2026 Recruiting: Abdou Toure update from aaron torres

[HW611]

I will pull a 611 and bring receipts

 

[superjohn]

The staff didn’t even know Mullins was available until April after the season because he was an Indiana commit.

You're making this up.

 

[husky429]

IF, if we're not as high on Toure perhaps it is because by going to ND WH he plays the AAA #1 role there and doesnt demonstrate as much connectivity or other Uconn type traits, RIGHT now. I still think he would be great for our program.

We aren't shy about pulling players.from lower-level hs programs (see: Donovan and Braylon).

 

[HW611]

You're making this up.

Went back and checked and yeah we had him early. Don’t know what I was thinking about. Was it McNeeley who decided to come here super late?

Edit: it was McNeeley who was also an Indiana commit hence the confusion lol

My bad.

But also, I don’t think it was between Thomas and Mullins. Think once we backed off Thomas it was Adams who was next at that position.

 

[Son of Robert]

Went back and checked and yeah we had him early. Don’t know what I was thinking about. Was it McNeeley who decided to come here super late?

Yes

 

[boog204]

Was he? I felt like the board pivoted off Thomas quick once it was clear the staff prioritized to Mullins. He did his OT elite thing and just never felt like the staff put any energy into him after his visit.

Difference between Toure and the usual Cal recruit is that he’s not a high end top 10 blue chipper like Cal always feasted on and hoarded, he’s the 35th ranked kid in a weak class. And this UConn staff can pretty much pick who they want and have a decent chance of landing - the program has never had this kinda clout. I’m sure he’s going to be a nice player, but not losing any sleep over it.

We pivoted because it was clear that it was going to be more of a drawn-out recruitment, there was going to be serious $$ considerations, and we needed to move quickly on Adams, Lewis, and Mullins. If Thomas had decided to still commit (obviously hypothetical), we would've been ecstatic. Many on this board still held out hope (since Thomas still had us in his top three) for quite a while that he would come here.

My point is that this board very frequently trashes prospective recruits and their characters when they don't commit here. And I think it's just lame. In Toure's case, I think we probably prefer other players, whether that's "right" or not, who knows, and it sounds like $$ is a factor. That doesn't mean Toure is "not a UConn kid."

And someone posted above that Toure could be a "developmental" piece. That's not happening. He's a top 30ish recruit. 99% of D1 teams will promise the kid major minutes or a starting role from day one. He's not coming here to sit and develop.

 

[RuffRuff]

We pivoted because it was clear that it was going to be more of a drawn-out recruitment, there was going to be serious $$ considerations, and we needed to move quickly on Adams, Lewis, and Mullins. If Thomas had decided to still commit (obviously hypothetical), we would've been ecstatic. Many on this board still held out hope (since Thomas still had us in his top three) for quite a while that he would come here.

My point is that this board very frequently trashes prospective recruits and their characters when they don't commit here. And I think it's just lame. In Toure's case, I think we probably prefer other players, whether that's "right" or not, who knows, and it sounds like $$ is a factor. That doesn't mean Toure is "not a UConn kid."

And someone posted above that Toure could be a "developmental" piece. That's not happening. He's a top 30ish recruit. 99% of D1 teams will promise the kid major minutes or a starting role from day one. He's not coming here to sit and develop.

Hear yeah - but you can only feed so many freshmen mouths and be successful. In most cases I’d be hard pressed to think it’s more than 1.5 if you want to be any good. So you have to choose and spend wisely. I def don’t think he’s not a UConn kinda kid, but if he’s going with Cal l, probably means his priorities are a tad askew to the Hurley principles. Could not think of two more different coaching styles.

 

[HW611]

I’m really curious about the thoughts around recruits wanting to play for Cal.

If you had NBA aspirations and wanted to make generational wealth for your family and a guy comes into your living room and says.

“Look at these guys who I’ve coached and received max contracts, became All-NBA, Olympic teams, MVPs, All Stars, you name it. You can be next and you should play for me.”

Who wouldn’t be interested in that kind of pitch? Competing for championships are cool, but they aren’t going to pay bills 10 years later. And there’s not even a guarantee you win because only 1 team wins each year. It’s probably a smarter choice to prioritize your NBA and future earnings that you have way more control over than to take a risk to give yourself a better shot at a championship that can be lost on a lucky bounce. Kids who play for Cal may actually be some of the most logical kids recruiting wise.

