Abu on UConn and Ollie

[babysheep]

Not sure how anyone can be concerned when KO, despite the circumstances in which he entered this job a year ago, has pulled in multiple top 20 recruits. Imagine what he can do once he actually gets a track record beyond a win over MSU and Cuse; once he can actually take his team to the tournament. As far as the conference concerns, look at Few and Gonzaga. They don't even dream of having the pedigree UConn has, yet they consistently recruit and get exposure (and you might recall their #1 seed this tournament). In the WCC.

 

[CTBasketball]

Aac is a short term and long term issue...

We're stuck in the AAC unless the football team starts winning. Since that's not the case we may be here for a while.

 

[mauconnfan]

We're stuck in the AAC unless the football team starts winning. Since that's not the case we may be here for a while.

That's not going to happen soon CT.......they're lucky to beat Buffalo this year and get 1 win with that guy at the helm.

Maybe a another NC will help the big guys forgive the football team? LOL

 

[mauconnfan]

We where out of the abu race becasue we opted to play clean. Pc is in the same ship. Hands where out and some of these teams reached into their pockets

If true 99 then we really don't need a kid who can't make his own decision and needs to follow the gift trail with his slimy AAU coach........not strong enough mentally for Storrs!!

 

[CTBasketball]

That's not going to happen soon CT.......they're lucky to beat Buffalo this year and get 1 win with that guy at the helm.

Maybe a another NC will help the big guys forgive the football team? LOL

Hopefully you're right. I want them to win as much as those on the football board, after all it is UConn. But the guy at the helm is doing the state a disservice.

And I have a feeling Ollie won't get a top frontcourt recruit until either Nolan, Facey, Brimah, etc. get drafted. Our history of turning out good big-men was primarily with Calhoun and that skill cannot carry over to a new coach. It may be a few years until we get a blue-chip forward/center. But that's just my opinion. Ollie will certainly reel in the guards though, he will have no problem with that.

 

[mauconnfan]

Hopefully you're right. I want them to win as much as those on the football board, after all it is UConn. But the guy at the helm is doing the state a disservice.

And I have a feeling Ollie won't get a top frontcourt recruit until either Nolan, Facey, Brimah, etc. get drafted. Our history of turning out good big-men was primarily with Calhoun and that skill cannot carry over to a new coach. It may be a few years until we get a blue-chip forward/center. But that's just my opinion. Ollie will certainly reel in the guards though, he will have no problem with that.

As long as we get serviceable bigs who do their job and continue to get the guards, swings and hybrids you can win. There's more Jake Voskhul's out there and a few Deandre's out there as well who are long enough to play the 4 with other good wings in the lineup. While I am a proponent of being a national leader in plus rebound average as long as you have people who can fill it up and rebound a little you can win games. I hope you're wrong about the bigs and PF's but you do have a point!!

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

I've been fascinated by Abu's interview demeanor from the start. Both in the style of his answers to questions and the words that he chooses, he shows the signs of someone holding back information, or not giving the whole story. It's easy to attribute that style during the recruitment phase to playing it close to the vest, and that may be so...

I only mention this because of the speculation on what was deficient about UConn. I'm sure the AAC doesn't help, but be wary of giving credence to reasons that in reality factored very low in his decision.

Anyway, Abu is still answering questions like he's holding something back. He could very well mean everything he is saying, but we'll never get the whole picture, at least not from him.

 

[3uconn]

If true 99 then we really don't need a kid who can't make his own decision and needs to follow the gift trail with his slimy AAU coach........not strong enough mentally for Storrs!!

You guys have to understand that this happens with 60% or more of top 100 players. Coaches have to find out who the decision maker is out of the recruits group. Sometimes it's actually the recruit, sometimes the dad, mom, guardian, AAU coach, or high school coach. Usually whoever finds out first is in the drivers seat. Once you find it out its often times critical to have a better relationship with the decision maker than the recruit himself.

 

[mauconnfan]

You guys have to understand that this happens with 60% or more of top 100 players. Coaches have to find out who the decision maker is out of the recruits group. Sometimes it's actually the recruit, sometimes the dad, mom, guardian, AAU coach, or high school coach. Usually whoever finds out first is in the drivers seat. Once you find it out its often times critical to have a better relationship with the decision maker than the recruit himself.

