Rhoades' Veteran Army

The Virginia Commonwealth University men's basketball team's head coach, Mike Rhoades, frequently refers to his team as an "Army." With that label he seems interested in selling to his team a belief in the power of a coordinated, all-out effort and camaraderie, itself. The emphasis is on the team's effort, TOGETHER, as a unit. Not so much on the expected contributions effort of individual star players making spectacular plays.   

Some successful, media-savvy coaches like to use labels or slogans to promote their philosophy. Famously, while he coached VCU (2009-2015), head coach Shaka Smart called his style, "Havoc." The media lapped it up. Today, Rhoades seems less concerned with using a catchy term, or phrase, to give his team an identity that promotes his system. 

Instead, Rhoades mostly wants his players to buy into the "Army" concept. The media can do as they like. 

Don't get me wrong, from what I've seen, Rhoades cooperates and gets along with the press, just fine. But let's say Shaka was more of a performer/news-maker for the reporters than Mike has been.  

Still, most successful college basketball coaches eventually develop what's generally called a "system." A system they can teach to their players. Others talk about an "identity" for their team. Both terms appear to refer to a style of play and a set of strategies to consistently execute that style properly. The coaches who keep their jobs a long time are also good at recruiting savvy players who genuinely like their style and are likely to thrive in such a system.

However, all the best players in Division 1 college basketball know that the National Basketball Association is full of great athletes who excelled in college games at making stunning athletic plays as INDIVIDUALS. Players who can physically overwhelm most of their opponents. And, my guess is about three-quarters of all D-1 players think, as freshmen, that they are NBA material.

So, convincing his young Rams to buy into pouring their all into Rhoades' army-not-stars concept -- with its sharing the playing time strategy -- rather than playing to draw the attention of pro scouts, can take a while. But once the players do, if they do, the strong defense that can be forged is not easy to beat. That Rhoades uses his bench more liberally than do most coaches is integral to his scheme. It keeps fresh legs on the floor and it's good for morale to give roles that matter to more players.

Thus, the VCU Rams of February and March is hopefully a stronger army than it was in November and December. That doesn't happen every season, but it's the goal every season. For instance, Rhoades' 2019-2020 Rams team that went 18-13 never jelled.

Tonight, at the Siegel Center, VCU (20-7, 13-3 in A-10; NET No. 53; RPI No. 27) will play the most important game of the season, so far. Its totally worthy opponent, St. Bonaventure (19-7, 11-4 in A-10; NET No. 79; RPI No. 48), has won seven consecutive games. 

So have the Rams. Both teams are probably thinking the winner of this game takes a good step toward being an on-the-bubble team. The loser will get penciled in on likely NIT invitees.

Tipoff: 8:30 p.m. TV: CBS Sports Network. Local radio: WRNL 910AM.  

Last time these two teams met, it was in Olean, NY (on Jan. 14th), and the Bonnies won by 20 points. However, the Rams are a better team than they were in January. In particular, look at the recent improvement of both senior KeShawn Curry and freshman Mikeal Brown Jones. 

Hey, the young Rams aren't rookies, anymore. It's March and now they're veterans.