The transfer portal opens today

[uconnever]

Samson improving to the point of being a starting center on a team with top-10 aspirations would be a greater improvement than we've ever seen in this program, including Hilton.

Is it possible? Yep.

Is it something we should count on? Hell no.

We can win with him for sure, but we do need to bring in a center who maybe does different things than he does and is also capable. But I think he’s our guy.

 

[husky429]

We can win with him for sure, but we do need to bring in a center who maybe does different things than he does and is also capable. But I think he’s our guy.

I'm wondering if I've spent so much time in the asylum I'm starting to doubt my own sanity. So this post is as much of a rationalization for myself as anything.

Here's my opinion and hopefully a reasonable rationale:

• We are not going to have a player of Donovan or Sanogo's caliber in the front court next year no matter what happens, and probably for the foreseeable future. Those guys are unique talents. That means to maintain our top-25 aspirations, we need to have elevated bench play in the frontcourt--more than Samson provided this year. Right now, Donovan's absurd dominance is making up for Samson's mistakes. Check the +/-.
• We are also not going to have a First-Team All-American or a player shooting 50/40/90 in the backcourt. This means to maintain our top-25 aspirations, we need an overall higher level of play than Samson can reasonably provide in the frontcourt as a starter considering his current improvement trajectory.
• There are 2 things I want out of a bench big: rebounding and good positional defense without fouling. I don't need scoring or highlight plays. We need an injection of energy with de minimis mistakes.

I firmly believe that with expected improvements, Samson can be a solid bench piece that helps our team win games at a high level. Diarra had a crazy level of improvement and still was a bench piece. Expecting much more than that from Samson is possible, but can't be predicted.

If we're seriously going to think about Samson's ability to be a starter, let's take a look at our last few starting center's per-40 stats in conference games their junior year (or sophomore for Clingan). I went back to Thabeet, and didn't include tweeners like Whaley and Facey.

Samson: 12/6/1... 2 BLK, 2 TO, 8 fouls
Clingan: 21/14/3...4 BLK, 2 TO, 4 foul
Sanogo: 23/11/2...1 BLK, 3 TO, 4 fouls
Carlton: 12/11/2... 2 BLK, 4 TO, 7 fouls
Brimah: 12/8/0... 4 BLK, 2 TO, 5 fouls
Oriakhi: 13/8/1... 2 BLK, 3 TO, 4 fouls
Armstrong: 12/10/2... 6 BLK, 3 TO, 4 fouls
Thabeet: 15/13/1... 6 BLK, 2 TO, 3 Fouls

Simply put, he's fouling twice as much as he should, not blocking enough shots, and rebounding half as much as he should compared to his peers. His scoring is on pace with centers historically, but that's not what we need from him and certainly not what we need from a starter.

Samson is going to be an AWESOME bench piece for us with an injection of energy next year. He's going to get into the film room to learn how to minimize those fouls and to maximize his rebounding ability. We are asking more than he's capable of if we think he can be a starter on a top-25 (or better yet, top-10) team.

Check back in next March. If I'm wrong I will gladly eat all the crow.

 

[RedStickHusky]

Samson: 12/6/1... 2 BLK, 2 TO, 8 fouls
Clingan: 21/14/3...4 BLK, 2 TO, 4 foul

Clingan's in drop coverage at the rim, while Samson's out hedging screens on the arc; accounts for some of this disparity. I'll be interested in whether Hurley tries to stick with the two-styles of center going forward. It's been effective.

 

[husky429]

Clingan's in drop coverage at the rim, while Samson's out hedging screens on the arc; accounts for some of this disparity. I'll be interested in whether Hurley tries to stick with the two-styles of center going forward. It's been effective.

Hedging is a small reason why Samson isn't rebounding or keeping his fouls down. It's just a skill thing. Even when hedging he still spends the majority of his time at the rim.

 

[Agent0]

If they have so much NIL money how come Rick was embarassingly begging the fans for it at a one of their games?

Mike Repole he’s the vitamin water guy and has tons of money

 

[Ricker]

When did Samson Johnson's potential get limited to only playing the '5'. Before the foot injury, supposedly he was the starter at the '4' when Sanogo AND Clingan were at the '5'. I think the way we play him now is a pretty strong way to use his talents, but it might not be the only way depending on the final roster makeup. I'd try to add the best post player possible emphasizing some defensive girth and maybe an outside 'stretch' shot. A guy with attributes like Yale's Wolf or NCSt's Burns compliments the style of Johnson/Singare. We can't lose a guy like Clingan and not add a significant big.

