Nikita Mescheriakov to transfer

[theexorcist]

Dec 22, 2009 13:35:24 GMT -5 DFW HOYA said:

It's a coach's job (particualrly in recruiting) to make players want to be there, and comments like that are unnecessary in a public forum. The coach ought to know better.

This board would have gone ballistic if Thompson's predecessor had made such statements, and rightly so.

Dec 22, 2009 13:25:03 GMT -5 DanMcQ said:

I would fundamentally disagree that the coach's job is to make sure that players want to be there. John Chaney and Bob Knight were infamous for making things not particularly fun for players.

It's the coach's job, as recruiter, to make sure that the players he wants decide to attend the college in question. However, once on campus, the coach's job is to win (disclaimer about it being within all legal/ethical/moral boundaries). If there are players whose attittude and approach impede that effort to win, then the responsibility is on the coach to work out some acconmmodation.

But if Joe Hoya, who looked to be a good player coming out of high school but quickly showed himself to be a scrub, wanted to start, or wanted more minutes or shots despite performance not being acceptable, then I would support the coach in indicating that that couldn't happen.

This seems more to indict recruiting - Nikita and Wattad were never very good, Rivers' offense was very weak, and Macklin seemed ill-suited for the Princeton O despite being a good player. Since the current team and past teams have usually been talented, this seems like an area to improve upon (a B-) rather than a weakness (a D).

[FromTheBeginning]

Strummer beat me to the punch. Not saying this is relevant to Nikita, but isn't it much easier to sit on the bench at a school where you can major in playground adminstration? Not playing and still having to go to class and work your butt off on academics is far less attractive. And the "perks" theme is also very relevant. Don't you think Vernon is just a little bit higher on the comfort scale in Gainsville?

All these kids aspire to improve in college - most unrealistically so - it's no surprise that some of them are disappointed and choose to try someplace else. This conversation is a counterpoint to all the guys on these boards who are disappointed when we don't bring in 3 top 50 guys EVERY year - the guys who see next year's class as disappointing right now with only Markel & Lubick next year. the worst thing that happened to Nikita was getting all those minutes last year - There was never any way he was not going to lose a majority of them this year.

[ColumbiaHeightsHoya]

Could perks also be those of the Tennessee Pride, Lane Kiffin version? Gtown isn't as strong in that category for die hard groupie hotties.

[gtowndynasty]

Dec 22, 2009 13:52:13 GMT -5 FrazierFanatic said:

Dynasty - part of the problem may be tha with our relative youth and the mess that last season became, III may feel a need to get the starters as much game experience as possible, which can become a dangerous tightrope to walk when you need more contributions from the bench down the road due to foul trouble, injury, stamina, etc.

Frazier I think you are right. And by no means am I advocating playing these young guys down the stretch when the game is in jeopardy over the starters. However, I do think it will go a long way to get the guys as much pt as possible when it is possible. IE-games we are up by 15-20 in the second half. At least let them try and if they give up the lead then pull them out, but justifiably so. Watching Tulane, Butler, UW i felt that seldom used guys could have been used for more than just spot minutes.

But I am not the Coach so my $0.02 doesnt go far. I just am on the side of the fence that believes 7-10 mpg can be found for a young talent like Vee/Jerelle. When on the court they do good things.

[casualhoya]

I am supremely confident that Nikita transferred due to the pounding he was taking on The Blog.

You're welcome.

Casually.

[tjm62]

Dec 22, 2009 14:35:48 GMT -5 casualhoya said:

I am supremely confident that Nikita transferred due to the pounding he was taking on The Blog.

You're welcome.

Casually.

Who doesn't enjoy a casual pounding, now and then?

[NCHoya]

Dec 22, 2009 13:35:24 GMT -5 DFW HOYA said:

It's a coach's job (particualrly in recruiting) to make players want to be there, and comments like that are unnecessary in a public forum. The coach ought to know better.

