C Nick Richards (UConn Offer)

[UConnStats]

Would a freshman Richards come to UConn and start right away over a junior Enoch?

I think it would depend on how big of a step forward Enoch takes this year.

 

[JimHurley]

I think it would depend on how big of a step forward Enoch takes this year.

I still think Enoch will be a very good player for us. Obviously will take more of a backseat to Brimah this season but after that, he should see a big increase in minutes. ~13 and 8 isn't out of the question for big Steve by the time he's a senior.

 

[husky429]

Would a freshman Richards come to UConn and start right away over a junior Enoch?

Depends on how much Enoch improves. He's got the intangibles--fairly athletic, 6'11, 7'3 wingspan, 250lbs roughly. Keep in mind his 4* ranking came very, very late based on just a few summer camp performances. He didn't even play varsity his sophomore year of hs. If Enoch works hard and develops he could be amazing, or he could continue to barely function on defense like he did this year. He has a good left and right hand hook on the block, and a decent shot. No real bad offensive habits since he only picked up the game and started learning in hs with some pretty solid coaches. It really all depends on how hard he works and whether he's got a knack for picking up the game.

they might even be able to play together against certain teams. Enoch projects as an NBA power forward because he is actually a pretty good shooter. He just hasn't had the opportunity to show it at uconn yet. I think the chance of them playing together on a regular basis would be small though because of the amount of teams who play small at the 4 in college.

 

[Matrim55]

Enoch projects as an NBA power forward because he is actually a pretty good shooter.

Even if he turns into Ray Allen he won't be a PF in the NBA. In the modern game the PF has to be able to guard on the perimeter & switch onto ballhandlers defensively in order to contain them, if not necessarily stop them in their tracks.

I love Enoch, and given his age/late growth spurt, I expect him to become both more agile laterally and more explosive off the ground. But even in an absolute best-case scenario, there's no way he's going to be quick enough to be a PF in the league.

 

[mauconnfan]

Even if he turns into Ray Allen he won't be a PF in the NBA. In the modern game the PF has to be able to guard on the perimeter & switch onto ballhandlers defensively in order to contain them, if not necessarily stop them in their tracks.

I love Enoch, and given his age/late growth spurt, I expect him to become both more agile laterally and more explosive off the ground. But even in an absolute best-case scenario, there's no way he's going to be quick enough to be a PF in the league.

It would seem that way as an 18 year old freshman but it's WAY too early to say "no way."

 

[husky429]

Even if he turns into Ray Allen he won't be a PF in the NBA. In the modern game the PF has to be able to guard on the perimeter & switch onto ballhandlers defensively in order to contain them, if not necessarily stop them in their tracks.

I love Enoch, and given his age/late growth spurt, I expect him to become both more agile laterally and more explosive off the ground. But even in an absolute best-case scenario, there's no way he's going to be quick enough to be a PF in the league.

hes a bit of an NBA tweener as a PF/C. He will not play center in the NBA much at all. I doubt he'll play PF for us, but part of the development were hoping for is that he learns perimeter containment. If he's going to play in the NBA he must learn it. My analysis is banking on a ton of development in every facet of the game.

Look at the draft sites and recruiting sites, most everywhere has him as a PF. I think you're underestimating his lateral speed. He is plenty fast enough physically, mentally he is just a step slower than everyone else on the court who's been playing for longer.

Just my opinion though, you're certainly entitled to yours.

 

[JMick]

hes a bit of an NBA tweener as a PF/C. He will not play center in the NBA much at all. I doubt he'll play PF for us, but part of the development were hoping for is that he learns perimeter containment. If he's going to play in the NBA he must learn it. My analysis is banking on a ton of development in every facet of the game.

Look at the draft sites and recruiting sites, most everywhere has him as a PF. I think you're underestimating his lateral speed. He is plenty fast enough physically, mentally he is just a step slower than everyone else on the court who's been playing for longer.

Just my opinion though, you're certainly entitled to yours.

Those are my thoughts as well. With that being said, if he can really learn the center position here, there is a ton of potential. He can do a lot on the offensive end.

 

[TitleTown]

Would a freshman Richards come to UConn and start right away over a junior Enoch?

Yes, absolutely. Enoch is Tyler Olander 2.0.

 

[Huskyforlife]

Yes, absolutely. Enoch is Tyler Olander 2.0.

He's gonna leave UConn with more championships than JB

 

[AfgHusky15]

Depends on how much Enoch improves. He's got the intangibles--fairly athletic, 6'11, 7'3 wingspan, 250lbs roughly. Keep in mind his 4* ranking came very, very late based on just a few summer camp performances. He didn't even play varsity his sophomore year of hs. If Enoch works hard and develops he could be amazing, or he could continue to barely function on defense like he did this year. He has a good left and right hand hook on the block, and a decent shot. No real bad offensive habits since he only picked up the game and started learning in hs with some pretty solid coaches. It really all depends on how hard he works and whether he's got a knack for picking up the game.

they might even be able to play together against certain teams. Enoch projects as an NBA power forward because he is actually a pretty good shooter. He just hasn't had the opportunity to show it at uconn yet. I think the chance of them playing together on a regular basis would be small though because of the amount of teams who play small at the 4 in college.

Last year rodney purvis said Enoch was the highest leaper on the team, and that was when Shonn Miller was on the team too. Purvis also mentioned that he's never seen anyone really dunk on Brimah but in practice he witnessed Enoch dunking on Brimah numerous times. During the Battle for Atlantis tournament Jay Bilas mentioned Enoch as the only pro prospect on UCONN's team (and he wasn't trying to insult uconn), and that was when Enoch played very little. Bilas would not make that statement unless he saw Enoch practice and/or spoke with scouts/coaches. I remember during the end of one of the blowout games last year jalen fed Enoch for an alley oop and Enoch's dunk shook not just the rim but the whole hoop. Enoch is also one of the youngest sophomores in the country, he is still younger than many incoming freshman, but is physically built like a senior already.