 

[alexd]

I’m really curious about the thoughts around recruits wanting to play for Cal.

If you had NBA aspirations and wanted to make generational wealth for your family and a guy comes into your living room and says.

“Look at these guys who I’ve coached and received max contracts, became All-NBA, Olympic teams, MVPs, All Stars, you name it. You can be next and you should play for me.”

Who wouldn’t be interested in that kind of pitch? Competing for championships are cool, but they aren’t going to pay bills 10 years later. And there’s not even a guarantee you win because only 1 team wins each year. It’s probably a smarter choice to prioritize your NBA and future earnings that you have way more control over than to take a risk to give yourself a better shot at a championship that can be lost on a lucky bounce. Kids who play for Cal may actually be some of the most logical kids recruiting wise.

Its true about Cal players in the NBA. But he really doesn't develop players either. For one year he babysits the top kids from each class he gets and tries not to screw them up before the NBA draft the following year.

 

[RuffRuff]

I’m really curious about the thoughts around recruits wanting to play for Cal.

If you had NBA aspirations and wanted to make generational wealth for your family and a guy comes into your living room and says.

“Look at these guys who I’ve coached and received max contracts, became All-NBA, Olympic teams, MVPs, All Stars, you name it. You can be next and you should play for me.”

Who wouldn’t be interested in that kind of pitch? Competing for championships are cool, but they aren’t going to pay bills 10 years later. And there’s not even a guarantee you win because only 1 team wins each year. It’s probably a smarter choice to prioritize your NBA and future earnings that you have way more control over than to take a risk to give yourself a better shot at a championship that can be lost on a lucky bounce. Kids who play for Cal may actually be some of the most logical kids recruiting wise.

lol. You can do all those things while playing in a disciplined system with structure, being more of a role player in year one. Focus on winning. Ask Castle.

Most of Cal’s lottery picks would have been lottery picks anywhere they went. He’s just a salesman. He teaches kids how to carry themself in the NBA more than he does about winning at the college level. Ask UK fans.

Cal started Fland as a frosh when he had an AA caliber F4 senior transfer on his bench and didn’t start winning until Fland got hurt.

 

[HW611]

lol. You can do all those things while playing in a disciplined system with structure, being more of a role player in year one. Focus on winning. Ask Castle.

Most of Cal’s lottery picks would have been lottery picks anywhere they went. He’s just a salesman. He teaches kids how to carry themself in the NBA more than he does about winning at the college level. Ask UK fans.

Cal started Fland as a frosh when he had an AA caliber F4 senior transfer on his bench and didn’t start winning until Fland got hurt.

You don’t think Castle wouldn’t have been a lottery pick anywhere he went? The kid who had to sacrifice more than anyone else on that 2024 team?

And to the point, Cal starting Fland goes back to the preparing for the NBA/getting generational wealth over winning. Cal wanted to make sure Fland got his opportunity to showcase his talent and grow to prepare. That’s what these kids want. Knowing how to win at the college level isn’t going to make you $80 million a year later.

I’m looking at this from a prospective recruit perspective, not a fan perspective only concerned about their team winning and not actually caring as much about how the kids life would be after leaving their program.

 

[HW611]

Its true about Cal players in the NBA. But he really doesn't develop players either. For one year he babysits the top kids from each class he gets and tries not to screw them up before the NBA draft the following year.

Maybe. But I’m not betting my future on believing it’s just luck at this point. The results are pretty much undeniable. Especially if on the flip side there’s little to no results on kids being highly successful or highly paid yet.

 

[Nameless]

this is the part of the conversation confusing me the most. It’s not like we lost interest or backed off, we literally just went to see him as you posted. It’s also strange people keep saying he wasn’t interested, we made his top 3 and he visited us multiple times.

If he goes elsewhere, so be it. But I’m not buying any of these rumors or narratives people are throwing out. It’s probably just NIL.

I think the staff would love to have him here. He's talented, athletic and seems like a good kid from a good family. In that sense he does "fit the Hurley mould."

