Muir I can see transitioning easily into politics should he ever choose to do so (I mean this in a good way) since he always knew exactly what he wanted to stay and effortlessly wrapped his answer together with his larger talking points no matter what the question.

TGO -- Thanks. Very comprehensive and insightful.

[sleepy]

Does this means there a chance that Macklin starts at the four now? I love Ewing coming off the bench as a sixth man, and kind of hope this is the case.

[RBHoya]

Thanks for the updates guys. Agree about Muir, from my interactions with him. Chooses words very carefully but always manages to relate everything to his major themes.

I like the bit about the guards. Not that I really know, but I can sort of see why Coach might make that comment. Practice should be great as we have 5 supremely talented players fighting it out for minutes. High school accolades mean nothing in college--just ask Jon Wallace who NOBODY had ever heard of in high school, but who is now one of the best guards in the Big East.

I doubt we'll see Macklin start for the simple reason that we'd be in a world of hurt if both he and Roy got in foul trouble. Who mans the paint then?

JT3 also very rarely takes risks with his starting lineups. I think, pretty much, every year he has gone with what is thought to be the conventional wisdom in the end, although it takes a little while sometimes to hone in on it.

Why put Macklin out there in a new, drastically different role when you don't have to? Bring him along, and he'll be where we want him by the end of the year, if not sooner.

[sleepy]

Not saying i disagree with you Jersey, but we wouldn't we be in the same world of hurt if Ewing got into foul trouble early? I think that is going to be a big problem going into next year, our three guys that play center and pf are the most foul prone on the team.

[SFHoya99]

sleepy said:

Not saying i disagree with you Jersey, but we wouldn't we be in the same world of hurt if Ewing got into foul trouble early? I think that is going to be a big problem going into next year, our three guys that play center and pf are the most foul prone on the team.

Definitely a concern, but I think Summers will be able to play a quality four.

[sleepy]

Yes he would but I would much prefer him playing great at the three than just being solid at the four, but if we need it, hes there.

[dudeslade]

I get a kick out of the freshmen thing, because JTIII isn't afraid to say that they need to get cut down to size. So many coaches pander to their recruits in fear of transfers or driving off other big recruits by not giving the new star incoming players the prima donna treatment, but JTIII is straight old school as far as this goes and that's sweet. My two favorite coaches actually, JTIII and Pete Carroll, are the same way--they expect you to earn the playing time and the accolades, not be giving them. I wonder, though, if in the prima donna world of AAU and college basketball, as GU attracts more of the top tier recruits, we might see more of this attitude coming in. We were/are very spoiled with the attitude and work ethic of the current Seniors + Jeff. That attitude just isn't common, but it's rubbed off on the younger guys and after this year, it will depend on them and JTIII to perpetuate it.

[blueandgray]

tgo said:

I was there.

I didn’t feel tension between Muir and Coach or them being on a different page. Coach’s goals and plan include one team. Muir’s involve 27 teams. Muir thinks about hoops first thing in the morning and more often than any other program most days but he also cares about all 27 teams. That will inevitably lead to disagreements on finer points which does not mean there is disagreement on the big picture. This is unavoidable

They were very much on the same page, they demonstrated it with their answers and said specifically at least once.

To clarify slightly. On jeff green, coach said he could have convinced him to stay but that it wasn’t his role to push him one way or the other, he helped him gather information and stepped back for him to make his own decision, which was the right decision according to JT III.

Coach and Muir complement each other very well in this setting. Both very impressive men who inspire confidence. Coach rambles a little, tells lots of stories but gets to his point in the end. Muir I can see transitioning easily into politics should he ever choose to do so (I mean this in a good way) since he always knew exactly what he wanted to stay and effortlessly wrapped his answer together with his larger talking points no matter what the question.

Thanks for the clarification TGO.

Just to add one more tid-bit I heard with regard to recruiting... one of his primary targets is Orlando Woolridge's son.