Gamble was a cut above the current guys athletically, and it took him 4 (maybe even 5) years to develop into a serviceable player.
But I see your point.
If you have an athletic team that plays bad defense you can blame lack of effort and desire. Our front court is a bunch of stiffs. They could have the effort and desire of Rudy and it wouldn't matter.
This is a fair assessment of Duke and Louisville. No shame in losing to teams like that. The problem is the non-competitive manner in which we lost both games.