Exactly. It's not a grand slam hire, but hopefully it will get the program off life support. The games at the T&M have been like a funeral home. The team was tough to watch based on the fact that there was no real offensive or defensive plan, or aggression. The team had no identity and didn't appear like they played hard most of the time. Simply put, it was boring basketball, and looking at the recruiting, it didn't appear that there was much chance of that changing anytime soon.
Me...I'm looking forward to see what Pastner can do. He may not dominate, but hopefully he can infuse some new life into the program, and maybe even expand the NIL / booster support.
Not to be a debbie downer, but a lot of how Pastner is described you can say about Kevin.
Props to
@Rosegreen1 for posting this earlier
Playing Style
Pastner’s teams are known for a high-energy, defense-first philosophy paired with an up-tempo, creative offense. At Georgia Tech, he established the Yellow Jackets as one of the ACC’s top defensive squads, consistently ranking among the nation’s best in defensive efficiency. His teams focus on:
- Stifling Defense: Pastner emphasizes aggressive, disruptive defense, often employing pressure tactics like full-court presses and active rotations to force turnovers. At Georgia Tech, his squads ranked in the top half of the ACC defensively year after year, with standout performances like holding opponents to low shooting percentages and contesting shots effectively.
You could say the same with Kevin, especially in year 2 his match up zone was able to create a lot of turnovers, and many of those concepts carried forward. This past year we ranked pretty high in the conference with defensive numbers. What these stats do no account for is the offensive rebounds that it creates and the wayy too many wide open shots. Shots in the key were arguably over contested.
- Fast-Paced Offense: Offensively, Pastner favors a transition-heavy game that capitalizes on speed and athleticism. His Memphis teams, in particular, thrived on pushing the tempo, averaging high possession counts and scoring outputs—evidenced by his 31-win season in 2012-13.
Again pushing tempo with turnovers. Kevin in year 2 had an excellent transition team. At Georgia Tech, he adapted to his roster, developing a more balanced attack over time, with an emphasis on guard play
( I can't help to think of hero ball with guard ball dominate play without sharing the ball enough that we all know too too well) and
creative sets (This is the one place that gives me hope, this is one thing that we did NOT see, unless you count the weave, lol)that improved the team’s offensive ranking in the ACC from the bottom tier to the top half by his later years.
Again he is more experienced, he coached in a tough conference, though the ACC has lost a lot of steam over the past 5-8 years. I just hope he continues to try to improve with what failed him.
I do worry about one of his best attributes, recruiting, being limited these days. You can be the most charismatic guy in the world, but nothings talks more than money. And sure paying players have been around for decades, but not everyone did it. Now everyone is. I wonder how well he can recruit at a place like UNLV without the cash Power teams can throw at players. That is part of why I was liking the idea of Hodgson, he seemed to be able to do exactly that.
I am disappointed with this hire, but I do think this is an upgrade, and there are reasons to give hope. I just think his ceiling is pretty low. At least it feels that way right now.
