Al Nolen Interview

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Agree with the fact that the kids have to adapt to a tougher discipline atmosphere. But it is not unique to this generation. Many, many, many years ago, when I was ages 15-18, I could not believe how backwards my late Father was. By the time I turned 21, I could not believe "how much my Father learned in just a few short years".
 

I concur on the Hoff shot. That's been easily the best pure moment for me of the Tubby era thus far. Until next year that is, when we go to the Final Four...
 

Monty519 said:
I concur on the Hoff shot. That's been easily the best pure moment for me of the Tubby era thus far.
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Ditto.

No Gopher moment in Tubby's four seasons brought out the raw emotion & unadulterated joy in me than Blake's game-winner vs. IU. At that moment my first thought was, "We're done being a conference also-ran."

We're not where I thought we'd be 4 years in (thought we'd be competing for a B1G title & be a legit threat in the NCAA by Year 4), but the other side of that coin is the first two years were much better than I anticipated (especially a Year 2 visit to the NCAA). I still think Tubby's a guy that can get us there, but what the program really needs right now is some freaking stability.
 

Wow that is really a great interview. He said quite alot. Smart move to give the foot time to heal while finishing his degree before pursuing pro ball.
 


When we went to LA two years ago to the Thanksgiving tournament at Disney, we talked to most of the players after the 3rd game. All were great to talk to, but Al was especially nice. When we were done and he had walked away, he turned around and came back to my brother and I and thanked us for coming out to watch the team. He was the only kid that did that and I will always remember him for that.
 

sidefx182 said:
Good to hear from Al. Stinks that he is still having foot problems.

http://sportstearsinourbeers.blogspot.com/2011/06/interview-with-al-nolen-gopher-pg-from.html
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Here is why I think Al is right. Last 2 years, there were so many distractions that hurt the team. This year is different.

1. Blake did so much for the U so I have no intention of bashing him. Having Joe at 2 is a plus. He is more athletic than Blake and can go to the basket better than anyone in Big10. Therefore, we will be better at 2.
2. Austin is a very smart player. Combine his game with Rodney; we will have the best position 3 combo in Big10.
3. I don’t have much to say about position 4. I pray from now to March that Trevor stays healthy.
4. At 5, we will have Walker who was very good for as many games as he played. Ralph will sit if he is soft (I bet my life on this). The kid from Nebraska will contribute a lot. This will be a very good front court.
5. I don’t know much about PGs. I know one thing, Mav will deliver this year. He is a sophomore/junior player with so much experience. Don’t forget Mr. basketball in TN. The Juco kid will be great also.

This is just my opinion and I can be totally wrong. I didn’t even mention all the great bench players that we will have like Oto and Halv. This is a great bunch of kids that will make some noise in Big10. If we don’t finish in the top 4 in Big10, Tubby will retire. He has all the tools now. He has players who will fit into his system.

Thanks Al.

Go Gophers
 

Al is a nice kid. Just not a very good basketball player.
 

minngg said:
Al is a nice kid. Just not a very good basketball player.
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He wouldn't win many three point contests. He is very good/valuable as a college pg, and every skill besides shooting is well above average
 



"Al is a nice kid. Just not a very good basketball player."

Did you happen to notice the Gophers record before and after his departure from the team last year? I think Al is a better basketball player than you give him credit for. Al has limitations as most players do, but he definately has a positive impact on the floor. I thank him for his contributions to the team.
 

fryguy22 said:
He wouldn't win many three point contests. He is very good/valuable as a college pg, and every skill besides shooting is well above average
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This, and even with that, he hit some huge threes for us in big games, including the game winner against Purdue. The guy was a gamer, you have to acknowledge that at the very least. I personally think he was a very solid floor general, and I think that showed once he wasn't there.
 

Thanks for the interview, good stuff...but why did you ask him about your blog?
 

Dirk Diggler said:
Thanks for the interview, good stuff...but why did you ask him about your blog?
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We weren't going to put that in there. Just thought his answer was kind of funny. Also, we re-vamped the blog with a new logo and changed everything, so we have been asking everybody what they think. Feel free to share what you think.

Really happy you guys liked the interview. Al was great and it was really nice of him to help us out. We are working on one more interview with another former player and hope to have it soon and we will share it with you guys.

Thanks and have a great day.
 




I honestly can't tell... is this serious?