C'mon 3 I think we ALL know that one..........and I am sure KO and staff knew who it was. But "all in" with the decision maker could mean multiple things!! How you get yourself to the drivers seat is also different in all of these recruits to as some play by the books and others may not!

 

[Palatine]

Losing is losing. We wanted Abu and didn't land him. Period.

However, many times in the past we have found players that have exceeded the targets we lost. We'll see.

 

[DreamSeason]

Losing is losing. We wanted Abu and didn't land him. Period.

However, many times in the past we have found players that have exceeded the targets we lost. We'll see.

Yeah....its time to move on. I doubt we'll even remember this in 2014

 

[RMoore1999]

We where out of the abu race becasue we opted to play clean. Pc is in the same ship. Hands where out and some of these teams reached into their pockets

What emerged from those pockets? Permissible promises to help out the aau club, or something more sinister?

 

[upstater]

The AAC of course plays a role, but you have to go beyond the conference and look a little closer. Why do we prize conferences?

1. TV exposure
2. Better competition

Is there any other benefit to being in a conference? Only one.

3. Money.

Let's assume Abu doesn't care about how much TV money that NC State is getting relative to Florida or UConn.

If #3 isn't a consideration, then you have to look closely at #s 1 and 2.

When it comes to #1, UConn blows away NC State.

When it comes to #2, yes of course I'd trade away UConn's schedule for NC State's (largely for the opportunity to play Duke, UNC and old rivals Pitt and Cuse), BUT the new ACC isn't what the old one used to be. NC State has 3 games against Duke and UNC. 1 against Cuse.

Overall, NC State is playing 7 games against team that are ranked in preseason top 25-35 polls, whereas UConn has 9 on the schedule.

What may hurt UConn is that the bottom of the conference schedule is much less glamorous, but if I'm playing more top games against more top teams, and have a lot more TV exposure, the last thing I'm concerned about is the quality of the bottom third of the conference.

In short, I don't buy this statement about head coaches. The #1 thing I worry about if I'm a recruit is, #1 playing time. #2 coaching and the prospect of improving my game, #3 TV exposure.

He has it in his head that NC State gives him the best opportunity to play and improve, that's it. The AAC hurt, but it's minor. It's an excuse.

Maybe I'm wrong, maybe the players are not yet clued in to the fact that UConn is going to be on bigtime TV a heckuva lot. That could be.

 

[upstater]

My big fear is that we'll become another NC State with a championship last won 30 years ago, a school forever in search of new coaches because our current one can't cut it, a school that cycles through Les Robinson, Sidney Lowe, Herb Sendek, Mike Gottfried, and doesn't turn out pros. That's my nightmare.

Some schools might be satisfied with landing in big conference for the cover it gives them (Rutgers, BC, etc.) but if you're irrelevant and struggling, then what good is it? Hope springs eternal I guess.

 

[RMoore1999]

The AAC of course plays a role, but you have to go beyond the conference and look a little closer. Why do we prize conferences?

1. TV exposure
2. Better competition

Is there any other benefit to being in a conference? Only one.

3. Money.

Let's assume Abu doesn't care about how much TV money that NC State is getting relative to Florida or UConn.

If #3 isn't a consideration, then you have to look closely at #s 1 and 2.

When it comes to #1, UConn blows away NC State.

When it comes to #2, yes of course I'd trade away UConn's schedule for NC State's (largely for the opportunity to play Duke, UNC and old rivals Pitt and Cuse), BUT the new ACC isn't what the old one used to be. NC State has 3 games against Duke and UNC. 1 against Cuse.

Overall, NC State is playing 7 games against team that are ranked in preseason top 25-35 polls, whereas UConn has 9 on the schedule.

What may hurt UConn is that the bottom of the conference schedule is much less glamorous, but if I'm playing more top games against more top teams, and have a lot more TV exposure, the last thing I'm concerned about is the quality of the bottom third of the conference.

In short, I don't buy this statement about head coaches. The #1 thing I worry about if I'm a recruit is, #1 playing time. #2 coaching and the prospect of improving my game, #3 TV exposure.

