Amore: KO on Jalen Adams, Mamadou Diarra & Team Chemistry

[tcf15]

UConn Coach Kevin Ollie Has High Expectations On Jalen Adams

 

[UCFan1513]

Don't like to hear that Jalen hasn't been 100% all summer. Would have been more promise to having a huge offseason leap (i.e. Kemba or Shabazz) if he had been fully healthy. Still holding out hope he'll be much improved though, as much of the hurdles that kemba and shabazz overcame to improve were mental more than physical

 

[RichZ]

This quote kind of stuck out to me...
"At the Werth Center, he noted, players and coaches don't "cross paths" as often as in the hallways at Gampel Pavilion."
That seems like something the guys who's all about family and building bonds would have attacked right off.

 

[Guapo]

This quote kind of stuck out to me...
"At the Werth Center, he noted, players and coaches don't "cross paths" as often as in the hallways at Gampel Pavilion."
That seems like something the guys who's all about family and building bonds would have attacked right off.

Yes, this part disturbed me greatly.

 

[Kemba'sYogurt]

This quote kind of stuck out to me...
"At the Werth Center, he noted, players and coaches don't "cross paths" as often as in the hallways at Gampel Pavilion."
That seems like something the guys who's all about family and building bonds would have attacked right off.

Yeah that quote is a bit concerning, but at least KO & the rest of the staff have realized their shortcomings (if there are any) chemistry wise, and are making an attempt to fix them.

 

[Huskyforlife]

This quote kind of stuck out to me...
"At the Werth Center, he noted, players and coaches don't "cross paths" as often as in the hallways at Gampel Pavilion."
That seems like something the guys who's all about family and building bonds would have attacked right off.

What does this mean?

 

[WrenchFan69]

This quote kind of stuck out to me...
"At the Werth Center, he noted, players and coaches don't "cross paths" as often as in the hallways at Gampel Pavilion."
That seems like something the guys who's all about family and building bonds would have attacked right off.

It could be as simple as the fact that the locker room in Gampel was directly across from the office; you couldn't get to it without going to the office. Whereas now the locker room is downstairs and the offices are upstairs. No direct sight lines to one another either. Players would have to go out of their way to end up at a coach's office.

 

[Huskymagic]

Lol again Ollie is talking about making Jalen a shooting guard with Alterique running the show. Now Ollie wants to learn his players' stories? What was he doing before. The great communicator and recruiter is having trouble doing both.

Adams is a point guard with shooting guard qualities but he is not exclusively a shooting guard. He needs the ball in his hands to be effective most of the time.

PS: Why is Adams always injured every offseason? We have half a roster that is chronically injured.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

These reactions are great.

 

[Stainmaster]

Lol again Ollie is talking about making Jalen a shooting guard with Alterique running the show. Now Ollie wants to learn his players' stories? What was he doing before. The great communicator and recruiter is having trouble doing both.

Adams is a point guard with shooting guard qualities but he is not exclusively a shooting guard. He needs the ball in his hands to be effective most of the time.

PS: Why is Adams always injured every offseason? We have half a roster that is chronically injured.

A little birdy told me Ollie makes a point to recruit players with injury issues because he thinks that makes them better players.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Lol again Ollie is talking about making Jalen a shooting guard with Alterique running the show. Now Ollie wants to learn his players' stories? What was he doing before. The great communicator and recruiter is having trouble doing both.

Adams is a point guard with shooting guard qualities but he is not exclusively a shooting guard. He needs the ball in his hands to be effective most of the time.

PS: Why is Adams always injured every offseason? We have half a roster that is chronically injured.

Adams is a scoring guard. That's what the NBA is and that's what he is. He can do everything as his assists showed. Ollie is right he needs to get to the line a lot more every game and up his 3 point percentage a lot as well if we wants to be great like we know he can. I don't see the ball coming out of his hands that often, probably be more like kemba and bazz instead of bazz and boat

 

[pj]

I like what Ollie's doing:
- Charity work: "Ollie's annual tournament, presented by Walmart and Prime Materials Recovery Inc., raises money, and awareness, to provide athletic opportunities for athletes with disabilities. The centerpiece is the building of "Kevin's Kourts," which are designed as fully-accessible basketball courts. He opened a new one in South Windsor in June, and another has been opened in Waterbury, with the official ribbon-cutting to come. A fourth, in West Hartford, is nearing completion. Ollie conducted a clinic for 80 youngsters at the Foxwood Tribal Nation's community center on Sunday" - he has to live his Christian values to be successful
- Building chemistry: "Ollie said he is doing more to build chemistry and relationships with the team, such as occasional meals together and other group events. At the Werth Center, he noted, players and coaches don't "cross paths" as often as in the hallways at Gampel Pavilion. "Spending more time with them and learning their story, I have to do that better," he said. "The staff has to do that better. We're just encouraged about the new relationships we're building with our players. Success is never guaranteed — you have to build that inside. We want to develop the talent, but we want to develop the relationship even more."" -- The focus on relationships, on love, is key. He needs to follow other great coaches in this emphasis, including JC, Coach K at Duke, and others.