The-Real-Truth said:
Here is why I think Al is right. Last 2 years, there were so many distractions that hurt the team. This year is different.

1. Blake did so much for the U so I have no intention of bashing him. Having Joe at 2 is a plus. He is more athletic than Blake and can go to the basket better than anyone in Big10. Therefore, we will be better at 2.
2. Austin is a very smart player. Combine his game with Rodney; we will have the best position 3 combo in Big10.
3. I don’t have much to say about position 4. I pray from now to March that Trevor stays healthy.
4. At 5, we will have Walker who was very good for as many games as he played. Ralph will sit if he is soft (I bet my life on this). The kid from Nebraska will contribute a lot. This will be a very good front court.
5. I don’t know much about PGs. I know one thing, Mav will deliver this year. He is a sophomore/junior player with so much experience. Don’t forget Mr. basketball in TN. The Juco kid will be great also.

This is just my opinion and I can be totally wrong. I didn’t even mention all the great bench players that we will have like Oto and Halv. This is a great bunch of kids that will make some noise in Big10. If we don’t finish in the top 4 in Big10, Tubby will retire. He has all the tools now. He has players who will fit into his system.

Thanks Al.

Go Gophers
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underground629 said:
I honestly can't tell... is this serious?
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You don't have to agree with this. I am a very positive person so about 80% of my posts are positive. The reason that I think this team will do well next year is because I know how Tubby's system works. I have watched his teams playing for many years. Last year was the only year that I remember a Tubby team did not press. Tubby's teams are very good defensive teams. As I said before, I am thankful for what Blake did for this team but he was not a type of player that Tubby would get. I am not saying that he should be blamed for eveything that happened. I blame Tubby as much as anybody in that team.

You can ask anybody who followed SEC basketball. Tubby's teams were always smart, long and fast. For the past 4 years, the only players who fit in that category were Trevor, DJ and AL. I am excluding last year's freshmen.

Like I said, if Tubby fails again, he will retire.

Go Gophers
 

I don't think you can honestly believe these statements.

The-Real-Truth said:
1. Joe can go to the basket better than anyone in Big10. Therefore, we will be better at 2.
2. Austin is a very smart player. Combine his game with Rodney; we will have the best position 3 combo in Big10.
5. I don’t know much about PGs. I know one thing, Mav will deliver this year.
Go Gophers
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It was pretty apparent to me the Gophers missed Al Nolen significantly when he was out of the lineup last year, and the year before. He was a solid Big Ten PG throughout this 3-year career (2 full- and 2 half-years).
 

SelectionSunday said:
It was pretty apparent to me the Gophers missed Al Nolen significantly when he was out of the lineup last year, and the year before. He was a solid Big Ten PG throughout this 3-year career (2 full- and 2 half-years).
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Bolded is definitely an understatement, SS. The Gophers missed Al more than any non-participants could have imagined. In all honesty, it was MORE than "pretty apparent" to me.
 

underground629 said:
minngg likes to post a lot, he just doesn't have very much basketball knowledge.
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Actually I do not post a lot. I also do not criticize people I do not know. If you think Al is a great pg, that is your opinion. Gotta love those that want to compare Al's NC record versus the clubs Big Ten record when he was gone. Makes a lot of sense. Al never had a winning Big Ten season. Never. He was hurt a lot and flunked out of school.. He is a nice kid, a below average Big Ten pg, and irresponsible. He rarely outplayed a Big Ten guard.

Your comment on my basketball knowledge is odd. Care to point out or bump a thread or post to back up your charge? Didn't think so. Keep romancing over Al Nolen's terrific MN career. Pathetic.
 

Dr.Don said:
Bolded is definitely an understatement, SS. The Gophers missed Al more than any non-participants could have imagined. In all honesty, it was MORE than "pretty apparent" to me.
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Really? Just when did Al win more Big Ten games than lose Big Ten games? What year? The best we did was two years ago after he flunked out. Those are facts.
 

minggg, you suck, and i hate you. Did we beat louisville with al nolen? yes. did we beat purdue with al nolen? yes. did we beat north carolina with al nolen? yes. did we beat ohio state with al nolen? yes. did we beat butler with al nolen? yes. Were all of these teams in the top 10 when we beat them? yes. You can't deny al has an impact. And although he may not out play b10 players, he coulda fooled me when he dominated lewis jackson and etwaan moore this year, or when he shuts down guys like kalin lucas. He never really got a chance to play in the B10 anyways. Was he irresponsible for 1 season? yea, was he for his career? no. 3 good years> 1 bad one. Lastly, how many top 10 teams did we beat w/o al nolen? youre an idiot.
 

