Georgetown Basketball: Takeaways from the Hoyas hiring of Patrick Ewing
Will interest generate results?
Patrick Ewing may not bring wins immediately, but one thing that this hiring does do for Georgetown is it generates interest. Similar to Chris Mullin at St. John’s, this is going to help the Hoyas sell tickets, this is going to attract fans to games, this will generate more rivalries (Ewing versus Mullin twice a year? Sign me up) and this will help bring back memories of the “old Big East.”
But will this interest turn into results?
That’s the one million dollar question.
And there are three keys to whether or not the answer to this question is yes:
- Who is going to be on Ewing’s staff?
- Will they change the program’s scheme and system?
- How will Ewing manage expectations?
We already talked about the first point earlier in this slideshow, so I will start with number two.
One of the major reasons why Georgetown has struggled on the recruiting trail as of late is because their system and scheme is out-dated. The Hoyas tried to increase their tempo offensively and limit their Princeton-Offensive principles, but they reverted back to old habits in Big East play. They never truly made the transition from their “old scheme.”
If they want players like Tremont Waters or other high-quality recruits, the Hoyas will have to focus on their transition attack, their spacing and a potential free-flowing offensive scheme. Obviously defense will always be a Georgetown calling card but that doesn’t mean that they cannot adjust on the fly and try to adapt to the new basketball generation.
Beyond the scheme and system, Ewing must also deal with expectations. Year one and two of this “rebuild” won’t be pretty. L.J. Peak isn’t walking through that door and neither is Waters. They may not be as bad as St. John’s was in year one with Mullin at the helm but they surely won’t be in the top half of the conference as the team builds a new foundation.
Next: Early preseason top 25 for the 2017-18 season
It’s to be determined as to how this works out but Georgetown is taking a major risk by hiring Ewing. This could backfire in their face, forcing them to push an all-time great out the door. Or it could result in Georgetown becoming Georgetown again. There might not be an in-between.