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PJ Star- BU guard asks for release

if someone throws a drowning man a life preserver -- it is NOT meant as an insult to point out the guy can't swim...

when someone speaks out or tries to alert others to coming bad news....
 
I wanted a change. Yet, I still bought season tickets. I still went to St. Louis. I still cheered on BU at every turn.

Now, people who CLAIM to be BU fans are saying we should "hate" the President, cheer players for leaving, and hope the next coach fails.

Or saying all the donors will be pulling their money.

I never saw people "hoping" JL failed. Maybe some were disappointed, but never hoping for failure.

Strange how that works.

As you said, if the shoe fits.

Are you BU fans or JL fans?

I am a BU fan regardless of the new hire, but I think that a lot of people, myself included, strongly believe with good reason that Bradley will be a better place without JG!
I hope that the new coach succeeds beyond anyone's wildest imagination, and I also hope that Bradley does not go the cheap route financially with the new hire!
 
I'll take the wait and see approach.

I agree with onward & upward, it can't be anything other than upward...can it...after tying for last place.

Looking forward to who is picked as new coach and what his coaching philosophy is. I hope it's play big, rebound and block shots in addition to an offense that gets the post players more involved in the game....

Go Braves :)

There you go. That's what is needed now.
 
Sammy is the ONE player I am ok with leaving. SM looked at Les as a mentor as he tries to get his feet wet in the coaching world. His dad was a friend to Les and they are both disappointed to see Les fired. He just sat out a season which had to be incredibly tough on him.

Considering how hard he worked for us for 4 years, how many big shots he sank, how many times he put the team on his back in tough situations, I will not hold it against him when he tries to finish his career at another school. I will not root for Illinois, but I will always root for Sammy as he is one of my favorite Braves of this/last decade.
 
I'm a bradley fan first, not a SM fan first, not a JL fan first..a Bradley fan first...

Though I disagree with you on Sammy -- I think it is his right to pursue both academic and athletic opportunities that he has earned by graduating early -- I definitely agree with your statement that we should all be Bradley fans first...... and that we should stop this bickering.
 
No matter someones opinion before the firing, its done now. As a result onward and upward with a major dose of wait and see is the only reasonable attitude for a fan... But don't believe that we can't go down from where we were this season.
 
I think it is his right to pursue both academic and athletic opportunities that he has earned by graduating early --

Don't get me wrong I agree with this also, but people are getting confused with me being disappointed at him leaving means I wish him the worst. I won't support him but that again doesn't mean I want him to fail. Now if I said i hope he breaks his leg and can't play basketball anymore, then you might have a point, but I'm not saying that. I understand and agree that it his right to choose, but on the other hand it is my right as a bradley fan to express my disappointment in him leaving. He wants to go then go, but I won't pretend to be happy about it.
 
No matter someones opinion before the firing, its done now. As a result onward and upward with a major dose of wait and see is the only reasonable attitude for a fan... But don't believe that we can't go down from where we were this season.

We sure can. Maybe not in the conference standings, but in effort, as well as the plethora of off-the-court responsibilities that JL did very well. I think the potential to drop in those other responsibilities makes this an extremely stressful hire.

But I agree, and I need to follow this as well, we need to move on with the wait and see.
 
Sam, thanks for the 3 good years you had here. You were a favorite for sure. Good luck in your future endeavors where ever that may be.
 
Two thoughts:

1) The reality is even if Sam goes (and I hope he doesn't) we will still have the team Jim Les recruited for next year -- provided others honor their commitments. And it's still a team I'm very excited about watching next year. Until he went down in December, Sam was obviously not in the plans for next year. It would have been a nice bonus to have him back, but just that....a bonus.

2) A show of hands of those who think, had Sam played his senior season and made all-conference, that he would now be pursuing a master's degree in sports journalism? No . . . he'd be pursuing playing basketball at the next level. My guess is his decision is 95 percent about basketball, 5 percent about studies, and I suppose that's why as a Bradley fan I have the right to feel a little let down.
 
Here is something that I find interesting about Reynolds' article in today's PJS.

When writing about Remy Abell, Reynolds states the following in his column.

"ABell’s waiting: Bradley incoming recruit Remy Abell, a Kentucky all-state guard from Louisville Eastern High School, has taken a wait and see approach following BU coach Jim Les’ dismissal this week.

