Cam Spencer Appreciation Thread

[mauconnfan]

I like Spencer and think he's been great but let's not get carried away. Hawk would be averaging 20+ if he was here this year and Spencer still gets beat off the dribble on the perimeter way too often.

Hawk got beat off the dribble a lot too let’s not forget that. And he wasn’t at all the ball handler or passer that this kid is. And Spencer rebounds just as well. And one shoots it more consistent from 3 as well I didn’t get carried away it’s worth the debate no doubt. My preference for this team is simple because they need that fundamentally sound player. I respect anyone saying I’m nuts, but I’m being honest.

 

[AllHusky]

He’s the type of guy that would put up 25 against us and would be the cause of great heartache for the BY. Glad he’s on our side, remember Steve Novak?

Thanks, had just finally gotten over the nightmares.

 

[AllHusky]

I like Spencer and think he's been great but let's not get carried away. Hawk would be averaging 20+ if he was here this year and Spencer still gets beat off the dribble on the perimeter way too often.

Nobody is comparing him to Hawkins, different players doing different things for the Huskies

 

[Rico444]

Hawk got beat off the dribble a lot too let’s not forget that. And he wasn’t at all the ball handler or passer that this kid is. And Spencer rebounds just as well. And one shoots it more consistent from 3 as well I didn’t get carried away it’s worth the debate no doubt. My preference for this team is simple because they need that fundamentally sound player. I respect anyone saying I’m nuts, but I’m being honest.

Hawk wasn't perfect defensively but I wouldn't say he got beat off the dribble "a lot." He had much better foot speed and did a much better job staying in front of his man on the defensive end than Cam does. On the other side, he was the #1 player that opposing coaches planned their defensive strategy around. Cam is a great shooter, but he doesn't have an entire defense watching him on every possession like Hawkins. Now add the fact that if Hawkins stayed he would also have that extra year of development? He would be a first team All-American if he stayed.

Cam is a really good player, don't get me wrong, but I can't agree at all that we're better off with him over junior Hawkins, not if you're saying it's a one-for-one trade.

 

[Deepster]

Let’s be honest. He has come in and become the leader on the defending national champs.

And he’s better than both Sheffer and Henefeld. Without question.

 

[Samoo]

That sequence where Cam got the rebound called TO then banged that 3 silencing that building was ball game, know there was time still but for all intents and purposes it was over went from a 4 pt game with plenty of time to 7 where you could afford to trade baskets.

I know we won’t get the whole story of Timberlake but I do wonder if Hurley had 2nd thoughts of getting him, remember we didn’t hear too much of getting Cam from what I remember, Timberlake seemed like a huge smoke scream.

I was wondering the same thing; did KU offer more $ or did we find out that Cam was interested in UConn and back off on Timberlake knowing that Cam was better suited to the Huskies and the Big East?

 

[Dove]

"Nick. Nick...Timberlake. Who again?"

 

[Dove]

Let’s be honest. He has come in and become the leader on the defending national champs.

And he’s better than both Sheffer and Henefeld. Without question.

He is rocketing up to Top 3 Favorite Husky to many fans.

 

[Waquoit]

I love the sequence where he was among 3 Huskies that had the ball taken away on an offensive rebound attempt. On the very next play on defensive end, he than stepped in to steal the ball on an intended Butler handoff and got the layup.

That stood out to me as well. He has knack for that kind of thing. Even in his last year, I think he can reach another level. He's never played with such good teammates before.

 

[mauconnfan]

Hawk wasn't perfect defensively but I wouldn't say he got beat off the dribble "a lot." He had much better foot speed and did a much better job staying in front of his man on the defensive end than Cam does. On the other side, he was the #1 player that opposing coaches planned their defensive strategy around. Cam is a great shooter, but he doesn't have an entire defense watching him on every possession like Hawkins. Now add the fact that if Hawkins stayed he would also have that extra year of development? He would be a first team All-American if he stayed.

