Who called Thor, Roby or Webster mercinaries? I said your depiction of them being the classic 4 year players out of high school was a little bit of a reach, except for Roby, who left early. Seriously? Petteway was hugely popular his junior year when he got hot and took us to the promised land! Not popular with me, as I saw him as a very average player, but with most, he was THE man. And Palmer was as well, at least until he decided that averaging 20 points, but shooting about the same percentage from the field was OK.
And you are being completely disingenuous or simply naive if you suggest that the majority of any roster chooses a school because they 'love the thought of playing for them'. They love the thought of playing period, and while they may have some schools they prefer the idea of attending, it's a starry eyed few that dream of wearing the Scarlet and Cream if they are coveted D1 prospects. And trying to tie in what a football program does as a means to fill out it's roster of nearly 100 players, and what a basketball team does to fill out it's 15 is a ridiculous comparison. Do you know what it took to get us to the Tournament? 2 guys off the transfer heap. 2. Without them, we don't make the tourney, with them, we do. 1 or 2 really good players is all it takes in basketball to make the difference in being a tournament team, or a league also ran.
Is Teddy a mercinary? He didn't start his career dreaming of Big Red, is he somehow soiled now? What about Walker? I know we wanted him out of HS, but he went elsewhere, is he now damaged goods? What about all those players who used to be on our roster, and are now playing for another team, do you think they are pining away their days still dreaming of those happy days in Lincoln? If your only means of finding players you feel comfortable supporting is fielding a team of Eisleys and Piatkowskis, then you need to find something to do with your time, because that's not what we paid top dollar to attract Fred Hoiberg to do. Coach wants players who can do the things he wants, and he doesn't have the luxury of trying to coax in some high schoolers with potential, then hope they develop as planned, and possibly put a decent team on the floor in 4 years. We will get to a point we have more high schoolers coming up through the ranks, but Fred knows it's a far better option for him to continue pulling in kids who have shown they can play at the B1G level, and just need a better opportunity to show that ability.