 

[jibsey]

When did Samson Johnson's potential get limited to only playing the '5'. Before the foot injury, supposedly he was the starter at the '4' when Sanogo AND Clingan were at the '5'. I think the way we play him now is a pretty strong way to use his talents, but it might not be the only way depending on the final roster makeup. I'd try to add the best post player possible emphasizing some defensive girth and maybe an outside 'stretch' shot. A guy with attributes like Yale's Wolf or NCSt's Burns compliments the style of Johnson/Singare. We can't lose a guy like Clingan and not add a significant big.

Correct, and Samson has made good strides, will make more and is valuable to us so no gripe there, but we need another center to help. No shame in that.

 

[husky429]

When did Samson Johnson's potential get limited to only playing the '5'. Before the foot injury, supposedly he was the starter at the '4' when Sanogo AND Clingan were at the '5'. I think the way we play him now is a pretty strong way to use his talents, but it might not be the only way depending on the final roster makeup. I'd try to add the best post player possible emphasizing some defensive girth and maybe an outside 'stretch' shot. A guy with attributes like Yale's Wolf or NCSt's Burns compliments the style of Johnson/Singare. We can't lose a guy like Clingan and not add a significant big.

Honest question: can you name a single skill that Samson has that would male him a 4 on offense?

 

[UconnU]

Samson improving to the point of being a starting center on a team with top-10 aspirations would be a greater improvement than we've ever seen in this program, including Hilton.

Is it possible? Yep.

Is it something we should count on? Hell no.

I imagine we bring in a transfer and it’s a 50/50 time share.

 

[navery12]

When did Samson Johnson's potential get limited to only playing the '5'. Before the foot injury, supposedly he was the starter at the '4' when Sanogo AND Clingan were at the '5'. I think the way we play him now is a pretty strong way to use his talents, but it might not be the only way depending on the final roster makeup. I'd try to add the best post player possible emphasizing some defensive girth and maybe an outside 'stretch' shot. A guy with attributes like Yale's Wolf or NCSt's Burns compliments the style of Johnson/Singare. We can't lose a guy like Clingan and not add a significant big.

I think the option of playing Samson Johnson at the 4 went out the window the first time the staff watched him shoot. I expected him to be a stretch 4 but that shot is broken and he's completely uninterested in shooting

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

When did Samson Johnson's potential get limited to only playing the '5'. Before the foot injury, supposedly he was the starter at the '4' when Sanogo AND Clingan were at the '5'. I think the way we play him now is a pretty strong way to use his talents, but it might not be the only way depending on the final roster makeup. I'd try to add the best post player possible emphasizing some defensive girth and maybe an outside 'stretch' shot. A guy with attributes like Yale's Wolf or NCSt's Burns compliments the style of Johnson/Singare. We can't lose a guy like Clingan and not add a significant big.

With the 4s we’ve had it’s hard to imagine throwing Samson back out there.

In 3 years here he hasn’t shown an ability to make a shot outside of 5’, put the ball on the floor, or pass. Pretty much all of his offense is dunking the basketball.

Is he capable of developing or already having those skills? Possibly. But it’s year 3 and it’s hard to think he can make that leap. If he already has those skills then I wouldn’t be sure why he wouldn’t be encouraged to use them.

He probably expects to start next year but I’m not sure if that’s what we would want. Going to be interesting to see how this gets handled during the offseason.

 

[dogpause]

Oh..... and btw, a lot of kids are going to get hurt in this process. Instead of sticking with a good program and coach who will instill discipline they will take the easy way out and most likely stunt their development.

Some kids just want to test themselves at the highest level
Some just want o be on a winner.
Some made a bad choice.
Some were mislead.
Regardless, there is always some risk, but these players are more informed now than when the entered college.

 

[UConnSwag11]

W-T-S…

 

[WhereistheDove?]

W-T-S…

Not sure whether injury or something else, but he only played 3 total games this year and none in months. Not as wild as it initially seems.

 

[Ricker]

Just a general speculative answer to Johnson's capability to play the 4.
1) He must have shown something to intrigue the staff in the 2 years before he had his first start at that position
2) He could shoot the 3 as a spot up shooter in HS which is how I first noticed him
3) Kids have some abilities which are not used in games by choice because of better alternatives
We know Clingan looks good shooting threes but he doesn't often attempt in games by choice
Sanogo shot 3's in high school and had an open court Euro step that most people attribute to him developing both at UConn
Sanogo only used his post skills early in his career so the assumption is that he added skills that he really just improved
4) In an all star game with Diggins, Johnson was flying in transition filling the wing offensively (did play center on defense as I recall)

The point being that the staff is coaching Johnson to play to his strengths at the 5, and he may have other attributes already.

To clarify, I am not advocating Johnson playing the 4, I'm just suggesting that we can recruit an excellent center if the possibility arises, because the staff could use Johnson differently than we see today. Also keep in mind that Hurley seems inclined to try to use players in a way that appeals to their nba chances. Hence Sanogo started to get the green light shooting 3's, and Andre's role with the ball in his hands as a facilitator increased. As Johnson gets to the end of his career, I would expect Hurley to use him in a role aligned with his best nba position to give him his best chance. Is his only role just as a lob catcher? Or, is he just good at that so we use it?

