Worst Team I ever covered — NU Basketball

[IdahoAlum]

Mark Lazarus of the Athletic writes about covering Kevin O’Neill’s last NU team:

https://theathletic.com/584387/2018...s-uws-dungheap-and-nothing-but-a-pretty-suit/

 

[winnetkat]

Mark Lazarus of the Athletic writes about covering Kevin O’Neill’s last NU team:

https://theathletic.com/584387/2018...s-uws-dungheap-and-nothing-but-a-pretty-suit/

Interesting note: Kevin O'Neil agreed.

Prior to that season, I actually overheard O'Neil tell a guy he was drinking with at the old My Bar (Sherman & Clark) that they "were the worst team he'd ever seen."

 

[wlcat]

Mark Lazarus of the Athletic writes about covering Kevin O’Neill’s last NU team:

https://theathletic.com/584387/2018...s-uws-dungheap-and-nothing-but-a-pretty-suit/

For me, it was the 90-91 team. Four promising freshmen, including Rex Walters, from the previous year bolted for other schools. Coupled with the graduation of Walker Lambiotte, this left Bill Foster with Don Brotz and Lucis Reece as co-captains and his most veteran players. That team went 5-23, 0-18 in Big Ten. All four of those freshmen would eventually play in the NCAA tourney.

 

[PURPLECAT88]

Interesting note: Kevin O'Neil agreed.

Prior to that season, I actually overheard O'Neil tell a guy he was drinking with at the old My Bar (Sherman & Clark) that they "were the worst team he'd ever seen."

Kevin O'Neil was drinking. Who would ever believe that?

 

[Alan Smithee]

I never once saw him drink alcohol during a game.

 

[loyolacat]

Amazed that Oneil got hired and then amazed he didnt get fired half way through first season......Who did he know? How did he get hired.

 

[BigCat77]

For me, it was the 90-91 team. Four promising freshmen, including Rex Walters, from the previous year bolted for other schools. Coupled with the graduation of Walker Lambiotte, this left Bill Foster with Don Brotz and Lucis Reece as co-captains and his most veteran players. That team went 5-23, 0-18 in Big Ten. All four of those freshmen would eventually play in the NCAA tourney.

Yea, but at least Bill Foster was a decent person. O'Neil was a 5 star douche bag

 

[wlcat]

Yea, but at least Bill Foster was a decent person. O'Neil was a 5 star douche bag

O'Neill's practices were unbelievable to watch. Cursing at players, players cursing back at him, often on his cell phone when not throwing it into the stands.

 

[MotownMedilldo]

For me, it was the 90-91 team. Four promising freshmen, including Rex Walters, from the previous year bolted for other schools. Coupled with the graduation of Walker Lambiotte, this left Bill Foster with Don Brotz and Lucis Reece as co-captains and his most veteran players. That team went 5-23, 0-18 in Big Ten. All four of those freshmen would eventually play in the NCAA tourney.

And thus was born the famous Daily Northwestern headline, "Et tu, Lucious?" when Reece was thinking about transferring. It was discussed in Salt Lake City last year. Such a cathartic trip for NU fans.

 

[hdhntr1]

Amazed that Oneil got hired and then amazed he didnt get fired half way through first season......Who did he know? How did he get hired.

That first season was pretty descent. He got a lot of IA State recruits and he went with Esch a lot. The reasons to let him go came later

 

[Pukecat]

That first season was pretty descent. He got a lot of IA State recruits and he went with Esch a lot. The reasons to let him go came later

Yeah he drove them off the team one by one. Newman, Deren, Robinson, Lepore, Ben Johnson. Wink and Molnar quit before the season, as soon as they got a whiff of the guy.

 

[NJCat]

Yeah he drove them off the team one by one. Newman, Deren, Robinson, Lepore, Ben Johnson. Wink and Molnar quit before the season, as soon as they got a whiff of the guy.

Uh, Ben Johnson left after Carmody's first year. Wink played one season for KO and then had enough of his berating.

 

[pschatz25]

That first season was pretty descent. He got a lot of IA State recruits and he went with Esch a lot. The reasons to let him go came later

His first season wasn't that great (10-17/3-13). It was his second season where he road Esch and the freshmen to an NIT appearance. They were 14-6/6-4 before falling apart. Then the wheels came flying off and he got out of town as soon as possible. Somehow he was hired for multiple jobs after that, including as head coach at another Power 5 school (USC)!

