2025 Recruiting: Braylon Mullins Visiting (6/24)

[caw]

For the moment, yes. At one point Bill Walsh was the only one running his offense too. I already saw more teams doing some of what we do last year. Next year it will be even more. Kansas runs complex offense if less off ball screening. A lot of it is that you can't run it without the right players, so you'll see more as more teams adapt.

Yep, some of the stuff other teams ran def resembled what UConn was running in 23. Painter even said he wanted to steal some stuff he saw on film for next year during pre-NC press. He knew it was different. If a team is good enough, others will take the stuff.

Hurley is at the forefront right now. Others will start to implement his stuff. The question will become who does it and how good they are at getting buy-in and if they can recruit the right players for it (to run the offense and the defense).

Everyone loves/ed UConn's offense in the tournament, for good reason. They put together three games well above their already best in the country offense, one on par, and two slightly below average for UConn (Illinois and Stetson).

However, the defense really isn't talked about enough, because it went up to silly levels of good during that postseason run. Bama was the worst defensive performance and it rated decently on a national standard. The next two games were Purdue and SDSU and both of those were better than the average Houston defensive game. The other three were just crushing defensive games.

Finding players who can/will/want to execute UConn's offense while being athletic enough to play that level of defense is outright absurd.

Painter and his staff got out-coached by Danny and his staff. We still had the better team but the coaching staff/scout was noticeably better for UConn.

I go back and forth on this. Painter did get out-coached but I'm not sure what he could do at that point in the season. The flaw they had was they never had a game plan without Edey, or to use Edey to free up other players. All season long they played one way and they won. UConn was just one team that style wouldn't work against. They had zero movement off ball and not enough players to be able to drive, but they didn't have it all year and never showed they could run it. Is it Painter's fault in terms of coaching, or recruiting? Their whole offense was predicated on getting it to Edey in the post and letting him score, or if he is doubled, kicking it out to let others take open shots by swinging it around to find the open shooter. They were a very good passing team but never showed all year the ability to shoot off the dribble, or off the screen. They never had the need to do so. UConn shut down option B and let Clingan slow option A. They had no option C.

I think Creighton would have beaten them also TBH. Kalkbrenner was probably the only other center to be able to defend Edey 1-1 and not be killed down low. Creighton's problem was their offense was too hot/cold.



All that said, I think Mullins would be fine at Purdue, but he would shine at UConn.

 

[huskiesouth]

Illinois can be criticized as at some point long before the run hit the 30's someone should have realized it may be time to try a new approach.

I'm not sure Purdue could have done a whole lot different, it isn't as if they could have added athletic guards & wings to their roster at halftime.

Well we’ll see what the future brings, maybe with the portal growing and transfer rules disappearing the time might come where a team can add new players at halftime.

 

[kobe]

indiana would really have to screw it up for him not to end up there.

given how poorly woodson has recruited in-state kids, there's a real chance he blows it.

 

[TheHorde]

indiana would really have to screw it up for him not to end up there.

given how poorly woodson has recruited in-state kids, there's a real chance he blows it.

McNeeley decommitting from there and coming here can only help our chances.

 

[superjohn]

Yep, some of the stuff other teams ran def resembled what UConn was running in 23. Painter even said he wanted to steal some stuff he saw on film for next year during pre-NC press. He knew it was different. If a team is good enough, others will take the stuff.

Hurley is at the forefront right now. Others will start to implement his stuff. The question will become who does it and how good they are at getting buy-in and if they can recruit the right players for it (to run the offense and the defense).

Everyone loves/ed UConn's offense in the tournament, for good reason. They put together three games well above their already best in the country offense, one on par, and two slightly below average for UConn (Illinois and Stetson).

However, the defense really isn't talked about enough, because it went up to silly levels of good during that postseason run. Bama was the worst defensive performance and it rated decently on a national standard. The next two games were Purdue and SDSU and both of those were better than the average Houston defensive game. The other three were just crushing defensive games.

Finding players who can/will/want to execute UConn's offense while being athletic enough to play that level of defense is outright absurd.