 

[navery12]

Just a general speculative answer to Johnson's capability to play the 4.
1) He must have shown something to intrigue the staff in the 2 years before he had his first start at that position
2) He could shoot the 3 as a spot up shooter in HS which is how I first noticed him
3) Kids have some abilities which are not used in games by choice because of better alternatives
We know Clingan looks good shooting threes but he doesn't often attempt in games by choice
Sanogo shot 3's in high school and had an open court Euro step that most people attribute to him developing both at UConn
Sanogo only used his post skills early in his career so the assumption is that he added skills that he really just improved
4) In an all star game with Diggins, Johnson was flying in transition filling the wing offensively (did play center on defense as I recall)

The point being that the staff is coaching Johnson to play to his strengths at the 5, and he may have other attributes already.

To clarify, I am not advocating Johnson playing the 4, I'm just suggesting that we can recruit an excellent center if the possibility arises, because the staff could use Johnson differently than we see today. Also keep in mind that Hurley seems inclined to try to use players in a way that appeals to their nba chances. Hence Sanogo started to get the green light shooting 3's, and Andre's role with the ball in his hands as a facilitator increased. As Johnson gets to the end of his career, I would expect Hurley to use him in a role aligned with his best nba position to give him his best chance. Is his only role just as a lob catcher? Or, is he just good at that so we use it?

Yes, Johnson's role if he ever wants to sniff the NBA is as a 5 for the same reason Sanogo's role in the NBA was a 5. He is not remotely a good enough shooter to play the 4 in the NBA, and not even in UConn's offense. He can't score outside of 5', having 2 guys on offense at the 4 and 5 standing in the paint is going to make our offense look awful again.

We've run some of the best offense in college basketball the last 2 years, I have no idea why anyone would want to change that. I love Samson for everything he brings to the team, but his shot is broken. He can't even make FTs right now let alone stretch the floor to the 3 point line like we'd need from him at the 4. HS shooting means nothing to me, 90% of guys playing D1 are capable of shooting 3's in high school and putting together a highlight tape of enough makes. Not all of that translates to high level D1 basketball though

 

[runner11]

There is a kid from Belmont named Cade Tyson who is rumored to be entering the portal, and that is one that I hope we take a hard look at. Big heady sniper.

 

[ctchamps]

You're thinking about the value of sports differently than I am. Technically speaking, the UConn athletic department doesn't make a lick of money. But if we think they aren't adding value to the school, we're nuts. UConn just broke their record of applicants by 6,000 this year because we won a natty.

And yes, basically. Coaches get a recruiting budget (travel, flights, etc.). Clearly, UConn has enough money to recruit around the country. For a low-D1 or D2 school, it's very different. They're driving instead of flying, and the money to go to AAU events is prohibitive to good recruiting.

And it isn't 20$, it's hundreds. Not sure about lower-level events, but EYBL is 500$ for 1 coach, and like 200$ more for each additional coach. So if Tom, Luke, Kimani and Dan went to Atlanta for Peach Jam, they're spending 1000$ on just tickets to see games + flights + hotels + food. All told it's THOUSANDS for just one weekend.

Northeast Iowa Regional Technical College for Witchraft and Wizardy simply can't afford to recruit how they want to.

Come on! How much does it cost to fly on your brooms?

 

[Big Daddy]

https://x.com/jeffborzello/status/1770276530783973741?s=42&t=UpNqZZoEjBJYSP7QeOr5BA

 

[Vuce]

CardinalSportsReport - Stanford junior center Maxime Raynaud enters the transfer portal

On Tuesday, Stanford junior center Maxime Raynaud became the fourth Cardinal to enter the transfer portal.

stanford.rivals.com

Interesting......

 

[rip7774]

There is a kid from Belmont named Cade Tyson who is rumored to be entering the portal, and that is one that I hope we take a hard look at. Big heady sniper.

There is a kid from Belmont named Cade Tyson who is rumored to be entering the portal, and that is one that I hope we take a hard look at. Big heady sniper.

Watched them a few times since we knew one of the player’s families well. Not interested this early for sure. Just didn’t have any impact the times I watched.

 

[navery12]

Cliff Omoruyi reportedly will be entering the portal. Staff wanted him bad out of high school but ended up with Sanogo reclassing instead. Pike will be under pressure to win big next year with 2 top 5 recruits.

Unconfirmed buzz on the St John's board about Des Claude too, but Xavier is still playing and that could be false info from delusional Johnnies.

 

[UConnSwag11]

St. Johns

 

[UConnSwag11]

 

[How Sway?!]

St. Johns

Would be good for the league

UConn by 20