This board would have gone ballistic if Thompson's predecessor had made such statements, and rightly so.

Dec 22, 2009 13:25:03 GMT -5 DanMcQ said:

I agree with you DFW. To some degree, a coach does have the responsibility to make his players feel valued. For example, I would not want my son to play for a coach that basically allows him to sink or swim without a life raft. This is college after all, not the pros.

It seems like, when JT3 has no use for you, these kids transfer and that will become an issue for him. He will have to go into these kid's homes and explain to the parents why, if players do not achieve quickly, they seem to just want out. He obviously does not see these players as an extension of his family. It seems to be all business with JT3, I wonder how that is going to play out long-term.

If there is one thing I have noticed over the last decade or so; it is that college basketball has moved away from any semblance of a collegiate atmosphere to much more of a business arrangement. It is likely due to the influx of agents and AAU arrangements, but it is a bit depressing. I don't like the NBA for a reason.

[theexorcist]

Dec 22, 2009 14:17:17 GMT -5 FromTheBeginning said:

Strummer beat me to the punch. Not saying this is relevant to Nikita, but isn't it much easier to sit on the bench at a school where you can major in playground adminstration? Not playing and still having to go to class and work your butt off on academics is far less attractive. And the "perks" theme is also very relevant. Don't you think Vernon is just a little bit higher on the comfort scale in Gainsville?

All these kids aspire to improve in college - most unrealistically so - it's no surprise that some of them are disappointed and choose to try someplace else. This conversation is a counterpoint to all the guys on these boards who are disappointed when we don't bring in 3 top 50 guys EVERY year - the guys who see next year's class as disappointing right now with only Markel & Lubick next year. the worst thing that happened to Nikita was getting all those minutes last year - There was never any way he was not going to lose a majority of them this year.

On strummer's point, Notre Dame fans use to justify their football program going into the toilet and losing to Navy. It's the "we're better people than those hooligans" and it covers up collapsing programs so very well.

Georgetown has a lot of things going for it. It is located in a popular college city which has a lot to do and plenty of distractions. If you're riding the pine at Georgetown, you'll work hard off the court, but it's not like the school is in North Dakota and III is known for brutal practices.

Georgetown has also, in III's past, admitted players with less-than-stellar records. Georgetown's house is cleaner than most, but not all students who come in here graduate.

People transfer for lots of different reasons. Given that college athletes aren't paid, they have a right to examine their college experience midway through and make sure it's what they wanted it to be. And if it's not, then they have the right to take steps to improve that experience, including via transferring.

[jgalt]

The world is coming to an end.

[DanMcQ]

AP: sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=4764768

The Voice blog: blog.georgetownvoice.com/2009/12/22/nikita-mescheriakov-to-transfer-from-georgetown/

Examiner: blog.georgetownvoice.com/2009/12/22/nikita-mescheriakov-to-transfer-from-georgetown/

[Filo]

I can understand some hand-wringing and even some criticism of JTIII, but the outrage over this quote?

"Nikita has been part of what we've done here, and we'll miss him," Thompson said. "But at the same time, I'm extremely confident in the group that we have here and that wants to be here."

It's a fact -- Nikita doesn't want to be here (obviously, since he is transferring). I think it is a real streeeeettcchhh to infer any sort of knock on Nikita from that quote. Yeah, let's manufacture some more issues...

[gojeffgoroyunder7]

For those posters trying to pin this on Thompson, stop drinking your tall glass of haterade when you get up each morning. It's disgusting. 2 big east championships in the last 3 years. I'll take that. The people who have left were not going to play here---plain and simple. Like any top recruit with half an ego, they went somewhere else to try and be a star--and for the most part experienced much of the same. O yea, Rivers is the man over at IU. And Macklin.... he is an all-america candidate. And we really miss Omar, because Vee isn't much better than him.

