Are the extra available minutes what's needed for Bouknight to make the next step? | The Boneyard

Are the extra available minutes what's needed for Bouknight to make the next step?

CL82

CL82

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He stepped up yesterday and he still is nowhere near how good he can be. No one is happy Tyler is out, but the extra minuted may just be what the doctor ordered for Bouk.
 
Polley tore his ACL, absolutely.

To be honest, Polley should have been playing a role similar to Ibi Watson at Dayton. Watson plays 23 mpg, but he's the sharpshooter off the bench.

With Bouknight now in the lineup, the trio of him/Vital/AG reminds me of Dayton's starting guard trio of Crutcher/Landers/Chatman three guys who aren't all true PGs, but all three have handle and distributing abilities.
 
Hey Adrien! said:
Polley tore his ACL, absolutely.

To be honest, Polley should have been playing a role similar to Ibi Watson at Dayton. Watson plays 23 mpg, but he's the sharpshooter off the bench.

With Bouknight now in the lineup, the trio of him/Vital/AG reminds me of Dayton's starting guard trio of Crutcher/Landers/Chatman three guys who aren't all true PGs, but all three have handle and distributing abilities.
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Dayton. Interesting.

Bouknight needs to get more PT we all know this. He’ll get so much better by March.
 
CL82 said:
View attachment 49897

He stepped up yesterday and he still is nowhere near how good he can be. No one is happy Tyler is out, but the extra minuted may just be what the doctor ordered for Bouk.
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He absolutely did not step up yesterday. He stepped up for a two minute stretch of the first OT, but in a game we needed him he could only keep himself on the court for about 23 minutes of the 40 due to foul trouble and he only made 3 buckets and had relatively little impact during the first 40 minutes.

I think Polley's absence has every chance of helping his development over the course of the season, but he'll have to step up.
 
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businesslawyer said:
He absolutely did not step up yesterday. He stepped up for a two minute stretch of the first OT, but in a game we needed him he could only keep himself on the court for about 23 minutes of the 40 due to foul trouble and he only made 3 buckets and had relatively little impact during the first 40 minutes.

I think Polley's absence has every chance of helping his development over the course of the season, but he'll have to step up.
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Meh, second leading scorer is stepping up in my world view. Agree his game is young, but the potential for him to be more is obvious. Like you I'm hopeful that more time on the floor accelerates his growth.
 
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CL82 said:
Meh, second leading scorer is stepping up in my world view. Agree his game is young, but the potential for him to be more is obvious. Like you I'm hopeful that more time on the floor accelerates his growth.
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He was fifth leading scorer when the 40 minutes ended in a game where we only had 5 guys who could score the ball. Due to the play of others, he got extra minutes and he took over the game for 2 of them. But you can't look at numbers that superficially and ignore what actually happened.
 
CL82 said:
Meh, second leading scorer is stepping up in my world view. Agree his game is young, but the potential for him to be more is obvious. Like you I'm hopeful that more time on the floor accelerates his growth.
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Second leading scorer at 50% shooting and in only 23 minutes. He does need to avoid dumb fouls. He also needs to find his outside shot. It is critical for this team. But what I most want to see is a bigger number in the Assist column. He has a lot of potential to create things for other people as he draws defenders.
 
ucp990411 said:
How about making a jump shot?
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That was the most noticeable offensive fact about the game. At the 4 minute TO of regulation, other than Sid Wilson's 1 three no one other than Gilbert had made a jumper -- not a 3 but anything other than a layup of some sort -- the entire game. Not Bouk. Not Akok. Not Christian. Not Adams. Not Gaffney. Nobody. Christian did then add his name to the list at the end. But any of those guys being able to hit a jumper would have made it easier to hit a higher percentage of shots around the basket.
 
businesslawyer said:
He absolutely did not step up yesterday. He stepped up for a two minute stretch of the first OT, but in a game we needed him he could only keep himself on the court for about 23 minutes of the 40 due to foul trouble and he only made 3 buckets and had relatively little impact during the first 40 minutes.

I think Polley's absence has every chance of helping his development over the course of the season, but he'll have to step up.
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Bouknight was 50% from the field and 80% from the line. I will take those numbers on our team.
He did have 3 TO’s but the team had a 0.47 assist to turnover ratio. Our point guard apparently doesn’t understand his role is to throw catchable passes to guys in scoring position. Granted we don’t have much shooting but Gilbert missed him wide open toward the end of OT on a break.
Chief likes Gilbert and he had some decent stats yesterday but not point guard stats - until he had his hyperactive attack. We need him so badly - what is keeping him from learning and applying? Chief is lost for answers because he’s a nice, hard working kid, who off the court doesn’t appear selfish at all.
 