I had thought his resume was pretty good before coming to NU. Looking at it now it's not that impressive though. He did alright at Marquette (2 NCAA appearances in 5 seasons), but was nothing special at Tennessee (1 NIT in 3 seasons). I suppose getting a guy who had coached at other power conference schools and made the NCAA Tournament sounded pretty good for NU at that time.

 

[Pukecat]

Uh, Ben Johnson left after Carmody's first year. Wink played one season for KO and then had enough of his berating.

My mistake. So many people were coming and going that it was hard to remember all of them from memory. I should have Googled them like you did (eye roll).

 

[NJCat]

My mistake. So many people were coming and going that it was hard to remember all of them from memory. I should have Googled them like you did (eye roll).

Actually, I used Sports Reference, an excellent source of historical data.....

https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/northwestern/

 

[hdhntr1]

His first season wasn't that great (10-17/3-13). It was his second season where he road Esch and the freshmen to an NIT appearance. They were 14-6/6-4 before falling apart. Then the wheels came flying off and he got out of town as soon as possible. Somehow he was hired for multiple jobs after that, including as head coach at another Power 5 school (USC)!

I had thought his resume was pretty good before coming to NU. Looking at it now it's not that impressive though. He did alright at Marquette (2 NCAA appearances in 5 seasons), but was nothing special at Tennessee (1 NIT in 3 seasons). I suppose getting a guy who had coached at other power conference schools and made the NCAA Tournament sounded pretty good for NU at that time.

I think he was known as a guy that could turn around a program and recruit. Can't remember that much but as I recall he came late the one year and his one recruit was WINK and he was a one dimensional player(solid 3 pt shooter but not much else) He played a couple years . The following year was when he brought in several guys that were headed to Ia State but when the HC took the Bulls job, he got almost the entire class that included Newman, He also brought in Hardy that year That second year was interesting but he went off the deep end after that. He brought in Deren and I really hated to see him leave (saw him in a NCAA game a year or so later (Creighton?). Drayton was a good athlete but I think he was blind in one eye so his shooting was always challenged. Everyone was leaving after that year and O'Niell was gone as well

 

[EvanstonCat]

I think he was known as a guy that could turn around a program and recruit. Can't remember that much but as I recall he came late the one year and his one recruit was WINK and he was a one dimensional player(solid 3 pt shooter but not much else) He played a couple years . The following year was when he brought in several guys that were headed to Ia State but when the HC took the Bulls job, he got almost the entire class that included Newman, He also brought in Hardy that year That second year was interesting but he went off the deep end after that. He brought in Deren and I really hated to see him leave (saw him in a NCAA game a year or so later (Creighton?). Drayton was a good athlete but I think he was blind in one eye so his shooting was always challenged. Everyone was leaving after that year and O'Niell was gone as well

Yeah, besides Brody Deren and Newman, there was Steve LePore who transferred to and started for Wake Forest and made it to the NCAAs. Not quite as bad as the 4 players who transferred after their Freshman year during Foster's regime (who had they stayed, would have turned us around then). All four, (Walters, Holmes, Pedersen, and Nixon) started for NCAA teams (Kansas, Rice, SLU, and BYU) and Walters was all B1G 8 and an NBA draft pick who played for the Nets. By the time they were seniors, they would have had Pat Baldwin and Kevin Rankin playing in their sophomore seasons and Ced Neloms coming off the bench as a freshman. NCAA team for sure.

 

[hdhntr1]

Yeah, besides Brody Deren and Newman, there was Steve LePore who transferred to and started for Wake Forest and made it to the NCAAs. Not quite as bad as the 4 players who transferred after their Freshman year during Foster's regime (who had they stayed, would have turned us around then). All four, (Walters, Holmes, Pedersen, and Nixon) started for NCAA teams (Kansas, Rice, SLU, and BYU) and Walters was all B1G 8 and an NBA draft pick who played for the Nets. By the time they were seniors, they would have had Pat Baldwin and Kevin Rankin playing in their sophomore seasons and Ced Neloms coming off the bench as a freshman. NCAA team for sure.

They were just saving the first NCAA appearance for CCC