The 2023-24 Gopher basketball season will be a success if?...



The first two seasons would be easier to swallow if they were actually building something. There isn't a single player on this team that played season 1 for Johnson. There has to be an obvious jump forward.

Avoiding weakling Wednesday and making it to the NIT is a solid step forward IMO. The seat would still be hot but that should get Johnson at least one more season.
 

The first two seasons would be easier to swallow if they were actually building something. There isn't a single player on this team that played season 1 for Johnson. There has to be an obvious jump forward.

Avoiding weakling Wednesday and making it to the NIT is a solid step forward IMO. The seat would still be hot but that should get Johnson at least one more season.
Season 3 is upon us and what we see is what we will get. I am hopeing for a NIT bid.

However, Season 4 could be something to look forward to "IF" those eligible to return do so in addition to Asuma and Groves.
 

...if we win 8 Big Ten games.

...if we have at least one Top 25 upset at The Barn.

...if Payne/Carrington/Ola-Joseph all continue to show improvement and all stay in the program.

Go Gophers!!

Looking at my preseason expectations, it was a mixed bag.

9 Big Ten wins ✅

Payne/Carrington/JOJ - mixed, Payne made a big jump and will be a force next two years, Carrington was a solid contributor and I like his game, JOJ was non factor in BT and I expect he’ll hit portal this week.

We had some nice wins but don’t think we beat a ranked team all season.

Go Gophers!!
 


The first two seasons would be easier to swallow if they were actually building something. There isn't a single player on this team that played season 1 for Johnson. There has to be an obvious jump forward.

Avoiding weakling Wednesday and making it to the NIT is a solid step forward IMO. The seat would still be hot but that should get Johnson at least one more season.
I still think this is accurate. His seat is still hot but it was certainly a step in the right direction.

Still a long ways to go though.
 


That's my answer, too. At this point, it's a longshot, but that doesn't make it any less valid of a measuring stick. It's the only way the coaching staff should be allowed to keep their jobs next year.
So let's call it a success, although in my heart of hearts I'd call it a qualified success. Those couple blown 20-point leads leave a bad taste in my mouth, and I'm still not satisfied where things are at after three years of this experiment, but the staff will get another year.
 





I think the only way you can consider this season a success is if you compare it to the past two historically bad seasons.

They were more entertaining to watch this year, but that’s a really low bar.
I don't know that success is the right word for describing this season. It was a definite step in the right direction from where things had been but still fell short of being what most would consider to be a good or successful season.

Next year feels like the make or break year for Johnson. If we are in a similar or worse position from where we are right now at this point next year then I don't see how anyone will be able to justify keeping him around for a 5th season.

Need to build on the good from this year and find a way to keep moving the program in the right direction in 24/25.
 




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