Chief00 said:
Bouknight was 50% from the field and 80% from the line. I will take those numbers on our team.
He did have 3 TO’s but the team had a 0.47 assist to turnover ratio. Our point guard apparently doesn’t understand his role is to throw catchable passes to guys in scoring position. Granted we don’t have much shooting but Gilbert missed him wide open toward the end of OT on a break.
Chief likes Gilbert and he had some decent stats yesterday but not point guard stats - until he had his hyperactive attack. We need him so badly - what is keeping him from learning and applying? Chief is lost for answers because he’s a nice, hard working kid, who off the court doesn’t appear selfish at all.
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Here's why I was disappointed. Bouk doesn't play good D yet. He has the athleticism but not the understanding. Isn't a great passer. Still turns it over too much. What he gives you is the ability to get his own shot. The problem with his 40 minutes (prior to OT) is he didn't take enough shots. He's got to make an impact scoring. Being 3 of 7 or whatever like that he was at the end of regulation isn't going to cut it.

Said another way, I'm less worried about his shooting percentage than I am about his scoring. And until the OTs, he didn't score enough.
 
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businesslawyer said:
That was the most noticeable offensive fact about the game. At the 4 minute TO of regulation, other than Sid Wilson's 1 three no one other than Gilbert had made a jumper -- not a 3 but anything other than a layup of some sort -- the entire game. Not Bouk. Not Akok. Not Christian. Not Adams. Not Gaffney. Nobody. Christian did then add his name to the list at the end. But any of those guys being able to hit a jumper would have made it easier to hit a higher percentage of shots around the basket.
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Bouknight made an elbow jumper earlier. It was a pretty shot. But his outside shot is missing in action.
 
Chief00 said:
Bouknight was 50% from the field and 80% from the line. I will take those numbers on our team.
He did have 3 TO’s but the team had a 0.47 assist to turnover ratio. Our point guard apparently doesn’t understand his role is to throw catchable passes to guys in scoring position. Granted we don’t have much shooting but Gilbert missed him wide open toward the end of OT on a break.
Chief likes Gilbert and he had some decent stats yesterday but not point guard stats - until he had his hyperactive attack. We need him so badly - what is keeping him from learning and applying? Chief is lost for answers because he’s a nice, hard working kid, who off the court doesn’t appear selfish at all.
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The problem with Gilbert is that he is not a point guard. I read on another's post that he was an off-guard in HS and I can see that. It's easy to dominate HS with his skills but being a great PG is instinctual and there's only so much a coach can say/teach. I admire his hard work and tenacity but he's never going to be the great player we thought he'd be. Le'ts hope that Dan Hurley's recruits in Gaffney and/or Cole can be that player.
 
businesslawyer said:
Here's why I was disappointed. Bouk doesn't play good D yet. He has the athleticism but not the understanding. Isn't a great passer. Still turns it over too much. What he gives you is the ability to get his own shot. The problem with his 40 minutes (prior to OT) is he didn't take enough shots. He's got to make an impact scoring. Being 3 of 7 or whatever like that he was at the end of regulation isn't going to cut it.

Said another way, I'm less worried about his shooting percentage than I am about his scoring. And until the OTs, he didn't score enough.
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Valid points about his current deficiencies. He is also dealing with the unspoken issue of senior guards not getting the ball to a freshman potential star, so he can score more. They apparently want the shots. Additionally, Hurley said Bouknight turned down 3 to 4 open jump shots that Dan wanted him to take. So it’s clear he has the green light and he needs to stop deferring to upper class-men. A naturally tendency for a variety of social reasons but something Hurley wants him to get over fast.
 
I think Bouk stepped up but we aren't getting anywhere with our starting PF and best shot blocker getting 2 points in 33 minutes. More perplexing in the 2 fouls. In a two OT game, I'd figure our best shot blocker have more than 0 blocks and more fouls trying to block shots at the rim.
 
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Griffman said:
The problem with Gilbert is that he is not a point guard. I read on another's post that he was an off-guard in HS and I can see that. It's easy to dominate HS with his skills but being a great PG is instinctual and there's only so much a coach can say/teach. I admire his hard work and tenacity but he's never going to be the great player we thought he'd be. Le'ts hope that Dan Hurley's recruits in Gaffney and/or Cole can be that player.
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Still one of biggest mysteries to me is how Gilbert is playing. Coming off a healthy summer it shocks me how he has regressed. Everything about him says u wud think he’d make a huge splash this year, don’t get it.
 
