Orlando Strikes Back! Not the Same Guy

[lmuhistorian]

Admin Edit: video fix

[ironlions]

Who cares...go post this on the UCSB board.

[LIONS90045]

Nice tape - Orlando will do well in the game!

[lmuhistorian]

Thanks! I thought it was great to see #3 Kwame Vaughn play with #1 OJ. Kind of shows that Rodney wasn't that bad of a recruiter. I like to see a D2 player like Orlando improve to be a legit D1 player. Besides IronLions if people would post something on the board about what our guys have been doing I wouldn't have to bring up past players. It has been 5 days of nothing new. Where are the Drew Viney highlights and how is Larry Davis coming along? I've been on every WCC site members4.boardhost.com/donscentral/msg/1248193068.html and all they do is talk about how good their players and others like Orlando have gotten members4.boardhost.com/donscentral/msg/1246945652.html and yes it bothers me to know he played for us and he is no longer a LION. Then you wonder why guys just up and leave!

[LIONS90045]

This from the UCSB website, OJ averaging 25.6 ppg in ProAm summer league:

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Five UCSB men's basketball players are competing in various summer leagues and tournaments, including center Greg Somogyi who is playing for his native Hungary at the U20 European Championships in Skopje, Macedonia.

In addition to Somogyi, James Nunnally and Orlando Johnson are playing in the San Francisco Bay Area Pro-Am League, while Jaimé Serna and James Powell are competing at the Rod Smith Say No Classic in the Los Angeles area.

Through four games, Somogyi is averaging 7.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.0 blocked shots per game. In fact, the sophomore-to-be leads his division in blocked shot. In his most recent game, against the Slovak Republic, he had 10 points, six blocked shots and five rebounds. In a game against Bulgaria, Somogyi had a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds. He also had three blocks in the game.

Johnson, who redshirted the 2008-09 season at UCSB after transferring from Loyola Marymount, is averaging 25.9 point, 3.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game. He ranks ninth in the league in scoring, eighth in assists and ninth in steals.

ucsbgauchos.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/072109aaa.html

Aside from Kevin Young's experience on the Puerto Rico team, are any of our (LMU) players active this summer?

[ironlions]

LMU Historian is obvious that you are very close to Orlando or even related to him, and is probably the reason why you repeatedly brining him up on the board. Orlando is a great player and will most likely get a shot at the NBA some day. However, he was never asked to leave. Based on his loyalty, which is admirable, he demanded that the players around him not be let go. We are trying to build a program here and it’s not going to happen with Orlando and D2 level players around him. He made the choice to leave and move on. The guys you say “just up and leave” were not asked back because their level of talent was not what were looking for.

“Rodney not a bad recruiter” come on now let’s not get carried away. OJ was really only the good player he got. We didn’t even recruit Kwame- he was a back up when Rodney and crew let Ameer Shamsudin ( who by the way averaged something like 2ppg at Cal State Fullerton) slip away to PEPPERDINE a week after he verbally committed to us. I don’t want to call out anyone else, but do some research where the players that Rodney recruited end up.

If you really are a Lions fan then keep tuning in and I will have plenty of updates when the summer ends and school starts. If your sole purpose on this board it talk about Orlando its time to move on like he did.

Go Lions

[mesapilot1]

Ironlions some people just can't let go......I'm going to start posting about Greg Anthony again on the Portland Site. I'm mad that he transfered to UNLV ,helped lead them to an NCAA Title then went onto a successful NBA career. C'mon the 07-08' season is over I'm ready to hear about all this talent the Lions have NOW not what coulda shoulda from 1 1/2 years ago.

The voice of an outsider looking in......

[lmuhistorian]

IronLions your right what was I thinking. I'll wait patiently. I'm just so excited for the season to start.

[mesapilot1]

I am really looking forward to this WCC season. The Lions have some great talent this year and thats what I like to hear about.

I have followed Arizona Wildcat BB closely for over 25 yrs and in Tuscon they are not dwelling on Lute's Legacy anymore, not gripping about Kevin Oneill's" total out of touch" with his team's season 2 yrs ago. They have anointed Lute a "hero" and moved on. I don't see any good on dwelling on one of Lute's many assistant's who was fortunate to get a head coaching opportunity.

Besides that your team has so, so much talent that I expect a win over the Zags in LA to help the Pilot's out in the WCC conference play, lol. This season is a key season for the Pilots,Lions, etc... to start the competitive Conference races every year in Men''s BB.