However, anyone who has watched this team the past few years knows there will likely be one freshman who plays a lot, maybe one scrapping for 5 minutes a game, and the rest of the class will be riding the pine save for garbage time.

Toure has hinted in local papers UConn is his dream school. We are in his final 3. It's clear there is at least a part of him that wants to be here. As you noted the staff was still attending his games as of a few weeks ago. So there is still clearly some interest there as well.

But Providence desperately needs a player of his caliber and is throwing the house at him to get his commitment. Arkansas has tons of cash and minutes available as well. Hurley is honest with recruits and has probably told him he would have to fight tooth and nail just to have a shot at those 5 aforementioned minutes each game. After losing multiple freshmen from last year's team, I doubt we are throwing huge NIL figures at guys we ultimately see more as a developmental piece. It just makes more sense for him to go to a school where there will be more money and minutes available from day 1.

I agree with you people seem to be weaving narratives out of tidbits of information. I obviously just did the same, it's all we can really do when we aren't directly connected to the program. But from what I'm seeing I think a lot of people don't like the optics of losing a local, highly rated recruit (especially if it is to PC) and are trying to make sense of how we could "lose" this recruitment. "His recruitment became too much about money" and "he's just not a fit for the Hurley system" are statements that have been true for players we've pursued then stopped recruiting before. If you look at Toure's recruitment through a narrow lense you can easily make both arguments for his recruitment. But I don't think either are true. Taking more NIL and a better shot at minutes doesn't make one greedy. Toure would likely be at least a rotation piece by his sophomore year so I doubt the staff has completely lost interest.

Sometimes you want something in life but there's better opportunities out there. That's how this feels to me, for both parties.

 

[RuffRuff]

You don’t think Castle wouldn’t have been a lottery pick anywhere he went? The kid who had to sacrifice more than anyone else on that 2024 team?

And to the point, Cal starting Fland goes back to the preparing for the NBA/getting generational wealth over winning. Cal wanted to make sure Fland got his opportunity to showcase his talent and grow to prepare. That’s what these kids want. Knowing how to win at the college level isn’t going to make you $80 million a year later.

I’m looking at this from a prospective recruit perspective, not a fan perspective only concerned about their team winning and not actually caring as much about how the kids life would be after leaving their program.

Point is, if top programs are interchangeable in terms of getting to the NBA, why not play with a program you can connect to for a lifetime and maybe win a title? That's what Hurley looks for. If all college is to you is an NBA showcase, go play for Cal.

 

[HW611]

Point is, if top programs are interchangeable in terms of getting to the NBA, why not play with a program you can connect to for a lifetime and maybe win a title? That's what Hurley looks for. If all college is to you is an NBA showcase, go play for Cal.

If you think programs are interchangeable in that way, then yes.

But if you are open to listening to how coaches prepare guys to make generational wealth and take care of their families for life and want proof, no coach is bringing in the CVS receipt that Cal is.

I’m not even speaking up for Cal here moreso defending kids who make the extremely logical decision of trusting a guy with his resume to help do the same for them. Any kid who decides to put their future in Cal’s hands is smart and as your example showed, he’ll make sure he values it even if it hurts himself.

 

[auror]

You don’t think Castle wouldn’t have been a lottery pick anywhere he went? The kid who had to sacrifice more than anyone else on that 2024 team?

And to the point, Cal starting Fland goes back to the preparing for the NBA/getting generational wealth over winning. Cal wanted to make sure Fland got his opportunity to showcase his talent and grow to prepare. That’s what these kids want. Knowing how to win at the college level isn’t going to make you $80 million a year later.

I’m looking at this from a prospective recruit perspective, not a fan perspective only concerned about their team winning and not actually caring as much about how the kids life would be after leaving their program.

I think if he had gone elsewhere, there's a pretty decent he wasn't a lottery pick as a freshman, yeah. This is assuming he still gets hurt in the year. Practically, UConn just straight up played more games and he wasn't required to be a focal point since UConn was loaded, which was helpful since he was recovering from his injury. His season may have gone like McNeeley's where he was having to take a big offensive burden after returning quickly from an injury while playing the toughest part of the schedule. It really hurt McNeeley's efficiency.

