A Lot at Stake (Beyond the Obvious)

[RuffRuff]

We had a lot of turnover. But the core of our group was Jordan Hawkins, Andre Jackson, and Sanogo. The team was built around them and we brought in guys to complement them. Then Clingan was a monster behind Sanogo.

In today's game, how many of those three would have explored the portal?

 

[imno1]

In today's game, how many of those three would have explored the portal?

None

 

[cellocgg]

I used the CBS bracket autofiller for one bracket as is tradition and it picked UConn as the champ

 

[RuffRuff]

None

Year	Typical “average” NIL (men’s basketball)	Context
2022	~$1K–$10K (most players)	Market just launched, few structured collectives
2025	~$60K–$70K (overall avg)	Mature market + collectives + quasi-payrolls
Top programs 2025	~$100K–$350K+	Roster-level NIL budgets
Top players 2025	$1M–$10M+	Star-driven economy

 

[HW611]

None

I don’t know why some people think guys are leaving Willy nilly. Nobody leaves us unless we put them in a position to want to leave. This offseason was proof of that.

 

[navery12]

Year	Typical “average” NIL (men’s basketball)	Context
2022	~$1K–$10K (most players)	Market just launched, few structured collectives
2025	~$60K–$70K (overall avg)	Mature market + collectives + quasi-payrolls
Top programs 2025	~$100K–$350K+	Roster-level NIL budgets
Top players 2025	$1M–$10M+	Star-driven economy

I'm not sure what your point is here. None of the 3 would have left, we would have paid them

 

[storrsroars]

That deepster is an ass hat?

Already well established as fact.

 

[aceboon]

ESPN preview discussing possible title teams, 25 coaches/scouts were polled anonymously, UConn received one vote to win it all. I know AK has been slumping as usual but didn't realize it was this bad, RS Senior who has been around this long needs to be better than this.

Coaches predict the men's NCAA tournament champion, potential Cinderellas, more

There was one clear favorite among the 25 coaches polled. Here are their takes on seven contenders and more.

www.espn.com

The biggest thing moving forward, according to opposing Big East coaches, will be UConn's shotmakers finding their rhythm. Chief among them is Alex Karaban, who was a starter on two title-winning teams but is averaging 11.2 points and shooting 34.5% from 3 in his past 11 games.

"Alex Karaban is one of the all-time winning guys," one coach said. "Is he going to be able to step forward, as he's done at times. Can you be that guy with a target on your back? He's got to get going."

 

[WestCoastHusky]

We have one of the deepest roster in the country. To win it all, we need the following:

• Silas has to be healthy. His defense is not replaceable never mind his scoring during key moments.
• Reed has to play to his potential on the defense end especially.
• Alex has to make at least 35% of his 3s. He shot just 15% for March 2026.
• Mullins has to make at least 35% of his 3s. He shot just 17% for March 2026.
• Solo has to make at least 35% of his 3s. He shot 29% for March. Solo also needs to up his defense effort especially if he is not making 3s.
• Ross has to be our go to defender to shot down opponent's best scoring player.
• We need Stewart to be healthy. He is streaky, and we will need his defense and scoring.

We can do it!

 

[thekollieman]

Expectations by the fans about the program are unrealistic as we know. I think most of us would want the program to be more consistent in getting to the NCAA tournament every year or most years as opposed to the sort of hit or miss history we have. More consistent trips to the tournament are going to lead to getting knocked out more. Fans have to expect that. It will also lead to more opportunities to go to a Final Four. They aren't just going to get in there and win a championship every year even though that's the goal and that's what we want. This year they have one of maybe 8 teams that could win it. So we want a nice long run hopefully ending in a championship.

I believe this year makes a program-record 6 consecutive trips to the big dance! We should keep that in perspective, even as we suffered the first and second round losses along the way.

 

[Travelman6]

I believe this year makes a program-record 6 consecutive trips to the big dance! We should keep that in perspective, even as we suffered the first and second round losses along the way.

I think it would have been 7 too if not for the year that shall not be named.

It's crazy that, as amazing as Calhoun was, a HOF and one of the best college coaches ever, he never had a run of 6. 5 was his best from 2001-2006. Three other times he had 3 in a row, and two other times he had two in a row. 18 total.

 

[champs99and04]

One thing I've noticed is that people seem to have a very exaggerated view of what the Big East has been historically. We remember the glory years of the 80s and the post-expansion period from '06-'13, but for most of the 90s through the mid-00s, it was a very mediocre league by P6 standards. When we won our first title in '99, the league ranked 5th. When we won our second title in '04, the league ranked 4th. This year it's 5th.

I understand fans wanting to see better teams on the schedule, but the correlation between conference strength and program strength isn't what you think. More often than not, the most dominant programs play in so-so conferences - and they achieve that dominance not in spite of the mediocre conference, but because of it.

Look at which programs have had the longest periods of sustained excellence in the last 10-15 years - all of them were the undisputed alphas of their league. Kansas won the Big 12 a million years in a row - now the Big 12 is a gauntlet and KU's not as dominant. Villanova won the NBE every year - then UConn showed up. Houston got things rolling under Sampson in the AAC. When Cal was at his peak with Kentucky, the SEC was pretty pedestrian. And then there's obviously Gonzaga.

The Big East had a perfectly normal season for a power conference this year. Yes it was down, but it's only provoked such fatalistic reactions because the other leagues are twice as big.

 

[CL82]

Already well established as fact.

 

[thekollieman]

I think it would have been 7 too if not for the year that shall not be named.

It's crazy that, as amazing as Calhoun was, a HOF and one of the best college coaches ever, he never had a run of 6. 5 was his best from 2001-2006. Three other times he had 3 in a row, and two other times he had two in a row. 18 total.

That really is wild. It just goes to show we truly are spoiled (I state that endearingly). I’m glad our standards are so high but we also gotta stop and smell the roses. UConn bball is the shizz.

 

[UCONNFAN179]

No, it's not that if we lose early we'll never have success again. This isn't like the KO years where we had to fight to stay relevant and there actually was a lot at stake for the program on a decadal timescale. Hurley has earned a lot of credibility and we'll keep that for a while.

But the "how" of our future success depends a lot on what happens this month.

If we win 3-4 games, it'll be an Elite 8/Final Four year where we weren't quite at the level of other contenders, but showed our formula still gets it done in March and is worth staying the course.

If we get bounced this weekend, that would make for two underwhelming years in a row that warrants some course correction.

Totally agree. We have had more than our share of success overall, and Hurley has earned a long leash regardless of how the year finishes. However, if we flame out early in the tourney again this year after having our choice on roster construction again, there should, and will be some questions on that roster construction.

UConn/Hurley has clearly prioritized shooting and skill over athleticism during recruiting the past 2 years. He's also been very big on loyalty. If we fall short of expectations again, it is fair to ask if he's gone too far with both. For example, we again allocated a starters role and spent large NIL dollars on a freshman who everyone loves but who we know will likely never reach his potential while at UConn. It's fair to ask if it might be better next time to fill that role with more physically mature player(s) who may have less NBA upside, but who is/are more physically ready for the college/Big East grind while he/they is/are here. It's also fair to ask when it may be time to move past players in our system who we hoped/expected to make a leap, but haven't.