Aidan Mahaney

[cohenzone]

I'm not arguing with anything you're saying here.
Are you saying that you'd rather have 1 year players from the portal than 1 year players from HS ? If so, then in most cases, i certainly agree. It would take an incredibly special, and talented High school kid to accomplish what a Senior could (like Castle), and i think Dan Hurley agrees.
You get no argument from me on any of this. I'm only saying that every so often a 1 and done HS kid will come along and be a perfect fit (ala Castle), and in that very specific case we should take him if he's the prospect that the coaches think is best for the spot we have available.

Yup on the 1 and done.

I have in mind a few posters who said pre-season that getting Castle would lead to a string of one and done hs kids to think UConn was the place for them to get to the NBA fast and they virtually salivated at the thought. To each their own.

As for whether or not a one year player coming out of the portal is generally preferable to a 1 year freshman, I really don’t know and think it depends on what the team needs and how the player fills the needs. Joey C had his moments, and Cam was totally indispensable. No doubt Castle was very important. Talent is great. Talent with experience even better.

 

[hooskies]

UK fans seem to think this might be referring to Mahaney

Andrew Carr just announced to UK

 

[Umami Zen]

Family and fit.. If it's not there. Next.

 

[ibleedhuskyblue]

I have in mind a few posters who said pre-season that getting Castle would lead to a string of one and done hs kids to think UConn was the place for them to get to the NBA fast and they virtually salivated at the thought. To each their own.

But i think the point of this is that they would help us win along the way. Dan Hurley has said (in the JJ Redick interview) that he wants everyone to get where they want to go, but he won't sacrifice UConn success to get them there. Any poster who said what you're saying (and yes i remember this conversation vaguely) is expecting that the player would win first, then whatever happens, happens.
And again, no one is suggesting that we go all one and done. It will happen once in a while when the player is the exact right person/player for us. Up until now we really haven't had the option to get the very top tier guys because they all went to the same few schools out of high school. This working the way some suggest is just another recruiting avenue we can use in the future if we so choose.

As for whether or not a one year player coming out of the portal is generally preferable to a 1 year freshman, I really don’t know and think it depends on what the team needs and how the player fills the needs. Joey C had his moments, and Cam was totally indispensable. No doubt Castle was very important. Talent is great. Talent with experience even better.

I think in most cases the veteran player is preferable, but again, i want whatever the coaches think is better for each individual team. In the particular case of 23-24, Castle couldn't have been more perfect. A great teammate, one of the best defenders in all of CBB, and a playmaker at all 3 levels. And during his, presumably, long NBA career, it will be mentioned a few times that he went to UConn and won a Championship, which is always good for us. We might still win without him, i'm not sure...but we definitely won with him. Then again...would i take 2(or more) Cam Spencers??? Yup. Give me all the Cam Spencers.

 

[cohenzone]

Weird good, or weird bad?

If the latter, I figure you have a built-in 'advantage' in exchanges like these, because I'm for the most part unwilling to write stupidly and then cast a response that I don't like or comprehend as "weird" in order to one up somebody else.

In a closer analysis, you're more the guy with the hat but don't know it, though I wouldn't be surprised if you also represent a majority position. Either way.

Most of all, I don't mind appearing as your fool if the alternative would mean expressing myself like you do.

I'll always try to coach you up. It's the least I can do to honor your strengths here, and the common cause that unites us.

Couldn’t have said it better. Ok, maybe a little better. There are about 3-4 posters who typically agree with each other and tend to be dismissive of other takes and write as if making an incontestable statement of fact that in reality is only a matter of opinion or taste. Or at least that is how it comes across if not intended that way.

 

[david]

Andrew Carr just announced to UK

That's good the BOOM wasn't about Mahaney.

Rough for Nova fans that Carr committed to UK on the day of his Nova visit.

 

[FlexOnEm]

Just imagine this roster for a minute. I believe Diarra and AK return. Now assume we lock up Brea and Mahaney (I know, big if). This is my guess at a depth chart for the OOC. I hate using 1-5 positions, but here it goes:

PG: Diarra, Nowell
SG: Mahaney, Solo
SF: McNeeley, Brea, Ross
PF: Karaban, Stewart
C: Reed, Samson, Singare

That's a brilliant amount of depth. Room for injuries and ability to change matchup when needed. Tons of IQ. 4+ solid shooters and a few more who can hit it. A ton of low TO passers. Some beef inside or a high-flyer depending on the look we want to throw out.

The BENCH would probably win 10 games in the Big East and make the tournament on their own.

Think Mahaney starts at PG if he commits. Mahaney, Ball, Stewart, Karaban, and Johnson starting with Diarra, Nowell, McNeeley and Reed off the bench.

