2020-2021 Roster

[ToolzieFan]

Comparing this years team to next year we will have:

Better PG play and better depth at PG.
Better two guard play assuming Bouk is back
Better play from the small forward position with Jackson, Wilson and occasionally Adams.
Better play from the 4 with Whaley and Springs
and Better play from Center with Carlton and Ferguson.

Other than that.....

I don’t see Whaley and Springs as better than Akok...

 

[Watchdog]

But please keep in mind that half if not more of Carlton's offensive rebounds are of his own missed shots around the rim...at least 2-3 per game.

Facts, schmacts, we don't need no stinkin' facts to cloud our emotions.

 

[Fatroony5]

I don’t see Whaley and Springs as better than Akok...

I think the staff will target a stretch 4 that has the ability to block shots and space the floor/shoot fairly well. If they can manage to find a guy who can guard 3-5 as needed, shot 35% from 3, and block some shots, it’d go a longggg way towards helping them next season. Think they go hard on post grad players, I’m going to make a post at some point about players that may make some sense.

 

[UConnDad]

Gives me hope to not be overly concerned with losing CV on rebounding front next season, plus for as poorly as JC has been offensively, he has been a beast on the boards: 10+ rebounds 2 of the last 3 games plus Whaley get his too.

2 different types of rebound. CV has a lot of loose ball rebounds.

 

[businesslawyer]

Facts, schmacts, we don't need no stinkin' facts to cloud our emotions.

Except he didn't give you a fact. He gave you an observation made to look like a fact by pulling a number out of his rear end.

 

[imno1]

Except he didn't give you a fact. He gave you an observation made to look like a fact by pulling a number out of his rear end.

Yes and a rebound's a rebound. Better he follows up his misses than not. But haters gonna hate. Everyone should rally around Josh. He's more important now than ever. I think he'll be up to the challenge.

 

[JB75]

I don’t see Whaley and Springs as better than Akok...

Nope. Much rather have akok

 

[Com'rGordon]

Going to need Wilson and Springs to take big steps forward next year, as well as bringing in another good big via freshman (cliff or adama) or grad transfer

 

[tennmike]

More than anything, we need the "armada."

 

[NEforceUConn]

Except he didn't give you a fact. He gave you an observation made to look like a fact by pulling a number out of his ass.

Corrected it for you.

 

[bendm]

I think the staff will target a stretch 4 that has the ability to block shots and space the floor/shoot fairly well

sure but guys like akok don't grow on trees. i'd also take a Nate Sestina type. he doesnt block shots but he rebounds and stretches the floor. 2 of the 3 skills is good enough.

 

[glastonbury50]

ACLs aren’t a death sentence like they used to be, but saying he’ll be back at 100% by the start of next season is very unlikely. It often takes top athletes over 18 months to get back to being 100%. His game doesn’t revolve around elite athleticism which is good, but it’s still gonna take time. I’m not banking on him even starting the season. As far as the body thing, we don’t need him to balloon up in weight. Idk what it is about this boards obsession with getting big for the sake of getting big. He’s a shooter, he’s not a physical banger. It’s good to add strength but we don’t need him to get to being a linebacker and have it affect his 3 point shooting.

Adrian Peterson came back stronger.

 

[UC313]

We need to just pluck one of SMU's wings/mobile bigs who can shoot. Jolly, Mike, or Hunt, I don't care which one. We just need one of those guys. They're all Polley+ or Sid+ upgrades. We'll have Whaley and Springs who can play a big 4. We need a small ball 4 who can stretch and attack a closeout and rebound/defend bigs for stretches on D.

Jolly, Mike, Hunt.

Might wanna break that crew up.

 

[Fatroony5]

Adrian Peterson came back stronger.

Tyler Phommachanh is not AP. Long term I’m sure he’ll be fine, but idk how ready he’ll be at the beginning of the season.

 

[Okafour rings]

Except he didn't give you a fact. He gave you an observation made to look like a fact by pulling a number out of his rear end.

It's called an estimate, and if you question it you're not watching the games.

 

[businesslawyer]

It's called an estimate, and if you question it you're not watching the games.

Yes, thank you, I watch all the games.

It's a silly thing to estimate. Moses Malone often rebounded his own shots 2 or 3 times before finishing. Was better at it than anyone I've ever seen. No one ever thought of "creative trashing" to argue he really wasn't a valuable rebounder because he rebounded his own misses.

