Another Mediocre Regular Season

[Matrim55]

The erosion happens when recruiting classes suffer. UConn has the #4 class in the country.

This is exactly correct. Our junior and senior classes are the ones that suffered because of APR, CR and coaching turnover. Add in Omar's ceiling as a contributor getting much lower thanks to injuries, and that's how you have a team capable of such inconsistent - and downright indifferent - play. Nobody we recruited from the HS class of 2012 or 2013 was really supposed to be good enough to be a go-to-guy on a winning team, and that's exactly what we're seeing. Guys like Miller and Gibbs have put something of a band-aid on that, but neither's a cure.

"A cure" is getting better recruiting classes year after year, which Ollie's done. For 2014 he got a five-star in Hamilton; for 2015 he got a five-star in Adams and a four-star in Enoch; for 2016 he has two five-stars (Gilbert, Durham) and two four-stars (Jackson, Diarra). For 2017 we're looking even better, should we close on Diallo, Brown, MAL and Samuels.

As the original post pointed out, getting from the heights of 2009 to our current "depths" was a longish and slow process. Recovering from that fall isn't done in one year unless you pull UK or Duke-type classes (which we never have). It takes time to identify, acquire, integrate and coach up the talent on hand.

The wait is our penance. But all you have to do is look at what KO's doing in terms of filling future roster spots, and how guys like Hamilton, Amida, Purvis and Facey have improved year-on-year - even if they didn't show it tonight - to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

This evening sucked, but the good times will be back again soon.

 

[upstater]

This is exactly correct. Our junior and senior classes are the ones that suffered because of APR, CR and coaching turnover. Add in Omar's ceiling as a contributor getting much lower thanks to injuries, and that's how you have a team capable of such inconsistent - and downright indifferent - play. Nobody we recruited from the HS class of 2012 or 2013 was really supposed to be good enough to be a go-to-guy on a winning team, and that's exactly what we're seeing. Guys like Miller and Gibbs have put something of a band-aid on that, but neither's a cure.

"A cure" is getting better recruiting classes year after year, which Ollie's done. For 2014 he got a five-star in Hamilton; for 2015 he got a five-star in Adams and a four-star in Enoch; for 2016 he has two five-stars (Gilbert, Durham) and two four-stars (Jackson, Diarra). For 2017 we're looking even better, should we close on Diallo, Brown, MAL and Samuels.

As the original post pointed out, getting from the heights of 2009 to our current "depths" was a longish and slow process. Recovering from that fall isn't done in one year unless you pull UK or Duke-type classes (which we never have). It takes time to identify, acquire, integrate and coach up the talent on hand.

The wait is our penance. But all you have to do is look at what KO's doing in terms of filling future roster spots, and how guys like Hamilton, Amida, Purvis and Facey have improved year-on-year - even if they didn't show it tonight - to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

This evening sucked, but the good times will be back again soon.

I agree with this largely. Can people take themselves back to Deandre Daniels's Soph year? Not his freshman year, in which he hardly played. But Soph year. The thread on DHam is mild by comparison.

Look, I really like Brimah and his style of play and his enthusiasm, but it's true that he was not an elite recruit. Omar looked like the next UConn great until the injuries came along. I haven't seen Omar doing the same pull-ups he did in his frosh year. As for the transfers, they help but only for a short time. Facey is now a junior--he can't have nights like last night. Cassell doesn't seem quite right for this level. And Samuel transferred. That's 5 recruits who see significant time out there.

I know DHam is going to improve, Jalen Adams too, & Enoch. Hopefully those 3 provide the leadership the team needs for the next crew coming in.

 

[uconNYC]

Even without 1999, it was much more fun following UConn in the 1990s than in the 2010s.