I see that Paul Oren will be publishing a series of articles about the Valpo men's basketball program called "What if." He is going to pick a scenario from each of the past 15 years and develop a story line around 'what if that scenario had played out differently.'
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/ (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/)
As the article indicates he is looking for ideas for specific scenarios. I thought it would be interesting to post some of our suggestions here. I'll start with this one:
What if Brandon Wood had stayed at Valpo for his final year of eligibility (2011-2012), rather than transfer to MSU?
Along a similar line of thinking to the Wood question:
What if Sam Haanpaa had not gone pro after his Sophomore season?
What if Scott Drew never left for Baylor?
What if Ron Howard knew that Dwayne Wade would enter the NBA early?
The biggest of all would have to be the following: "What if Bryce had decided to go to one of the major programs that were recruiting him, such as Syracuse, rather than stay in his hometown to play for his dad?"
Oren's first "What if..." article, and a good one:
Valparaiso Basketball What If...(2012-13 edition)
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_d82b2750-d1e2-11e2-b02c-001a4bcf887a.html (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_d82b2750-d1e2-11e2-b02c-001a4bcf887a.html)
What if we weren't invited to join the HL?
What if The Shot had missed? (shudder...let's not think about that)
What if Tony Falu had been sane?
You guys are good :)
What if Ali Berdiel hadn't turned the ball away in the closing seconds of the Purdue game?
I know this is further back than 15 years, but what if Valpo had fired Homer Drew after his fourth season (10-19, 4-24, 5-22 and 5-22)?
Gosh, yeah...today 24-87 (an average of 6-22) would get you fired 9.7 times out of 10.
What if one member of the world's tallest team had been a few inches shorter in height?
What if they did stop Jon Kedrowski?
Quote from: Mommy Goat on June 12, 2013, 07:30:17 PMWhat if they did stop Jon Kedrowski?
...from climbing all them mountains?
What if Mike Rogers makes 1 of those 2 layups at Milwaukee?
What if Cory Johnson doesn't go 0/8 at Green Bay?
What if Brandon Wood doesn't go 1/8 in a 20 point loss against Loyola?
What if Kenny Harris never suffered a stroke?
Quote from: classof2014 on June 15, 2013, 08:11:07 PMWhat if Kenny Harris never suffered a stroke?
Ooof. A good friend of mine, known to many on here, surely, was one of the first responders. He still can't talk about it without getting choked up.
I remember right where I was when I read that he had committed after his freshman year at Bishop Noll.
Kenny Harris would have been the second-best player to wear a Valpo uniform...and the best Big.
What if President Heugli never signs the papers for Valparaiso to move to Division 1?
What if Brandon Wood plays his final season at Valparaiso instead of Michigan State?
Comment on the very good Falu question (if Falu had been sane): Right before his complete melt down, that team lost close games on the road with packed houses at Arizona and Kansas. Kansas had 5 future NBA players on that team and Arizona had a few too (though I don't think Walton played). With all due respect to other teams, this team was as good or better talent wise than any other team in Valpo history. That said, given what I think happened I do not think that Homer could have handled it any better.
More like 50+ years ago,but what would have happened if Don Schlundt had kept his verbal commitment to Valpo instead of opting to play at IU? NCAA champs?
2011-2012 edition - What if Brandon Wood never left for Michigan State
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_3af33ac8-d79a-11e2-abaa-001a4bcf887a.html (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_3af33ac8-d79a-11e2-abaa-001a4bcf887a.html)
Perhaps with Wood the Crusaders make it to the tournament in 2012 and not 2013. I think losing Wood definitely helped with the development of many of our players.
Quote from: classof2014 on June 18, 2013, 06:36:17 AMPerhaps with Wood the Crusaders make it to the tournament in 2012 and not 2013. I think losing Wood definitely helped with the development of many of our players.
Completely agree. If Wood stays in 2011-12, then this past season Ryan Broekhoff has to make the adjustment of becoming the go to guy and carrying more of the load. Instead, since Wood left, it was Broekhoff's second year in that same role, and he looked more comfortable as a leader.