I go back and forth on this. Painter did get out-coached but I'm not sure what he could do at that point in the season. The flaw they had was they never had a game plan without Edey, or to use Edey to free up other players. All season long they played one way and they won. UConn was just one team that style wouldn't work against. They had zero movement off ball and not enough players to be able to drive, but they didn't have it all year and never showed they could run it. Is it Painter's fault in terms of coaching, or recruiting? Their whole offense was predicated on getting it to Edey in the post and letting him score, or if he is doubled, kicking it out to let others take open shots by swinging it around to find the open shooter. They were a very good passing team but never showed all year the ability to shoot off the dribble, or off the screen. They never had the need to do so. UConn shut down option B and let Clingan slow option A. They had no option C.

I think Creighton would have beaten them also TBH. Kalkbrenner was probably the only other center to be able to defend Edey 1-1 and not be killed down low. Creighton's problem was their offense was too hot/cold.



All that said, I think Mullins would be fine at Purdue, but he would shine at UConn.

Bingo. Maybe Painter should've tried to develop more ways to win in preseason and during the season but that roster is really limited outside of Edey. It got them a dominant season but they simply had no way of matching up with UConn and he wasn't going to be able to institute a different plan in a matter of days to beat UConn. I don't believe for a second he's an idiot who thought UConn would be double teaming when Clingan is on the floor.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Where are you getting this from? You really think Painter thought UConn would double team Edey with Clingan in the game? Everyone knows we had a 7'2 monster who was going to play Edey straight up.

He probably assumed we would switch it
up because Edey was doing nearly whatever he wanted early in the game

 

[uconnfan68]

Purdue's staff absolutely mailed in game planning. As did Illinois'.

Two B1G teams whose coaches didn't even try to game prep or adjust in-game.

And told everyone at halftime they weren’t changing anything.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

He probably assumed we would switch it
up because Edey was doing nearly whatever he wanted early in the game

Eh, he was scoring but Clingan made it super difficult. We knew it wasn’t going to be sustainable.

Compared to when Karaban was on him later in the game and it turned into a layup line. Or when Samson was on him and nearly fouled out in 5 mins.

 

[The Yakk]

I guarantee you that there are numerous coaches out there who either (a) could have anticipated what was going to happen (at least as a possibility) and figured out ways to create some decent looks from 3 or (b) made that adjustment in game if they somehow overlooked it as a possibility.

There are absolutely ways to get guys looks. Where were the screens? Edey could have done more to find guys, rather than repeatedly go for 2. (They kept going for 2 when it was clear they couldn't afford to keep doing it.)

I can tell you one coach who absolutely would have gotten them more looks from 3: Jay Wright. And I know that for a fact because he talked about it halftime and mentioned pindown screens as one way Purdue could gin up some more 3s. Didn't happen. No adjustments from Painter.

It can be true that (a) UConn was an awesome defensive team and also true that (b) Painter's game plan sucked. Because both are. Look, UConn was great defensively but I am certain that if the teams had played again the next day, Purdue wouldn't have shot 7 3s. Big L on Painter's part.

Very good analysis.

If we were up against a coach like Jay Wright or McDermott in that game--with Purdue's roster--I would have been scared out of my wits.

Having a player like Edey will make any coach look like a genius. But at this point, the burden is on Painter to prove he is not an overrated mediocrity. Humiliating losses to 15- and 16-seeds do not help.

With Edey gone, and Painter remaining in charge, I think Purdue's championship window has slammed shut and locked.

 

[nomar]

Very good analysis.

If we were up against a coach like Jay Wright or McDermott in that game--with Purdue's roster--I would have been scared out of my wits.

Having a player like Edey will make any coach look like a genius. But at this point, the burden is on Painter to prove he is not an overrated mediocrity. Humiliating losses to 15- and 16-seeds do not help.

With Edey gone, and Painter remaining in charge, I think Purdue's championship window has slammed shut and locked.

I understand the points people are making about Purdue not having guys like Jordan Hawkins on their roster but I refuse to believe that these coaches and players didn't know how to set screens.

To beat us, they had to make 3s. To not do anything to try to create 3-point shots was coaching malpractice.

I agree re Painter/Purdue. Edey's not walking through ducking under that door.

 

[BuffaloHusky]

I understand the points people are making about Purdue not having guys like Jordan Hawkins on their roster but I refuse to believe that these coaches and players didn't know how to set screens.

To beat us, they had to make 3s. To not do anything to try to create 3-point shots was coaching malpractice.

I agree re Painter/Purdue. Edey's not walking through ducking under that door.

I understand we have tinted glasses but Painter has been in the top 5 of the sport and has had 1 ranked teams at some point three years in a row. Anybody would take that success not only Purdue.

