All the damn negativity...

So I've been on these boards since late 2006.  I've really enjoyed it...up until this year.  But this year has really been ridiculous.  At least a third of the posts are of the negative variety...another third are rebuttals to the negative posts.  I know these boards are for anybody who wants to express their opinions but it sure wasn't like this prior to the 2009 championship. 

I could understand a lot of these posts if this edition of the Tarheels were headed for the NIT, as the '09-'10 team was destined for...but this team some of you are so down on, is 21-4 and going to the NCAA tourney. 

I understood some of these posts during the first half of last season ('10-'11)...Heels had just come off the NIT appearance and with one of the top ranked recruiting classes looked like they would be going there again as Larry Drew was taking this team nowhere.

But this season these super-negative posts are unwarranted.  Quit comparing this team to the '05 and '09 versions...they are totally different.  This team doesn't have the electrifying point-guard that can take over a game.  This team has weaknesses, but that doesn't mean these kids (that's right, they are 19, 20 and 21 year-old kids) aren't giving 100% out on the floor.

Some of these kids may have been over-hyped...but there's no way for Roy to know how well each player is going to transition to the college game.  Some pan out and some don't.  Some take a little longer to get it.  Some never get it and some get injured.

I understand being a frustrated fan...probably a lot more than any Heel fan on this board, because I am also a Chicago Cub fan...and this organization has not won a championship in over 100 years.  The night back in 2003 when they were 5-outs away from going to the World Series was my birthday...talk about ruining a birthday party.

Sure there are fans that post their frustrations on the Cub boards, but they aren't as over the top as several so-called Heel fans that continue to spew their total disgust for a team that is 21-4 and has two championships in the past seven years. 

I'm not here to say that all your complaints don't have some validity...some of them do...but I think several of you (you know who you are) need to step back and get a little perspective.  This season is not as bad as any of you are making it out to be. 

IF the Heels were ever to put back-to-back seasons together again like they did during the Matt Doherty era, the majority of your negativity would be valid.  But not this season. 

So what if I get on here and talk smack about losses that shouldn't happen. So what if I talk smack about overhyped players not playing to their potential.  All of you homers can suck it!!!

As for this post, here's some answers.  Because you never say anything after the wins.  Because you never say anything when they do...and nobody is going to play to their potential every game.  You're like vampires that only come out at night...and you are the ones who've sucked the fun out of these boards this season.  You've actually made Duke posters seem less annoying.



      

1.  21-4 is a standard comeback these days.  Two of our wins are against teams that I, and most people, would consider good teams.  MSU wasn't as good in December as they are now.  I'm not sure we could beat them now.  They are on fire and they are much tougher than we are.  We also beat them on a weird/neutral court.  Wisconsin is a so so win.  They are NOWHERE NEAR the team on the road that they are at home and we struggled to beat them.  The rest of our wins are against garbage teams.  Our 4 losses are against the only really good teams we have played.  I don't care if it's a 1 point loss or 100 point loss.  A loss is a loss.  We had to play out of our minds to keep it that close with Kentucky.  They have gotten much better as the season has gone on.  We have not.  We would lose by even more now.


2.  This team was supposed to be loaded with talent and "experience".  So far I haven't seen a lot of talent or smart basketball IQ's that would lead me to believe that our "experience" means anything.


3.  Our freshmen recruits have been garbage and they don't look like much.  Especially JMM.  He is terrible and can only score if he dunks it.  He only dunks it when he's on the court not committing stupid fouls and getting beat for easy scores.  Hairston can't do ANYTHING.  I'm tired of the "transitioning to college" excuses.  He's suppoed to be a great shooter.  He's shooting at a rim the same size and distance as college.  You either make them or you don't.  He isn't making them and he looks terrible.  He's no Rivers that's for sure.


4.  Our team is not tough.  It doesn't take a genius to see that.


5.  I'm not sure that this team really cares that much.  They don't get fired up and act interested.  I think they are already looking at the NBA and have been all year.


AND MOST IMPORTANTLY........................
............


6.  WE FLAT OUT REFUSE TO PLAY TOUGH DEFENSE ESPECIALLY AROUND THE PERIMETER/3 POINT LINE.  Our guys don't want to do it and don't have the toughness to do it.  It WILL be our downfall.  You can count on that.  Some good shooting team is going to shoot us straight out of the tourney in March.  A confident, good shooting team will gain even more confidence when they see that get to shoot against our pathetic defense and knock us out.


This team will go down as a major disappointment. 

So you've given up jogga. We get it.

The season is not over, and I will root for my Heels come Hell or High Water!

Go Heels, we can STILL win it all!

jigga not jogga! Sorry!