Quote from: wh on June 17, 2013, 10:17:14 PM
2011-2012 edition - What if Brandon Wood never left for Michigan State
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_3af33ac8-d79a-11e2-abaa-001a4bcf887a.html (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_3af33ac8-d79a-11e2-abaa-001a4bcf887a.html)
The article brings up an interesting question, (at least for me! :crazy:) The quote raises the question:
Fortunately for Tom Izzo and for Wood, Michigan State offered a program in Advertising and Wood made the decision to play for the Spartans. Obviously academics are the most important thing in the decision to transfer as a fifth-year player,OK, I understand the rule as saying that a player can change schools and gain immeadiate eligibility IF, they have graduated AND, the school they are at does not offer a graduate program in the field of choice for the athlete. So,with a school the size of MSU, no doubt would offer many things that Valpo doesn't. BUT, with the case of Moussa Gueye, it is hard to imagine a school like Alabama not offering every advanced degree available at Valpo. Has the rule changed or is it not really enforced?
Quote from: vu72 on June 18, 2013, 10:46:58 AMit is hard to imagine a school like Alabama not offering every advanced degree available at Valpo
BOOOOOOM
MALS'd
http://gradsystem.aa.ua.edu/admin/programs.aspx?type=alpha (http://gradsystem.aa.ua.edu/admin/programs.aspx?type=alpha)
There are a lot of loopholes in the rule. Will Bogan pursued a MBA at Valpo and Ole Miss also has a MBA, but Valpo can give a different distinction or something. It's a minor difference, but it's enough in the minds of the NCAA. All Bogan had to say was that he really wanted to study in a MBA program that had a certain difference from Ole Miss.
Gueye could add a Lutheran theology minor?
UA Registrar: "Basket weaving, sports management, underwater auto repair (for those living in flooded areas), nope, we don't offer Lutheran theology here in Tuscaloosa. But I understand we might be able to hook you up with a program at Concordia-Alabama in Selma. We could figure out something I'm sure. It's a beautiful 80 mile drive straight through State Forest land. Did I mention our forestry degree?"
Quote from: Pgmado on June 18, 2013, 01:02:46 PM
There are a lot of loopholes in the rule. Will Bogan pursued a MBA at Valpo and Ole Miss also has a MBA, but Valpo can give a different distinction or something. It's a minor difference, but it's enough in the minds of the NCAA. All Bogan had to say was that he really wanted to study in a MBA program that had a certain difference from Ole Miss.
When Valpo established its part-time MBA program, they announced that their program would have a unique focus on environmental leadership.
http://www.valpo.edu/mba/environmental.php (http://www.valpo.edu/mba/environmental.php)
This differentiated it from the seemingly dozens of generic MBA programs already in place in NWI. VU was late to the party in getting in on the MBA money grab in NWI, but once they did they have distinguished themselves as a highly regarded MBA program. I'm not going to research it, but it could be a legitimate distinction from the Ole Miss MBA program, as well.
Quote from: wh on June 18, 2013, 03:15:21 PMI'm not going to research it
I will!!!
hit and ole miss (http://www.olemissbusiness.com/instilling_knowledge/environment.html)
Nope, no environment here! At least, not the one we're talking about. HighLARious.
Quote from: LaPorteAveApostle on June 18, 2013, 03:43:27 PM
Quote from: wh on June 18, 2013, 03:15:21 PMI'm not going to research it
I will!!!
hit and ole miss (http://www.olemissbusiness.com/instilling_knowledge/environment.html)
Nope, no environment here! At least, not the one we're talking about. HighLARious.
Yeah, the reference on the Ole Miss web page to understanding the environment in which business operates appears in some form at the beginning of about every business text book. The "environmental" focus of VU's MBA program is in reference to the role and responsibility of business in protecting our natural environment (i.e., environmentalism and conservation).
Quote from: wh on June 18, 2013, 05:37:54 PMYeah, the reference on the Ole Miss web page to understanding the environment in which business operates appears in some form at the beginning of about every business text book. The "environmental" focus of VU's MBA program is in reference to the role and responsibility of business in protecting our natural environment (i.e., environmentalism and conservation).
that's where the humor comes in
I hadn't thought about this situation, but in light of Brandon's transfer, what do we think Jay Harris's decision to leave would have been if Wood had stayed? Would Jay have seen the increased minutes, or might Homer/Bryce talked with him about what his definitive role would have been in 11-12, and would that have led him to transfer out a year earlier?
Thanks, Pgmado for this eye-opening, throught-provoking look back at the year both of us saw first-hand for five years, before I left town, and you stuck around, and then the years I've had to watch/listen online.
