2026 Recruiting: Colben Landrew

[Drame]

Landrew is one big small forward..beast in weight room leans power forward

Hes not a power forward. The dude shoots tons of threes. He's listed as and plays the 2g spot right now.

 

[husky429]

Landrew is one big small forward..beast in weight room leans power forward

No

 

[ec33]

Devils advocate but With Demary expected to be our starting PG next year that would make Mingo the starting SG. So If we don’t get Mingo why couldn’t staff take both Landrew and Samuels? They’re both wings so either could conceivably play SF and/or SG.

They will need a backup PG to replace Smith. And after last season, they aren't going to half-ass it as PG.

 

[HW611]

Landrew is one big small forward..beast in weight room leans power forward

Couple of pounds lighter but his overall game reminds me of this game.



Pack on a few pounds and he could play the 4.

 

[Drame]

Couple of pounds lighter but his overall game reminds me of this game.



Pack on a few pounds and he could play the 4.

Im not seeing what you guys are seeing.. Landrew has guard skills. Shoots tons of 3s. He's a Power 2g versus an undersized 4. Its a question of where does the kid like to play, where does he feel comfortable. Landrew wants to be on the perimeter. Hopkins is a mix it up on the inside, occasionally shoot from the perimeter.

 

[navery12]

Im not seeing what you guys are seeing.. Landrew has guard skills. Shoots tons of 3s. He's a Power 2g versus an undersized 4. Its a question of where does the kid like to play, where does he feel comfortable. Landrew wants to be on the perimeter. Hopkins is a mix it up on the inside, occasionally shoot from the perimeter.

He's gonna play the 3 but all the things you're mentioning like shooting 3's and playing on the perimeter are things we want from our 4. When is the last time you can remember Alex Karaban mixing it up inside? He's definitely not a 2 though, he's too slow to guard anyone at the 2 spot

 

[Drame]

He's gonna play the 3 but all the things you're mentioning like shooting 3's and playing on the perimeter are things we want from our 4. When is the last time you can remember Alex Karaban mixing it up inside? He's definitely not a 2 though, he's too slow to guard anyone at the 2 spot

Yeah but he has ball skills and driving ability better than AK, or any 3 that we've had and better than most 2s that we have had. All his skills are 2G, It's just his physical profile which is a 3. We already have Furphy who is definitely more of a 3.

 

[navery12]

Yeah but he has ball skills and driving ability better than AK, or any 3 that we've had and better than most 2s that we have had. All his skills are 2G, It's just his physical profile which is a 3. We already have Furphy who is definitely more of a 3.

You're getting stuck in the past, there is no difference in the skills UConn asks for offensively in a 2 vs the 3. Is Braylon Mullins a 3? Because he's starting there this year

 

[TheHorde]

I’m happy with the efforts the staff has made to shore up the point guard position and ball handling. My only remaining concern is that team rebounding has been trending down a bit. I would like the staff to prioritize toughness and rebounding from guys at the 3 and the 4 to help the bigs. Also, guys that can guard or help double opposing 4s that like to post up or operate near the paint. St John’s has been bringing in some of those big bodies. I do love to have a Kirk King or Kevin Freeman type on the roster to add that toughness and rebounding.

 

[bendm]

They will need a backup PG to replace Smith. And after last season, they aren't going to half-ass it as PG.

Of course. IMO it will Ideally be a soph or junior transfer PG that can backup Demary next season and then become the starter. But This hypothetical of taking both wings wouldnt prevent that from happening.

 

[RuffRuff]

You're getting stuck in the past, there is no difference in the skills UConn asks for offensively in a 2 vs the 3. Is Braylon Mullins a 3? Because he's starting there this year

Great example - was Castle or Spencer a 2 or 3? They were interchangeable.

 

[RuffRuff]

Of course. IMO it will Ideally be a soph or junior transfer PG that can backup Demary next season and then become the starter. But This hypothetical of taking both wings wouldnt prevent that from happening.

We don’t even know what Demary is as a true PG. He could wind up being more of a combo. There are some out there that think Malachi may play a bigger role than we think at the PG. There are a lot of moving parts that this board is trying to guess in advance because they think they’re a high level scout, have no patience or want to think their guess is right. Sit back and enjoy it.

