I don't think it's a question of "his guys" as much as whether the guys he has are any good. It's telling that our five players who got the most minutes this season are ALL sophomores and freshmen - even with Sharma's excellent season he's still the sixth most utilized due to foul issues (and all 5 have sat out 1-7 games with injuries). Go farther down our roster and you'll note that 8 of the top 10 most utilized are underclassmen. And only two players have seen action in every game this season. That tells you everything you need to know about what Haase thinks of what he inherited.
And for all our handwringing about Dawkins, it's notable that (a) UCF lost this weekend to Temple and fell out of the top 25; (b) Fall was limited to 4 points due to foul troubles; and © Dawkins' son put up 37 points for UCF. I assume he was not admissible at Stanford because he went to Michigan instead of Stanford while Dawkins was the coach at Stanford but then immediately transferred to UCF when Dawkins moved. That suggests to me yet another player that Dawkins has and can develop that would never get to the Farm.
So again, my challenge is: tell me what players Haase is failing to recruit that we should have been able to get, and tell me how many schools that don't get one and dones can dominate with lineups that are almost entirely underclassmen? Look at the kind of season multiple COY Jay Wright is having with Villanova after losing all his starters and upperclassmen last season: bumpy. And he's one of the best coaches in the country in a program that has an esteemed history and no major recruiting barriers.
Otherwise, let's focus on what Haase can control: player development, coaching strategy, and mid-game adjustments. I think he's doing a pretty solid job of the first two (the growth of Okpala, Sharma, and da Silva, in particular, has been very encouraging). I definitely like the way he operates our offense vis-a-vis Dawkins, although player execution of that offense has been very hit or miss. My biggest frustrations have been some of our terrible choices down the stretch in close games. That was a flaw Dawkins had too, and that, more than anything else, is what is worrying me about Haase's long-term future on the Farm. The rest, to me, is just noise.
And for all our handwringing about Dawkins, it's notable that (a) UCF lost this weekend to Temple and fell out of the top 25; (b) Fall was limited to 4 points due to foul troubles; and © Dawkins' son put up 37 points for UCF. I assume he was not admissible at Stanford because he went to Michigan instead of Stanford while Dawkins was the coach at Stanford but then immediately transferred to UCF when Dawkins moved. That suggests to me yet another player that Dawkins has and can develop that would never get to the Farm.
So again, my challenge is: tell me what players Haase is failing to recruit that we should have been able to get, and tell me how many schools that don't get one and dones can dominate with lineups that are almost entirely underclassmen? Look at the kind of season multiple COY Jay Wright is having with Villanova after losing all his starters and upperclassmen last season: bumpy. And he's one of the best coaches in the country in a program that has an esteemed history and no major recruiting barriers.
Otherwise, let's focus on what Haase can control: player development, coaching strategy, and mid-game adjustments. I think he's doing a pretty solid job of the first two (the growth of Okpala, Sharma, and da Silva, in particular, has been very encouraging). I definitely like the way he operates our offense vis-a-vis Dawkins, although player execution of that offense has been very hit or miss. My biggest frustrations have been some of our terrible choices down the stretch in close games. That was a flaw Dawkins had too, and that, more than anything else, is what is worrying me about Haase's long-term future on the Farm. The rest, to me, is just noise.