HeelFan - I suppose this has more to do with the pre-season hype than anything else.  I was talking with a co-worker (a former Tar Heel athlete) and his opinion is that he just doesn't like this team for some reason.  I guess some of it is that they have cruised through most of the games without displaying a sense of urgency or mental toughness.  That being said, I love my Heels and follow them in ALL sports. 

I am not one who thinks this team has to win a National Championship in order to deem it a successful season.  I do think with the talent on the roster, we should at least make it to the Final Four (barring an injury to Marshall, of course).  Some of the negativiety may have to do with what lies ahead for us next year.  Should Barnes, Henson and Marshall decide to leave after the season, we are going to be rebuilding next year.  Glad to see McAdoo playing well of late.

I'll still be cheering for our team.  I'm just not expecting much and setting myself up to be disappointed.


Years of watching basketball and using my eyes has told me all I need to see.  We are not smart enough or tough enough to win it all.  We don't have the talent either.  Maybe this team was overrated.  Maybe they just never reached their potential.


Whatever it is, we don't have it this year.  Our bust freshmen players aren't helping the cause either.


You see IMPACT freshmen all over the country and we don't have a single one and our freshmen were some of the most hyped. 

Glad to see McAdoo playing well of late.

Well?  A couple of dunks/putbacks and a couple of rebounds out of a supposed "one and done" hyped recruit is playing well?


How far the expectations have fallen!!!!!!!!!!!  JMM is NOT a good player.  He looks completely lost out there. 

First, I think it's classless to call out any student-athelte in a message board and attack him.  Second....if you are going to celebrate the titles...you gotta suck it up when times are "tough".  How spoiled have we become?  Trust me...I get as angry as anyone when I feel the Heels underperform....almost lost my mind when Rivers drilled that three and during all the events leading up to that shot.

But I am Tar Heel Blue....ride or die.  Blood in...blood out.  Whatever you want to say it. 

Classless?  Student athlete?


When you accept a full ride scholarship to play a game, you are open game as far as criticism of your performance goes.  Especially when these young players love to tug on their jerseys and thump their chests and do their stupid hand signals when they are playing well.


They love all the glory they can get.  They can handle criticisms too.


 

Jigga - In the Virginia Game McAdoo played 18 minutes, scored 9 points and grabbed 7 rebounds with an assist and two steals (and NO turnovers).  The only thing he didn't do well is shoot free throws.  It is hard to get going consistantly when you don't play a starting role, especially as a freshman.  McAdoo is going to be very good.  Right now he has Zeller and Henson in the line-up in front of him so his opportunities are limited.

..To each his own I say.....You will find really 2 types of fans in life. Those that back their team no matter what but ignore or gloss over weaknesses and Fans that cheer their teams on no matter what but have no problem voicing their opinion if and when they see cracks in the armor. Each fan has high expectations (although the 2nd fan has even higher expectations) and each fan has PASSION. I try to remain very objective when it comes to my teams. I also have no problems addressing any Elephant in the room concerning my team. This is sometimes seen as negativity but is merely objective assessement in action. I find that the most positive fan is the LEAST educated and experienced fan and do what they do best  Cheer, Close their eyes and hope things get better. The educated fan cheers but is constantly looking for those weaknesses and vulnerablities to lessen. 

There are extremes on both sides and exceptions to every rule but these 2 fans are typically what you will find. 

Just my 2 cents..

HeelFan4Ever, I agree with your post. I am guilty of answering the doomsday predictions once in a while, but I give up when people don't respond to reason.

Heels fans are spoiled, and I'm no exception to that.  High achievement leads to ridiculous expectations...it just goes with the territory occupied by a program like UNC basketball.  I have watched UNC basketball since the 70's.  The great teams lost games they could have won, and the sub-par teams won games they had no business winning.  It evens out.  No one has been more pampered by success than Heels fans.

This team is loaded with talent and potential, and they very well could win the whole thing.  They might not, which will be disappointing, of course, but the reality is that you can't win them all.  Luck always plays a part, no matter how good you might be.  I have loved watching this team, and we aren't finished yet.  I believe they can win, and I know Roy does, too.  The "fans" who don't believe it and want to trash this squad aren't worth the time.  If Carolina wins, they will come back with their tails between their legs, claiming they were only criticizing the team in hopes that things would change.  News flash:  Roy Williams and his players don't read these boards.  The Negative Nancies love it when UNC does lose, just so they can say they were right.  I only wonder why they don't pick some school that loses more often than UNC...their chances of being right would be so much better!