 

[cohenzone]

But i think the point of this is that they would help us win along the way. Dan Hurley has said (in the JJ Redick interview) that he wants everyone to get where they want to go, but he won't sacrifice UConn success to get them there. Any poster who said what you're saying (and yes i remember this conversation vaguely) is expecting that the player would win first, then whatever happens, happens.
And again, no one is suggesting that we go all one and done. It will happen once in a while when the player is the exact right person/player for us. Up until now we really haven't had the option to get the very top tier guys because they all went to the same few schools out of high school. This working the way some suggest is just another recruiting avenue we can use in the future if we so choose.


I think in most cases the veteran player is preferable, but again, i want whatever the coaches think is better for each individual team. In the particular case of 23-24, Castle couldn't have been more perfect. A great teammate, one of the best defenders in all of CBB, and a playmaker at all 3 levels. And during his, presumably, long NBA career, it will be mentioned a few times that he went to UConn and won a Championship, which is always good for us. We might still win without him, i'm not sure...but we definitely won with him. Then again...would i take 2(or more) Cam Spencers??? Yup. Give me all the Cam Spencers.

As maybe a final note, I think we basically agree. Nobody said we should go all 1and done, the implication was more that getting a string of one and dones would be enticed by Castle’s example. That remains to be seen, as well as whether any can be such a successful contributor in one season. As you said, Dan Hurley would likely not take just anyone.

BTW, your musing about whether or not we could have won without Castle I share, but we will never know and it turned out pretty well. OTOH, I think Spencer was critical. Short answer, Castle was pretty darn important.

 

[superjohn]

Weird good, or weird bad?

If the latter, I figure you have a built-in 'advantage' in exchanges like these, because I'm for the most part unwilling to write stupidly and then cast a response that I don't like or comprehend as "weird" in order to one up somebody else.

In a closer analysis, you're more the guy with the hat but don't know it, though I wouldn't be surprised if you also represent a majority position. Either way.

Most of all, I don't mind appearing as your fool if the alternative would mean expressing myself like you do.

I'll always try to coach you up. It's the least I can do to honor your strengths here, and the common cause that unites us.

 

[Huskyforlife]

trilly says still 50/50 on mahaney.

 

[KemBuckets21]

Not sure why he would go to Kentucky with the plethora of guards they are bringing in. Pt in question there

You could say why would he come to UConn with the plethora of guards they already have. Comparing plethoras, ours is certainly greater at this time.

 

[bjc42]

Not sure why he would go to Kentucky with the plethora of guards they are bringing in. Pt in question there

that's true. especially Butler, etc. We need guards so it seems like the perfect fit but only time will tell. which one do you feel more confident in, Brea or Mahaney( or are you confident we can get both).

 

[Fan1978]

that's true. especially Butler, etc. We need guards so it seems like the perfect fit but only time will tell. which one do you feel more confident in, Brea or Mahaney( or are you confident we can get both).

Who knows, my preference is both

 

[JustbrewitMan]

trilly says still 50/50 on mahaney.

Literally any yokel doofus could say 50/50.

 

[ibleedhuskyblue]

As maybe a final note, I think we basically agree. Nobody said we should go all 1and done, the implication was more that getting a string of one and dones would be enticed by Castle’s example. That remains to be seen, as well as whether any can be such a successful contributor in one season. As you said, Dan Hurley would likely not take just anyone.

I think it's reasonable to assume that being successful at getting Castle to where he wanted to go will tell others that they can do it as well. Now, it may not matter because i doubt we will be doing it very often anyways, but it is reasonable to say that doing something demonstrates to others that it can be done, and could lead to it being done again.
Will it happen again? Probably, but not often.

 

[ibleedhuskyblue]

Literally any yokel doofus could say 50/50.

I say it all the time. Apparently i could have been charging for that insight.

 

[Huskyforlife]

Literally any yokel doofus could say 50/50.

Well considering he visited 4 schools, it's not that simple.

 

[upstater]

You could say why would he come to UConn with the plethora of guards they already have. Comparing plethoras, ours is certainly greater at this time.

Not true if you're talking about primary ball handlers. We only have one for sure, Nowell. We might have two with Diarra. If we don't have Diarra, this team needs a ball handler.

 

[superjohn]

Not true if you're talking about primary ball handlers. We only have one for sure, Nowell. We might have two with Diarra. If we don't have Diarra, this team needs a ball handler.

We need one with Diarra. Two ballhandlers going into the season isn't enough. Hass is coming back.

 

[navery12]

Yup on the 1 and done.

I have in mind a few posters who said pre-season that getting Castle would lead to a string of one and done hs kids to think UConn was the place for them to get to the NBA fast and they virtually salivated at the thought. To each their own.

As for whether or not a one year player coming out of the portal is generally preferable to a 1 year freshman, I really don’t know and think it depends on what the team needs and how the player fills the needs. Joey C had his moments, and Cam was totally indispensable. No doubt Castle was very important. Talent is great. Talent with experience even better.

