For about a decade, North Texas has had continuity. The brand of basketball was recognizable, with Grant McCasland establishing the no-middle defense, and a slow-paced offense as the (nearly) defining characteristic of the offense. It was effective, and North Texas won championships with it. The NIT winner’s banner hangs proudly in the rafters.
That era is over. With Ross Hodge moving on to the Big 12 and West Virginia, it was time for Athletic Director Jared Mosley to hire someone to follow up the most successful era in NT basketball history. That falls to Daniyal Robinson, formerly of Cleveland State. His pace is not too great of a departure from the Hodge/McCasland teams, but it is a bit faster. He took Cleveland State to the CBI three seasons running and while that may not be super impressive on its face, consider that the program was a losing one prior to his run.
The Burner Ball preview (with help by 3 Man Weave, an MGN favorite) explains what we all were suspecting: a solid defensive coach who doesn’t have a real poetic offense.
That’s about right. The American is a better conference than the Horizon League, in terms of talent and skill. To win here requires a level of sophistication and athleticism. The absolute best hoops squads in the nation combine athletic talent with basketball IQ and produce outstanding squads. As you go down the prestige tree you find yourself having to make tradeoffs. North Texas has found some undersized skill guys with big hearts for a few years. Robinson looks like he wants to get some really talented athletes with less-er skills.
Let me be clear, these dudes can hoop, but sophisticated defenses and comparable (or better!) athletes will nullify some of the go-to moves. Someone needs to handle the ball in crucial situations. Someone needs to stretch the floor. There are a few candidates for that, but it will be a learning curve to get it working the way we’ll need it to.
The good news is there will be effort. When it clicks, a hounding defense can produce transition buckets and that will be a lot of fun. If the Pit is rocking and the steals are plentiful, there are few moments more fun than when you are getting fastbreak dunks at home.
Much like in football, however, when your blitz-heavy team can’t get to the QB you are left looking vulnerable. When teams are able to break the pressure, there will be buckets for days.
Now, we should remember every team and every system has its weaknesses. We saw that the worst version of Mac/Ross was the one where they drained the clock and left it to a play-maker to shoot with single-digits on the shot clock. We saw the slow-motion offense produce some truly painful possessions. We saw the no-middle defense leave some open threes, and get worked over by superior talent. It happens. You try to find a system that gives you the best chance you think you have and you live and die with the results.
This program is still defense-first and that is sort of the North Texas brand right now. The execution of offense and all that can come second. You can get a lot of wins with an emphasis on defending. I do not hate the direction.
Tonight, the squad opens the season vs New Mexico Highlands and it shouldn’t be very difficult. It is a tune up for the rest of the week. It should be a relatively easy win to get guys some time, run some offense, and make some fans with dunks and a big score. Should be.
This Week:
Nov 3 - New Mexico Highlands
Nov 6 - Northwestern State
Nov 9 - at Loyola Chicago (Hoffman Estates)
North Texas opens with a couple of (I mean this in the most predictive way) light squads before a test vs Loyola Chicago. The week after includes Oregon State and St. Mary’s. We’ll find out pretty quick what kind of team this is, how they handle adversity on the road against a good squad, and what it looks like.
For now, as Greg said in the MGN Chat, we should just enjoy the ride.