Macklin on Georgetown

[bmartin]

www.gatorcountry.com/basketball/article/three_for_the_show/10926#ixzz1FMpCrgXL

Macklin was supposed to be the next in what has been a long line of Hoya superstar big men.

... He spent two seasons as a Hoya, learning what would be his go-to shot from two future first-round NBA Draft picks.

“Roy (Hibbert) and Jeff (Green) worked on their jump hook every day,” Macklin said. “At first, I wasn’t too into it because I was a kid and that wasn’t the most exciting thing you can do.

“But, soon after, I realized if these two guys think the jump hook is something worth (perfecting), why shouldn’t I?”

... “Probably the jump hook (is how I will be remembered at UF),” Macklin said. “That’s what a lot of people on campus talk about.”

[Boz]

Macklin clearly was never cut out to be at Georgetown.

Any true Hoya knows it's not a "jump hook."

It's a "hooker in the lane."

Ticket just never got that, I guess.

[SFHoya99]

I have to admire Vernon's honesty and ability to recognize his own impact on his own development. It's similar to Henry and how he's acknowledged that he didn't work as hard as he could have until this year.

Not a lot of people can do that.

It's also worth noting that we almost always we put positive or negative development of players on the coach; the single most important thing is the players' work ethic. A coach can teach skills, can influence work ethic, and the inability to teach/unwillingness to develop can certainly hinder a player but at the end of the day Roy's development was mostly Roy and other players' lack of development was likely mostly them.

[guru]

Mar 1, 2011 11:58:48 GMT -5 SFHoya99 said:

I have to admire Vernon's honesty and ability to recognize his own impact on his own development. It's similar to Henry and how he's acknowledged that he didn't work as hard as he could have until this year.

Not a lot of people can do that.

It's also worth noting that we almost always we put positive or negative development of players on the coach; the single most important thing is the players' work ethic. A coach can teach skills, can influence work ethic, and the inability to teach/unwillingness to develop can certainly hinder a player but at the end of the day Roy's development was mostly Roy and other players' lack of development was likely mostly them.

+ infinity

[Dhall]

It's funny, I actually don't blame the borderline NBA kids for transferring because the fact is that 5 years with JTIII and Donovan is going to give them a much better shot at the NBA/Europe than 4 years at one place. They take that year off in between but are still allowed to practice and work on their games. Ewing, Jr. same deal.

The kids who have no shot at the NBA or playing pro ball (that's you Jeremiah) should just stay put, enjoy the ride, get an education and make lifelong friends - I get annoyed at their decisionmaking but not at kids who go about it like Macklin. He was just looking out for his best interests to fulfill a dream and I believe he has always spoken well or neutral about Georgetown.

[GUMBA]

He is 24 years old now and still shooting .453 from the line . Nice to see he recognizes some good things came out of his time on the Hilltop.

[RDF]

Macklin has been very complimentary and honest about what happened at Georgetown--unlike the malcontent and egotistical Rivers.

This also supports what Hoya fans have stated--Macklin's skills improved at Georgetown and he's same player he was as a Hoya--they improved his game and if you saw him in HS or AAU--he had no post game--he was an open court/garbage scorer and that's it.

[prhoya]

Wish Mack the best!
There's such a big diffence between VM and JR.
I wonder when the light switched on? I also think he needed that extra year for his personal development, but still would have liked to see him at GU for his junior and senior years.

[FrazierFanatic]

Mar 1, 2011 11:58:48 GMT -5 SFHoya99 said:

I have to admire Vernon's honesty and ability to recognize his own impact on his own development. It's similar to Henry and how he's acknowledged that he didn't work as hard as he could have until this year.

Not a lot of people can do that.

It's also worth noting that we almost always we put positive or negative development of players on the coach; the single most important thing is the players' work ethic. A coach can teach skills, can influence work ethic, and the inability to teach/unwillingness to develop can certainly hinder a player but at the end of the day Roy's development was mostly Roy and other players' lack of development was likely mostly them.

Agreed - although at the same time, I think that one important trait of successful coaches is the ability to judge - usually with the assistance of high school and AAU coaches, and often with the assessment of the family values and support - how hard a kid will be willing to work to get better. Granted there are no guaranteed ways to determine that, but the ggod coaches have a pretty good feel for it.

[hifigator]

I'm glad someone else brought this up instead of me. It makes for better discussion for some reason. All kidding aside, I am trying to find an interview that they played parts of yesterday afternoon. It dealt with "senior night" tonight and then in general, the college careers of the seniors. I think you would enjoy and appreciate Vernon's comments. When asked about his development and what he's learned in college, he was very careful to mention his years at G'town and JTIII as well as Florida and Billy D. He's a class act. I will ignore the "not G'town material" comment that someone made. I think either school would be happy to have a few Vernon Macklins on their teams. And as the earlier comments indicate, I think it's clear that Vernon takes the blame for his lack of development/success at G'town.

Now I hope he can go out a winner on Senior night, clinching at worst a tie for the SEC title. Conference titles are hard to come by. Florida only has 4 in their history and only 2 outright. A win tonight clinches no worse than a tie and the #1 seed in the SEC tourney.

[superan]

Definitely very classy remarks. Wish him the best of luck.