I suppose "a lot" is subjective. Over 500 posts is a lot of posts to me. I never said Al is a great pg. He was huge to our team and you don't seem to accept that.

Just comparing the NC record with Al to the BT record doesn't make a ton of sense, but it's not like it's a worthless comparison. We did pretty damn well until Al got hurt, and he was clearly a top 3 player on our team while we were ranked. He then stopped playing and we lost nearly every game. Obviously Devoe's transfer hurt a lot but you can't honestly believe we wouldn't have won significantly more games had Al not gotten hurt.

Think about some of our biggest wins in the past few years and how important Al was to our success: Louisville, UNC, Ohio St, and West Virginia. Al never had a winning BT season? Let's judge a single player by an entire team's success... that makes a lot of sense. He is up there for most assists and steals in Gopher history even though he missed over a season and he was clearly one of the best defending point guards each year. Remember how much better we were when we were able to press? Notice we couldn't do that without him? I'm guessing you just look at his ppg and fg percentage though.

My computer isn't loading your previous posts but this wouldn't be the first time I've called you out. It seems like others seem to have problems with your posts as well.

minngg said:
Actually I do not post a lot. I also do not criticize people I do not know. If you think Al is a great pg, that is your opinion. Gotta love those that want to compare Al's NC record versus the clubs Big Ten record when he was gone. Makes a lot of sense. Al never had a winning Big Ten season. Never. He was hurt a lot and flunked out of school.. He is a nice kid, a below average Big Ten pg, and irresponsible. He rarely outplayed a Big Ten guard.

Your comment on my basketball knowledge is odd. Care to point out or bump a thread or post to back up your charge? Didn't think so. Keep romancing over Al Nolen's terrific MN career. Pathetic.
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minngg said:
I also do not criticize people I do not know.
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...

minngg said:
Al never had a winning Big Ten season. Never. He was hurt a lot and flunked out of school...a below average Big Ten pg, and irresponsible. He rarely outplayed a Big Ten guard. Keep romancing over Al Nolen's terrific MN career. Pathetic.
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trollface.gif


So it's safe to say that you "know" Al Nolen, yes?
 

People have trouble with my Nolen posts. So what? They also questioned when I said Wolters was better than Nolen. So what? That is their right, but to call me Mrs. Wolters and demean my basketball knowledge is silly.

If Al Nolen played with the Badgers or Hawkeyes, believe me, there would be none of this love of his game. I appreciate loyalty, but very few on another team would say Al was better than an average or below average Big Ten pg. People put way too much stock in early season holiday tournaments. They just really are a poor barometer of the future success of a team.
 

Go Gophs eh? said:
minggg, you suck, and i hate you. Did we beat louisville with al nolen? yes. did we beat purdue with al nolen? yes. did we beat north carolina with al nolen? yes. did we beat ohio state with al nolen? yes. did we beat butler with al nolen? yes. Were all of these teams in the top 10 when we beat them? yes. You can't deny al has an impact. And although he may not out play b10 players, he coulda fooled me when he dominated lewis jackson and etwaan moore this year, or when he shuts down guys like kalin lucas. He never really got a chance to play in the B10 anyways. Was he irresponsible for 1 season? yea, was he for his career? no. 3 good years> 1 bad one. Lastly, how many top 10 teams did we beat w/o al nolen? youre an idiot.
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Nice ramble. You hate me? I suck? It seems to me that the Gophs played better without Al in 09. They went to the championship game and indeed beat MSU and Purdue on neutral court when it counted and made the tournament.

When someone has to focus on NC games as a players highlights and can remember big games that they won in 4 years, it tells you somethig right there.
 


minngg said:
When someone .... can remember big games that they won in 4 years, it tells you somethig right there.
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So it is a bad thing to have memories of huge games (top10 opponents) that a player helped his team win during his career? Seems like that is a positive....

Forget about the record (W/L) of the Gophers before/after Al this year. If you watched ANY of their season it was painfully clear how important he was to this squad.
 

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