Favorite Husky of All Time | Page 4 | The Boneyard

Favorite Husky of All Time

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I started to read this thread thinking it would make me feel better. It actually slightly depressed me because it reminded me of the ultra-elite players we used to have. I only hope we can get close to that level one day. Makes you really appreciate what JC did for this program.
 

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Tony Hanson. He was nice enough to talk to a bunch of junior high dorks (some classmates and me) on campus back in the day. Fantastic player as well.
 
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Loved Burrell. Not the best of all time, but just went at 120%, was a great X factor on the glass, defense and scoring. He and Tate George connecting against Clemson in the NCAA buzzer beater set the foundation that UConn arrived and wouldn't be denied for long. That season was the birth of Husky basketball legacy.
 
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Loved Burrell. Not the best of all time, but just went at 120%, was a great X factor on the glass, defense and scoring. He and Tate George connecting against Clemson in the NCAA buzzer beater set the foundation that UConn arrived and wouldn't be denied for long. That season was the birth of Husky basketball legacy.

Burrell had a fantastic Junior season in which he did so many things well. He sometimes gets forgotten in the conversation of all time Husky greats. He was the first player in NCAA hisyory to record 1500 points, 750 rebounds 300 steals and 275 assists. Glad you brought him up. A genuinely great guy as well by all accounts.
 
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Ray is my favorite, but John Gwynn & Lyman up there in terms of inordinate enjoyment of what they brought to the table. And if I could see one former player return for one season it'd be Henefeld, he was the most unicorn-ish of any player we've had.
 
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I've got a few wide ranging ones... Obviously, I was a big fan of the stars.

But, I loved Marcus Williams and we are forever etched as the team to lose to a 16 without him carrying us against Albany. Best passer, by far, that we ever had.

Loved Rash Jones as he was the ultimate team guy. Budding star as a Soph (he was averaging high teens for a while and was shooting it great) until he was essentially replaced as the star by Rip and then Khalid. So Rash became a defensive player who would play the 2-4 and bust it. One of my fave UConn moments is that it was him who had the ball in his hands as 77-74 ends.

I was a big fan of both Doug Wrenn and Ajou. Wrenn, b/c something, um, interesting was going to happen when he was on the court. He would have been a star here and an NBA player if he could have kept his head. JC said he was the most athletic player to ever play here and he has two of the greatest dunks we've ever had. I first started watching Ajou his junior year at T-More and got to know him a little bit when he was being tutored at my high school and then again at UConn. Super, super nice guy (too nice, actually) who had a world of talent. Was always pissed it didn't work out here.

Rod Sellers was a bada&$ who dribbled Chrissy's head on the floor... 'Nuff said.

But my all-time fave was Kirk King. I'm not sure why, he was just my guy. I was a teenager when he had that great put back dunk against AI and GTown in the BE tourney final and when he went 20-20 over those few games and I loved watching him develop into something. On the contrary, I hated that his career ended so unceremoniously right when it seemed he was going to be a go-to guy. At the same time, the best thing to happen to us, in a lot of ways, was him and Ricky getting suspended. It forced Rip, Jake, and KFree to grow up and learn on the job and it necessitated us finding a competent floor leader in Khalid as the Rickety Moore year proved he could not be a primary point guard.
 
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I go back to the early 60s
My favorites are Wes Bialosuknia the greatest huskie shooter of all time
Saw him score 50. Many of his hoops were long range before the 3 point line
Kemba 2nd favorite
Rashad Anderson next
Shabazz next
Also loved Emeka,Rip, Ray,John Gwynn, Bob Boyd, and Neil’s Griffey.

Have seen them all back to 53-54.
Best pure shooter -- Wes, and there is no close second.
Best rebounders, inch for inch -- Art Quimby , Toby Kimball
Favorites to watch -- Lee Otis Wilson and KEA.
Did Most For The Program -- Nadav
Most quietly indispensable -- Neils
Most likely to take over a game -- Kemba, Shabazz
Most clearly men among boys -- Emeka, Caron
Best hired assassins -- Rip, Ray, Rashad
Did most with least -- Jake
Did least with most -- Donyell, Rudy
 
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Most quietly indispensable -- Neils
Did least with most -- Donyell, Rudy

Niels had a great senior year and a really nice start in his freshmen season, but other than that my memory is that he did not do all that much. Looking up the stats, he was 2.2 and 1.4 as a freshmen, 2.6 and 1.5 as a soph, 4.9 and 3.6 as a junior, and 8.4 and 3.8 as a senior. I'm not sure I'd deem him "indispensable" as really he was only that guy his senior year.

Rudy and Donyell were both first team All-Americans here (Rudy was 1st team NABC and 2nd team AP and USBWA, Donyell was 1st team across the board ). Rudy left us all a bit underwhelmed but he had a very strong sophomore year on a loaded team. I can maybe give you that. But Donyell? Don't let the missed free throws make you forget the best individual season any player had in the JC era. He was 25-9-3 blocks a game in the Big East and if not for Glenn Robinson going for 30-10, Donyell would've been the National POY. I absolutely disagree with any ridicule of him not being successful here. Sticks maybe, AO, Drummond, Purv are better candidates in my opinion.
 
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Tony Hanson. If you were there, you know.

No-one though, in the history of UConn basketball, transformed and uplifted a team, a program, and a fan-base as did Nadov in one unbelievable season. And like all larger than life heroes, in a blink he was gone.
 

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