Stan Heath's philosophy:It won't work

[Vega]

First off let me say this for those that might think otherwise, I'm a Bull's basketball fan and a fan of Heath. I will both criticize and praise the program at the times when either is merited. Now on to the topic at hand.

I have followed Heath from his days as an assistant at MSU, 1 very successful season as HC of Kent St, his 5 years at Arkansas(Back-to-back 20 win seasons and NCAAT appearances), and of course his time here at USF. So when I talk about this I know what I'm talking about.

Stan Heath has his entire career promised that his teams will be the type that puts pressure on the opponents both defensively and offensively. That his teams will run back at teams even after made baskets. Don't believe me well here is what Coach Heath said at his press conference the official day he was introduced as HC of USF, "It's a goal of mine to put a great product out there.  To put out a team that's exciting, a team that's going to play hard, a team that's going to play pressure basketball.  What does that mean? It means we're going to run.  What does that mean? It means we're going to get in your face and guard you. What does that mean? It means we're going to attack you all the time.  That's how we want to play." 

Heath said the samething at the presser for Kent St and Arkansas as well. At Kent St Heath inherited a very veteran team that had success before he got there. Under Heath Kent St started out 4-4 and both he and the players clashed in a very heated exchange in a locker room after the Golden Flashes blew a big halftime lead to lose a game against Youngstown St. The Flashes under their former coach got out and ran more of an open attack while Heath believes in setting up in the halfcourt to running more offensive sets. Well Heath as you readers will find out is a stubborn man that rarely will give in and change his ways. However there at Kent St he had to give in just a little to his team's wishes and at least incorporate his philosophy with what the players were comfortable in doing. I give Stan credit for putting things together and making it work and that led to a magical season for him and the program.

At Arkansas Heath took over a very, very tough situation where the school had just fired a legendary black coach(Nolan Richardson) and the program was at it's lowest point ever. Heath's press conference there was like the one at USF where he promised to bring an exciting brand of basketball, run off of made baskets, get out and pressure the opposing teams, etc. Well things never really happened like Stan promised and the fans there started labeling there Razorbacks as "Heath Ball." That means walking it up the court and standing around for 25 seconds then giving it to the star player hoping he makes a 1-on-1 move to hopefully score despite while having a fairly athletic team. To his credit Stan did win his last 3 seasons at Arkansas and should not have been fired. Something else Heath had to deal with his first few seasons there was racism and not just from the white people but from black people as well. Let me say this, there is nothing worse to a proud black then to be called an "Uncle Tom" by your own race. The "N" word is not as bad as that. Stan was considered a traitor to his race by taking the job that got rid of a famous black HC and he had a hard time going into the homes where the black father was present. Trust me those are facts.

Now fast forward to the present at USF where we have already discovered that Stan has made promises of this exciting style and getting out to pressure the opposition. We have depth at the guard spots and 2 more coming. You get out and pressure with your guards not the bigs and that is where we are injured, so if we are ever going to speed things up and pressure the opposing teams now is the time to do it. Heath's reluctance to let the players play worked at Kent St after he and the players adopted to each other. Heath's reluctance to let the players play hurt him at Arkansas but because he could recruit good enough there he became a 20+ game winner. Also the players liked Heath and going back to look at things his teams had success when he let the players play and not try to over coach.

The Big East is proving to be a real problem for Stan and the real reason why his philosophy will never work coaching at USF in this league. To play the way Stan wants we will either need to be 3 times more talented then we are now or Stan should change to way he recruits by not bringing in so many athletes, but instead focusing on corn-fed big men that set monster picks and shooters that look like they can be future lawyers and doctors. You know look like Princeton or Wisconsin.  USF will never be as talented overall as the top heavies of the Big East but that doesn't mean we can't be a top 6-8 team annually. If Stan is committed to recruit athletes then he has to let them be just that on the court. There is no way USF can stand toe to toe with these BE schools and win many games. We have to get out and pressure, out hustle, and confuse teams to have a real chance to win our share. You don't have to be extremely talented to do that. Crater will tell the story of how this season will go for USF. He is a PG that excels in the open floor. He is not as good walking it down to run a set offense every play. There will be no excuse or defense for Stan if we are still playing the same way with Crater.

[Cubanbull]

Sorry too long of a post to read.  ;D

[Vega]

Sorry too long of a post to read.   ;D

I know it is, lol. I started to break it down into parts but decided against it. Just read some now and the rest later.

[SANJAY]

Good info.  I don't think we'll get a bunch of top 100 caliber recruits so the coaching has to play to what the players do best.  As I recall, the Arkansas "40 minutes of hell" started with a bunch of athletes and evolved with each class of player being better.

[tbbulls]

Sorry too long of a post to read.   ;D

Im going to wait for the cliff notes to come out

[SRQ]

heath won't win at USF simply because its basketball in a super basketball conference.  as someone who has attended over 200 games at the Sun Dome and prior 'home' courts, I wish it weren't this way, but it is.

[CousinRicky]

A lot of time put into that post.  I totally agree about the offense.  I've only watched the 'ville game this year but the O looks exactly the same as last year.  3 guys pass the ball around the perimeter until about 8 seconds are left on the shot clock.  And then someone tries to drive and ends up a) losing the ball off his foot, gets stripped, c) commits an offensive foul, d) throws up a crappy shot or e) gets the shot blocked.  Hard to watch a team that plays like that.  I like the job Heath is doing recruiting wise. But I don't like his style of play.  I understand you want to shorten the game, but come on.

[Vega]

  I like the job Heath is doing recruiting wise. But I don't like his style of play.  I understand you want to shorten the game, but come on.

That's the key. Why recruit to a style but then not play it? Another strong USF fan told me on my job a couple of weeks ago, that Stan plays not to lose instead of playing to win. Watching the way we are playing on offense and defense it does appear that there is some accuracy in that statement. We don't attack nearly enough on offense or defense imo. Just watching the Louisville game anyone could have saw that when we attacked early the team got better shots, FTs, and 2 chances, been that way all season. Once again Crater will show us the truth without a debate about Heath's style. Another thing is what recruit wants to play in a system like Heath's? It is only so long you can lie to prospects about an allegedly exciting offense and defense that you have your teams play. Opposing coaching don't miss things so obvious. South Florida have to appeal to prospects because the school can't recruit for itself.

[BigGameBulls]

I think that Stan Heath is forced into this type of play until he has a full bench to utilize.

[CousinRicky]

I think that Stan Heath is forced into this type of play until he has a full bench to utilize.

If you mean a bench full of Big East quality players, he'll be gone before that happens.