Duquesne Basketball Coach Keith Dambrot

[Valpo Zip]

Wishing coach Dambrot the best of luck. I hope I am wrong but I do not see him being able to make Duquesne an A-10 power house.

I feel that being top 3 in the A-10 is much tougher than winning the MAC in a down year.

 

[kreed5120]

I see him getting the program back on track, but he's going to be 59 and a lot of work still needs done. I was on the fence of going 1 as I do see them becoming contenders, but I'll instead say he makes 3 NIT appearances.

[akronzips71]

He is not going to the Dance from the

A10 with the players he is poaching from Akron, that is for sure.

[skip-zip]

I think that you possibly do not see the full extent of the challenge in front of you when you are frustrated at your current situation, and someone is waving 7 million in your face.  He's likely going to have that "uh oh" moment very soon.  I will be impressed if he flips the fortunes for them.  

[ZippyRulz]

Atlantic "10", with 14 full members   I think he can get to middle of the pack without too much trouble. Getting to the top 3 or 4 for an at large will be tough with Dayton, VCU, URI, Richmond, etc. And Duquesne, like Akron, will have to earn every ounce of respect they get from selection committees when they get to bubble territory. 

 

[LZIp]

1. Maybe.

[ZippyRulz]

KD's intro

 

http://www.goduquesne.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/033017aac.html

[72 Roo]

The news of KD leaving stunned me, primarily because I had bought into the KD story: Akron boy, Akron mom, Akron grad, Akron success story. I wanted him to stay and be our coach for years. But after taking some time there are a few thoughts I want to share. KD's decision was emotional not logical. He was going to leave when he realized he had his best team and he couldn't get 'em to the NCAAT. So blame everyone but yourself. The irony is that the greatest single factor in getting this team to the NCAAT was KD himself.

 

At the end of the season his team was not prepared. He did not coach what to do if Big Dog is shut down, or what to do if the 3's aren't going in, or how to stop a hot dribble penetrator like Walker, or how to switch to a zone, or how to play with discipline, or how to shoot FT's (a lacking hallmark of his teams) or how to make good decisions under pressure. All those things he controlled yet didn't coach them up. So who is the problem here? It wasn't a lack of talent, it was how he used it and therefore he controlled the team's destiny. A new venue won't change that. He could have had a better job than DU like Dayton, but he was emotional. He took the first train out. At Duquesne the job will be just as hard as at Akron and his chance for an NCAAT legacy is doubtful. 

 

That being said he had to leave because he lost the team and the lockerroom. These players stop playing for him. It was displayed in their lack of discipline, their fundamental errors of jumping up in the air and then deciding to pass, their lackadaisical turnovers, their on again off again defense.  They were often out-hustled by lesser talent and KD was out-coached at the end of the season by Miami, BG, Kent, and UTA. When they won it was because they had more talent, not heart or effort.

 

This episode proves to me that Akron is what it is... a mid-major in a lousy conference that will be a stepping stone program. That takes some of the romance and hope out of the story for me. I always wanted to believe that we could catch fire and grow to be a Gonzaga over time. Without fundamental change will never happen. The biggest change of all, to me, is getting the students to attend/pack the games. When that happens the games become an event, then publicity, fans, donors and facilities follow.

 

Finally, as we look for a new coach let's cut the crap about us being so financially strapped. Wilson will balance the budget in two years. From there we can grow and not look back. Our credit rating will improve and programs will expand. Give him time. If you made it this far thanks for reading. "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Still am and always will be a Zip.

[zippy5]

If he lost the team I don't think half of them would be transferring out because he left

[mes102]

72Roo, I think you made a few good points, but a few emotional points as well. First, Dambrot didn't take the first train out of town. He took the second train out of town. South Florida wanted him, and he turned them down. I do agree with you that the biggest factor of getting this team to the NCAAT was Dambrot. He got outcoached in all three games. We just had enough talent to get through the first two.

I have no problem saying this now, because he's no longer here. But one of my closest friends was in a class that was being led by Jim Tressel. Dambrot came in as a speaker. I was told that Dambrot compared himself to Coach K at Duke by saying this(I'm completely paraphrasing here. It was obviously a few yrs ago):

"I'm a better coach than Coach K. If Coach K was at Akron and I was at Duke, who would have the better team? Of course it would be Duke. I have to do more with less, unlike Coach K."

Sure, for the first year or two, Duke may have a better record. But after that, Coach K would be getting better recruits so....Besides, Coach K is Duke...not the other way around...

Then, I knew Dambrot's ego was less humbled than I expected. And I've seen it show up numerous times in press conferences. Since then, I knew that all these years of having the best MAC team and not making it to the NCAA Tournament, was going to take a toll on his ego. To me, it was only a matter of time before he bolted. I just never thought it would be Duquesne. I thought it would be a place like Dayton.