Nikita isn't good. We took a chance on him, he took a chance on us. A shame he isn't staying for a valuable diploma, because he is very bad at basketball. But, I suppose that is Coach Thompson's fault for taking a waiver on a player late in the signing period. He is a great coach and an amazing representative of our program. He has restored Georgetown basketball back to relevancy, and guys like Jeff, Hibbert, Patrick Jr., and Wallace swear by the guy.

STOP HATING. We have a great coach.

[hobokenhoya]

Good riddance. Guy absolutely stinks. The only thing JTIII did wrong was let him play as much as he did last year. Guy's feet are stuck to the floor. Talk about a non-story.

[FewFAC]

First of all, best of luck Nikita. Not every transfer is necessarily an indictment of the status quo, you know.

Dec 22, 2009 12:23:56 GMT -5 vamosalaplaya said:

But as a practical matter, running a short bench, playing at a deliberate pace, and not scoring alot of points are bound to make the trend of non-starters transferring more acute. North Carolina - which does have the occasional transfer, but still - is the poster child for how to keep good players happy. Run like crazy, keep the subs pouring in, everyone plays, everyone gets to contribute.

As much as I enjoy the offense, I think this is a valid point. One can also look at Memphis and Kentucky here. I think the subset of special players capable of excelling in our offense is extremely small, year in and year out, and the elimination of expectations to go to college for four years, graduate and improve as a basketball player only makes that subset smaller.

While I can also see the strengths to not succumbing to such recruiting pressures in the development of a program, such as limiting the likelihood of enrolling players of suspect character, the inherent limitations also have to be acknowledged, such as maybe continually being short on scholarship players who meet our exceptional standards.

This raises a considerable question for the staff: whether to hew dogmatically to a specific vision of the program, or adapt to maximize the potential available. One requires blocks to fit into square holes, and one requires flexibility. One puts the system before the players, and one uses the players to create the system.

I, for one, am considerably interested in how the staff resolves this issue moving forward. I would be willing to accept a program that stayed squeaky clean with moderate success and an outside chance of catching lightning in a bottle over a perennial contender treading in the murky grey area of collegiate athletics.

[EasyEd]

A question: Causey, Guibunda, Omar and Nikita. What do they have in common? Is it possible that ONE consideration in their decisions was not feeling at home among the rest of the team?

[CAHoya07]

While I think that transfers are a problem for us, I don't think this particular one will be. We'll be fine for this year, Nikita wasn't going to get many minutes anyway.

It is a problem, but I think that people are exaggerating it a little bit. I will move on, but I'm sure this discussion and speculation will go on for a few more pages... ;D

[mrsixer123]

is he going to va tech?

[cnyhoya]

Don't forget about our walk-ons. Can walk-ons transfer? Is that where we are headed?

Seriously though, I like what I have seen from Vee and Jerelle so much more contribution-wise as compared to what Nikita brought to the court. I would like to see them both get more PT in games that are not close as well as some that are.

[DFW HOYA]

Dec 22, 2009 15:06:03 GMT -5 gojeffgoroyunder7 said:

STOP HATING. We have a great coach.

Yes we do. But facts are facts--you can call this on JT III or Burke or Broadus, whomever--of late, Georgetown is either not recruiting the right reserve players, or not providing a framework for them to grow and succeed. There is a pattern here:

Class of 2009
Marc Egerson- transfer
Jessie Sapp - Graduated
Octavius Spann - transfer
Josh Thornton - transfer

Class of 2010
Vernon Macklin - transfer
Jeremiah Rivers - transfer
Dajuan Summers - early entry

Class of 2011
Austin Freeman
Nikita Mescheriakov - transfer
Omar Wattad - transfer
Chris Wright

[mrsixer123]

Dec 22, 2009 15:13:42 GMT -5 EasyEd said:

A question: Causey, Guibunda, Omar and Nikita. What do they have in common? Is it possible that ONE consideration in their decisions was not feeling at home among the rest of the team?

HIGHLY unlikely. How can a caucasian NOT feel at home at Georgetown University??