My point being Enoch is not just fairly athletic but he is really athletic. As you mentioned he has good form for his shot, and he is a right handed player who flashed a nice and effective lefty baby hook in the limited time he played. He has the foundation to be a very good college basketball player and in my opinion he is a future pro prospect.

 

[husky429]

Last year rodney purvis said Enoch was the highest leaper on the team, and that was when Shonn Miller was on the team too. Purvis also mentioned that he's never seen anyone really dunk on Brimah but in practice he witnessed Enoch dunking on Brimah numerous times. During the Battle for Atlantis tournament Jay Bilas mentioned Enoch as the only pro prospect on UCONN's team (and he wasn't trying to insult uconn), and that was when Enoch played very little. Bilas would not make that statement unless he saw Enoch practice and/or spoke with scouts/coaches. I remember during the end of one of the blowout games last year jalen fed Enoch for an alley oop and Enoch's dunk shook not just the rim but the whole hoop. Enoch is also one of the youngest sophomores in the country, he is still younger than many incoming freshman, but is physically built like a senior already.

My point being Enoch is not just fairly athletic but he is really athletic. As you mentioned he has good form for his shot, and he is a right handed player who flashed a nice and effective lefty baby hook in the limited time he played. He has the foundation to be a very good college basketball player and in my opinion he is a future pro prospect.

Good points. Again, the physical profile is there, he just needs to step it up on D. He has a nice fluid athleticism to my eye, almost like the movements come naturally to him, but his brain doesn't know where to actually move. Compare that to a Purvis-type who is all quick-twitch power muscle.

Enoch is a couple months shy of TWO YEARS younger than Jalen. He's within a few months of most of our incoming freshman in age. That gives him more time to develop in college than many others and still be on the NBA radar.

Honestly, I'm not terribly optomistic about his development. I think he might just be a little too late to the game to ever be elite. If you're reading this Steve, prove me wrong

 

[JMick]

Last year rodney purvis said Enoch was the highest leaper on the team, and that was when Shonn Miller was on the team too. Purvis also mentioned that he's never seen anyone really dunk on Brimah but in practice he witnessed Enoch dunking on Brimah numerous times. During the Battle for Atlantis tournament Jay Bilas mentioned Enoch as the only pro prospect on UCONN's team (and he wasn't trying to insult uconn), and that was when Enoch played very little. Bilas would not make that statement unless he saw Enoch practice and/or spoke with scouts/coaches. I remember during the end of one of the blowout games last year jalen fed Enoch for an alley oop and Enoch's dunk shook not just the rim but the whole hoop. Enoch is also one of the youngest sophomores in the country, he is still younger than many incoming freshman, but is physically built like a senior already.

My point being Enoch is not just fairly athletic but he is really athletic. As you mentioned he has good form for his shot, and he is a right handed player who flashed a nice and effective lefty baby hook in the limited time he played. He has the foundation to be a very good college basketball player and in my opinion he is a future pro prospect.

If Enoch can play even average defense he'll get tons of playing time and will be very good. No one should be worried about his offensive game.

 

[4in16]

Enoch FTs were lacking a bit, but I'd expect some improvement there with more regular play.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

I think Enoch will be s super star in 2 years.

 

[mauconnfan]

Good points. Again, the physical profile is there, he just needs to step it up on D. He has a nice fluid athleticism to my eye, almost like the movements come naturally to him, but his brain doesn't know where to actually move. Compare that to a Purvis-type who is all quick-twitch power muscle.

Enoch is a couple months shy of TWO YEARS younger than Jalen. He's within a few months of most of our incoming freshman in age. That gives him more time to develop in college than many others and still be on the NBA radar.

Honestly, I'm not terribly optomistic about his development. I think he might just be a little too late to the game to ever be elite. If you're reading this Steve, prove me wrong

You just said he's 2 years younger than Jalen then you follow it up with "too late to the game"? The kid is just sprouting wings for crying out loud people, let's see some more before we throw him on the pine for the rest of his career. If you don't see the potential you're not watching too close. I'm not saying it will blossom, but there's a chance it will be very special by the end of his career from what I saw. We have people still claiming we have a "great" center who's shown minimum growth in 3 years and we're still waiting. So we should give him those same 3 years and then discuss this, hell it may not take as long as others!

Now let's get back to Nick Richards.

 

[lange10]

 

[Matrim55]

Hearing Cuse have a solid lead here

 

[mauconnfan]

Hearing Cuse have a solid lead here

Has to be because of the all the bigs they get to the league.

 

[UC1995]

I thought everyone predicting Kentucky but maybe boeheim leaving door open to coaching longer sways him. Can't wait for him to retire and see that university fade like BC!

 

[JimHurley]

Hearing Cuse have a solid lead here

Really? Thought Kentucky had a solid lead with us and Cuse right behind.

 

[Yankees32123]

Man it would suck if Cuse swept in and grabbed him. Hope you're hearing it wrong

 

[Matrim55]

Man it would suck if Cuse swept in and grabbed him. Hope you're hearing it wrong

Me too. It's a colleague who has been plugged into the 'Cuse program for a couple of decades, so he does tend to know things (he told me about Wildhack a few weeks before it happened). Not sure that translates to recruiting, but he's really, really, obnoxiously confident.

 

[Huskyforlife]

I'm hearing most likely Kentucky. I'll let you guys know if that changes.

 

[Huskyforlife]

Anyone know what OZ thinks?

 

[Paesano]

Rumor has it that Richards wants to pkay for a coach that pees his pants. Not sure why.