[lmuhistorian]

Alert I'm over losing year in and year out. I'm over hiring Bayno and have him run off after getting beat by 30. I can honestly say the group of guys that we have now are good, but I bet you will be over them if things don't get any better. Maybe we should try seasoning some players instead of screaming they are D2 after playing as freshmen with no rebounding center. IronLions if you were in OJ's shoes would you have stayed? Look how you guys treat Tim and Sweezy. I'll bet my $50,000 tuition that if Rodney stayed on - OJ, Dead, Walker and Jenkins would have had us more excited than what is been put out this season. The coach we have now wasn't recruited to LMU either. I guess he knows how Kwamee feels.

[ironlions]

Lmu Historian

The success of a program comes down to recruiting and the talent you get. Rodney was a good coach, and a good guy, and was successful with Agger recruits. (One lay-up away from the big dance) However, he and his staff were not able to bring enough D1 talent to LMU. You say that his freshman were “screamed” at and not allowed to develop, well you know who else were freshman, Jarred, Kevin, and Laron who played in a much more difficult situation and flourished.

Do you really believe OJ, Dead, Walker and Jenkins would have us more excited than the team we haven now- you are entitled to your opinion but you will come to realize that is just a that is an absurd statement…really absurd. I realize you probably haven’t seen most of the guys we will have suiting up play yet.

To answer your question if I would have stayed if I was OJ- the answer is hell yeah I would have stayed. I talked to OJ the a few weeks into Bayno’s tenure and he was thrilled and was excited to play for him. I believe that it was only after he realized all his friends were going to be released the talk of transferring came up. If he would have stayed he would have Bayno’s NBA experience to develop his game. Even with Bayno gone, he would coached by Good who has had 10 players he coach go on to the NBA. He would also be in the one of the strongest leagues in the nation and not the Big West. Playing top #25 schools in the nation like Gonzaga and St. Mary’s is better than playing UC Riverside and UC Irvine. But he is a very talented player and will be just fine. And I’m sure you will let us all know about his progress.

Lastly, what does “Look how you guys treat Tim and Sweezy” mean? Tim didn’t play all year and Sweezy got constantly praised for his hussle and heart. The only negatives about Sweezy that was brought up was his poor free throws and lack of offensive game.

Once again, if you are really a Lions fan you will be very happy with our team and coaching staff. If you are someone personally tied to OJ and Rodney’s era time to move on.

Go Lions

[LIONS90045]

For weeks I could hear a pin drop on this website, but not now - it's exciting again.
From my viewpoint, I am not hung up on OJ but am interested in his career given he started at LMU. I regret he left and agree with ironlions that he would have contributed a lot under Bayno/Good and, who knows, if we had won a few games early, perhaps Bayno would still be here. Before you jump on this, I am over Bayno also and am happy with Coach Good. I root only for LMU and am still a basketball fan and have an interest in the future of LMU players, even those who left the school for whatever reason.
I would not want to go back to the Tension team, even though I liked Rodney personally and felt his agony when he put his head in his hands following turnover after turnover.
I look forward to the play of Tim and Sweezy this year and our redshirts and freshmen and I am glad we don't have to put too much pressure on the Freshmen to produce - let them mature in their time and if they exceed expectations, three cheers.
Can't wait for the season to begin, we have to endure football first, which is sufficiently distracting for a non-BB sport. Let's see how UCLA and USC fare again and then get to the real sports!

[fanblade]

wrschnicke, be careful what you wish for. Things will spice up one the den once the season nears. I agree with ironlions and appreciate mesapilot's insight as well.

Our history still haunts us because we have yet to really create some new positive history. That will all change this season. By the time we see a Young and Dubois joined with a healthy Teel, Davis, and Hamilton not to mention Viney and our new recruits etc etc it will be more like... Orlando who?

I hope that UCSB fans get themselves worked up by OJ embarrassing some scrawny kid during summer league. They have every right too. But we have plenty to be excited about and the memories of Tention and Bayno will be just that memories once Good's new crew hits the court.

We have a really strong lineup that should be very fun to watch play and grow.

[lmuhistorian]

"For weeks I could hear a pin drop on this website, but not now - it's exciting again." All I had to do is post a video of an ex Lion and look what we have started. Mission accomplished.

[LIONS90045]

Good work lmuhistorian - let's keep some dialogues going! (Not necesarily on the OJ topic.)