In terms of beating us, there was no game plan that would have had success unless we were just missing shots. They had two days to prepare and in that scenario, we were going to beat them 70-80% of the time.

 

[dogpause]

Mullins has a nice quick release, great range, can shoot off the dribble, is quite athletic and has a high BBIQ. Definately looks like a UConn player. Does he want to stay home and play for Purdue, or go away and play for an NC?

 

[auror]

I understand the points people are making about Purdue not having guys like Jordan Hawkins on their roster but I refuse to believe that these coaches and players didn't know how to set screens.

To beat us, they had to make 3s. To not do anything to try to create 3-point shots was coaching malpractice.

I agree re Painter/Purdue. Edey's not walking through ducking under that door.

They did things. Check out this play they ran to try and get a 3 for Mason Gillis.

 

[BGesus4]

They did things. Check out this play they ran to try and get a 3 for Mason Gillis.

Small sample size but that does not look like someone who’s used to setting screens to get guys open

 

[superjohn]

They did things. Check out this play they ran to try and get a 3 for Mason Gillis.

Some of our own fans don't seem to get how ridiculously great this UConn team was. They were dominant all season and for the second season in a row they were healthy at the end of the season and peaking for the tournament...

I don't think it's the intention of posters to downplay how great we were but that's what it looks like when people are dissing Painter's coaching. Purdue was the second best team but there's nothing his coaching was going to do to keep up with us scoring wise and to slow us down...

He knew Clingan was going to play Edey one on one but they run their offense through Edey. They weren't going to all of a sudden become dynamic in other ways. There were mismatches everywhere because we're just a lot better than them. The hope was to get Clingan into foul trouble and for UConn to beat themselves. It honestly could've been worse for them if we were hitting our threes.

Underwood tried to attack the basket because that's what they do and the Illini simply couldn't score because Clingan altered every single thing and didn't foul. End result we got out and ran and destroyed them with a 30-0 run, while holding them 32 points below their scoring average. Bama had the highest scoring team in the country and gave us our toughest test but we wore them out and won easily, holding them 18 points below their scoring average. All these guys can coach but our coaches and players are just better and this team could play any sort of style/force our style on the opponent and they would eventually bludgeon you with it.

This UConn team was the best team of the modern era.

 

[dennismenace]

Purdue's staff absolutely mailed in game planning. As did Illinois'.

Two B1G teams whose coaches didn't even try to game prep or adjust in-game.

Think it was the Xavier coach who, with a shell shocked look on his face, said in the post game interview that there really isn't adequate time to prepare with a team like Uconn because of the myriad of plays, options and players. I think he just said that Uconn could overwhelm you with all their talent and possibilities. And he is one of the better coaches around.

 

[Spaceman213J]

Think it was the Xavier coach who, with a shell shocked look on his face, said in the post game interview that there really isn't adequate time to prepare with a team like Uconn because of the myriad of plays, options and players. I think he just said that Uconn could overwhelm you with all their talent and possibilities. And he is one of the better coaches around.

Every team UConn faced lost by double digits Purdue kept it close for a half. Even outside of the tournament, look at UConn's losses. The lost to Kansas in Fog Allen with Spencer hobbled, no Castle and Clingan not 100% and they had the lead in the 2nd half. They lost to Seton Hall in a game they lose Clingan to injury in and Castle was early on in his development. They lost to Creighton, on the road, to a team that was absolutely on fire from 3.
I really think the way Creighton was built last year, if UConn played every team 100 times, Creighton would have had the most wins against them. They had a big that could play some distance and shooters with some athleticism.
Edey was never going to pull Clingan far enough from the hoop the the UConn permiter guys couldn't play as tight as they did at the arc. If Edey didn't hit a bunch of tough shots in the first half, they would have lost by 25+.
Once Edey was worn down and played like a good, but not amazing center, Purdue had no chance.
Really, what could Painter have done? It's just not a good matchup for them. It's just that they were the 2nd best team in the country and the best team blitzed everybody in the tourny.

 

[awy]

Painter is a good coach by college basketball standards, but uconn is another 2 or 3 levels above that. uconn got NBA teams sharing notes on offense, but it's also more than just a knowledge gap. It's built on recruiting the right type of players, intense practice that is effective as learning experience, and in-game adjustments that actually respond to new challenges presented by the other team. None of these can be replicated overnight. The traditional power house teams don't face pressure to deviate from the standard recruit the highest ranked guy approach, and the lower teams don't have the coaching staff consistency. Alabama is probably the most serious threat from a program level.