 

[HooperScooper]

We don’t even know what Demary is as a true PG. He could wind up being more of a combo. There are some out there that think Malachi may play a bigger role than we think at the PG. There are a lot of moving parts that this board is trying to guess in advance because they think they’re a high level scout, have no patience or want to think their guess is right. Sit back and enjoy it.

 

[DogMania]

We don’t even know what Demary is as a true PG. He could wind up being more of a combo. There are some out there that think Malachi may play a bigger role than we think at the PG. There are a lot of moving parts that this board is trying to guess in advance because they think they’re a high level scout, have no patience or want to think their guess is right. Sit back and enjoy it.

A combo guard is lead guard that can run the offense but also create for himself at a high level. That's what Demary looks like.

We tend to forget how interchangeable Hurley’s offense is and how often UConn's best teams plays 2 combo guards at the same time. I'd rather have 2 combos than a traditional PG who's just an okay creator and a 2G who's primarily a shooter/scorer.

With that said, you just try to get the best available players who fit the system while making sure you have enough quality depth to have a solid unit on the floor most of the time.

 

[RuffRuff]

A combo guard is lead guard that can run the offense but also create for himself at a high level. That's what Demary looks like.

We tend to forget how interchangeable Hurley’s offense is and how often UConn's best teams plays 2 combo guards at the same time. I'd rather have 2 combos than a traditional PG who's just an okay creator and a 2G who's primarily a shooter/scorer.

With that said, you just try to get the best available players who fit the system while making sure you have enough quality depth to have a solid unit on the floor most of the time.

Tend to think it’s a mix and match finding the right balance. Last year we obviously needed more of a ball handling play maker at the PG. If we had had more of combo at the 2, or the 3, not as much. Rosters are all about balance. I do think in the least you need two guys on the court that can create off the dribble. There are so many things to play out with this years squad, fun, but also highly variable in terms of how good this team can be. It’s a high ceiling, high floor team because of the talent upside and depth. How Hurley mixes and matches the roster to find different balances will be fun to watch. He’s got lots of options and insurance in case things aren’t working.

 

[ec33]

Of course. IMO it will Ideally be a soph or junior transfer PG that can backup Demary next season and then become the starter. But This hypothetical of taking both wings wouldnt prevent that from happening.

In your theoretical situation, UConn is missing out on both Mingo and Cloer? Then yes, they can bring in two wings if they are counting on Mullins being a OAD. Although at that point, I would be looking to Europe for an AK-type replacement, not doubling up on Landrew and Samuels.

 

[Drame]

You're getting stuck in the past, there is no difference in the skills UConn asks for offensively in a 2 vs the 3. Is Braylon Mullins a 3? Because he's starting there this year

Theres lots of interchangeability, of course, but a 2G is going to be more on ball, driving to the hole etc. While a 3 will be more off ball. I think you're stuck in the past thinking that this years team will resemble the 23/24 team. With non stop ball movement. We're going to be working in a bit more ball dominance going forward, so we'll need power 2 guard skills. Driving to the hole with handle and skill and strength and generating a bucket on your own.

 

[bendm]

There are a lot of moving parts that this board is trying to guess in advance because they think they’re a high level scout, have no patience or want to think their guess is right. Sit back and enjoy it.

You do you. But thats really rich given that I was following up on your own comment wondering whether the added effort being put into Landrew was a bad sign re Mingo. Only you’re allowed to speculate I guess.

 

[bendm]

In your theoretical situation, UConn is missing out on both Mingo and Cloer? Then yes, they can bring in two wings if they are counting on Mullins being a OAD. Although at that point, I would be looking to Europe for an AK-type replacement, not doubling up on Landrew and Samuels.

No just Mingo. Idk why this is so hard to follow. I didn’t say anything about Cloer he has nothing to do with Landrew and Samuels. We’ll hopefully have Stew and Cloer at PF next year.

I was asking whether if we miss on Mingo could we get both Landrew and Samuels. They also have nothing to do with a PG because We’ll need at least a backup worthy PG transfer no matter what.