Cam is a really good player, don't get me wrong, but I can't agree at all that we're better off with him over junior Hawkins, not if you're saying it's a one-for-one trade.

Agree and can’t argue with much of what you say. It’s a team game, Cam is better for this team simply because overall he’s a better basketball player. Not a better athlete at all and more than likely never a better pro as he may never sniff the top. But the way he thinks the game, the instincts in which he creates plays for others. Hawk never had it. And Hawk had Sanogo so let’s not get crazy on the other teams prepping for Hawk only that’s just not a fact. As of right now teams are making sure Spencer isn’t getting too many open looks either.

Again, to each his own I like the complete player for the ‘23-‘24 team all day.

 

[LIUCHusky]

Let’s be honest. He has come in and become the leader on the defending national champs.

And he’s better than both Sheffer and Henefeld. Without question.

What? Hopefully sarcasm.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

Joey California too

We live in a transfer era but these guys we’ve gotten in this era are surrounded by considerably more talent than past it’s an apples and oranges comparison our past transfers who were frequently asked to do things beyond their capabilities

Don’t forget we pioneered the grad transfer and lived by transfers on short handed teams We won an AAC starting 3 transfers
Rodney Purvis ( forced to play a 3 ) at 6’3”.
Shonn Miller undersized 4
Sterling Gibbs a two , played a lot of 1 because that’s were he was needed he Scored 20 against Kansas in the tourney
You also forgot Tyrese Martin who made an NBA roster
We had other guys like:

Lasan Kromah 6th man on a title team .
Then there’s the I’ll fated Terry Larrier . ACL
On deeper teams and injury free these guys might have created more memorable moments.
Theae are great players who shouldn’t be written off because of the situation .

 

[EZPass]

 

[UCan3]

He's way better than Joey though, the case can easily be made that Cam is our best offensive player.

I am not so sure on the Joey C comments - I would rather leave that one alone. One one hand I can see why they get compared (grad/one year/experienced) but on the other hand, they are much different players.

Joey C had all kinds of mojo and he was like this X factor we haven’t seen in many years. Frankly there were a few occasions when he subbed in for J Hawkins - teams thought they were getting a break - and it was quite the opposite.

Cam is a special UConn player that is still in process of leaving his mark on the program.

Joey, to me, don’t care if he was a 1 year player - he‘s a lifetime husky in my book.

 

[superjohn]

Hawk wasn't perfect defensively but I wouldn't say he got beat off the dribble "a lot." He had much better foot speed and did a much better job staying in front of his man on the defensive end than Cam does. On the other side, he was the #1 player that opposing coaches planned their defensive strategy around. Cam is a great shooter, but he doesn't have an entire defense watching him on every possession like Hawkins. Now add the fact that if Hawkins stayed he would also have that extra year of development? He would be a first team All-American if he stayed.

Cam is a really good player, don't get me wrong, but I can't agree at all that we're better off with him over junior Hawkins, not if you're saying it's a one-for-one trade.

Cam is a better offensive player here than Hawkins was here. Teams had to focus more on Hawk but Cam is a better dribbler, passer, and even a better open shooter than Hawk. What he lacks in athleticism he makes up for with more offensive skill and craft to his game.

 

[Dogdeacon]

Agree and can’t argue with much of what you say. It’s a team game, Cam is better for this team simply because overall he’s a better basketball player. Not a better athlete at all and more than likely never a better pro as he may never sniff the top. But the way he thinks the game, the instincts in which he creates plays for others. Hawk never had it. And Hawk had Sanogo so let’s not get crazy on the other teams prepping for Hawk only that’s just not a fact. As of right now teams are making sure Spencer isn’t getting too many open looks either.

Again, to each his own I like the complete player for the ‘23-‘24 team all day.

