AJ

[Umami Zen]

As long as the driving lanes are open.. AJ can almost get to the rim at will because of his hops/athleticism.. Will be the next evolution of his game until/or if he develops a reliable jumper. Slashing to the hoop/lobs/put-backs can easily provide 8-12 pts a game within game flow and off of his defense.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

People on the chat were dissing AJ quite a bit. OK. he's not an outside threat and does get beat off the dribble too much. Guy had 9 points, 11 rebounds and 5 assists. What game were these Jackson haters watching? That being said I though Akok was player of the game.

Thank you. If Jackson had an outside shot and a better handle, he would have been a five-star one-and-done player.

Jackson's above the rim ability at the wing is top 1% in the nation. An added part of his game that surprises me is his ability to disrupt ball-handlers due to his length and athleticism.

 

[87Xfer]

Positives:

• elite athleticism and leaping ability that shows up on the boards
• crafty passer/playmaker
• occasional highlight-reel dunks/blocks ("still only counts for 2", but those momentum plays do matter)

Negatives:

• can't shoot, refuses to shoot, and everyone knows it
• does more tapping the ball than grabbing it, which usually ends up OOB or in the opponents' hands
• poor lateral movement, easily beat off the dribble and doesn't recover

Like everyone else, if he can keep doing what he does well and minimize the harm from what he does poorly, we'll be a very dangerous and versatile team.

and yet he leads the team in rebounding by a large margin

 

[Huskybass]

and yet he leads the team in rebounding by a large margin

Actually, Martin leads the team in rebounding so your statement isnt accurate.That said, Jackson rebounds really well on the defensive glass and looks to push the ball on the break. His ceiling is really high if he cleans up his handle and continues to work on his shot.

 

[husky429]

and yet he leads the team in rebounding by a large margin

People expect everyone to be a horizontal rebounder like Sanogo. Andre doing a traditional box out and get the board with two hands doesn't quite make sense.... With his athleticism you HAVE to let him be a creative problem-solver on the court. Sometimes he'll need to be a traditional rebounder, sometimes "get the ball and run" needs to be plan A. He's only to get better if you give him reps despite the mistakes.

 

[3rdbass]

Jackson Defense:

The good- Great defensive rebounder, very good with tips/deflections, very good shot blocker for a wing player.
The bad- Loses his man a bunch and is very susceptible to getting back doored on passes. I tend to think Hurley is okay with this since he rarely pulls Jackson when he gets beat back door. I think Hurley feels benefit of aggressiveness outweighs the times Jax gets burned.

Jackson Offense:

Still a work in progress.

The good- so fast and powerful when he wants to be getting to the rim. Similar to Bouk, he can just open up so much room between he and the defender in one step. Been real good with FT's. Still a gifted passer but others have said, keep is simple when simple will do it for you.
The bad- more than having suspect J is his reluctance to look for his shot when the offensive sets scream for it or when shot clock is winding down.


Looking to next year. I'd love to see Hurley and the staff work with Jackson on a post up game. Not as a primary option but during the flow run some baseline screens to free up Jackson near the block. His size and strength scream for a pretty 6'-8' turn around J off the glass. You could almost, gawd I hate what I am about to write, try to run the offense through him on the blocks finding cutters, kicking it out to wings or shooting from in close.

You forgot to mention his handle is not tight. His handle is good for PF but a little weak for a SF/SG he often plays at times. Another reason why he can't really blow by defenders like he should with athletic talent. He also has the ugliest floater I have seen. He kind of just shot puts it up there like all his shots. LOL! Also, for a guy so athletic he tends to get beat off the dribble. I'm guessing his lateral quickness is not as good as his straight forward quickness obviously. He just reminds me so much of Stanley Robinson athletically but of course with a worst shot but lot better court vision. Though Stanley improved his shot a lot by the time he was a SR. Hopefully AJ can do that too. I will say his rebounding is elite level and he actually blocks out at times too which seems like a lost art.