 

[navery12]

Wednesday's Leftovers: Clifford Omoruyi, Texas, Louisville, more

Analyst Corey Evans also dips into his mailbag and addresses questions about JD Davidson and Trevor Keels.

basketballrecruiting.rivals.com

Make whatever you want of it, but Evans mentions 4 of Cliff's top 5 and it's not the good guys

 

[JimHurley]

Wednesday's Leftovers: Clifford Omoruyi, Texas, Louisville, more

Analyst Corey Evans also dips into his mailbag and addresses questions about JD Davidson and Trevor Keels.

basketballrecruiting.rivals.com

Make whatever you want of it, but Evans mentions 4 of Cliff's top 5 and it's not the good guys

As I’ve been saying for a while, I’ve heard we’ve largely been out of it since Javonte signed. People can have their opinions on whether or not having Josh and Javonte on the roster should deter Cliff, but it does. What Corey said is what I’ve heard as well, this is largely a Rutgers/ASU race.

 

[Phoenixhusky]

I live in the Tempe area and ASU basketball is an afterthought to most that live out here with the other sports options that exist. However, the weather is awesome and the campus is really nice and the woman are beautiful. It would be interesting if Cliff ends up here at ASU.

 

[Bonk]

Possible transfer candidate if Danny Manning is fired at Wake Forest would be Ismael Massoud. He played at Macduffie with Springs and Bouknight. Plays kinda like Polley, a 6’8 shooter. Averaging only 5.3 ppg rn but has been shooting the ball from deep very well as of late. His season 3pt average is 41.9%.


Not sure if another lanky SF is what we need next year but definitely someone to keep an eye on.

 

[Watchdog]

Except he didn't give you a fact. He gave you an observation made to look like a fact by pulling a number out of his rear end.

And can we assume he didn't give you a sense of humor either.

 

[Towney007]

Well we need to improve up front quite a bit and we need to replace Vital's production somehow.

I think Springs and Javonte Brown Ferguson give us a lot of physicality and length and frankly - depth up front - that we haven't had in forever. Whaley being this much better is like a blessing from the gods, but i'm still not a point where i'd be comfortable saying you count on it. Carlton will burn some minutes, but he's so one-dimensional, I don't know where he fits in; and that's not even getting into us adding another big up front whether it's Sanogo/Cliff/surprise recruit/grad transfer. And if Akok does come back and provides us with something positive, he's the guy who to me is the odd man out. Still - we might be a little raw, but we'll have length, size, athleticism and actual options. Right now it's the broken remains of Carlton and then hoping for the best from Whaley. It's gonna be a big upgrade.

Cole picks up a lot of the slack from Vital but more importantly - gives us an actual, real point guard who's not some hybrid-2 (Vital/Adams) or a PG profile who's significantly better off the ball (Gilbert). Pairing him up with Gaffney and assuming Bouknight is back (which i'm 90% sure he will be) - and you've got four guards (possibly 5 if Gilbert is back) who bring a real great blend of talent and experience. I think in some combination - Vital's production gets replaced pretty easily.

We'll also be more explosive next year, too - as Wilson won't have to moonlight up front at all and him and Jackson can be used as actual, bonafide wings. Both - outside of maybe Bouknight - will be two of the best athletes on the team from day-1. Polley will give us a spot shooter - but i'm kinda hoping we can use him off the bench like that.

I think we'll definitely be better next year - like.. a lot better. But our schedule is also a hellscape and the degree of difficulty is sky rocketing, so i'm not so sure we see a dramatic uptick if any in the W-L column - so to me again - at least as of *right now* - it's gonna be another 'eyeball' season and not one where we're counting post season appearances, etc.

I DO THINK though, that unlike this year - there's a clear path to us becoming a tournament team or one that makes a lot of noise nationally. But again - *RIGHT NOW* - things have to happen and someone who isn't a major contributor is going to have to make a step forward next year... Maybe Brendan Adams becomes a guy who's a more consistent shooter or maybe Wilson finally figures it out. But mostly what sticks out to me is that we have a workable roster for the first time since probably 2015. A lot of the things the Ollie guys do well are things they'll be used to do well instead of being stuck in over their heads in roles that are either outsized or being depended on for other things. Polley will be able to shoot and just do that. Gilbert can be played off the ball more. Wilson won't have to pretend to be Jeff Adrien. Carlton can be used selectively and camped under the hoop when we need a guy who can do that at a specific time. We'll have enough talent and athleticism around them that we'll be able to use them much better than we have been.

To me the real keys will be getting Akok back and hopefully it's good. Wilson is a guy i'm dying to see break out so i'm hoping he figures it out.. and if Whaley can maintain - man, we could POSSIBLY be pretty dangerous.

 

[Chief00]

Having two starters coming off long recovery duration type injuries, makes things challenging. That creates a high level of uncertainty and strain regarding creating/maintaining chemistry. This isn’t an easy coaching challenge.
All of the above, is not even factoring in AG and Sid situations, which will get resolution sooner.
I think this is as far as I can go on this without breaking the rules.

