Maybe I'm still biased from the larranaga years, but I firmly believe that the way you succeed at the mid-major level (and, like it or not, the A-10 is still mid-major. High mid-major, but mid-major) is by recruiting the "inch too short" and "step too slow" guys who are really good basketball players.
Guys like Reuter, actually, who got an offer from UVa after most of the big time programs backed off him.
Winning as a mid-major isn't about finding NBA guys, it's about finding guys who can play in Europe, and having a bunch of them as upper-classmen. It's about getting old and staying old with a bunch of "flawed" guys who really know how to play, and really know how to play together.
I think that's where we are now. We're old, and we're skilled, and each guy is a little flawed (Otis is too slight and not athletic, reuter is too short, Kier can't shoot, Mar is between positions), but they're all good players, and they've got a ton of experience, and so they're going to be a really good team.
the virus tried recruiting a bunch of "if things break right, they could be NBA players" types, and while there were some hits (thompson, the kid who transferred to providence), there were a lot of misses, and his teams generally sucked.
Give me guys who play 8 years in belgium because they're a 6'1 shooting guard.
Another excellent post. I think the quality of this board has improved along with the program.