[winflop]

I decided to wait until after the weekend to allow Muir and others to bask in the glow of superior mediocrity that is the NIT championship.  But I'm tired of mediocrity, and I know Stanford can do better - MUCH better.

Dear Mr. Muir,

It’s time for new leadership and a new direction for the Stanford men’s basketball program.  For two decades, Stanford was consistently in the NCAA tournament and more often than not finished in the top three in the Pac-12.  Today, Maples Pavilion is a hollow shell of its former self.  The fan base is apathetic.

Even if you ignore the first two years of the Johnny Dawkins era while he recruited players he wanted and implemented his system, the last five years are simply not good enough:
• Squeaking into the NCAA Tournament once
• Never having a Pac-12 record better than 10-8, and 45-45 overall
• Winning substantially less than 50% of games decided by 5 points or fewer (including OT), and less than 25% of them this year
• Rosters that don’t go more than 7-8 players deep, a sign of inadequate recruiting and development and exposing the roster to a bigger impact from injuries than teams with deeper benches
• Hundreds of empty lower bowl, sideline seats on Senior Day and other big games (embarrassing to see on TV).  NIT attendance was flat out embarrassing
• A lackluster student section whose cheering is frequently drowned out by opponents

I could go on, but there is one word that describes these results: MEDIOCRE.

Yes, Stanford just won the NIT.  So what?  You might be able to say that had the team had played like that a little more often they would have been in the NCAAs.  That is the broken record of every season of the Dawkins era: a lack of consistency and an overall record that does not reflect the talent on the roster.  Winning the NIT with this year’s roster was simply not good enough.  Being a #10 seed last year with two NBA draft picks on the roster was simply not good enough.  Dawkins’ predecessors seemed to get everything and then some out of the talent they had.  Coach Dawkins is not doing that.

You have made some great coaching hires in other sports, and your reputation coming into Stanford was that you were a “basketball guy.”  I fail to understand why you would continue to tolerate mediocrity in a sport for which you are particularly well-regarded to the point of being on the NCAA Selection Committee.  I think the world of Johnny Dawkins – off the court.  But unfortunately his results indicate that he’s a very average head basketball coach at the major conference level.

One of the great sources of pride in my 30+-year affiliation with Stanford is that I believe in my heart that Stanford does not tolerate mediocrity in ANYTHING for very long.  If Johnny Dawkins continues to be head coach, I will have to question whether you share that belief.

There is a brobdingnagian sign on the Stanford football practice field that says, “You’re either getting better or you’re getting worse.”  Mr. Muir, I would be curious to hear a fact-based argument that Stanford men’s basketball is getting better, especially looking ahead to next season without Chasson Randle, Anthony Brown, and Stefan Nastic.

Men’s basketball needs someone who can take the program in a different direction, deliver a more consistent and better performance night in and night out, leave fans with the feeling that the team is playing at or above its talent, re-energize the fan base, and once again make Stanford a feared opponent.  Maples can be a full, loud, and boisterous arena that opponents dread coming to.  Seven years is more than enough to know that Johnny Dawkins cannot deliver that.  It’s up to you to do what’s right for Stanford.

[winflop]

I decided to wait until after the weekend to allow Muir and others to bask in the glow of superior mediocrity that is the NIT championship.  But I'm tired of mediocrity, and I know Stanford can do better - MUCH better.

Dear Mr. Muir,

It’s time for new leadership and a new direction for the Stanford men’s basketball program.  For two decades, Stanford was consistently in the NCAA tournament and more often than not finished in the top three in the Pac-12.  Today, Maples Pavilion is a hollow shell of its former self.  The fan base is apathetic.

Even if you ignore the first two years of the Johnny Dawkins era while he recruited players he wanted and implemented his system, the last five years are simply not good enough:
• Squeaking into the NCAA Tournament once
• Never having a Pac-12 record better than 10-8, and 45-45 overall
• Winning substantially less than 50% of games decided by 5 points or fewer (including OT), and less than 25% of them this year
• Rosters that don’t go more than 7-8 players deep, a sign of inadequate recruiting and development and exposing the roster to a bigger impact from injuries than teams with deeper benches
• Hundreds of empty lower bowl, sideline seats on Senior Day and other big games (embarrassing to see on TV).  NIT attendance was flat out embarrassing
• A lackluster student section whose cheering is frequently drowned out by opponents

I could go on, but there is one word that describes these results: MEDIOCRE.

Yes, Stanford just won the NIT.  So what?  You might be able to say that had the team had played like that a little more often they would have been in the NCAAs.  That is the broken record of every season of the Dawkins era: a lack of consistency and an overall record that does not reflect the talent on the roster.  Winning the NIT with this year’s roster was simply not good enough.  Being a #10 seed last year with two NBA draft picks on the roster was simply not good enough.  Dawkins’ predecessors seemed to get everything and then some out of the talent they had.  Coach Dawkins is not doing that.

You have made some great coaching hires in other sports, and your reputation coming into Stanford was that you were a “basketball guy.”  I fail to understand why you would continue to tolerate mediocrity in a sport for which you are particularly well-regarded to the point of being on the NCAA Selection Committee.  I think the world of Johnny Dawkins – off the court.  But unfortunately his results indicate that he’s a very average head basketball coach at the major conference level.

One of the great sources of pride in my 30+-year affiliation with Stanford is that I believe in my heart that Stanford does not tolerate mediocrity in ANYTHING for very long.  If Johnny Dawkins continues to be head coach, I will have to question whether you share that belief.

There is a brobdingnagian sign on the Stanford football practice field that says, “You’re either getting better or you’re getting worse.”  Mr. Muir, I would be curious to hear a fact-based argument that Stanford men’s basketball is getting better, especially looking ahead to next season without Chasson Randle, Anthony Brown, and Stefan Nastic.

Men’s basketball needs someone who can take the program in a different direction, deliver a more consistent and better performance night in and night out, leave fans with the feeling that the team is playing at or above its talent, re-energize the fan base, and once again make Stanford a feared opponent.  Maples can be a full, loud, and boisterous arena that opponents dread coming to.  Seven years is more than enough to know that Johnny Dawkins cannot deliver that.  It’s up to you to do what’s right for Stanford.