So Jigga is the most educated fan by your criteria? Dude, I played college sports.  I understand that weaknesses need to be addressed to improve...I understand that with the teams I pull for.  I just have a problem when the attacks are geared at specific players/people.  The majority of college athletes give their all and it bothers me when a bunch of couch potatoes sling mud having never been in their shoes.  Who cares if they have a full ride?  UNC's problem isn't our freshmen, it isn't any specific player....it is toughness and killer instinct.  If people want to rant about Roy, that's fine.  But the guy has cut down nets several times.

So to all you "fans" that gripe and complain all season...congrats, you know more than me.  My opinion is that it can be kept positive when weaknesses are addressed.  I mean...we are message board trolls....what gives us the right? 

Ktrip.. So all the fans tha have nothing good to say when we win but raid the board with their end of the UNC empire when we lose are the smart fans?!! Maybe I'm missing something but I'm curious about this theory and would like to know your spin on this. If this was football i would understand the agony and pain in the losses but this basketball undefeated days don't happen and even Murray st with their high school schedule took and L . A true fan can cheer win they win championship and knows how to deal with the agony and pain with bad seasons. Gotta be able to take the good with the bad. What surprise me is the people that preach doom are never there to say good Job or good win or even show up to the board. What funny is I went to the dook board during our rivalry week and I saw them roasting Austin rivers like a stuff pig. So I wasnt surprised that he played possessed against us I also won't be surprise of the same posters praising him now. So if you only get your kicks with being right and preaching doom go over to fools board y'all will fit right in. Let the fans that can handle the highs n lows of a basketball season post. To wrap up this up ktrip according to your post shoktart is a scholar compared to us....yeah you might want to re-word your last post or explain

If you guys read my post in it's proper context you would have read that there are extremes on each side and exceptions to every rule. I rarely respond to IDIOTIC posts such as personal attacks by JIGGA or bottom feeding posts by Shoktart. What i am saying is THE most POSITIVE fans are typically nothing more than cheerleaders. These fans cannot tell the difference between negativity and objective analysis....If you have read any of my posts you would see my consistency in that area. 

 Dude, I played college sports.  

Dude.....I played college basketball from 1987-1991 at the University of Buffalo.....

Next point?  

Aight ktrip I hear but then I ask you this not trying to put you on the spotlight but do you think we have "cheerleader like fans" as you say on this board. I know your consistent but outside of our chicken littles I think we do a decent job of debating or disagreeing on basic topics. Also I will say in basketball its a marathon unlike football where it's a sprint. To me I dont worry too much until feb that when it's time to fine tune and get stuff together for the run.

Blkflag


I find myself agreeing with you in alot of your posts. This board does have it's share of what I cay Pollyana type fans which is OK. They simply add very little to the X and 0 conversations or fan talk of how our team can improve on or even what to look for. I am the type of fan that appreciates effort. focus and a take no prisoners attitude. I also enjoy watching the season unfold and talking about the things my team does well while discussing where we struggle as a way to keep on eye on how we can get better. I guess what I am saying is, i always approach my team the same way a coach does. Coaches are always in the mode of "how can we get better"?

I think this year's team has worried alot of people because the pre-season expectations were so high. Now we see that another National Title won't be so easy.  I personally have gone from ...."the title is ours to lose" to........"We can still win it all but we have to show more to get it done".....


If you ask me....we will win it all if we get "hot" from 3 during the tournament.... It's the one part of our game that needs alot of work. 

GO HEELS! 

So Jigga is the most educated fan by your criteria? Dude, I played college sports.  I understand that weaknesses need to be addressed to improve...I understand that with the teams I pull for.  I just have a problem when the attacks are geared at specific players/people.  The majority of college athletes give their all and it bothers me when a bunch of couch potatoes sling mud having never been in their shoes.  Who cares if they have a full ride?  UNC's problem isn't our freshmen, it isn't any specific player....it is toughness and killer instinct.  If people want to rant about Roy, that's fine.  But the guy has cut down nets several times.

So to all you "fans" that gripe and complain all season...congrats, you know more than me.  My opinion is that it can be kept positive when weaknesses are addressed.  I mean...we are message board trolls....what gives us the right? 

I played college sports too.  There goes your idea about me being a "couch potato".


Have any other ideas? 

Aight ktrip I hear but then I ask you this not trying to put you on the spotlight but do you think we have "cheerleader like fans" as you say on this board. I know your consistent but outside of our chicken littles I think we do a decent job of debating or disagreeing on basic topics. Also I will say in basketball its a marathon unlike football where it's a sprint. To me I dont worry too much until feb that when it's time to fine tune and get stuff together for the run.

Well....................here we are in mid February and our perimeter defense/guarding the 3 is still some of the most pathetic I have ever seen.


That's why FSU killed us and why UNLV killed us.  That WILL be our downfall in March and why we are NOT NC contenders.


Real contenders don't lose like that and don't continue to ignore weaknesses.