And in general, if he's taking a higher usage in the offense, it likely leads to more dribble jumpers, which he took a lot of in high school. He doesn't make them at a high rate. Maybe he's able to get downhill more in a different offense and he showcases some different skills. But there's also a good chance if he's higher on the offensive pecking order he doesn't get/have to guard the toughest defensive assignments and he doesn't get the reputation as a lockdown defender, which greatly boosted his stock.

 

[HW611]

I think if he had gone elsewhere, there's a pretty decent he wasn't a lottery pick as a freshman, yeah. This is assuming he still gets hurt in the year. Practically, UConn just straight up played more games and he wasn't required to be a focal point since UConn was loaded, which was helpful since he was recovering from his injury. His season may have gone like McNeeley's where he was having to take a big offensive burden after returning quickly from an injury while playing the toughest part of the schedule. It really hurt McNeeley's efficiency.

And in general, if he's taking a higher usage in the offense, it likely leads to more dribble jumpers, which he took a lot of in high school. He doesn't make them at a high rate. Maybe he's able to get downhill more in a different offense and he showcases some different skills. But there's also a good chance if he's higher on the offensive pecking order he doesn't get/have to guard the toughest defensive assignments and he doesn't get the reputation as a lockdown defender, which greatly boosted his stock.

McNeeley and Castle are not great comparisons. McNeeley was average athletically and size wise for his position.

Castle was a 6’6 PG with high level floor vision, IQ, and NBA dunk contest athleticism.

I think you’re selling him short if you don’t think he could’ve went lottery anywhere that would’ve allowed him to showcase himself as a 6’6 PG with elite athleticism. I can make a case with as weak as that draft was that he could’ve went #1 if he was able to show the NBA that over them thinking he was a 6’6 3 and D wing defender.

What you just described was Anthony Edward’s at Georgia minus the injury. He shot 40% from the field and 27% from three. Don’t think scouts really cared about his efficiency. Do you also think Dylan Harper was a better prospect than Castle coming out of HS?

 

[Inyatkin]

Are we still at this point wondering why kids go to schools coached by Calipari? They like him. He gets kids to the NBA. The rest is details.

It doesn't make a kid selfish or "not a fit" if he goes to Arkansas.

 

[ucp990411]

Maybe I am ignorant, naive or ill informed or possibly all 3. But wasn’t the settlement reached regarding NIL payments supposed to control paying players? Why then does Arkansas have a boatload of money to pay players?

 

[Stinger92860]

Maybe I am ignorant, naive or ill informed or possibly all 3. But wasn’t the settlement reached regarding NIL payments supposed to control paying players? Why then does Arkansas have a boatload of money to pay players?

Correct me if I’m wrong but there is no cap on NIL. That’s how Arch Manning gets $5m or more a year. He just has to do NIL stuff, right?

 

[HW611]

Correct me if I’m wrong but there is no cap on NIL. That’s how Arch Manning gets $5m or more a year. He just has to do NIL stuff, right?

I think this is it. You just can’t get paid 3M to make one appearance somewhere. The deals have to be legit marketing deals.

 

[navery12]

Maybe I am ignorant, naive or ill informed or possibly all 3. But wasn’t the settlement reached regarding NIL payments supposed to control paying players? Why then does Arkansas have a boatload of money to pay players?

It set a theoretical limit, though the ability to enforce it is still very much up for debate. But even the limits set are very high and by no means restrictive for the P5 schools. And you'll always have cases where one school values a player more than another like Arkansas' reportedly does for Toure

 

[HooperScooper]

Correct me if I’m wrong but there is no cap on NIL. That’s how Arch Manning gets $5m or more a year. He just has to do NIL stuff, right?

Correct, there is no cap on NIL. But all the NIL deals over a low threshold ($6000 or something like that) need to be vetted that they are "market value". So the old system of just handing out money, so called "pay for play", is over. Unless teams cheat. That could be too. See this article on the subject.

As college basketball enters its most uncertain era yet, few believe the new rules will stop the flow of money

College basketball's next phase in the revenue-sharing era has many questioning what's real and if cheating will come back in a big way

www.cbssports.com

 

[navery12]

 

[RuffRuff]

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Well look at that.