Legacy, Situation Unimpressive

On Thursday, LSU hired Stanford Coach Trent Johnson. According to Athletic Director Joe Alleva, Johnson epitomizes integrity. “He represents all the values I was looking for -- a man who has an outstanding reputation, a family man, a guy that can go into the home and recruit, a man who will be a great role model for these kids and make sure they do things the right way both on the court, off the court and in the classroom,” said Alleva. “He has a great background, great experience. He's mature.”

During his career, Johnson has accrued a 159-122 record. In Nevada (5 seasons), Johnson racked a 79-74 record. In Stanford (4 seasons), he registered an 80-48 record. “The opportunity to recruit the best student-athletes across the country and have the opportunity to compete for a championship year in and year out ... that is the goal,” Johnson said. “We have an excellent chance to get this thing turned around soon.”

LSU is a peculiar program. They were never Duke. They are not Northwestern. During Dale Brown’s tenure, LSU amassed a 448-301 record. During John Brady’s tenure, LSU assimilated 167-111 record. Given the aforesaid, Johnson can improve LSU. He cannot restore them.