Bouknight still needs more coaching and game time experience. Not sure how Hurley is handling him, but it seems he would benefit from a more hands on approach. He should not have been caught in the air multiple times, his drives are the hell bent type ending with a prayer or difficult shot, and a couple of other 'habits' that should be attended to.

This is not a criticism, because he's a freshman and the level of competition has changed. He just needs to make adjustments to his game, which usually are helped with direct coaching. Constantly moving without the ball, improving his passing, letting the game come to him, and a couple of other small adjustments are things that the Coaches can develop in his game. Some of his teammates have some habits you certainly don't want injected into our most promising player. My wish is that the staff develop him into an AA candidate before he leaves.

Just saying of all the players on the team, Hurley should put most of his (or assistants) attention on Bouknight. He has so much potential and skills which will one day elevate the team and carry us far in the future. He will be another of Hurley's players slotted for 'player development' assessment and discussion.
 
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Most freshmen make the next step by becoming sophomores.

Maybe it has to do with deferring to the upper class men that Chief mentions, maybe they need some extended time away from game prep to process everything they've learned, but whatever it is, the biggest jump in player development seems to come between Freshmen and Sophomore years.
 
We’re not winning a national championship this year right? So just give Bouknight as much floor time as he can take. The experience can only help. If he gains enough confidence he will become the number 1 go to scoring option, especially when time runs down.
 
I absolutely love the upside of this kid
To be honest, in his chance to really shine vs a top 25 opponent, I felt his overall performance was less than I expected. He had glimpses of pure magic so the talent is waiting to blossom.
He needs to have some desire and fight to be transfused from CV into his body.
His on ball defense is bad but his help and off ball is good - he can block shots and rebounds well
The other new players and Adams were disappointments.
UConn needs Akok and Bouk to be consistent, smart and aggressive
I don't agree one iota with the Chief theory of deference - I don't see it in either player and if it existed I would hope Hurley and staff would address it
 
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gtcam said:
I don't agree one iota with the Chief theory of deference - I don't see it in either player and if it existed I would hope Hurley and staff would address it
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Hurley says he’s turning down open shots he wants him to take. Neither of us can read minds but that was my theory. Maybe something else is motivating that? I don’t know.
 
Kids a player no doubt, still learning but has unbelievable skills. For a kid that has a very high IQ though it's crazy he can't keep his hands in his pockets. This will be a problem for his minutes, even the first half he got lucky as he committed his 3rd on a reach in but was bailed by the stripes giving it to Whaley.

He needs to be on the court but he also needs to improve his D gets beat off the dribble easy, got back doored too. Love his game and this will only help overall.
 
Chief00 said:
Hurley says he’s turning down open shots he wants him to take. Neither of us can read minds but that was my theory. Maybe something else is motivating that? I don’t know.
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He's turning down open shots too often I see that and agree. Much of the time his lane is closed too after the ball fake. Shoot the ball!!
 
mussels said:
Most freshmen make the next step by becoming sophomores.

Maybe it has to do with deferring to the upper class men that Chief mentions, maybe they need some extended time away from game prep to process everything they've learned, but whatever it is, the biggest jump in player development seems to come between Freshmen and Sophomore years.
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This. The kid is a freshman, and 99% of freshmen have deficiencies. His are easily correctable and he has a ton of talent. Once he starts playing better defense and some more jump shots drop he'll be a star.
 
I just think Bouk needs time on the court. He has the ability to play better d but lacks concentration on that end. We are going to need James to score and score a lot. With Tyler out CV is the only other dependable scorer. Akok is another who needs to figure out his offense. He must be more aggressive inside and try scoring around the rim. His 3 point shot is too inconsistent to depend on only taking shots from the outside.
 
mauconnfan said:
He's turning down open shots too often I see that and agree. Much of the time his lane is closed too after the ball fake. Shoot the ball!!
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He's clearly deferring the Gilbert and Vital when it comes to shooting. I see Akok doing the same. Neither guy seems to feel like they should be the one to take over a game yet. I don't want Bouknight to play like Vital as @gtcam suggests, I want him to add a little Jalen Adams to his game. Know when the team needs you to be the guy in key stretches.

Most impressive things I see in Bouknight are the way he reads the game. Spend some time just watching him and it becomes obvious. He anticipates when a shot will go up, who will take and it from where, then slides into ideal rebounding position or attacks that spot. A fair number of guys have that, but not many with his athletic gifts as well. A few times I watched him read the defense and go to exactly the right spot expecting the ball, which didn't come. Once against WSU he clearly waived and called for the ball and either AG or CV didn't deliver it and in fact passed it the opposite way.
 
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