a good coach could have retained those players and parlayed it into an NCAA tournament team within 2 seasons. Those players were good, Kim just couldn't coach or develop them. The roster was loaded with young talent.
There were no sanctions or penalties to deal with, and the program had a good reputation. The sanctions we eventually self-imposed were very insignificant - we only lost 1 scholarship, it was essentially nothing.
A good coach could have done very well here with what Kim inherited.
Contrast all of that with what Crean inherited:
http://tigerboard.com/boards/view.php?message=14642873