There's a reason why purdue looked lost without edey drawing double teams to generate open 3 looks. they've never practiced to solve that set of problems. they have edey and for college that's good enough. most college teams just run one thing that works. if it loses, they accept that.

it's one thing to point out that uconn has good sets and most efficient shot generation, but more than that the staff work overtime to meet the standard they've set for themselves to be bulletproof. it's why the team gets better as they practice more, they are simply learning more advanced material and leveling up to a higher ceiling. they've got counters (e.g. andre jackson jr cut plays to counter sagging) and designer plays to take advantage of particular player strengths and exploit different scenarios. the lob vs post looks is very difficult to prepare for because most teams at the college level don't have the personnel or practice level to deal with it. It's just a pro level coaching staff vs coughing college babies.

 

[Umami Zen]

The two headed monster we presented teams on D. Donovan controlling the paint and staying out of foul trouble-Combined with Steph consistently limiting the opposition's top perimeter scoring threat- Was exceptional. Our team D was excellent. When combined with our highly efficient Offense- The only team that was going to beat us was ourselves on an off night-Which did not happen. Coaching/scout/players who excelled at their roles. Result-NC

Back to Braylon. Good to have him coming to town.

 

[UconnU]

How high do yall think he will he jump in the updated 247 rankings?

Within the last two weeks offers from Purdue, UNC, Tennessee, Kansas, Ohio State.

 

[MrSec224]

How high do yall think he will he jump in the updated 247 rankings?

Within the last two weeks offers from Purdue, UNC, Tennessee, Kansas, Ohio State.

Inside the top 40 is the expectation

 

[Drame]

I am so sorry that a response to a comment so offends you.

Actually, I guess I'm not. Lighten up Francis.

I'm not offended. Im joyfully reminding you you're in the wrong thread Karen.

 

[nomar]

I understand we have tinted glasses but Painter has been in the top 5 of the sport and has had 1 ranked teams at some point three years in a row. Anybody would take that success not only Purdue.

In terms of beating us, there was no game plan that would have had success unless we were just missing shots. They had two days to prepare and in that scenario, we were going to beat them 70-80% of the time.

Anybody would take a 7'4" guy with touch. 2024-25 will be a real test for Painter.

Going into the tournament, it was the virtually unanimous consensus here that the ONLY WAY we would lose would be if we went cold and the other team rained 3 on us. It's unfathomable that the Purdue staff didn't figure out a way to get more 3-point opportunities.

I agree we were by far the better team and much more athletic. But they needed to make 3s and they did nothing to make that happen.

All I can say is that Jay Wright thought it was possible for Purdue to create more opportunities.

 

[nomar]

In hindsight, yes, you could always try something different. But if your strategy is that one of the best offensive teams in the country all year long should stop doing what got them there and try something entirely new, that they haven't been running all year, against the best defensive team in the country and expect it would be effective ..... One could try, but the smart money wouldn't have been on it working.

Did any other team have a guy who could play Edey 1 on 1? The notion that Painter shouldn't have anticipated that his guys wouldn't be left open beyond the arc as usual is ridiculous.

But OK, let's say it was the right move for Painter to go into the game with the same strategy. It clearly wasn't working. I laughed when Painter said to the sideline reporter he was going to keep doing what he was doing. If you need to make adjustment, then you make adjustments.

@auror That's really good individual defense on that play. I'm not going to rewatch the game to see how many times they ran a play like that but pointing to one example doesn't really prove anything. We all watched the game. They kept dumping it inside to Edey and having him shoot all game long even when it became clear they couldn't trade 2s for 2s.

I think people are misunderstanding me to be suggesting that UConn's defense wasn't great. It obviously was. But Purdue could have gotten more than 7 shots off had they committed to doing it. Do you think if they played 5 more times, Purdue would shoot that few 3s again?

They knew or should have known we would not be doubling Edey and they just didn't adjust for that. Ever.

 

[TheChamps990411]

Purdue's staff absolutely mailed in game planning. As did Illinois'.

Two B1G teams whose coaches didn't even try to game prep or adjust in-game.

BS. They learned theres a difference in watching Uconn and playing against them. They simply werent good enough to beat one of the best teams of the last 30 years. Nothing was going to stop this team.