Quote from: valporun on June 19, 2013, 10:13:49 AM
I hadn't thought about this situation, but in light of Brandon's transfer, what do we think Jay Harris's decision to leave would have been if Wood had stayed? Would Jay have seen the increased minutes, or might Homer/Bryce talked with him about what his definitive role would have been in 11-12, and would that have led him to transfer out a year earlier?
Thanks, Pgmado for this eye-opening, throught-provoking look back at the year both of us saw first-hand for five years, before I left town, and you stuck around, and then the years I've had to watch/listen online.
We may have seen less 21 ft three pointers missed with 25 seconds left on the shot clock a year earlier. Maybe Valpo would have turned the ball over only 16 times per game, as opposed to 21 with his standard 5 TO in 12 or so minutes of play.
Quote from: a3uge on June 20, 2013, 09:27:20 AMWe may have seen less 21 ft three pointers missed with 25 seconds left on the shot clock a year earlier. Maybe Valpo would have turned the ball over only 16 times per game, as opposed to 21 with his standard 5 TO in 12 or so minutes of play.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. We see a lot alike.
I owe you a beer for this hilarity. Cheers.
I saw Jay in street clothes at the ARC prior to our semi-final tournament game in 2012. I was amazed at how small and thin he looked. At first I wasn't sure it was him. He looked more like a HS sophomore than a college sophomore. Someone on this board mentioned one time that he did not like to work out with weights, which was pretty apparent in or out of uniform.
Any time I watched Jay he seemed to be completely emotionless and expressionless - warmups, game situations, on the bench, receiving instructions from coaches - any time, all the time. Maybe he was painfully shy, maybe something else, but I never saw him make an outward effort to engage anyone or act engaged in any way. I have to admit I always wondered if he had a chip on his shoulder about something, but who knows.
Agree with the chip.... He never really seemed happy. I was not surprised when he left. I am looking forward to seeing how his move to Wagner turns out.
EXCURSUS: anyone see that idiot trying to lecture Paul Oren that he wasn't allowed to ask "what if B-Wood didn't leave"?
what a dolt.
https://twitter.com/NWIOren/status/347555814241878016
Quote from: LaPorteAveApostle on June 21, 2013, 04:27:29 PM
EXCURSUS: anyone see that idiot trying to lecture Paul Oren that he wasn't allowed to ask "what if B-Wood didn't leave"?
what a dolt.
https://twitter.com/NWIOren/status/347555814241878016
Thomas Lettich was born in 1989. Thomas currently lives in Haslett, Michigan. Before that, he lived in Boca Raton, FL in 2012. Before that, he lived in Haslett, MI from 2008 to 2010.Haslett to East Lansing 5 miles - probably a General Studies drop out.
Quote from: wh on June 21, 2013, 05:52:21 PMHaslett to East Lansing 5 miles - probably a General Studies drop out.
What does a MSU grad say to a Michigan Man when they meet?
Nothing. He's holding a sign that says "WILL FIGHT YOU FOR FOOD"
QuoteThomas Lettich was born in 1989. Thomas currently lives in Haslett, Michigan. Before that, he lived in Boca Raton, FL in 2012. Before that, he lived in Haslett, MI from 2008 to 2010.
Haslett to East Lansing 5 miles - probably a General Studies drop out.
Idiot. Nuff said.
What if STLVUFan shaves his beard?
Quote from: LaPorteAveApostle on June 21, 2013, 09:17:00 PM
Quote from: wh on June 21, 2013, 05:52:21 PMHaslett to East Lansing 5 miles - probably a General Studies drop out.
What does a MSU grad say to a Michigan Man when they meet?
Nothing. He's holding a sign that says "WILL FIGHT YOU FOR FOOD"
Ha Ha.
Quote from: LaPorteAveApostle on June 21, 2013, 04:27:29 PM
EXCURSUS: anyone see that idiot trying to lecture Paul Oren that he wasn't allowed to ask "what if B-Wood didn't leave"?
what a dolt.
https://twitter.com/NWIOren/status/347555814241878016
Wow. Dolt, moron, idiot all come to mind.
What if Thomas Lettich were the scarecrow?
Valparaiso Basketball What If... (2010-11 Edition)
What if Mike Rogers made the layup in the closing seconds at Milwaukee on Feb. 16, 2011?