He has it in his head that NC State gives him the best opportunity to play and improve, that's it. The AAC hurt, but it's minor. It's an excuse.

Maybe I'm wrong, maybe the players are not yet clued in to the fact that UConn is going to be on bigtime TV a heckuva lot. That could be.

Most recruits will trade 3-5 games vs. UNC, Duke and Cuse and the ACC tourney, for 16 games on ESPNU vs. Cincy, SMU, ECU, USF, UCF and a couple of nice games w/ Memphis. 17 yr olds care more about marquee matchups vs. brand names, than they do about the actual relative competitive reality of aac v acc.

 

[DreamSeason]

Speculating is fun

 

[upstater]

Most recruits will trade 3-5 games vs. UNC, Duke and Cuse and the ACC tourney, for 16 games on ESPNU vs. Cincy, SMU, ECU, USF, UCF and a couple of nice games w/ Memphis. 17 yr olds care more about marquee matchups vs. brand names, than they do about the actual relative competitive reality of aac v acc.

You clearly have not looked at UConn's schedule. And compared it to NC State's.

It's 16 games against Stanford, Maryland, Florida, Indiana, Louisville, Memphis on CBS, ESPN and ESPN2 versus 4 games against UNC, Duke, Cincy and Missouri on CBS, ESPN, ESPN2. The games against UNC at home and Syracuse are NOT televised outside of Raycom. Think about that.

I urge UConn fans to look at the schedule and realize that UConn is not the school being kicked off the major networks this year. I guess the disaster of the AAC has persisted so much that even our fans think UConn has been relegated to ESPNU, but this is not the case at all.

 

[DreamSeason]

If Ollie is as good a coach and recruiter as we think he is, the AAC shouldn't prevent him from getting top talent to come to Storrs. It will have a disastrous effect on the football team, but the Memphises, Xaviers, Butlers, VCUs and Gonzagas of the world have shown us that you can still be a very good program in a midmajor conference.

But right now, the conference realignment dust is still in the process of settling. No one has seen the AAC in action yet (I'm being liberal when I use the world "action" to describe this conference) and Louisville is still on the way out, so you can bet your a* the conference is a drain on UConn's recruiting at the moment.

I think a year of being highly ranked and (hopefully) a deep tourney run will put a lot of those concerns to rest, at least from UConn's standpoint. We'll probably have a much clearer picture of Ollie's recruiting ability a year from now.

If Ollie is as good a coach and recruiter as we think he is, the AAC shouldn't prevent him from getting top talent to come to Storrs. It will have a disastrous effect on the football team, but the Memphises, Xaviers, Butlers, VCUs and Gonzagas of the world have shown us that you can still be a very good program in a midmajor conference.

But right now, the conference realignment dust is still in the process of settling. No one has seen the AAC in action yet (I'm being liberal when I use the world "action" to describe this conference) and Louisville is still on the way out, so you can bet your a* the conference is a drain on UConn's recruiting at the moment.

I think a year of being highly ranked and (hopefully) a deep tourney run will put a lot of those concerns to rest, at least from UConn's standpoint. We'll probably have a much clearer picture of Ollie's recruiting ability a year from now.

Not willing to bet my a* since the aac just pulled arguably the number one recruit in the country but I'm in 100% agreement with the first and last part of your post

 

[RMoore1999]

You clearly have not looked at UConn's schedule. And compared it to NC State's.

It's 16 games against Stanford, Maryland, Florida, Indiana, Louisville, Memphis on CBS, ESPN and ESPN2 versus 4 games against UNC, Duke, Cincy and Missouri on CBS, ESPN, ESPN2. The games against UNC at home and Syracuse are NOT televised outside of Raycom. Think about that.

I urge UConn fans to look at the schedule and realize that UConn is not the school being kicked off the major networks this year. I guess the disaster of the AAC has persisted so much that even our fans think UConn has been relegated to ESPNU, but this is not the case at all.

Cute.

Clearly you look at things like a semi-rational adult (semi, because you must assume AMA is one and done, or you wouldnt have discounted the 2-3 additional years he'll have to play the name acc schools -- also nice job including lsvl as aac school, when only chance AMA will have to play them is in acc), and a not a teenager.

