Back to Basics for Oregon Men's Hoops

by dvieira on Apr 16, 2009 10:00 AM PDT in Basketball Comment 14 comments

You wanted fundamentals? You got fundamentals. Mike Dunlap is starting fast in his new role as Associate Head Coach for the Men's Basketball team at Oregon. Whether you buy into him having Drew Wiley say hello to his left hand or not, you can't argue with the philosophy. By most accounts, he is starting to light that fire under an Oregon team that needed something...anything to get them up after a horrible 2008-09 campaign. Going back to basics appears to be the approach that is adding wood to that flame. We are still very early in the offseason but if indications are to be believed, Ernie has addressed one of the main issues detractors cite about his leadership...fundamental basketball.

Make no mistake about this move. I'm sure it was very hard for Ernie to make the decision to not renew the contract of his longtime friend Mark Hudson. At the end of the day, he did what was best for the program. This wasn't Pat Kilkenny coming to Ernie saying "You need to hire Dunlap or you are out of here". This was Ernie understanding the flaws in the program and taking steps to fix it before Kilkenny was forced to fix him. It was Ernie that came up with the idea to go after Dunlap and presented it to Kilkenny. There was no backup plan in place. It was either get Dunlap or bust. The deal was made, Oregon has a new Associate Head Coach and reports out of camp are positive.

Dunlap isn't just revitalizing the teams fundamentals and practices, he's running the show. He's inserting his own expertise into the program, all with the quiet backing of Ernie and the rest of the coaches. Ernie has stepped back, something he hasn't always done in the past. Pressure may have had a lot to do with the changes Ernie had to make but he seems to have understood more than what we gave him credit for. He knows where the program was, where it is, and where it needs to be. Hiring Dunlap and stepping back a bit shows that. The question is, will these moves pan out into wins this next season? The issues in program management seem to be getting addressed but only time will tell.

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Fire Dunlap!

Too soon?

by grimc on Apr 16, 2009 2:51 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Yep. Too soon.

You cannot hide from our weapons of Masoli destruction.

by JConant on Apr 16, 2009 3:03 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

'K.

Just give a signal when it’s time though. I’m ready.

by grimc on Apr 16, 2009 3:09 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sweet Jesus finally

please give me good fundamental basketball that makes us a perennial tournament team.

It's spelled "T-A-K-I-M-O-T-S-C-H-M-O-E."

I support inroywetrust in his support of The VD Special in his support of me supporting Roger Kieschnick in his quest to becoming the best Kieschnick ever to play professional baseball.

by Takimoto on Apr 16, 2009 3:48 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Now, the question is

Will Dunlap be up and about during games? Ernie himself just sits down a good portion of the time… does Dunlap possibly become the assertive guy that does not treat his players like a 7th grade YMCA team?

Addicted To Quack [dot] com; Dear Joevan, Develop motor skills. Love, ATQ.

by qrsouther on Apr 16, 2009 3:55 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

It raises the inevitable question…who’s really coaching this team?

You cannot hide from our weapons of Masoli destruction.

by JConant on Apr 16, 2009 4:00 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Is that REALLY up for debate?

I think Dunlap comes in as someone who has been promised the chance to install a new system at uo and, if Ernie has half a brain, he’s cool with that. To do so little with so much, well, it looks bad, hence the displeasure many of you guys have demonstrated the past few seasons.

"The brownies,'' Fernandez said after the game. "The brownies are good for me to make three-points.''

- from Quick's Behind the Blazers Locker Room Door, 4/16/09

by ArbyOSU on Apr 16, 2009 4:53 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Dunlap isn’t installing a new system. Oregon will still be running a motion-style offense. Ernie is still responsible for the overall philosophy. Dunlap’s strengths should be in fundamental basketball and providing a fresh perspective. Ernie is still the top dog and I doubt there will be much of a difference in offensive scheme next year. Fundamentally, however, there should be a stronger commitment to defense and other things like dribbling, not turning the ball over, actually making shots, etc

--Dominic, Addicted to Quack

Autzen Stadium is where great teams go to die." - J. Brady McCullough, The Michigan Daily.

by dvieira on Apr 16, 2009 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, I was half kidding. I’ve heard no talk of new systems, only increased focus on playing the game the right way. Perfect example – finishing at the rim. How many times did we see the Ducks (Longmire in particular) miss at the hoop after beating a defender off the dribble, or leaving an easy put-back short. I gather Dunlap is working to shore up those deficiencies.

Could Dunlap help Ernie evolve the UO offense? Most likely.

You cannot hide from our weapons of Masoli destruction.

by JConant on Apr 16, 2009 9:49 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Fundamentals?!? In the middle of the season!?

I’m really excited to have a voice in the program who will push for these things. I have always liked Ernie as a person, but he’s been seriously lacking in this area of coaching, which is probably the most important. It will be very exciting to see what happens to the team next year.

--AddictedToQuack, SBNation's Oregon Ducks blog

by jtlight on Apr 16, 2009 4:08 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I think the most important thing dvieira points out is that this was Kent’s idea. Kilkenny confirmed this to the R-G last week. Kent knew something had to change, and if it wasn’t him, it had to be something near the top, hence the firing of Hudson.

But already we’re starting to doubt this move as Dunlap running the show. That’s flat-out not the case. The move to hire Dunlap was a financial one. Pay a nationally renowned coach twice as much as we pay for Kent and not know what we’ll get, or keep Kent, The Recruiter, and hire Dunlap, The Xs & Os Guy, at a greatly reduced rate.

I like this move. We keep Kent, which shows recruits like Wilson that he’s the guy, but we fine-tune the things Kent isn’t as good at, like teaching fundamentals.

Hi, I'm Paul Thompson, and I'm a quack-aholic.

by PaulSF on Apr 16, 2009 5:21 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I should have been more clear in the role Dunlap seems to be taking. He isn’t running the program, but he certainly is stepping into a leadership role with regards to development of players. He seems to be owning that aspect of the program. I liken it to Mike Bellotti knowing when to let his assistants coach and getting the hell out of the way

--Dominic, Addicted to Quack

Autzen Stadium is where great teams go to die." - J. Brady McCullough, The Michigan Daily.

by dvieira on Apr 16, 2009 5:30 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs