2026-27 Season

[Juice Stand]

had a chance to see Coach Martin this past weekend. 7 guys stayed . He was real positive chatting about Danny, Dwayne Wimbley and surprising Dimitri Clerc who i liked a lot last year. Hopefully they can gel w/ the new guys and put forth a solid season.

Moving away from the fan attendance issue, I have to admit that I don't love the roster construction on paper, but I am frequently wrong about this stuff as I'm not a scout (I thought Donovan Brown was going to be our starting 2 guard). With that said, I'm thrilled that 5 guys that played meaningful minutes returned, and another one in Rollie who I see as a leader even if he doesn't play much. Frank needs roster continuity to be successful, so there is a dash of hope that these returners can set a standard in the locker room and bring the pieces together quicker than in the past.

I was also pleasantly surprised that Clerc decided to come back. I think most of us on the board liked his game and wanted to see a little more of him last season. I think he can be successful in the MAC, and I want to see what he looks like after a full year in the program and in the weight room.

The people I've talked to are very high on Barry Wang, as well as the continued development of Wimbley, who was thrown into the fire early as a freshman and can now settle into his role with some experience under his belt.

[UMassFan99]

My two cents is that the AD and team are not creative. The reality is that wins will get people there - but, absent wins, creative marketing can help drive attendance. Look at PC. Their midnight madness every year is incredible. They have a Taylor Swift theme (not saying that’s good but it is something that students participate in). We give away pizza before the season to students and beg them to attend with a giveaway or two. Absent wins, something more creative needs to be put in place. I’m not comparing us to PC nor am I a marketing person - but just suggesting that students will come out for creative approaches that make it seem exciting.

[Juice Stand]

We have years of evidence that either the region won't support mediocre college hoops, and/or the administration isn't capable of creative marketing to drive consistent attendance. So that leaves us with the only option, which is what we all want: Win Games.

[NilesGold]

I’m not comparing us to PC nor am I a marketing person - but just suggesting that students will come out for creative approaches that make it seem exciting.

Lipstick on a pig.

Marketing can be really powerful, but it has limitations. Marketing a consistently bad product when you are trying to build long-term repeat business isn't going to work.

I truly don't want to hear anything about creative approaches to get more attendance until there is good basketball to give to those attending.

[eldonabe]

I’m not comparing us to PC nor am I a marketing person - but just suggesting that students will come out for creative approaches that make it seem exciting.

Lipstick on a pig.

Marketing can be really powerful, but it has limitations. Marketing a consistently bad product when you are trying to build long-term repeat business isn't going to work.

I truly don't want to hear anything about creative approaches to get more attendance until there is good basketball to give to those attending.

But Niles according to some (well one) here you should support unconditionally no matter how shitty the team or bad the logistics are .... year after year after year.

[minutefanjsf]

I’m not comparing us to PC nor am I a marketing person - but just suggesting that students will come out for creative approaches that make it seem exciting.

Lipstick on a pig.

Marketing can be really powerful, but it has limitations. Marketing a consistently bad product when you are trying to build long-term repeat business isn't going to work.

I truly don't want to hear anything about creative approaches to get more attendance until there is good basketball to give to those attending.

But Niles according to some (well one) here you should support unconditionally no matter how shitty the team or bad the logistics are .... year after year after year.

The games last year were good basketball. The Miami game was good. Other league games were equally competitive and close. Hard to excited for eastern Michigan coming to town though.

[eldonabe]

Lipstick on a pig.

Marketing can be really powerful, but it has limitations. Marketing a consistently bad product when you are trying to build long-term repeat business isn't going to work.

I truly don't want to hear anything about creative approaches to get more attendance until there is good basketball to give to those attending.

But Niles according to some (well one) here you should support unconditionally no matter how shitty the team or bad the logistics are .... year after year after year.

The games last year were good basketball. The Miami game was good. Other league games were equally competitive and close. Hard to excited for eastern Michigan coming to town though.

We came in 8th in a mediocre league with a faux - overrated Miami team leading the way.... Close games do not automatically mean "good basketball"... Competitive? Sure, ok.

"Good" is relative.... Many/most here expected a top 3 finish last year, and as the season wore on excuses piled up and suddenly barely making the conference tournament was pretty good....

[Juice Stand]

...as the season wore on excuses piled up and suddenly barely making the conference tournament was pretty good....