 

Edited March 31, 2017 by mes102

[72 Roo]

Thanks for the correction MES102. I forgot about South Florida. Keep the posts coming they are good.

[Balsy]

I always enjoy mes102 posts.  Good stuff.  Out of likes.

[Let'sGoZips94]

6 hours ago, zippy5 said:

If he lost the team I don't think half of them would be transferring out because he left

 

I think it was posted in another thread that some of these transfers were pre-determined before KD's departure. 

 

 

[zippy5]

18 minutes ago, lilroodude said:

 

I think it was posted in another thread that some of these transfers were pre-determined before KD's departure. 

 

 

If you believe that. Not sure I do, considering none of them announced it until he left.

 

Correction - Josh did announce pre-KD departure.

Edited March 31, 2017 by zippy5

[clarkwgriswold]

I heard during the season the the Zips had a "morale" problem.  I wasn't sure what that meant then and I'm not sure now, but in hindsight it appears that there may have been some unhappy kids on the team and that maybe the team dynamic wasn't great.  I wonder if KD's reference to the "dysfunctional locker room" was in part a reference to that.

 

In any event, all hands on deck for 2017- 2018.  Good luck to the kids who decide to stick it out or come here. 

[Let'sGoZips94]

21 hours ago, zippy5 said:

If you believe that. Not sure I do, considering none of them announced it until he left.

 

Correction - Josh did announce pre-KD departure.

 

I do. When you don't show up in a Championship game, against your arch rival, with essentially a home crowd, and a ticket to the Big Dance on the line... You've pretty much signaled to me that you do not want to be here. When you don't blow out inferior teams all year because you lack 40 minutes of desire and effort, you've signaled to me you don't want to be here. 

[skip-zip]

7 minutes ago, lilroodude said:

When you don't show up in a Championship game, against your arch rival, with essentially a home crowd, and a ticket to the Big Dance on the line... You've pretty much signaled to me that you do not want to be here.

 

Guys, I sure hope we aren't slipping into the idiotic mentality that is so prevalent in Cleveland.  Akron is better than that.  But when I see posts like this (and I've seen others), it reminds me of all the irrational people who were claiming that LeBron tanked in the playoffs for the Cavs about a decade ago because he already knew he was headed to Miami.  

 

I sure hope I don't see people yelling in the streets and burning Zips jerseys too.  This is embarrassing.  

[morris buttermaker]

I am confident with lilroodude's assesment

[zippy5]

37 minutes ago, lilroodude said:

 

I do. When you don't show up in a Championship game, against your arch rival, with essentially a home crowd, and a ticket to the Big Dance on the line... You've pretty much signaled to me that you do not want to be here. When you don't blow out inferior teams all year because you lack 40 minutes of desire and effort, you've signaled to me you don't want to be here. 

Why didn't we pack it in and take our beating in Houston then? Why did all of the transfers get announced right after KD left instead of after the season like Josh?

[NWAkron]

30 minutes ago, skip-zip said:

 

I sure hope I don't see people yelling in the streets and burning Zips jerseys too.  This is embarrassing.  

 

But that would sure get us some publicity.  I wish our fan base was that "fanatic."

[1981 grad]

I watched Kent play with UCLA, one of the top teams in the country for 35 minutes.  Kent earned the championship, we did not give it away.  The weakness on our team is that our guards were undersized, weak defenders, and could not slash to the hoop.  If we were not shooting the 3 well, we were doomed and we did not shoot the 3 ball well in the MAC championship.  There is no question the effort was there but we were just not good enough in the most important game of the season.

 

[Blue & Gold]

10 minutes ago, 1981 grad said:

The weakness on our team is that our guards were undersized, weak defenders, and could not slash to the hoop. 

Vintage Dambrot.

[NWAkron]

Can anyone analyze the Roberts/McNees backcourt vs. the Jackson/Robotham backcourt?  It would help me gain an understanding of what the guard issue is.  Daryl and Steve were also undersized, no?

[skip-zip]

2 hours ago, zippy5 said:

Why didn't we pack it in and take our beating in Houston then? 

 

.....Or put in the effort to win very tough road games at Buffalo and Kent the last week of the season, or the back-to-back performances to beat EMU and Ball State to get to the title game.  

[clarkwgriswold]

I will agree Kent earned it, but the Zips helped.  First, they had zero fire.  Second, I saw no adjustments from the 1st PCCC game at the JAR and the MAC championship game.  Most importantly, they took Kwan out of the game and the Zips made no adjustments to try to free him up.