Most teenager's would rather play UNC/Duke/Cuse/LSVL multiple times than Memphis, Cincy, Temp. Playing Stan and Maryland and either Indiana or Washington twice isnt going to draw recruits away from "lure" of acc name opponents.

Unless KO expects to schedule Kentucky, Kansas, UCLA AND either UNC/Duke most years, there's little chance UConn's aac dominated schedule will look more attractive than an acc schedule.
Again, its not a comparison of relative RPI potential or strength of schedules, its one of perception.

 

[upstater]

Cute.

Clearly you look at things like a semi-rational adult (semi, because you must assume AMA is one and done, or you wouldnt have discounted the 2-3 additional years he'll have to play the name acc schools -- also nice job including lsvl as aac school, when only chance AMA will have to play them is in acc), and a not a teenager.

Most teenager's would rather play UNC/Duke/Cuse/LSVL multiple times than Memphis, Cincy, Temp. Playing Stan and Maryland and either Indiana or Washington twice isnt going to draw recruits away from "lure" of acc name opponents.

Unless KO expects to schedule Kentucky, Kansas, UCLA AND either UNC/Duke most years, there's little chance UConn's aac dominated schedule will look more attractive than an acc schedule.
Again, its not a comparison of relative RPI potential or strength of schedules, its one of perception.

You're the one that mentioned ESPNU, not me.

And, when Louisville leaves, the contract remains. ESPN and CBS will be forced to give the AAC the same amount of exposure they give them now. Who picks up Louisville's games? UConn, Memphis, SMU, that's who. I expect UConn's share of TV exposure to increase next year BECAUSE of Louisville's departure. And, no, NC State will not play UNC/Duke/Cuse/Ville multiple times. Why? Because they are in a 15 team conference. They will play UNC twice. But, as with this year, only one of those games will be nationally televised. And yes, UConn will continue to schedule schools like Florida. They are indeed on the schedule next year as well. And the Courant has written about a Kansas series.

No matter HOW you cut it, 16 games on ESPN/ESPN2 and CBS is much better than 4 games.

Look, you wrote it was 16 games on ESPNU. How can I draw any other conclusion than that you didn't look at the schedule?

 

[DreamSeason]

You're the one that mentioned ESPNU, not me.

And, when Louisville leaves, the contract remains. ESPN and CBS will be forced to give the AAC the same amount of exposure they give them now. Who picks up Louisville's games? UConn, Memphis, SMU, that's who. I expect UConn's share of TV exposure to increase next year BECAUSE of Louisville's departure. And, no, NC State will not play UNC/Duke/Cuse/Ville multiple times. Why? Because they are in a 15 team conference. They will play UNC twice. But, as with this year, only one of those games will be nationally televised. And yes, UConn will continue to schedule schools like Florida. They are indeed on the schedule next year as well. And the Courant has written about a Kansas series.

No matter HOW you cut it, 16 games on ESPN/ESPN2 and CBS is much better than 4 games.

Look, you wrote it was 16 games on ESPNU. How can I draw any other conclusion than that you didn't look at the schedule?

Yeah.......LOVE it!!

 

[RMoore1999]

You're the one that mentioned ESPNU, not me.

And, when Louisville leaves, the contract remains. ESPN and CBS will be forced to give the AAC the same amount of exposure they give them now. Who picks up Louisville's games? UConn, Memphis, SMU, that's who. I expect UConn's share of TV exposure to increase next year BECAUSE of Louisville's departure. And, no, NC State will not play UNC/Duke/Cuse/Ville multiple times. Why? Because they are in a 15 team conference. They will play UNC twice. But, as with this year, only one of those games will be nationally televised. And yes, UConn will continue to schedule schools like Florida. They are indeed on the schedule next year as well. And the Courant has written about a Kansas series.

No matter HOW you cut it, 16 games on ESPN/ESPN2 and CBS is much better than 4 games.

Look, you wrote it was 16 games on ESPNU. How can I draw any other conclusion than that you didn't look at the schedule?