This is a crazy take. Hawk would be averaging 25ppg if in NCAA this year and putting on a Ray Allen junior year kind of show every night. Cam's a solid player and great fit for this team, but I'd actually like to see his minutes come down a bit as Castle, Solo Ball & Diarra continue to improve. Last night Cam was obviously vital to wining particularly late, but prior to that game Cam's road splits were dismal (off games for Cam in UConn's two losses: injury vs Kansas & simply terrible game vs the Hall).

 

[mauconnfan]

This is a crazy take. Hawk would be averaging 25ppg if in NCAA this year and putting on a Ray Allen junior year kind of show every night. Cam's a solid player and great fit for this team, but I'd actually like to see his minutes come down a bit as Castle, Solo Ball & Diarra continue to improve. Last night Cam was obviously vital to wining particularly late, but prior to that game Cam's road splits were dismal (off games for Cam in UConn's two losses: injury vs Kansas & simply terrible game vs the Hall).

Crazier take by you. His minutes down lol. What are you watching my God? I can’t imagine anyone wanting his minutes down. I like Solo Ball but thinking we need to let him improve instead of keeping a really impactful player in the game is bizarre

 

[Scoe]

I was wondering the same thing; did KU offer more $ or did we find out that Cam was interested in UConn and back off on Timberlake knowing that Cam was better suited to the Huskies and the Big East?

It’s a great question, Hurley having jersey ties I’m sure played a role, could’ve been as simple as reaching out to him or vice versa, and Hurley just falling in love with the interview process, maybe Timberlake telling Hurley he was visiting Kansas after his visit rubbed Hurley wrong way and made the decision easier.

 

[superjohn]

This is a crazy take. Hawk would be averaging 25ppg if in NCAA this year and putting on a Ray Allen junior year kind of show every night. Cam's a solid player and great fit for this team, but I'd actually like to see his minutes come down a bit as Castle, Solo Ball & Diarra continue to improve. Last night Cam was obviously vital to wining particularly late, but prior to that game Cam's road splits were dismal (off games for Cam in UConn's two losses: injury vs Kansas & simply terrible game vs the Hall).

What's crazy is wanting Cam's minutes to go down. All anyone is talking about is them as players at UConn. Everyone knows how old they are, who cares? Cam is the better overall offensive player at UConn, it has nothing to do with projecting them down the road or how Hawk could've performed as an uperclassman.

 

[Samoo]

What? Hopefully sarcasm.

See a troll, know a troll

 

[ctchamps]

So much to love about Cam. We were lucky to get him.

He picked up Hurley's offense and defense from day 1. No other Hurley transfer or freshman has done that.

Has KEA's moxie towards opposing fans.

His playing through two turf toes is probably the best gutting out performance by a UConn player since KFree played through cramps.

He's putting up numbers similar to the BE preseason pick for player of the year:

Cam:

GP	MIN	FG%	3P%	FT%	REB	AST	BLK	STL	PF	TO	PTS
15	31.9	50.0	44.3	88.9	3.9	3.3	0.1	1.3	2.5	1.3	15.1

Tyler Kolek:

GP	MIN	FG%	3P%	FT%	REB	AST	BLK	STL	PF	TO	PTS
14	31.4	52.7	41.7	92.7	5.2	6.3	0.1	1.7	0.7	2.9	15.3

 

[ctchamps]

I was wondering the same thing; did KU offer more $ or did we find out that Cam was interested in UConn and back off on Timberlake knowing that Cam was better suited to the Huskies and the Big East?

It’s a great question, Hurley having jersey ties I’m sure played a role, could’ve been as simple as reaching out to him or vice versa, and Hurley just falling in love with the interview process, maybe Timberlake telling Hurley he was visiting Kansas after his visit rubbed Hurley wrong way and made the decision easier.

It's possible we wanted both with Cam filling in Hawk's role and Timberlake filling Joey California's role. We have one open scholarship that wasn't filled.

