Musselman Has Earned a Little Grace, but Concern Warranted

Author:
Jacob Davis
Publish date:
Jan 14, 2024 9:06 PM EST

In this story:

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. There have been a lot of moving parts during Eric Musselman's time at Arkansas. Despite a subpar record and less than efficient offense and defense, Musselman has earned a little bit of grace, even with an 0-3 start to SEC play.

A lot of fans think the honeymoon phase is over for the Razorbacks' coach who reestablished Arkansas to national relevance once again. Two elite eight appearances and one Sweet 16 has raised the bar significantly since he arrived in Fayetteville in 2019. A No. 10 finish in the SEC last season wasn't necessarily the outcome to the regular season many pictured, considering three NBA prospects and being on the roster.

Last season, injuries put a damper on what could've been for the Razorbacks in 2022-23. Don't take the past success of March for granted, Musselman didn't forget how to coach overnight. He certainly deserves a little bit of grace compared to to his counterpart receives on a daily basis.

Razorbacks' Eric Musselman on sidelines at Florida

Now the excuse is being used this team doesn't possess something past teams did. He goes into detail about what the Razorbacks lack but there's no definite plan moving forward for ears to learn of.

"This group does not have the characteristics of the last four years," Musselman said. "We have a lot of different holes in a lot of different places."

"We’ve been here four years and we’ve been a team that’s been super tough minded, a team that competes, a team that battles," Musselman said. "We’ve been a team that has grit."

Assembled with this group is exceptional individual talent which includes special offensive players, exceptional defenders and three guards capable of being true one-guards. With an 0-3 start to conference play, Arkansas will have to figure things out soon with Texas A&M coming to town. Other underwhelming starts still produced solid offensive results with efficiency score in the 100's. Currently, the Razorbacks a lowly No. 84 nationally.

Defensively, the holes have created a defensive nightmare for Musselman whose team lacks in physicality rebounding the basketball. Against Florida on Saturday, the Razorbacks were outrebounded 48-31.

Turnovers, close outs on three-point defense, allowing player to drive downhill for easy lay ins are just a few things going wrong for Arkansas. Musselman is completely aware of his teams faults but there may be nothing he can do about it. That should be a concern for postseason hopes at least for this year.

HOGS FEED:

POTENTIAL TARGETS FOR RAZORBACKS AFTER JUNIOR DAY SHOWS SOME LIKELY OFFERS COMING

FOCUS FOR RAZORBACKS RECRUITING NOW SHIFTS FROM HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS

RAZORBACKS DIDN'T HAVE SELLING POINTS FOR ALABAMA RECEIVER

• Subscribe and follow us on YouTube
• Follow allHOGS on Twitter and Facebook