 

[UofCT]

Having two starters coming off long recovery duration type injuries, makes things challenging. That creates a high level of uncertainty and strain regarding creating/maintaining chemistry. This isn’t an easy coaching challenge.
All of the above, is not even factoring in AG and Sid situations, which will get resolution sooner.
I think this is as far as I can go on this without breaking the rules.

Will you really get banned if you say Sid is going to transfer and Gilbert may not leave?

 

[Fatroony5]

Well we need to improve up front quite a bit and we need to replace Vital's production somehow.

I think Springs and Javonte Brown Ferguson give us a lot of physicality and length and frankly - depth up front - that we haven't had in forever. Whaley being this much better is like a blessing from the gods, but i'm still not a point where i'd be comfortable saying you count on it. Carlton will burn some minutes, but he's so one-dimensional, I don't know where he fits in; and that's not even getting into us adding another big up front whether it's Sanogo/Cliff/surprise recruit/grad transfer. And if Akok does come back and provides us with something positive, he's the guy who to me is the odd man out. Still - we might be a little raw, but we'll have length, size, athleticism and actual options. Right now it's the broken remains of Carlton and then hoping for the best from Whaley. It's gonna be a big upgrade.

Cole picks up a lot of the slack from Vital but more importantly - gives us an actual, real point guard who's not some hybrid-2 (Vital/Adams) or a PG profile who's significantly better off the ball (Gilbert). Pairing him up with Gaffney and assuming Bouknight is back (which i'm 90% sure he will be) - and you've got four guards (possibly 5 if Gilbert is back) who bring a real great blend of talent and experience. I think in some combination - Vital's production gets replaced pretty easily.

We'll also be more explosive next year, too - as Wilson won't have to moonlight up front at all and him and Jackson can be used as actual, bonafide wings. Both - outside of maybe Bouknight - will be two of the best athletes on the team from day-1. Polley will give us a spot shooter - but i'm kinda hoping we can use him off the bench like that.

I think we'll definitely be better next year - like.. a lot better. But our schedule is also a hellscape and the degree of difficulty is sky rocketing, so i'm not so sure we see a dramatic uptick if any in the W-L column - so to me again - at least as of *right now* - it's gonna be another 'eyeball' season and not one where we're counting post season appearances, etc.

I DO THINK though, that unlike this year - there's a clear path to us becoming a tournament team or one that makes a lot of noise nationally. But again - *RIGHT NOW* - things have to happen and someone who isn't a major contributor is going to have to make a step forward next year... Maybe Brendan Adams becomes a guy who's a more consistent shooter or maybe Wilson finally figures it out. But mostly what sticks out to me is that we have a workable roster for the first time since probably 2015. A lot of the things the Ollie guys do well are things they'll be used to do well instead of being stuck in over their heads in roles that are either outsized or being depended on for other things. Polley will be able to shoot and just do that. Gilbert can be played off the ball more. Wilson won't have to pretend to be Jeff Adrien. Carlton can be used selectively and camped under the hoop when we need a guy who can do that at a specific time. We'll have enough talent and athleticism around them that we'll be able to use them much better than we have been.

To me the real keys will be getting Akok back and hopefully it's good. Wilson is a guy i'm dying to see break out so i'm hoping he figures it out.. and if Whaley can maintain - man, we could POSSIBLY be pretty dangerous.

Good post, I agree with a lot of that. First, I’ll say Im not sure it’s fair to expect anything from AA given the brutal injury he had. there’s not a lot of guys who have sustained that injury soooo young. You can come back from crazy stuff before like 25, but seeing what KD has done (maybe the best comp to model AA timeframe off of given his size) I’m skeptical AA will have much of an impact if he even suits up. It’d put the kid in a tough spot, let’s say he comes back at 12 months, you’re trying to ease him back in while in the grind of the late season conference play, really tough spot. To me, if they get anything from him cool, but he’s gotta focus on what’s best for him and his long term recovery.

the front court does scare me a little bit. I love the develop of IW, but the regression of JC has hurt a lot. J B F is so young, idk what he can realistic give you next season. Richie to me is the key, can he come in and give you valuable minutes at the 5 when needed? Given he’s a Hurley guy and has had the entire season to practice and get his body right into next Season, I think it’s fair to expect him to give you at least some to modest production there. It’s impossible to replace what AA does and the tragectory he was on into next season. I think adding a grad transfer at the 4 spot makes so much sense and will help replace him. It’ll help to have an older, experienced guy to replace some of CV production as well.

I like the back court and we’ll see improvements there from the players currently playing and hopefully steady play from RJ. Sid is a little lost right now and with AJ coming in,he sort of feels like the odd man out. I’m very excited to see AJ play, his athleticism, play making, and length should help. The BigEast is a tough conference so I don’t want to say tourney or bust, but man, UConn can’t afford to go another year with no tourney. Either way, excited for the end of this season and projecting into next, the buzz/hype is certainly different than it was just two seasons ago.