ENGSTER: Statistically Speaking

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Out-of-state could be great for Trent Johnson

The Diesel, at left, is just another of Dale Brown’s out-of-state pick-ups.

By JIM ENGSTER
Tiger Rag Featured Columnist

As Trent Johnson staggers through a dismal sophomore year as head basketball coach at LSU, it is time to take stock of the Tiger program in the first year of another decade. Johnson impressed almost everyone last year by entering uncharted territory with an SEC title in his first season at LSU. As remarkable as his rookie campaign was, his encore is fraught with disappointments.

At press time (for this article’s run in the print edition of Tiger Rag), LSU is 1-13 in the SEC, posting the worst league record since Press Maravich debuted in 1966-67 and his superstar son was ineligible as a freshman to suit up with the varsity.

This is likely the worst LSU roundball unit in 43 years, and Johnson, like his predecessors, must recruit exceptionally well to win at an acceptable level. As skilled as he is in the intricacies of the court, Johnson can’t succeed with a bare cupboard.

This year marks the first time since the 1959-60 crew fielded by Coach Jay McCreary that LSU basketball has been putrid in the first year of a decade. Traditionally, the Tigers roar as they open each decade.

Here is what happened in the opening years of the last four decades for the LSU basketball teams compared with the 2009-2010 carnage on the court:

After posting an overall record of 99-31 and SEC mark of 51-19, LSU has endured one of its most woeful hoops performances ever.

LSU fans are accustomed to watching legends like Pete Maravich, Rudy Macklin, Chris Jackson and Shaquille O’Neal to begin a decade. The current team is losing for an easy reason; it is the least talented team in the conference.

Johnson is likeable and uncontroversial, but he must possess enough sizzle with the steak to pack the PMAC and lure the nation’s best players to Baton Rouge. John Brady was blessed to have a bevy of blue chip basketball talent a few miles from campus during his stay at LSU, but Dale Brown had to go to the outer reaches of the country and the planet to stock his roster during his 25 years on the Bengal bench.

With the exceptions of Ethan Martin, Howard Carter and Derrick Taylor, the most talented players during the Brown Era hailed from other cities and other states. Here is a sampling of the Dale Brown recruiting juggernaut that left no area untapped.

The current LSU roster has players from a half dozen states, and Trent Johnson has contacts in other parts of the country. This should serve him well in his bid to emulate the recruiting magic of Dale Brown.

Despite the frustration of 2010, Johnson compares favorably with other LSU coaches at the conclusion of their second year in TigerTown.

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Jim Engster is the general manager of Louisiana Network and Tiger Rag. Reach him at jim@la-net.net.