Penn State Basketball Has Chance to Run Pennsylvania, but Pat Kraft Won't Let it Happen

Typically, we can live with Penn State basketball not being a great program because the football team usually keeps everybody happy. Unfortunately for Penn State, that hasn't been the case over the past 12 months. 

The basketball team is arguably the worst in the Power Four, and there's no debate that it's the worst in the Big Ten.

As for the football program, well, everybody is kind of seeing how bad that is from top to bottom at the moment. Simply put, Penn State athletics aren't in a great spot right now, but if we focus on the basketball program, this has been an issue for more than 12 months.

Looking at the situation more recently, I think it was great that one writer pointed out that Villanova and Pitt struggling should actually be viewed as a positive for the Nittany Lions. 

Even if that's a positive and they try to keep talent in Philadelphia and other parts of the Northeast, Penn State still can't out-recruit schools like Pittsburgh or Villanova. 

This is a moment when Penn State basketball could take a step in the right direction, but instead, the administration fails to keep it in a good spot.

“I won’t sugarcoat it: The Nittany Lions are the laughing stock of the Big Ten. The results have upheld that notion and this year’s fate is hard to shake as another season of it. Only three wins in conference play last season, and there were some bad moments. A blowout at the GIANT Center by rival Pitt. Disappointment on Senior Night. The Return to the Rec and the Big Ten Tournament. Overall, the program stagnated to a forgettable 44-52 record under Rhoades. 

“The next generation of hoopers sees the state where Pittsburgh and Villanova are both in a transitional period. And then there’s Penn State: A program that was starting to soar at the start of the decade, but can’t seem to capitalize on the trends,” Myles Hannak wrote.

I never really thought about the fact that Villanova and Pittsburgh have struggled a bit over the past couple of seasons, though it's definitely more interesting to consider Villanova. Villanova is typically a powerhouse in college basketball, but it hasn't been great since NIL was implemented.

I don't expect Penn State to out-recruit a school like Villanova, but you could argue that, given how poorly the Wildcats have played in recent years, Penn State should be in a pretty good spot to do so. Instead, that's the complete opposite.