I was one of them, and not so shockingly right after Castle went 1 and done we got another one and done guy in McNeeley

 

[That Guy]

I definitely want Mulvaney. Won't lose sleep if Brie picks UK.

 

[cohenzone]

I was one of them, and not so shockingly right after Castle went 1 and done we got another one and done guy in McNeeley

Yeah, you are always right except McNeeley didn’t jump at us right out of the box. We were not his original choice. Let’s see what the fall recruiting cycle brings. On top of that, a one and done doesn’t guarantee winning anything which is the point of our program . Carmelos don’t come around very often Castle really needed the mature players on this team to win anything. Beyond that. you are suggesting that McNeeley is one and done. That remains to be seen. Clingan is walking out the door and he has been a true difference maker along with our senior starters A wise man who happens to have been a UConn president years ago, more or less advised that crowing before the story is told is a bad idea.

What I find interesting about Castle and AJax is that both were scoring option 5 out of 5 among the starters and the last one of the starters anyone wanted to be taking the last shot in a nail biter. That has to be relatively unusual especially if Castle goes as high as some project. His shot is definitely a work in progress but was definitely improving.

 

[sdrouin]

Aidan did just follow Andrew Carr if we are reading tea leaves here.

Carr doesn’t even follow him yet.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Yeah, you are always right except McNeeley didn’t jump at us right out of the box. We were not his original choice. Let’s see what the fall recruiting cycle brings. On top of that, a one and done doesn’t guarantee winning anything which is the point of our program . Carmelos don’t come around very often Castle really needed the mature players on this team to win anything. Beyond that. you are suggesting that McNeeley is one and done. That remains to be seen. Clingan is walking out the door and he has been a true difference maker along with our senior starters A wise man who happens to have been a UConn president years ago, more or less advised that crowing before the story is told is a bad idea.

What I find interesting about Castle and AJax is that both were scoring option 5 out of 5 among the starters and the last one of the starters anyone wanted to be taking the last shot in a nail biter. That has to be relatively unusual especially if Castle goes as high as some project. His shot is definitely a work in progress but was definitely improving.

Castle was probably the most dominant lock down perimeter defender in the country. Sure, it helps being part of a great defensive unit but he absolutely ate the competition for lunch particularly in March.

 

[cohenzone]

Castle was probably the most dominant lock down perimeter defender in the country. Sure, it helps being part of a great defensive unit but he absolutely ate the competition for lunch particularly in March.

Yup. Just saying being a high draft pick from a guard position while being so low on the college team scoring pecking order is not quite typical and says a lot about his other strengths. Ditto AJax being drafted at all says everything about his non scoring skills.

 

[GAlawyer]

So what are the chances Mahaney and Brea are out and we’re looking to round out our team after May 1 with the best available guard with plus ballhandling and shooting skills? And an experienced 3/4 if AK stays in the draft? I have confidence that it all works out but getting neither Mahaney nor Brea feels more likely than landing both.

 

[3rdbass]

So what are the chances Mahaney and Brea are out and we’re looking to round out our team after May 1 with the best available guard with plus ballhandling and shooting skills? And an experienced 3/4 if AK stays in the draft? I have confidence that it all works out but getting neither Mahaney nor Brea feels more likely than landing both.

Patience! Nothing has happened yet and give them a few days to figure out things.

 

[Fishy]

So what are the chances Mahaney and Brea are out and we’re looking to round out our team after May 1 with the best available guard with plus ballhandling and shooting skills? And an experienced 3/4 if AK stays in the draft? I have confidence that it all works out but getting neither Mahaney nor Brea feels more likely than landing both.

23.57%

 

[gsmooth]

So what are the chances Mahaney and Brea are out and we’re looking to round out our team after May 1 with the best available guard with plus ballhandling and shooting skills? And an experienced 3/4 if AK stays in the draft? I have confidence that it all works out but getting neither Mahaney nor Brea feels more likely than landing both.

We just don't know. Know one really knows what the chances are. The way I look at it, crystal ball predictions mean very little. Just a few days ago on 247, if I am not mistaken, Koby Brea was viewed to be 100% to UConn. Now he is visiting Kentucky.

Liam McNeeley decided to visit some other school(s) after his UConn visit and people here thought he would choose Kentucky or Duke and then he decided UConn was best.

But Fishy looks like he has done some analytical breakdowns and seems confident the chances are 23.57%. Go with that for now

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Yup. Just saying being a high draft pick from a guard position while being so low on the college team scoring pecking order is not quite typical and says a lot about his other strengths. Ditto AJax being drafted at all says everything about his non scoring skills.

I wouldn't really categorize it that way. Castle showed he could be a more than capable scorer at all 3 levels, where as Jackson's shot and inability to really create for himself will always hold him back.