Sarcasm. The point was that with 10+ games on ESPNU and cbs sports network (a less attractive option for me as my cable doesnt offer it on HD), teenagers arent likely to be overwhelmed by the uconn schedule in the aac era. Parents, maybe, but most teenagers will prefer playing Louisville, UNC, Duke and CUSE multiple times over a career.

Look, I love the schedule Ollie put together. I'd prefer to watch the road games on SNY HD, than cbs sports network, but what am i going do?

By virtually any measure, the aac is a horrible place for UConn to attempt to compete, especially when compared to our old home or the new leagues we'll compete with for top-50 kids, and the claim that UConn's schedule is going to sway recruits away from the ACC is preposterous, I think.

That's all I was trying to suggest.

Hopefully the majority of recruits will drink your color of kool-aid, and not mine.

 

[DreamSeason]

Sarcasm. The point was that with 10+ games on ESPNU and cbs sports network (a less attractive option for me as my cable doesnt offer it on HD), teenagers arent likely to be overwhelmed by the uconn schedule in the aac era. Parents, maybe, but most teenagers will prefer playing Louisville, UNC, Duke and CUSE multiple times over a career.

Look, I love the schedule Ollie put together. I'd prefer to watch the road games on SNY HD, than cbs sports network, but what am i going do?

By virtually any measure, the aac is a horrible place for UConn to attempt to compete, especially when compared to our old home or the new leagues we'll compete with for top-50 kids, and the claim that UConn's schedule is going to sway recruits away from the ACC is preposterous, I think.

That's all I was trying to suggest.

Hopefully the majority of recruits will drink your color of kool-aid, and not mine.

Drink upstater's kool aid. C'mon it's delicious.

 

[upstater]

Sarcasm. The point was that with 10+ games on ESPNU and cbs sports network (a less attractive option for me as my cable doesnt offer it on HD), teenagers arent likely to be overwhelmed by the uconn schedule in the aac era. Parents, maybe, but most teenagers will prefer playing Louisville, UNC, Duke and CUSE multiple times over a career.

I give up. Multiple times I've written about how NC State will be on less exposed channels, while for UConn it's the opposite. UConn is not relegated to the like of ESPNU and CBSSN as much.

And it just doesn't matter that I wrote UConn is the top channels 16 times while NCSU is on them 4 times. It just doesn't seem to compute.

 

[RMoore1999]

Drink upstater's kool aid. C'mon it's delicious.

Probably not a bad idea. But he obviously spikes his a bit much...and I'm trying to cut back on the hard stuff...

 

[RMoore1999]

I give up. Multiple times I've written about how NC State will be on less exposed channels, while for UConn it's the opposite. UConn is not relegated to the like of ESPNU and CBSSN as much.

And it just doesn't matter that I wrote UConn is the top channels 16 times while NCSU is on them 4 times. It just doesn't seem to compute.

EUREKA!

What may matter to you, or even me, doesn't matter as much to recruits. Playing in games vs UNC/Dook/Cuse/LSVL matters more...

Perception in this context matters...

 

[upstater]

EUREKA!

What may matter to you, or even me, doesn't matter as much to recruits. Playing in games vs UNC/Dook/Cuse/LSVL matters more...

Perception in this context matters...

Right, but essentially you're calling the recruits stupid.

I wrote at the bottom of my original post that they may ignore the facts and instead make false assumptions. It's the last thing I wrote. So, there's really no point in contesting my facts. My facts are obvious. UConn, unlike NC State, is not relegated to USPNU or the likes of Raycom.

Think about it: UNC versus NC State is on Raycom. What does that tell you?

 

[Clockshop]

I'll just say NBA scouts attend games whether they are televised or not (nationally, local, regional whatever)

 

[upstater]

I'll just say NBA scouts attend games whether they are televised or not (nationally, local, regional whatever)

Napier was an absolute afterthought last year in the national conversation. A player's popularity is largely based on TV exposure.

I agree with you in general.

It's why my #2 factor is well, #2.

 

[ctchamps]

Yeah....its time to move on. I doubt we'll even remember this in 2014

Hooperscooper already has it programmed for a future answer about recruiting when the alternative recruit to Abu gives us the NC.