1-4-04
God, I am so fucking sick of losing. Obviously, as a Carolina fan, we have a long, rich tradition of winning back in the Dean Smith era, and no matter what happens, we always run a clean program with great guys and god knows our colors look awesome on everybody, especially the urban youth on the 3 train to Manhattan. I have poured forth in a froth of ecstasy and hung my head in suicidal gloom about UNC hoops last year on these pages.
But I'll tell you something. Jon Vaden and I sat in Indianapolis in April 1998 and watched Antawn Jamison and Vince Carter fold their tent in front of Utah, a game we should have won by 15, and after it was over, we just froze there in agape-mouthed disbelief at the debacle we'd just witnessed. From that moment on, despite the occasional glimmer of hope, being a Carolina fan has been a cavalcade of misery.
First came Makhtar's false claim that a Utah player called him a "nigger." Then came Dook winning 5 ACC championships in a row. Then came Dook's 2001 championship. Then came Matt Doherty, who alienated and humiliated his players on the first day of practice. Mass transfers. Public displays of rancor. Then an 8-20 season, the kind of year that even the WORST teams never suffer. Then a player revolt. Then Roy Williams comes to right our severely listing ship, and he says it's the most miserable job he's ever had. We drop our first ACC game in a hard-fought but ultimately futile contest against Wake Forest, a team that has now beaten us FIVE TIMES in a row. And yesterday, again, we were beaten by Kentucky, for the FOURTH TIME in a row.
I don't care if I sound like a bad fan anymore. I have tried to be Buddhist about it, and accept that change, even bad change, is compulsory, but fuck that. I am tired of losing these big games.
Don't talk to me about our 18-game winning streak in 2001; that was a fluke resting on the back of the soon-to-be-proven-psychotic Joe Forte. Don't talk to me about the "Maryland Snow Game." Don't talk to me about our "improbable run to the Final Four in 2000" – it only set up another humiliation. Don't tell me about beating Illinois this year, they've already lost again. Don't talk to me about anything. I know some schools have never won a National Championship. I don't bloody goddamn care.
I want to start winning again, and I want to start winning by forty. I want to beat Clemson so bad that they can only put four guys on the court (1998). I want to beat Manhattan 129-45 (1985). I want, like Rasheed and Jerry, to never lose at Cameron.
We have gone 40-43 in our last 83 games. That SUCKS. I don't care if this blog is well-written, or doesn't prove a point, or is the kind of thing that gets a link from the goddamn Dook fan sites to show how unraveled UNC fans have become. I just want to win again. I'm tired of feeling like this about my religion.
Posted by irw at January 4, 2004 11:23 PM
I know this sounds crazy, but I'm actually cautiously optimistic. It's a work in progress this year, but Jawad and Sean were hurt yesterday, every starter played terribly, and we still almost won the game.If the players will look at themselves and redouble their effort, and Roy remembers to not let his frustration get the best of him and teach these kids, this could still be a great season.
Also, we have a nice non-conference game at home with Miami this week that should allow us to recalibrate before Tech comes to town on Sunday.
GO HEELS!
What Chris said. Keep the faith, brothers.
Try being an Iowa fan for a while. Like the season where the promising new coach can't get the two best players in 25 years to drop their dicks long enough to play like they belong in the big ten. Followed by the year where the star player rapes a Iowa Women's B-Ball player, and the Athletic Department pressures her to let him plead to a lesser charge, AND he plays again after a red shirt season.
Iowa hasn't won a national championship in a long, long time. Iowa chokes in close games again and again. Iowa hires great coaches who either never live up to their billing, or bolt to a higher profile team first chance they get.
UNC had a great run, and may again achieve greatness. Iowa basketball is always just good enough to get your hopes up, and just lame enough to dash them every time.
Roy's my boy. Let's hope a group lesson learned at Rupp on Saturday leads to a rejuvenated effort and result. He does seem hell-bent that no player be even perceived as just a little spoiled rotten in the slightest. 'Course them's mountain ways 'bout disciplin'in the young'uns, especially if they don't expend energy on the defensive end. We love the transition off stops, but we'll have to play better and healthier in the half-court if we want to be a contender. Root on!
Step away from the ledge, Ian. It's a non-conference game on the road against a top-10 opponent. If we lose, we're supposed to lose. This was a throw-away game and I think Roy was using it to prove a point. Why else would Damien Price (yes, Damien freakin' Price!!!) be getting significant minutes during the second half at the point? Our top 3 scorers combine for 15 points on something like .0000476% shooting; our 1 true point guard does not have a good game; and it still takes a fade-away, double-teamed 22-foot 3-pointer by Kentucky to salt the game away. It's a long season and we still have our sites firmly on the goal. Remember that Roy's team have a history of playing better at the end of the year than the beginning. Kansas started off last year at 3-3 before going on to the National Championship game. I predict a flawed 20-point win against Miami and then a well-played 8 or 10 point win at home against Georgia Tech. Keep the faith!
It's discouraging, indeed, to be a Carolina fan these days, but I think much of that comes from unrealistic expectations of Roy's first year. Doherty was coach of the year his first season--with Dean's and Gut's players. We need to give Roy a little more time to deal with the players that Doherty recruited. He's figuring out his players and they're figuring out their coach. They've only been working together for a few months.
Besides, losing to Kentucky and Wake... that's not the worst thing ever. We've already had some great moments in pre-conference play, and I think we're in for a great season. I'm optimistic. We're still Carolina, and we still have the best coach in the country, and some of the best starters anywhere.
My first reaction is to chastise you for expecting too much too early. This may yet become a great team, but there is no reason to EXPECT this to be a great team this early. The starting 5 are extremely talented, but ALL of them have suffered some sort of injury already this season and our backups are athletic, but raw.
My second reaction is to agree that this was the most disheartening game I've seen them play this season. Roy said after the game that they didn't look well coached, and I (gudgingly) agree. I'm hoping that the rhythm that develops during the spring as the team is able to practice and play more frequently will help. I want to blame the poor performance on the lack of practice time and the disruptions caused by the holidays and injuries, but... I don't know.
I'm still optimistic, but I understand where you're coming from.
I'm with Chip on the cautiously optimistic front. I will say, however, that Jawad Williams could have used another day off, as he handled the ball like a sleepwalker, which pointed up the most glaring disappointment of the post-Dean era: a complete lack of respect for possession of the basketball. Carolina has probably committed more turnovers since 1997 than it committed in the fifteen years before that.
Anyway, I feel good about the Tech game.
On a slightly different topic, I'm ready for Billy Packer to retire. Call me paranoid, but he really does hate Carolina. I'll never forget the Marquette game in about '88, which we WON on some late Lebo heroics, when he gave Rick Majerus the Player of the Game award for "outcoaching Dean Smith." Give me fingernails on a chalkboard any day instead of Billy's ranting.