[skkhoya07]

he was a coward who was not willing to mature and he could not handle the pressure of developing under strict conditions (yes III is strict, does not take crap, but makes sure his players develop into better MEN) so he ran away after 2 years when he realized he was not going to get playing time for various reasons already mentioned


he may have been nice and complimentary for the media, but he had selfish motives

he may have matured after leaving Gtown and recognizes what Gtown did for him but he should have stopped talking before he said this:

“Probably the jump hook (is how I will be remembered at UF),” Macklin said. “That’s what a lot of people on campus talk about.”


sorry, but I can't take him seriously as an aspiring professional, what a joke

[hoyarooter]

hifi, boz's post was a joke. Can't speak for the post above mine, though.

[AvantGuardHoya]

Man, he must be jokin'!

smh

[757hoyafan]

lol. This is rather sad. You can tell when fans only care about what these guys can do on the court & not off. This is his life, not yours. Same w/Rivers... Is he not supposed to think highly of himself?

Mar 1, 2011 17:09:00 GMT -5 skkhoya07 said:

he was a coward who was not willing to mature and he could not handle the pressure of developing under strict conditions (yes III is strict, does not take crap, but makes sure his players develop into better MEN) so he ran away after 2 years when he realized he was not going to get playing time for various reasons already mentioned


he may have been nice and complimentary for the media, but he had selfish motives

he may have matured after leaving Gtown and recognizes what Gtown did for him but he should have stopped talking before he said this:

“Probably the jump hook (is how I will be remembered at UF),” Macklin said. “That’s what a lot of people on campus talk about.”


sorry, but I can't take him seriously as an aspiring professional, what a joke

[strummer8526]

Mar 1, 2011 22:18:39 GMT -5 757hoyafan said:

lol. This is rather sad. You can tell when fans only care about what these guys can do on the court & not off. This is his life, not yours. Same w/Rivers... Is he not supposed to think highly of himself?

Mar 1, 2011 17:09:00 GMT -5 skkhoya07 said:

he was a coward who was not willing to mature and he could not handle the pressure of developing under strict conditions (yes III is strict, does not take crap, but makes sure his players develop into better MEN) so he ran away after 2 years when he realized he was not going to get playing time for various reasons already mentioned


he may have been nice and complimentary for the media, but he had selfish motives

he may have matured after leaving Gtown and recognizes what Gtown did for him but he should have stopped talking before he said this:

“Probably the jump hook (is how I will be remembered at UF),” Macklin said. “That’s what a lot of people on campus talk about.”


sorry, but I can't take him seriously as an aspiring professional, what a joke

I have no problem at all w/ what Macklin said. It's actually refreshing to hear something good from someone who bailed early. But please don't defend Rivers. It's one thing to think highly of yourself. It's another thing to bash your former program and try to blame it for your own faults. Macklin did nothing of the sort—in fact, he did the opposite. Rivers did.

[757hoyafan]

It's not that I am defending him, my attitude is-- who gives a . I guess I have better things to worry about. He is young man, so he might figure it out later in life..

I have no problem at all w/ what Macklin said. It's actually refreshing to hear something good from someone who bailed early. But please don't defend Rivers. It's one thing to think highly of yourself. It's another thing to bash your former program and try to blame it for your own faults. Macklin did nothing of the sort—in fact, he did the opposite. Rivers did.[/quote]

[skkhoya07]

Well of course I cared what he did off the court.

I am saying he was a kid, and now he is saying he was a kid. I am attacking him because he cared more about what he did on the court than off. He did not care about his personal development at Georgetown. He just wanted the easiest way to get the minutes. And he was going to get the minutes if he embraced Georgetown, put the work in, and STAYED.

So yeah he's looking out for himself, trying to be a professional athlete, and I didn't like why left. Its just my opinion.

Rivers on the other hand, I do not respect at all.

[AvantGuardHoya]

I know it's just me, but often times the problem that I have with certain things that are said about GU transfers is when posters arrive at conclusions about a player's apparent reasons for leaving which are totally unsupported.

Regarding Macklin, for example, I cannot say for a fact I know why he left. Apparently playing time was the issue, but I do know that had he returned he was in line to receive significant playing time, no matter Greg Monroe's presence. No, he may not have started, but he certainly would have gotten more floor burn than he had received his freshman and sophomore seasons. See Henry Sims.

What I am certain of is that I have not a clue as to any of his off court considerations. How could I possibly know what he cared about as far as "personal development" is concerned? If someone's read something somewhere about that, please direct me to that information.

And even if Vernon is quoted on that issue -- and again, this is just me -- he is totally entitled to follow his path in life. As a Hoya fan I may not like the decision he made, but I do accept that each and every one of us has their own journey. More power to him. I wish him all the best.

[tashoya]

I'm in the same boat that didn't like his decision to leave initially for selfish reasons and later on thinking that our program would have been much better for his development than Florida's. That said, if a kid doesn't want to commit to putting in the time and improving on their own, it doesn't matter what program they're in. In the end, I guess, judging by those comments, Ticket made the right decision. Whatever it was, either Florida's program, the year of sitting on the bench or just natural maturation, it sounds like he's got his head on straight and now takes personal responsibility for his successes and failures. With that mindset, he's putting himself in the best position to succeed both on and off the court. Best of luck to the kid.

PS, maybe he shouldn't call it his jump hook. Rather, his Hoya Hook.