What I don't like:
- How they are handling Diarra: "We're going to restrict his working where he is able to recover more than the other guys. No 'cemetery hill' runs for him, but he'll be doing situps at bottom. We can't have him pounding on his knees all the time." -- situps are terrible for the back, you need plank variations for core strength. Also running will help the knees if he uses good form and minimalist shoes (or barefoot). It's landing with a hard shock at the heel that causes knee problems. Strength training alone is not going to protect the knees adequately.

 

[intlzncster]

What I don't like:
- How they are handling Diarra: "We're going to restrict his working where he is able to recover more than the other guys. No 'cemetery hill' runs for him, but he'll be doing situps at bottom. We can't have him pounding on his knees all the time." -- situps are terrible for the back, you need plank variations for core strength. Also running will help the knees if he uses good form and minimalist shoes (or barefoot). It's landing with a hard shock at the heel that causes knee problems. Strength training alone is not going to protect the knees adequately.

Running on asphalt is categorically bad for the knees and joints, good form or not. No problem with him building stamina in other ways, bike, swim, interval sprints, whatever.

 

[Rocktheworld]

What does this mean?

The traffic flow design/results is different in Werth than it is in Gampel

 

[David 76]

Lol again Ollie is talking about making Jalen a shooting guard with Alterique running the show. Now Ollie wants to learn his players' stories? What was he doing before. The great communicator and recruiter is having trouble doing both.

Adams is a point guard with shooting guard qualities but he is not exclusively a shooting guard. He needs the ball in his hands to be effective most of the time.

PS: Why is Adams always injured every offseason? We have half a roster that is chronically injured.

Moo

 

[pj]

Running on asphalt is categorically bad for the knees and joints, good form or not. No problem with him building stamina in other ways, bike, swim, interval sprints, whatever.

That's not true. A minimalist running style with midfoot strike, once enough strength has been built up in the lower leg and foot to properly maintain form, exerts a healing influence which maintains the knee joint. The hardness of the surface doesn't matter because the muscles, tendons, and ligaments of the lower leg are designed to operate as a spring which absorbs force and re-transmits it back to the ground to propel the runner forward. A softer surface only forces a more rigid foot, it doesn't change the distribution of force. Weak or beginning runners benefit from a softer surface like grass, but athletes should develop their muscles so that they run independently of surface.

 

[Edward Sargent]

That's not true. A minimalist running style with midfoot strike, once enough strength has been built up in the lower leg and foot to properly maintain form, exerts a healing influence which maintains the knee joint. The hardness of the surface doesn't matter because the muscles, tendons, and ligaments of the lower leg are designed to operate as a spring which absorbs force and re-transmits it back to the ground to propel the runner forward. A softer surface only forces a more rigid foot, it doesn't change the distribution of force. Weak or beginning runners benefit from a softer surface like grass, but athletes should develop their muscles so that they run independently of surface.

You are reporting biology like a physicist. Take it from a biologist with 40 years of running, hard surfaces take a toll. I have had to curb my running due to wear and tear on the meniscus in both knees. Mama has patellofemoral pain syndrome also known as runners knee. While his muscles, tendon and ligaments are fine his patellae are worn thin. Running hills is not a good idea.

 

[pj]

You are reporting biology like a physicist. Take it from a biologist with 40 years of running, hard surfaces take a toll. I have had to curb my running due to wear and tear on the meniscus in both knees. Mama has patellofemoral pain syndrome also known as runners knee. While his muscles, tendon and ligaments are fine his patellae are worn thin. Running hills is not a good idea.

I'm also a runner with 33 years experience. Try running in Vibram Fivefingers. It is transformative.

I do agree that running downhill is not a good idea, especially on an uneven surface that risks an ankle or knee sprain. But running uphill is easy on the knees and a great workout.

 

[QDOG5]

pj and Sarge should intern for KO. You can receive inspirational messages from KO in his office and run them down to the players locker room. pj, you'll say things like "men, we need ten toes in, in those vibram fivefingers we're going for a run now. Sarge, you can say, " we're gonna take the stairs, escalators are for cowards, but also remember running on hard surfaces takes a toll." If you guys become interns maybe you'll get some inside scoop and take a little pressure off Chief.