 

[87Xfer]

Actually, Martin leads the team in rebounding so your statement is completely inaccurate.

That said, Jackson rebounds really well on the defensive glass and looks to push the ball on the break. His cieling is really high if he cleans up his handle and continues to work on his shot.

Tell ESPN. According to them Andre has 83 rebounds, Rese has 54. But thanks for playing

 

[Huskybass]

Tell ESPN. According to them Andre has 83 rebounds, Rese has 50. But thanks for playing

One guy averages 7.7 rebounds per game and the other guy averages 7.5. this isn't difficult.

 

[Palatine]

One guy averages 7.7 rebounds per game and the other guy averages 7.5. this isn't difficult.

Is that per game or per minute? Because if you use minutes ..

AJ gets rebound every 3.51 minutes while TM gets a rebound every 3.61 minutes. This isn't difficult. AJ is better.

 

[BlueMAB]

He's only to get better if you give him reps despite the mistakes.

Sorry this is inaccurate. A coach must yank every player after every mistake if he/she wants to win. It's the only way.

 

[87Xfer]

One guy averages 7.7 rebounds per game and the other guy averages 7.5. this isn't difficult.

Dude, I said the guy with 28 more rebounds on the year than anyone else on the team is leading the team in rebounds, and you said my statement was "completely inaccurate". Apparently it's difficult for somebody.

 

[KingAG]

Dude, I said the guy with 28 more rebounds on the year than anyone else on the team is leading the team in rebounds, and you said my statement was "completely inaccurate". Apparently it's difficult for somebody.

Your statement isn’t inaccurate. But it’s without context. Martin has played in 2 less games up to this point

 

[87Xfer]

Your statement isn’t inaccurate. But it’s without context. Martin has played in 2 less games up to this point

Actually, after looking at this I'm wondering if I had a stroke at some point. How did Martin only play in 7 games out of 11? He's really missed the last 4? I would have failed that test...

 

[NCNutmeg]

Scoring is only one metric for determining a successful player. Like a lot of other posters have stated. Right now AJ does a lot of the little things well. He can facilitate, rebound, block shots, push the fast break, and shoot free throws (which is a highly underrated skill, IMO). He's going to be a much better offensive player in time but we absolutely need him on the court because he changes the game for us. Case in point from last game, the bonnies scored an easy layup on us and AJ took off running the other way to receive the long pass and proceeded to go to the hoop for an and 1 basket. He's basically Mr. Intangible for this year's team.

I do hope that he can change his speed up a bit more when dribbling the ball on fast breaks, since he seems to get into a bit of trouble once he runs into 2+ defenders. I believe one of the commentators made this point during the game. He gets that down and he starts being able to knock down pull up jumpers consistently, this guy will be a lottery pick caliber player.

 

[BuffaloHusky]

In the big run against the Bonnie’s, his intangibles help break open the second half lead. He had at least 2 assists to Hawkins, scored a hoop, got some rebounds and even set the screen for Hawkins final corner 3. That sequence was his most consequential of the season and he only scored 2 or 3 points total during that run.

 

[Kolumbo]

I was thinking of AJ's athleticism and came up with this:

 

[SubbaBub]

I was thinking of AJ's athleticism and came up with this:

How did we not see the obvious similarities to an all time Top 50 NBA player? You people are more looney than the old cesspool.

 

[BGesus4]

 

[Sibeerian]

I think it's a noisy minority that has the magnifying glass out for Jackson's mistakes and the blinders on for his facilitating, rebounding, everything else. Personally if I'm watching a player who's off the ball, it's usually him. His game is exciting and fun and helps us win.

 

[QDOG5]

Luckily, it doesn't matter what some knuckleheads on the yard say about Andre's supposed shortcomings. The man in charge knows what he has and thankfully we will get to see Andre playing plenty of minutes for the rest of his career at UConn.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

i don't have a direct player comparison for him yet. too soon.
for now, when i watch him on the court, i think this,

i mean, sumone here did point out that he already is top-o-the-charts in defense.
in America.
beastin feastin. tasty.

