[Farm93]

I would be OK with a ~500 team if it was just more satisfying to watch.

No way. Never. Sorry not sorry. I don't accept mediocrity.

I am OK with a fun entertaining team, much as the Monty teams of the late 80s and early 90s tended to be.   They were not the most athletic, or likely to land at the top of the conference.   But each night you could go to Maples and see a bunch of guys playing well as a team and generally keeping games close even when playing against teams with vastly superior athletes.

As I watch Haase's teams each year has a similar progression.

Early in the year, when many quality programs are hunting for an identity, Haase can get some decent wins and the team shows promise.
By mid year, many of the teams in conference know which one or two Stanford athletes to shutdown, but some of the weakest teams are not quite able to beat Stanford, especially in Maples.
By the end of the season, almost everybody knows how to stop the Stanford star of the year, and Stanford loses to almost everyone in every arena.

The sad reality is that for several years Stanford fans have been reduced to dreaming of a single 11th seed opportunity.   Of course, 11 seeds routinely get blasted in the first round of the tournament, so the unattainable aspiration is actually mediocrity.

I am not sure much above the 11 seed level is possible with NIL, transfer portals, and the Pac-12s low energy arenas, so I would like to see smart and clever play.   Teams with accurate shooters, and players that don't generate a lot of unforced turnovers every night.

[Farm93]

I would be OK with a ~500 team if it was just more satisfying to watch.

No way. Never. Sorry not sorry. I don't accept mediocrity.

I am OK with a fun entertaining team, much as the Monty teams of the late 80s and early 90s tended to be.   They were not the most athletic, or likely to land at the top of the conference.   But each night you could go to Maples and see a bunch of guys playing well as a team and generally keeping games close even when playing against teams with vastly superior athletes.

As I watch Haase's teams each year has a similar progression.

Early in the year, when many quality programs are hunting for an identity, Haase can get some decent wins and the team shows promise.
By mid year, many of the teams in conference know which one or two Stanford athletes to shutdown, but some of the weakest teams are not quite able to beat Stanford, especially in Maples.
By the end of the season, almost everybody knows how to stop the Stanford star of the year, and Stanford loses to almost everyone in every arena.

The sad reality is that for several years Stanford fans have been reduced to dreaming of a single 11th seed opportunity.   Of course, 11 seeds routinely get blasted in the first round of the tournament, so the unattainable aspiration is actually mediocrity.

I am not sure much above the 11 seed level is possible with NIL, transfer portals, and the Pac-12s low energy arenas, so I would like to see smart and clever play.   Teams with accurate shooters, and players that don't generate a lot of unforced turnovers every night.