 

[Rico444]

Cam is a better offensive player here than Hawkins was here. Teams had to focus more on Hawk but Cam is a better dribbler, passer, and even a better open shooter than Hawk. What he lacks in athleticism he makes up for with more offensive skill and craft to his game.

A few things. The argument was who would you rather have right now, not is Cam better now offensively than Hawk was last year. I don't think there's any question that current junior year Hawk would be a better player overall. I think there's a reason teams would devote so many resources to Hawkins. If they didn't, he would absolutely kill them coming off of screens all day long.

As far as your point, we can agree to disagree on that, but I agree that Cam is a great player and more well-rounded offensively than Hawk was last year.

 

[Conndog]

Quick question- can Cam dunk the ball?

 

[FreeKlaiber]

Mean Ginobli

 

[superjohn]

A few things. The argument was who would you rather have right now, not is Cam better now offensively than Hawk was last year. I don't think there's any question that current junior year Hawk would be a better player overall. I think there's a reason teams would devote so many resources to Hawkins. If they didn't, he would absolutely kill them coming off of screens all day long.

As far as your point, we can agree to disagree on that, but I agree that Cam is a great player and more well-rounded offensively than Hawk was last year.

These threads have become impossible to read. You must be responding to posts I can't see. I don't see any posts in the thread comparing Cam this season to a hypothetical junior year Hawkins.

 

[Rico444]

These threads have become impossible to read. You must be responding to posts I can't see. I don't see any posts in the thread comparing Cam this season to a hypothetical junior year Hawkins.

Maybe it's someone on an ignore list, the post that started it said if they had a choice between Cam or Hawk coming back for his junior year he'd pick Cam.

 

[alphasigko]

"Kansas Nick"? Who Dat?

I'll take Cam all day! What a great player is he!

 

[Captbluefin]

Let’s be honest. He has come in and become the leader on the defending national champs.

And he’s better than both Sheffer and Henefeld. Without question.

Smoke another one bud..

You ever watch Henefeild or Sheffer? Are you not old enough to have a dam clue

That’s a absolute idiotic statement

 

[LStudfellow]

Let’s be honest. He has come in and become the leader on the defending national champs.

And he’s better than both Sheffer and Henefeld. Without question.

Let me start by saying I do not like comparisons of guys who are or have been hugely important to the success of UConn basketball at any point over the last 35 years. Cam has quickly become a hugely important piece to this current team. Obviously he is a better choice than Timberlake, and we have probably won at least 2 more games this year, including last night, because of his play.

That having been said... time to step in and bring some reality to this. I was doing games on WHUS during the '89-90 season, Henefeld's only year as a Husky. And this is a ridiculously wrong take.

Making a comment like this discounts the fact that Nadav Henefeld may have had the single most important impact that any one-year player has ever had on our program. And the single most important lineup change that has ever been made... inserting Nadav into the starting lineup after we started 0-2 in the Big East that year - including a 31-point blow out at St. John's. If you had told anyone after that game what would happen over the next 3 months they would have told you that you were absolutely crazy. And no one... NO ONE... on that team had more to do with that than Nadav Henefeld. His insertion into the starting 5 made everyone better, and helped build us into what we became that year, and beyond.

And the game that frankly changed everything for the future trajectory of our entire program was that Saturday night, January 20th game against the Georgetown Hoyas (ranked #2 and going to be #1 the following Monday after #1 Kansas lost earlier that day)... and Nadav was THE reason we won that game. He was nothing short of spectacular in the 2nd half. He was the reason we finally started to believe in ourselves that year.

As good as Cam is, there is no way he could have done what Nadav did against THAT Georgetown team of John Thompson, Alonzo Mourning, Dikembe Mutombo, Dwayne Bryant and their group of intimidators that night.

Cam did it against a bunch of good D1 ballplayers... Nadav did it against a #2 team in the country, highlighted by 2 future NBA All-Stars. No comparison.

So sorry, but no. Just, NO.

The answer is without question, I agree with that part... but the obviously correct answer is Nadav Henefeld.