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_70dd67f8-dd2b-11e2-aa72-0019bb2963f4.html (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_70dd67f8-dd2b-11e2-aa72-0019bb2963f4.html)
Quote from: blackpantheruwm on June 23, 2013, 12:13:51 PM
What if STLVUFan shaves his beard?
Now that the Cup has returned to its rightful place, it would be in accordance with tradition...
What if... Broekhoff had been named Player of the Year in the Horizon League this past season, as I think he should have been? Would he have received a bit more attention and more workouts from NBA teams as a two-time POY? Would McCallum's stature been lessened by failing to be a POY despite pre-season predictions he would the past two seasons?
Valparaiso Basketball What If... (2009-10 Edition)
What if Beas Hamga never left Valparaiso?
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_3f1fe2c2-e262-11e2-845c-0019bb2963f4.html (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_3f1fe2c2-e262-11e2-845c-0019bb2963f4.html)
Quote from: wh on July 01, 2013, 07:15:19 PMWhat if Beas Hamga never left Valparaiso?
probably chosen because there will be no one to give him flak on Twitter for daring to ask about Beas Hamga
I would have posted this but couldn't remember the name but I'm sure some of our trivia guys will remember. This goes back (way back) to Lubos' second season as I recall. I had a conversation with Homer about incoming kids and he mentioned a European who had committed, and that Valpo wanted him as a "back-up" plan if Lubos decided to leave early for pro ball. As it turned out this kid ended up being a first round NBA draft pick and God only knows where he is now. By the way, discussions with asst. coaches after the fact confirmed that the kid has in fact not committed as of yet and obviously never did.
So, what if, (fill in the name) ended up with Lubos and both were on the same team together??
I will go with another Czech player, Jiri Welsch?
Quote from: valpotx on July 02, 2013, 01:37:21 AM
I will go with another Czech player, Jiri Welsch?
tx, you are the best! YES, that's the name!! ;D
I thought I remembered a conversation with Lubos where he mentioned something about Jiri and Valpo, so I took the shot :). In that same conversation, Lubos definitely thought that he was better than Jiri as well. I believe that even though Jiri played a few years in the NBA, that Lubos has had the better career for both the domestic teams he has played on, as well as the Czech national team.
Jiri proved back in 2002 that European scouting hadn't caught up for everyone in the NBA. After Dirk's success, everyone wanted to find the next European star. Because Lubos played four years in the states, his flaws were exposed. Welsch wasn't subjected to the same scrutiny and the Cavs picked him at 14 I believe. I remember Lubos being happy for his friend, but baffled that he wasn't selected if Jiri was.
Quote from: Pgmado on July 02, 2013, 09:59:59 AMJiri proved back in 2002 that European scouting hadn't caught up for everyone in the NBA. After Dirk's success, everyone wanted to find the next European star. Because Lubos played four years in the states, his flaws were exposed. Welsch wasn't subjected to the same scrutiny and the Cavs picked him at 14 I believe. I remember Lubos being happy for his friend, but baffled that he wasn't selected if Jiri was.
Welsch wasn't picked by the Cavaliers, but in 2005 they sent their 2007 first round pick to Boston for his services. At the time, the Cavs were in a playoff fight and needed a 3-point threat. Welsch was a complete bust and traded to Milwaukee the following offseason.
Was it Jeri Welsch, a Czech who would become a first round pick and later bounced around the NBA. I remember near the end of his NBA career he was playing for the Cavs and we good naturedly yelled at him that Lubos was better when they were teenagers and still was at that time. He turned and pointed at his bench seat in the NBA and smiled back....
Speaking of Lubos, what if in 2001, Stovall doesn't get mono and Valpo beats SUtah in the Mid-Con Championship game?
Or in 2002, if Lubos can hit anything versus Kentucky?
Or what if Jason Gardner misses that 3 from the scorer's table and Milo doesn't foul him?
Valparaiso Basketball What If... (2008-09 Edition)
What if? The 9 and 22 Edition
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_9a86c462-e831-11e2-9dd4-001a4bcf887a.html (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/valparaiso-basketball-what-if---edition/article_9a86c462-e831-11e2-9dd4-001a4bcf887a.html)
Valparaiso Basketball What If... (2007-08 Edition)
What if Jarryd Loyd never airballed the Butler free throw?
http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/ (http://www.nwitimes.com/blogs/sports/valparaiso-university/)