Let me just state upfront that I think GM is a "good guy" and a class act. That said I had my doubts about the hire at the time and the last two years haven't exactly done a lot to erase them. I think the big question that everyone had when GM was hired was if he could recruit at a Big Twelve level. Outside of Brackins, Wesley, Diante and Buckley, I have to still wonder if this is not a legitimate concern.
Fans were rightly concerned with the attrition during the LE years and then the loose ship that was run during the WM years. Nonetheless, you can run the most structured system in the world and "coach them up" to the best of your ability and it does not matter if the talent is not there to begin with. I have tried to remain objective and to maintain a wait and see attitude, but the last two years have been brutal. There is a level of apathy in Hilton Coliseum that I have not seen in 25 years of following
ISU basketball. At some point the turnover in players has to cease and a new crop of high D-1 talent has to be brought in each year. IMHO part of recruiting lies in keeping the players after you've landed them on campus. This staff has a record of attrition equal to the worst excesses of the LE era. Tough times for
ISU BB and I sincerely hope that worse does not lie ahead.
