Why I Have Faith in Josh Pastner.

I want to panic about the future of Tiger Basketball, but there is something about Josh Pastner that just won't let me (...and I'm not referring to his boyish charm..weird). The more I read about and look into who Josh Pastner is, and where he has been; I can't help but be optimistic. Sure some may scoff at me or accuse me of wearing the proverbial rose colored glasses, but the guy is going to get the job done. (See Pastner is Prodigy post)



The latest panic with Tiger Basketball has come from a combination of our defecting recruiting class that seems to be washing up on the shore of the University of Lexington and our search for assistant coaches. I like to consider myself to be above the fray at times (after spending a good time in it) and try to look at the real situation with my emotions set aside.



Let's look at it from a recruit's perspective. Would you commit to a program that did not have any assistant coaches? If you say yes, you are an idiot. Really, if you think you could commit to a program with no assistant coaches, just stop reading now and go make your backyard wrestling video.................................
For those still around, I'll lay out my reasoning. When I was recruited for football coming out of high school, I would absolutely want to know who my offensive line coach was going to be. Rick Mallory at Memphis is one of the best around, and I had the utmost confidence that I would be coached by someone that would cultivate my talents. The same is true in any sport. We aren't going to have open tryouts or borrow players from the football team (which we did under Cal). The situation will not be as desperate as some make it out to be. With the current names that are said to be scheduled for an interview/already been interviewed, the players will follow after their hiring. We may not get the recruits that were on our list 1 month ago, but we will get our share of quality players.



Also consider this, all the top recruits for 2010 that were looking at Memphis, are still considering Memphis. A class consisting of Joe Jackson, Mardracus Wade, Tarik Black, and/or Co., would probably rank in the top 10-15 classes in the nation. I expect this to be a slight hiccup before the Tigers run off a few more 1 seeds, set some records, and bring us home that allusive national title. Pastner is Prodigy<-------- heard it hear first (not 2 days later in the CA!). Have a little faith Tiger fans.



Blake