RE: assessing blame

["Thomas Murphy" <tfmiii@worldnet.att.net>]

The following is a letter I sent in response to a thoughtful note sent by
someone who raised interesting points of disagreement with my reading of the
Pitino situation. I wish all the interactions
on this list could be conducted with such evident good will and
understanding, even when folks disagree. The person did not send their
original to the list so I will refrain from referencing it. I did feel that
it forced me to refine my perspective and so would like to share my
resulting thoughts with the rest of you.

You raise some interesting points. Although I don't necessarily agree with
them all I certainly believe that there is room for intelligent people to
disagree. As to what Pitino might be enduring outside the eye of the media
obviously neither of us can make a judgment. I truly hope that he is not
enduring anything approaching what happened to Russell. There is no excuse
for personal and vituperative attacks. Unfortunately, that is what
apparently passes for being a fan for a minority of idiots here in Boston
(although having lived in NYC I can vouch that it is not unique to Boston).
I think we can agree on this.

I can fully understand why Pitino would find this state of affairs
frustrating. But, as the saying goes, it comes with the territory. I heard
that some idiot told Vitaly after the game to go back to Cleveland - he's
lucky V didn't take his head off. But V did the right thing in letting it
go. I have bad days too (though none so bad as what I imagine he feels he's
enduring) but it is still incumbent on me to act professionally when dealing
with colleagues, students, parents and staff. I don't always like it either,
but that's part of what being professional is all about. Sometimes it seems
to me that people in this country have a double-standard: it's OK for
someone in a managerial position to react childishly to adverse
circumstances but not for their "inferiors" in service positions. Pitino
benefits from this in this circumstance - can you imagine if a player said
what Pitino said?

As to whether Pitino was taking the heat for the team and shielding the
players, I think reasonable people can disagree. I hear where you're coming
from - and I hope you're right - but I read the evidence a bit differently.
IMHO, if that was what Pitino was really up to, he could have done so in a
far better way. He could have pointed out the fact that V was in the dentist
chair for 5 hours the previous day. He could do what any good manager will
do when protecting/defending their subordinates: tell the press and fans
that if they have any problems with the team that they have them with Pitino
and NOT the players. "The buck stops here". If they are going to boo anyone
"boo me, not the players" etc. This would have been sufficient to generate
the "us versus the world" atmosphere that some have mentioned as being
needed.

But if you listen to what he actually has to say, many of the things that
came out of his mouth (and continue to come out of his mouth) are very
uncomplimentary towards the players. He doesn't defend them as much as he
implicitly scapegoats them. For example, during his diatribe he wished aloud
that he were $90 million under the cap - why? The implication is clear - so
he could ship out this lot of guys and hire a new crew. He whines constantly
about not having Duncan. Again, this reflects poorly - in a very public
manner - upon the people that he does have playing for him. He says that
perhaps there are no solutions to this situation - that would hardly instill
me with confidence if I were working under him. He says that he would have
never taken this job if he knew he wasn't getting Duncan, again hardly a
stirring call to the players he does have to "rally round the flag". He asks
for patience but his very actions openly contradict his stated request. Add
to this the fact that during his diatribe Pitino was very clearly venting
deeply personal emotions of frustration, victimization and self-pity
(despite the fact that the press and fans have not been THAT bad - yet!) and
I think you'll see that it is not unreasonable to draw the conclusion that
his real concern is "number one" - primarily his quickly tarnishing national
image.

I agree with you that the players have been really trying. I think the
booing is really uncalled for. Unfortunately I think the players - like the
fans - have lost hope. I think their effort is a testament to their
professionalism, particularly because the more I hear from Pitino, the more
it sounds like he's simply been playing out the string since Duncan went to
SA. It has seemed that Pitino has been largely "painting by the numbers"
from his college playbook since he got here. Not that I question how hard or
how long he works, but more and more it seems that his heart just isn't in
it. His recent statements about Duncan lend even more credence to this
interpretation.

With regards to the wins, I don't agree that they are the only thing. I
think people would embrace a team that (a) worked hard and (b) had a plan
that offered hope for improvement and just a chance at future greatness. The
team during Pitino's first year was just such a situation. Unfortunately the
situation has deteriorated since then despite an apparent infusion of
talent. Today we seem to have a team that works hard - but in so doing it is
merely spinning its wheels. That is why people are so impatient - not
because the team is not winning but because Pitino evidently does not have a
plan to ever get to the point where they CAN win.

Finally, with regard to how great the team once was, I agree, it doesn't do
any good to live in the past and to complain that today does not measure up.
This goes for Pitino as well, with his recent talk about his great teams at
Kentucky. The same goes for past errors. Yet people bring them up because
they demonstrate the contradiction between what Pitino says and what he
does. People view his talk about patience with suspicion, as merely a means
to deflect criticism, because the man has not shown any patience himself. If
he really thought patience was the answer then why hasn't he demonstrated
any? If Pitino had both preached AND practiced patience, people would be
acting differently now. But his actions have spoken louder than his words
and what his actions have said is that "I've tried everything and I don't
know what to try next". I really don't think that memories of past greatness
or past errors are responsible for the heat Pitino is feeling now. As I
indicated above, I think it is the lack of a plan that can give us even a
glimmer of hope that is killing most folks. But instead Pitino offers this
gem - that there may not be *any* solution (which I read to mean that he
doesn't have the patience for the REAL solution - patient rebuilding).

You seem to have a level head and a patient nature and it's precisely
this that has been lacking for the last three years. If only you (or someone
like you) could have had a veto on Pitino, I think we'd all would have been
better off!

-TomM