 

[pj]

pj and Sarge should intern for KO. You can receive inspirational messages from KO in his office and run them down to the players locker room. pj, you'll say things like "men, we need ten toes in, in those vibram fivefingers we're going for a run now. Sarge, you can say, " we're gonna take the stairs, escalators are for cowards, but also remember running on hard surfaces takes a toll." If you guys become interns maybe you'll get some inside scoop and take a little pressure off Chief.

I've delegated my inside access to @Chief00. I know he can handle the pressure.

 

[intlzncster]

I'm also a runner with 33 years experience. Try running in Vibram Fivefingers. It is transformative.

I do agree that running downhill is not a good idea, especially on an uneven surface that risks an ankle or knee sprain. But running uphill is easy on the knees and a great workout.

I've used Vibrams (correctly). They're fine in some respects, but not in others. The balls of my feet couldn't handle the pressure (too much of the pad underneath is worn off from years of soccer). Feels like stepping on a marble on the ball of my foot. I wear flat runners mostly when I do run...Nike Frees.

Asphalt/concrete causes shin splints more often than other surfaces. While the injury rates are pretty similar for most surfaces, that's because running on uneven natural surfaces leads to more sprains and achilles injuries as a result. Concrete/aspharlt does provide the benefit of not being uneven, so less likely to twist tendons/muscles.

RE Diarra's particular injury, which in laymen's terms is "runner's knee", rest is by far and away the number one prescription for healing. The less stress he takes, the better.

You are not speaking of a healthy player here. Diarra doesn't have as much tendon/tissue in the knee anymore. It is not coming back. Tendons/padding doesn't just come back or regenerate. The damage is done. Running in the manner you prescribe is not 'resuscitative' or regenerative for his particular condition. It's now about managing it.

 

[LIuconn]

What's his ceiling at this point? We're close to September - if he can't run a straight line up a hill how is he supposed to cut and jump in a couple months?

 

[JMick]

He's capable of doing so, they just don't want him to

What's his ceiling at this point? We're close to September - if he can't run a straight line up a hill how is he supposed to cut and jump in a couple months?

 

[FfldCntyFan]

You are reporting biology like a physicist. Take it from a biologist with 40 years of running, hard surfaces take a toll. I have had to curb my running due to wear and tear on the meniscus in both knees. Mama has patellofemoral pain syndrome also known as runners knee. While his muscles, tendon and ligaments are fine his patellae are worn thin. Running hills is not a good idea.

I'm also a runner with 33 years experience. Try running in Vibram Fivefingers. It is transformative.

I do agree that running downhill is not a good idea, especially on an uneven surface that risks an ankle or knee sprain. But running uphill is easy on the knees and a great workout.

I am Amby Burfoot!

 

[husky429]

I'm also a runner with 33 years experience. Try running in Vibram Fivefingers. It is transformative.

I do agree that running downhill is not a good idea, especially on an uneven surface that risks an ankle or knee sprain. But running uphill is easy on the knees and a great workout.

Let's trust the professional strength and conditioning coaches, shall we? They get paid a lot to be better at this than you

It's nice you've been running for a long time. That doesn't make you qualified in the least.

 

[Kmba2Rmemba]

What's his ceiling at this point? We're close to September - if he can't run a straight line up a hill how is he supposed to cut and jump in a couple months?

I didn't follow his recruitment that closely. Was this something that was absolutely in the dark until the start of his freshman year? Hard to imagine his condition is something you would willingly overlook, particularly for a big man

 

[UConnDan97]

Let's trust the professional strength and conditioning coaches, shall we? They get paid a lot to be better at this than you

It's nice you've been running for a long time. That doesn't make you qualified in the least.

What on earth are you talking about?? I get ALL my medical advice from the Boneyard...

 

[Rico444]

I am Amby Burfoot!

But how many cell phones do you have?

 

[RJScootin]

Let's trust the professional strength and conditioning coaches, shall we? They get paid a lot to be better at this than you

It's nice you've been running for a long time. That doesn't make you qualified in the least.

So we should let the professional writers who get paid to give their thoughts on the team only? If someone has 33 years experience with something i think they should be able to give an opinion in the BY. Like a strength and conditioning coach has never been wrong. Thanks for making yourself less qualified in life with this reply.

 

[husky429]

So we should let the professional writers who get paid to give their thoughts on the team only? If someone has 33 years experience with something i think they should be able to give an opinion in the BY. Like a strength and conditioning coach has never been wrong. Thanks for making yourself less qualified in life with this reply.

33 years of experience in meaningless to me. 33 years wrong isn't good experience.

I don't care if he shares his opinions, but read the posts--he's acting like some kind of fitness encyclopedia, that's insane.

And I'm happy to be less qualified. That's why I consult experts.