 

[Kenny11]

Not an outside threat, gets beat off the dribble, and can't drive. You've said it all. I'll add, puts himself on an island on both ends of the floor. What you have left is a high flyer who can dunk on breakaways and grab the odd rebound. 11 rebounds is great but we have an entire team that can rebound well. We wouldn't miss those. If he was a monster on the offensive glass and put back missed shots, we'd have something. Instead, we have a guy with a lot to work on and other options that fit better.

AJ's value should be as a swing player who can play effectively at the 2, 3 and 4 and even matchup as a 1 or even a 5. Athletically, he should be a stretch 4, an unstoppable 3, or an outside sniper. In short, he should be a better version of Niels Giffey. Instead, he's a not as good version of Stanley Robinson. Great highlight material but makes more mistakes than winning plays. They lead to fouls against are better players, turnovers, and botched possessions. If I could other him some advice it would be to do less, focus on defending, rebounding, and movement without the ball. Also work on his hands (catching and holding the ball). I don't think he can be a better dribbler, in season. That's an offseason project. We've had a dozen guys like AJ who play 10-12 minutes a game and been positive contributors. Playing him 20-25 is coaching malpractice right now.

He makes plenty of winning plays. He made a few the other day getting rebounds and kicking out to open shooters at key times in the game. Plays that nobody else in the floor could make. His handle has been shaky but it’s not as horrible as people here make it out to be. He constantly has the other team on their heels. No matter what, they have to put a body on him and worry about him in transition immediately. He disrupts passsing lanes, he’s able to change shots even when he gets beat…his athleticism is not just good for some highlights. It affects game in many ways. He’s the most explosive athlete to ever play for uconn. Hurley says he might be the best athlete hes ever seen. Playing him 10-12 minutes per game would be crazy.

 

[Kolumbo]

How did we not see the obvious similarities to an all time Top 50 NBA player? You people are more looney than the old cesspool.

Or you could just look up the definition of athleticism. looney.

 

[Huskybass]

Actually, after looking at this I'm wondering if I had a stroke at some point. How did Martin only play in 7 games out of 11? He's really missed the last 4? I would have failed that test...

The reality of it is that Martin and AJ are both great rebounders at the 2/3. Ajax has stepped up in Martin's absence. I'll go to war with those two any time.

 

[Huskyforlife]

Saw a comment comparing his game to Iggy. That'd be an interesting player for him to try and emulate.

 

[HuskyHawk]

How did we not see the obvious similarities to an all time Top 50 NBA player? You people are more looney than the old cesspool.

I see a lot more of Dr. J in his game. The rebound and head up court to make a finger roll at the rim, pure Dr. J. Of course he doesn't pull it off often enough or do a lot of the other things. But when he does that, he looks a lot like him.

 

[Umami Zen]

I see a lot more of Dr. J in his game. The rebound and head up court to make a finger roll at the rim, pure Dr. J. Of course he doesn't pull it off often enough or do a lot of the other things. But when he does that, he looks a lot like him.

Just has to attack the rim once he gets the defender on his hip. Like Dr J.. Got the hops to do it.

 

[80shusky]

Andre is a good player for this team. He's great in transition, great on the boards, a good passer, gets steals, assists and does a lot of the other small things to help the team win. His athleticism is off the charts and he is very unselfish to a fault. With his height, length and motor he is basically a consistent jump shot/3 point shot away from being a lottery pick. It may never happen, but I'm betting it will eventually and we will be lucky enough to get to watch him develop because he hasn't been immediately dominant.

 

[HCCForever]

Looked like an infrared heating pad. I’m guessing to prevent his back from spasming.

Makes sense. I saw the red lights on the back. Thanks

 

[CL82]

Makes sense. I saw the red lights on the back. Thanks

Same. I’m just guessing.