I was in a local Columbia eatery the other day when someone asked me how the thugs that play on our basketball team were doing.

Yes, Missouri’s become that team.

You know, the Cincinnati of a couple years ago. The team you think will never be your alma mater and yet that’s the name it’s starting to make for itself.

Sure, I get on message boards and see the various opinions about the basketball team, but this was the first time someone had asked me about the “thugs” to my face. Unfortunately, it’s probably not going to be the last.

In the words of former Missouri and Vashon guard Jimmy McKinney, “We’ve faced a lot of diversity out there.”

I know a lot of people, myself included, thought these days of Missouri basketball were ushered out with the old regime. And let’s be honest, the Athena incident isn’t nearly as bad as the Quin Snyder/Mike Alden/Elson Floyd/Board of Curators mess. That was a one of a kind treat that I hope none of us have to live through again.

With that said, times are hard for Missouri basketball. It’s not going to be hard forever, and I think we’ve all seen glimpses of what this program can be given the right time and the right leadership.

You know, during football season, the one thing every player and every coach credited to the team’s success was senior leadership. Most of those players were freshmen during Damien Nash’s media rant that left him suspended during the middle of the season and ultimately caused him to leave early for the NFL. Most of those seniors were sophomores when Aaron O’Neal passed away and the rift between coaches and players grew vast as players, media and the general public looked for someone to blame.

So when those players became seniors this past season, the first thing they did was not make the mistakes of their predecessors. And in turn, Missouri had the greatest football season in the school’s history.

“Certainly, I’m indebted to them because they certainly had other choices and they chose to come here,” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said prior to senior day. “They’ve been leaders, they’ve been soldiers of our program, and when it’s all said and done, we’ll be able to list several things that they’ve done that have helped build this program.”

There’s no doubt that adversity changes a person, but it’s how that person changes that defines them. Players such as Keon Lawrence and J.T. Tiller and even Justin Safford are learning the perils of defunct senior leadership the hard way. But two or three years down the road, it might make those players and Missouri a stronger team.

You don’t have to tell me things look bleak. I’ve watched the students sit with their heads in their hands during the Missouri Waltz and other fans stream toward the exits with nearly 10 minutes remaining. I criticized fans in the non-conference for not supporting Mizzou, but now, I don’t blame them.

There are at least nine games remaining and relief for what ails Missouri won’t come this season. But when, then? That’s up to the younger players. Will the adversity that Missouri basketball has faced this season change the program for the better or define it?

“When adversity hits, we’ve got to come together as a team,” junior DeMarre Carroll said after Saturday’s loss to Texas A&M. “I think we’ve slowly been coming together as a team, we’re just sewing and weeding out people who don’t want to come together or who are against us. Eventually, we’ll get it together and eventually we’ll get this thing rolling.”