Sunday, November 28, 2004
Shallow waters
Gregg Doyel justly takes Rick Pitino to task for deciding not to recruit Rajon Rondo and Chris Lofton. If this year's Cardinals fail to reach the Elite Eight, it won't be for lack of effort from Taquan Dean and Francisco Garcia.It will be for lack of depth, a result of Pitino's poor planning. Although he signed with Louisville, Sebastian Telfair was always a likely bet to skip college altogether. And as Donta Smith saw his stock rise and rumors of an early NBA Draft entry materialize, Pitino should have either nipped Donta's notion in the bud or learned from NBA execs that Smith was a probable pro. Either way, Rick should have planned for the worst. He didn't.
If Rick's reign at Louisville proves less successful than his time at Kentucky, analysts will look back and recognize Pitino's inability to capitalize on the presence of Dean and Garcia as a critical failure.
