AJ - I don't see it

[Kenny11]

I see it. He’s a huge asset for us. He’s going to make a lot of big East coaches miserable this season.

 

[SubbaBub]

He's a wildcard. Some good, some bad. The bad is his handle you all know it and refuse to acknowledge it.

 

[Husky Alien]

He's a wildcard. Some good, some bad. The bad is his handle you all know it and refuse to acknowledge it.

Your kidding right? Wild card is his shooting I would think.

 

[storrsroars]

If I were an NFL GM, I'd take a flyer on AJax in a late round for the following roles:

• blocking kicks
• Hail Marys (either catching or defending)

 

[Huskybass]

As I posted in another thread, AJ will have an 18 point, 8 rebound, 6 assist game at some point. He has so much to work with, but his handle doesn't allow him to drive at will despite his athleticism. When it clicks, he is going to be a beast. It's not IF, it's WHEN. I have full confidence that AJ will be a star at some point.

 

[Umami Zen]

I see it.. Until Martin was removed from the lineup(by his injury)-- With all that AJ brings. Do you really think that he has been "green lighted" by DH to shoot whenever he wants to??

IMO-- His hesitancy has been a factor of trying to be a good teammate as defined by his coach. Not by his natural instincts.

 

[JustbrewitMan]

People seem to forget (or deliberately ignore) the fact that AJ had about the equivalent of 1/4 of a freshman year due to injuries and COVID craziness.

He’s really only at the equivalent of a little over halfway through a first year of D1 experience.

Not Denying that he is still very raw and makes some maddening mistakes, but I think by playing through them he’s going to figure it out…I’ve already seen some encouraging signs.

And although he’s been getting himself in trouble trying to push the pace/fast break on rebounds, I guarantee that’s what the coaches want him to try and do. Which philosophically I really like for our team this year vs our slow pace last year.

Enjoy the journey.

 

[80shusky]

He still a baby. A tall baby. Babies make mistakes while they are learning. I'm glad his learning curve is steep. While I would love for him to be averaging a triple double I'm happy that I'm going to be able to watch him in a UConn jersey for at least a Junior season. The tools are all there.
There is a girl on a soccer team that played against my daughter's team in the fall. She is bigger, stronger, faster and has better footwork than most of the players on both teams. I watched her a lot because my daughter had to guard her. At any time she could have taken the ball to the goal and shot it and probably scored but she struggled because she doesn't know how good she is yet. My daughter managed to disrupt her play because she is pesky but if that girl had figured it out she probably would have kept the ball in our end the entire game. She may not figure it out, but she probably will.

 

[traitor71]

The only negative, and it is a big one, is his shooting. He is our Ben Simmons. The only question is if he will actually work on his shooting, as opposed to Simmons who seems to not care about it.

 

[navery12]

And although he’s been getting himself in trouble trying to push the pace/fast break on rebounds, I guarantee that’s what the coaches want him to try and do. Which philosophically I really like for our team this year vs our slow pace last year.

@husky429 has been preaching this all offseason, that'll come with playing at a faster pace and Hurley has to live with the turnovers as a result. I think he's done well doing that with Jackson, less so with Hawkins but I think he'll get to that point too

 

[mauconnfan]

He has crazy athletic abilities. He rebounds real well, but only defends ok probably a negative factor as he gets lost way too much looking to make plays away from his guy. That’s fixable and he could become a stopper with his length and ability to cover multiple positions. He’s an awful shooter and I’m skeptical on him ever approving that all that much. He has proven he has great vision but for now due to an overdose of mustard, he’s only a decent passer. That is fixable as well he just needs to be told throw more “normal” passes and less no look blanks.

Everyone has a debate for where they believe he can be as a player it’s a wait and see for me. As far as causing fits for BE coaches one for now would be Hurley. Let’s see if it’s others later on.

 

[mussels]

People seem to forget where we were. I’ll take a great athlete creating chaos and pushing the ball (and all that goes with it - good and bad) over the half court pass around the perimeter last second jacked up three, or the waste half the clock high weave any day of the week.

Out of chaos will eventually emerge art.

His pushing the ball up court after defensive boards led to several good looks in the VCU game. They just didn’t drop. Some games they will.

 

[ColchVEGAS]

When I watch AJ I see a player that is extremely raw. I get the feeling it will all just "click" one day, but maybe I need to get my eyes checked.

 

[bendm]

IMO-- His hesitancy has been a factor of trying to be a good teammate as defined by his coach. Not by his natural instincts.

if hurley is telling him not to shoot when he's wide open then that's bad.

 

[Spaceman213J]

He's young and obviously talented. If he was polished from day one, he never would have stepped foot on UConn soil. Guys with his skill set who are developed go right to the NBA. He's here to get better.
Under JC, a no doubt great coach, it usually took players 3 years to develop. Bouk was gone after 2, but he had some serious holes in his game, especially defensively.
If Jackson is willing to listen and work, he'll get there. He's young and will make you want to bang your head against the wall once in a while, but he is also a rarity... that guy born with God given ability that few have who can make you jump out of your chair.

It's funny, in the day and age of Mike Trout, Ja Morant, Kevin Durant... etc. it seems there is a larger group of people willing to give up on guys way too early. I mention Trout because being a Red Sox fan, I here people wanting the Sox to give up on Jaren Duran already. Some guys need some time to grow.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

ajax is a good ballplayer. already, he's roughly top 100 in rpg in his first full season. that's pretty good. the stuff he can't fix easily? fuhghettabootit. work on the dopey stuff that he does that can be fixed easily, like grabbing and controlling the ball with two hands, or slip passes, since he's going to get a lot of chances to do those. mebbe he can learn to make the ft j while he's hanging around that neighborhood. if i have my covid transfer/etc. math right, this could be his first year of a potential 4 year stint, which is also pretty good.

 

[dogpause]

In Jurassic Park, do you remember the baby velociraptor? The one who could barely walk without falling over? How'd that turn out?
And that is why you invest in Andre and his incredible, and unique, upside.

 

[WeAreUCONN]

Regardless of whether Jackson is athletic, he’s just not a very good basketball player.

 

[Incursio007]

As a fan of all the players on this team, it's painful to read posts like OP's. Andre plays hard on both ends & has a decent offensive game aside from his shooting. He's shown a nice floater, good vision & decent handle for a wing. I honestly wish he would shoot more to continue boosting his confidence - his shot really isn't that bad.

Having him & Tyrese on the floor together poses such a matchup problem spanning the whole court. He works hard, bleeds blue & has upside through the roof - I will always support & never bet against a player like that.

 

[XLCenterFan]

He’s just ok. Just like AJax.

 

[August_West]

You should see it . AJ is like 6th on my list of problems.

Im not convinced that Jackson even needs to score conventionally for us. He’s a man on the glass , if he grabs defensive glass he’s a one man outlet push. If he cuts down on no look pass errors, I think between offensive rebounds, and break type baskets, with some foul shots, and an occasional runner, that it could be enough when combined with his other plus side attributes.

No 3’s needed.

“ play to your identity”


Isn’t that this seasons mantra?

 

[Northbound]

I feel like this conversation was had about Taliek for 4 friggin years. As dumb now as it was then.

 

[jibsey]

AJ like Hawkins is not a finished product but his athleticism, passing ability and talent is undeniable. He goes to war inside on the boards. Give him time.

 

[TheRealKBuks]

I feel like this conversation was had about Taliek for 4 friggin years. As dumb now as it was then.

nailed it

 

[mauconnfan]

I feel like this conversation was had about Taliek for 4 friggin years. As dumb now as it was then.

Crazy enough I’d rather have Taliek shooting it.