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Tony Parker and Chauncey Billups were both Finals MVPs. So, yeah.
borges- boat says uconn has the best backcourt
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UConn Dan
Not HuskyFanDan; I lurk & I like
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My predictions:
1) Bazz will most likely run the point for most of the time (not Boat).
2) Boat will enter the draft. Of course, he needs another year and maybe that won't even help, but he's itching to go. Make some $$$... he already said he has a family to support. If he doesn't get drafted he'll go D-league or Europe. He's gone and will try his luck in the draft.
I like Boat, but the ball should be in Bazz's hands as much as possible, especially in late clock situations.
1) Bazz will most likely run the point for most of the time (not Boat).
2) Boat will enter the draft. Of course, he needs another year and maybe that won't even help, but he's itching to go. Make some $$$... he already said he has a family to support. If he doesn't get drafted he'll go D-league or Europe. He's gone and will try his luck in the draft.
I like Boat, but the ball should be in Bazz's hands as much as possible, especially in late clock situations.
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I don't agree with the bolded part. Possessing elite point guard skills while also having the ability to score at a high level aren't mutually exclusive. I'm sure you'd agree that while Tony Parker is a "score first" player, he is also one of the best 5-10 players in the world in terms of maximizing half-court efficiency, positioning role players to succeed, and making sure everybody is constantly touching the ball on offense and involved in the flow. LeBron is the exact same way - his unmatched ability to overwhelm opponents in capacities other than passing can sometimes overshadow the fact that he can basically imitate Steve Nash with frightening precision whenever he wants to. The position has certainly evolved over time, but the fact that Boatright can score doesn't make him exempt from mastering the other nuances of the position.
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The Boatright bashing on this board has reached a similar level to where the Shabazz bashing was prior to last season.
I suspect those posters will look just as silly a year from now.
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Completely agree. To be honest, I think Boatright is going to be the guy who has to sacrifice the most for UConn to reach its ceiling this year, because I think people are going to be surprised how good Calhoun is. He struggled with his handle and his three point shot a bit at the beginning of the year (and still struggles with his handle), but once he begun to acclimate himself to the speed of the college game, he had a nine game stretch there before his wrist injury where he put up almost 15 a game. He also made drastic improvements defensively and on the glass as the season progressed, which adds credence to the opinion he might be our second best player next season. As I said many times last season, I think he's the best pro prospect on the roster and if there is one guy that is going to make a big jump next year, I think it's him.
Add Calhoun's likely improvements to Daniels's emergence at the end of the year, and I think Boatright will be surprised by how he'll have to adapt his game and grapple with his role a bit at the beginning of the year. I think he'll adjust, though, because although he's a bit cocky, he's never given the selfish impression to me. His occasional poor shot selection is more a product of unharnessed point guard skills than it is a gunner's mentality, IMO. By the mid-point next year, I think Boatright will settle into his role as baseline to baseline defender, proficient passer, complementary ball-handler (specifically against teams like Louisville when we'll undoubtedly need him to relieve Bazz of the PG duties from time to time), and crunch-time scorer.
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The difference is that when people were criticizing Bazz, it was about his game, his on-court decision-making. There was never any question about his loyalty or about his inclination to do what's best for the team.
With Boat, people are concerned about his attitude, his NBA ambitions. He wouldn't be the first guy to torpedo team chemistry out of concern with the draft.
For what it's worth, I think he's gone after next year. I think he views leaving early as a matter of pride.
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Boat stayed here when he could have transferred - and he played hard (if not always smart or effectively) in a season where there was nothing to play for. He also was richarded around by the NCAA his entire freshman season, and has stayed with UConn when perhaps he could have held it against the program that they couldn't get his own situation straightened out, and then became ineligible for the postseason. If he has pro ambitions for himself, and overrates his chances of making it, so be it. He's earned some leeway, and team success and individual aspirations don't have to be mutually exclusive (every great team we've had has probably had at least seven guys thinking about their NBA potential). If he has a goal that keeps him motivated to put in extra work in the weight room - or on developing individual aspects of his game - that makes the team better. If he thinks he has to be a better point guard to make it at the next level, and works hard on becoming a better passer when he attacks the basket, then great - we're a better team.
Calhoun in his first book wrote about how he almost blew the 1999 national championship the summer before, by trying to convince Rip that he wasn't ready for the NBA and that he should come back for his junior year (which was correct - Rip went from probably going late first round to being a lottery pick). However, Rip believed he was good enough already, and came within a whisker of leaving just to prove everyone wrong. While some may say Boat has a long way to go to be mentioned in the same sentence as Rip as a prospect, Rip had a lot of doubters at that point, too (too skinny for NBA, not enough shooting range, etc.).
Husky25
Dink & Dunk beat the Greatest Show on Turf.
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And what happened? Hamilton became the master of the mid range jumper, a shot that, by the end of the 2005 season, had experts claiming was a lost art in the NBA. Everyone either focuses on the dribble drive or the trey.
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