No, it wasn't. The season was a disappointment. Hardly anybody thinks making it in on the last day of the regular season as the 8 seed was pretty good. Being excited that we beat an undefeated Miami team and became a national headline for a few moments was a reason to get excited and celebrate, but it doesn't mean anybody thought last year was good (ok, maybe a few delusionals). The team was fun to watch at times, had good personalities, and had some big wins (BC, FSU) but they didn't play up to their ability and lost to or eeked out close wins against teams they should have handled (Northern Ill. and Ball St). A promising team once again turned into a pumpkin late in the season when they went 1-6 in February, an atrocious stretch of play that killed any chance of calling it a good season.

It's ok to say that there was some fun exciting basketball but also say that the season as a whole was a disappointment. For comparison: the Red Sox just swept the Yankees in 4 games at Fenway. That was fun. I was excited about that. But I can also say that this Sox season is a massive failure, they need to sell at the deadline, and everyone involved needs to be fired.

[Steve81]

Amen Juice, cheers to another season and getting season tickets.

[PreecherJenkins]

My two cents is that the AD and team are not creative. The reality is that wins will get people there - but, absent wins, creative marketing can help drive attendance. Look at PC. Their midnight madness every year is incredible. They have a Taylor Swift theme (not saying that’s good but it is something that students participate in). We give away pizza before the season to students and beg them to attend with a giveaway or two. Absent wins, something more creative needs to be put in place. I’m not comparing us to PC nor am I a marketing person - but just suggesting that students will come out for creative approaches that make it seem exciting.

Unf, much of the student base is burnt out on umass athletics after the first half of their first football game.

[eldonabe]

...as the season wore on excuses piled up and suddenly barely making the conference tournament was pretty good....

No, it wasn't. The season was a disappointment. Hardly anybody thinks making it in on the last day of the regular season as the 8 seed was pretty good. Being excited that we beat an undefeated Miami team and became a national headline for a few moments was a reason to get excited and celebrate, but it doesn't mean anybody thought last year was good (ok, maybe a few delusionals). The team was fun to watch at times, had good personalities, and had some big wins (BC, FSU) but they didn't play up to their ability and lost to or eeked out close wins against teams they should have handled (Northern Ill. and Ball St). A promising team once again turned into a pumpkin late in the season when they went 1-6 in February, an atrocious stretch of play that killed any chance of calling it a good season.

It's ok to say that there was some fun exciting basketball but also say that the season as a whole was a disappointment. For comparison: the Red Sox just swept the Yankees in 4 games at Fenway. That was fun. I was excited about that. But I can also say that this Sox season is a massive failure, they need to sell at the deadline, and everyone involved needs to be fired.

Apologies.... my statement was made with a wide blanket when the reality is that only a few were trying to window dress that crappy season.

Circa - 06/2025..... " we are going to have a great season because we have the highest paid coaches" ... I believe that was the hype from some here.

[Juice Stand]

^ Totally fair Eldon. We agree that UMass needs to do a lot better in the revenue sports. If our spending (coaches, NIL, athlete support, etc) is at the top of the league, we should compete at the top of the league. I'll continue to hold them to that standard, and will criticize when they miss the bar ("respectful intent to be the standard of excellence") that they themselves have set.

I'll try to be consistent: my expectation is 20+ wins and top 3 in the league, same as I said last year. If they miss that benchmark, for me it's another disappointment. Only speaking for myself on that, other opinions on what success looks like may vary.

[Juice Stand]

I think players got to campus last Monday for summer session. I don't remember how long that lasts, but I hope we get some content and updates out of it.

[eldonabe]

^ Totally fair Eldon. We agree that UMass needs to do a lot better in the revenue sports. If our spending (coaches, NIL, athlete support, etc) is at the top of the league, we should compete at the top of the league. I'll continue to hold them to that standard, and will criticize when they miss the bar ("respectful intent to be the standard of excellence") that they themselves have set.

I'll try to be consistent: my expectation is 20+ wins and top 3 in the league, same as I said last year. If they miss that benchmark, for me it's another disappointment. Only speaking for myself on that, other opinions on what success looks like may vary.

I agree anything short of 20 wins should be unacceptable given what they spend on that staff. It's almost like Bamford holds Frank to the same standards that the school holds him to when it comes to return on investment .

[Floyd]

I think players got to campus last Monday for summer session. I don't remember how long that lasts, but I hope we get some content and updates out of it.

Can't remember a time when there was so little hype about UMass basketball. Its no surprise there's little interest in the program