I want to concentrate on (the) state (tournament),” Abell said about his team’s qualification in next week’s event. “I’ve been talking to my family, and we just have to see what’s best for me.”



Reynolds' article leads the reader to the conclusion that Reynolds spoke to Abell.

However, Jody Demling's article in the March 9 Louisville Courier states the following.

"noting he "wants to concentrate on (the) state" tournament that will begin next Wednesday.

"I’ve been talking to my family and we just have to see what’s best for me," Abell said."


Link to Demling's article: http://blogs.courier-journal.com/jo...?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_ca

So my question is, did Reynolds speak with Abell, or did Reynolds lift parts of Demling's article, which are eerily similar, without accrediting Jody Demling for his work?
 
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l am not sure the administration is doing anything different than what they have indicated to the board, they seem to still have the board's approval for this type of process as per PJS article last year:

"I asked Gerald Shaheen, chairman of the Bradley Trustees, whether allowing Glasser to run counter to the university??™s hiring culture had required a hard sell with the board.

In short: No.

???A lot of things in the world are changing, and we are changing with the times,??? Shaheen said. ???Our board understands. We are moving away from being a 40-man social group to a corporate board. This is a business. It??™s a big business.???

The fan hating and player hating I have seen lately must be part of the process of moving from a university to a big business. It must be working though because it seems to be a different Bradley than before. I am not sure where loyalty and "once a Brave, always a Brave fits into the big business world. Guess I need to stop being Cub and Cardinal fans and switch to Yankees.
 
Two thoughts:

1) The reality is even if Sam goes (and I hope he doesn't) we will still have the team Jim Les recruited for next year -- provided others honor their commitments. And it's still a team I'm very excited about watching next year. Until he went down in December, Sam was obviously not in the plans for next year. It would have been a nice bonus to have him back, but just that....a bonus.

2) A show of hands of those who think, had Sam played his senior season and made all-conference, that he would now be pursuing a master's degree in sports journalism? No . . . he'd be pursuing playing basketball at the next level. My guess is his decision is 95 percent about basketball, 5 percent about studies, and I suppose that's why as a Bradley fan I have the right to feel a little let down.

I agree...although you may be light about on the basketball percentage...that only came about because of the coaching change.
I have a hard time to see how Sam fits with the Illini next year but we'll see I guess.....it will be weird to see him on senior night:eek:
 
Two thoughts:

1) The reality is even if Sam goes (and I hope he doesn't) we will still have the team Jim Les recruited for next year -- provided others honor their commitments. And it's still a team I'm very excited about watching next year. Until he went down in December, Sam was obviously not in the plans for next year. It would have been a nice bonus to have him back, but just that....a bonus.

2) A show of hands of those who think, had Sam played his senior season and made all-conference, that he would now be pursuing a master's degree in sports journalism? No . . . he'd be pursuing playing basketball at the next level. My guess is his decision is 95 percent about basketball, 5 percent about studies, and I suppose that's why as a Bradley fan I have the right to feel a little let down.

Great post my feelings exactly. If JL had been retained we wouldn't be having this conversation. I'm 99% about the decision 1% about studies.
 
Does anyone know if Sammy grew up following the Illini? Maybe he had aspirations to play for them since he was little, but knowing the reality that he was not heavily recruited by the big boys, his chance to play for them was not realistic. Now that McCamey is leaving, Sammy would be the best PG to step in for them and make an impact. I see him playing 25 mpg on a team that could be Top 25. I'm not sure I'd pass up that opportunity, especially if SM came to BU hoping he'd get a chance to play in the NCAA tourney and that hasn't materialized. This gives him the best chance to do that. Granted, BU would have been good if everyone stayed, including the new recruits. But who knows if we'd be NCAA tourney good - not likely.

Sammy has had lots of time to reflect while sitting out the whole season, and I would bet he thought there's a chance that JL might not return next season. This is not a spontaneous decision by the kid - he's got a good head on his shoulders. I would imagine he understands how BU fans feel and that he appreciates them greatly.

I have a little bitterness toward his decision, but we know how competitive Sam is and he wants to win to end his college career on a high note. Added to that is his graduate opportunity in sports communication, which will be a more viable option for him at U of I by what I'm hearing from others.
 
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