Castle made most of freshman season: 'At UConn for a reason'

[HooperScooper]

Another one of these long player profile articles from Mike Anthony. I still swear he gets paid by the word.

“In high school, I never realized that I was as good as a defender as I am now because I didn't have to guard the ball as much,” he said. “I was like the biggest player on my team, so I probably had to guard other players, bigger players, go get the rebound and push. Now that I'm playing with a full, complete team, I can really show my talents and my skills on that end and our coaches give us great scouts every game. That's helped me a lot, just being able to have that kind of trust to go guard the other team's best player. It’s cool to know that we have one of the best defenses in the country and that you can be the head of that snake.”

Stephon Castle made most of freshman season of college basketball: 'At UConn for a reason'

Stephon Castle, to be named Big East freshman of the year, has been a starter for the UConn men's basketball team.

www.nhregister.com

Alternate access:
Stephon Castle made most of freshman season of college basketball: 'At UConn for a reason'

 

[HooperScooper]

Some really good quotes in this article that give you some insight into the team's mentality and how Hurley has done a great job keeping them focused. The kid is mature beyond his years. Very grounded. A must read.

“I let my parents handle everything and I try to focus on hooping,” Castle said. “All season, I really haven't talked to anybody about that or tried to make any arrangements or plans with that. I'm just fully locked in on trying to play good this season and help our team win. Of course, that sits in the back your head, but when you're playing and we have such a great culture, you just get blinded by it all and you just try to play good for the guys around you.”

“Everybody’s super locked in. We don't care who take shots. We don't try to rush anything. We don't care who gets to shine. Trying to just go out and go for yours is not helping us. I think we have one of the best coaches. I mean, I don’t know what it’s like at any other school, but it's definitely the best culture team I've ever played for and hopefully I'll be able to take that with me the rest of my career.”

 

[HuskyHawk]

Love this. He seems like such a good, solid, coachable kid. Perfect fit for the program. Embracing defense is hard for stars. I think he's gone beyond that and really likes the challenge of playing at that end. So few guys really see it that way.

 

[Umami Zen]

Rock solid dude that's mature beyond his years and gets it. Seems to me that he really enjoys being a great teammate and just embracing the role Dan Hurley has defined for him.

Awesome leverage for Dan Hurley/staff when recruiting high visibility targets in the future as to how "we do things in Storrs".

Bright lights are coming. Buckle in for a fun ride with Steph and the guys.

 

[Stasher599]

I myself am thankful that he is part of our program and it just reinforces Hurley and our coaching staff’s ability to develop 5 star talent. We may not have an elite football team, exciting campus life or amazing weather but if you come to UConn you will be part of an amazing team first culture, play for the best and most invested coaches in the country and develop your game and work ethic.

 

[mauconnfan]

What really sucks is you don’t get too many of these kids, although Dan does seem to. But damn I wished he could be in a Husky uniform for just one more year he is so damn fun to watch grow and mature.

This really tells you all you need to know about Stephon Castle.

 

[UChusky916]

In today's NIL world, it's rare to find a kid as talented and also grounded with such a mature mindset. Wise beyond his years... kudos to his parents.
Kids like Castle don't come along that often... enjoy him for the last few games he's here.

 

[Mister P]

This is an old tweet, but Stephon’s mom made the right choice. She trusted Dan Hurley to make him a better player and person and he came through for all of them.
Since uniform # 2 will be available once Newton leaves, maybe he can talk Steph on staying and then giving him his old number back