Cole is the key
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That’s actually pretty funny Andre Jackson = sid Wilson LOL lol You can just tell Jackson’s going to be jaw-dropping when he gets everything under his belt
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Too early to be sure of RJ but a very good question. He’s had TO issues for now could be just tight trying to be the man, who knows for sure just waiting for Jim Hurley to throw his 2 cents in?
For now there’s something to be said about 1 TO in 2 games so Gaff has an early edge but we could use one of them to step up to be really good. For now we will wait and be patient.
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starting 5 in the future will be, Sanogo, Akok, Martin, Bouknight, Cole.
Gaffney, Whaley, Polley, Adams, Jackson off the bench. with Brown, Carlton, and Springs in reserve depth.
Gaffney and Cole should rotate at point guard
Whaley and Sanogo rotate at center
Polley can back up akok at pf
Jackson and Martin rotate
Bouk and Adams.
Gaffney, Whaley, Polley, Adams, Jackson off the bench. with Brown, Carlton, and Springs in reserve depth.
Gaffney and Cole should rotate at point guard
Whaley and Sanogo rotate at center
Polley can back up akok at pf
Jackson and Martin rotate
Bouk and Adams.
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Jeez, I like that lineup. There are plenty of opportunities for the bench, and what a bench it is.
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I think that was hyperbole. There is no way Bouk was/is not the best player in practice. I like JB as our 2. The more he has the ball the better. Between RJ and Gaff is a tough one. Cole is the better scorer while Jalen seems steadier and a better distributor. Neither seem great at penetrating at least not yet. Can Martin play the 3 effectively? If so I like a lineup of Cole, Bouk, Martin, Polley, and Whaley. It give us length and enough shooters.
HuskyHawk
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Polley is far better as a 3 than a 4. Martin doesn’t need to play the 3, he should be the starting 4. If you think Polley should start, make him the 3. I’m not sold that he’s better than Jackson, certainly don’t think he will be for long.
The 2 PG lineup is not good. It’s one thing to run it with Napier and Boatright when they are both ++ defenders. Gaff and Cole are both below average defenders. Bouknight is not great on D either, but has been better than those two. And for God’s sake we should never be playing all 4 of our guards at the same time as we did Friday.
Hurley had some unexpected success late last year when forced to play small and seems to have an unhealthy fascination with it now. One of the biggest strengths thus team has is length and front court depth. If we aren’t going to use it, I don’t think we are going to be all that good.
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After watching the replay. I still can’t offer an analysis as it’s tough to stay awake when three ref’s take over a game .
Those guys where beyond bad. If you watched the highlights you watched the game unless your thing is a critique of free throw form.
Those guys where beyond bad. If you watched the highlights you watched the game unless your thing is a critique of free throw form.
Chin Diesel
Wild Horses couldn't drag me away
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Whaley is starting every game this year he is healthy and is showing he is a 25 mpg player. Sanogo is his primary relief. The two of them will soak up nearly 100% of minutes at the five. If anything, Whaley and Sanogo playing together will mean reduction in minutes at the four for everyone else.
Chin Diesel
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I could be convinced Bouk, Polley, Martin and Whaley are four of the five starters come BE game time.
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Polley?
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Gaffney more of a distributor. Cole made some lackadaisical passes in both games, but has that scorers mentality. Jackson looked nervous and not in the flow of the game.
Chin Diesel
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Yep. You still need shooters. And Polley for all his flaws forces a wing defender to stay out of the lane, freeing up room for others.
ctchamps
We are UConn!! 6 >>>1!
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The biggest problem with Cole, Gaffney and Bouknight playing together at this point is defense. All three struggle to keep their player from driving to the basket. The situation is made worse without Akok unavailable and with Polley's defense well below what he provided before the ACL injury. OTOH this is the best combo for offense.
Gaffney's strength in running offense is low turnover numbers. But it comes at a cost. He slows the half court offense down by dribbling far too long away from the basket. I've also noticed several instances where he missed a wide open player. Is this because he has poor court vision or because he's too deliberate or because he prefers waiting for Bouknight to be open?
Hurley was unhappy with the defense in the CCSU game. The players tried their best to generate a defense they thought their coach wanted. At this stage they don't have the skills to accommodate their coach. It resulted in three of their best scorers getting in foul trouble with the consequence of scoring struggles. Bouknight and Cole have the foot speed to be adequate perimeter defenders. Let's hope they can develop the skill to figure out how to disrupt opponents without fouling.
Gaffney and Cole are still developing as point guards. Gaffney because he was behind Al for most of last season and is just a sophomore. Cole because he was the primary scorer on a subpar team. I'd give them time before proclaiming which is better and what combos we need.
Gaffney's strength in running offense is low turnover numbers. But it comes at a cost. He slows the half court offense down by dribbling far too long away from the basket. I've also noticed several instances where he missed a wide open player. Is this because he has poor court vision or because he's too deliberate or because he prefers waiting for Bouknight to be open?
Hurley was unhappy with the defense in the CCSU game. The players tried their best to generate a defense they thought their coach wanted. At this stage they don't have the skills to accommodate their coach. It resulted in three of their best scorers getting in foul trouble with the consequence of scoring struggles. Bouknight and Cole have the foot speed to be adequate perimeter defenders. Let's hope they can develop the skill to figure out how to disrupt opponents without fouling.
Gaffney and Cole are still developing as point guards. Gaffney because he was behind Al for most of last season and is just a sophomore. Cole because he was the primary scorer on a subpar team. I'd give them time before proclaiming which is better and what combos we need.
I think it might be sooner than that. I’m thinking the following for next game:
1. cole/gaffney
2. Bouknight/adams
3. Martin/jackson
4. Polley/Martin
5. Whaley/Sonogo
it’s just a matter of time before polley gets replaced by Martin in the starting lineup (I think once Jackson gets a little more acclimated).
Doctor Hoop
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Agree. I get that a lot of 'yarders have a sour taste when uttering "Polley". But you have to have shooters, especially those who have done it in the past (40% on 3's). Once his legs improve, coming off the ACL, with more PT he'll be fine in most areas. Right now he and Cole are the most consistent outside shooters, with Bouknight next.
You have to have shooting. Guys that drive the lane need to learn to kick to him. And he needs to see the openings and slide to them, ready to shoot.
HuskyHawk
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If he is going to play, can we please run some stuff designed to get him the ball? That’s one of my annoyances. He isn’t a good shooter off the dribble, he doesn’t get free once he has the ball or create anything. He’s a catch and shoot wing. I think passes back out from the interior or clean looks in transition are where he is most useful. So far we haven’t run or passed the ball inside, so he’s not getting good looks.
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Chin Diesel
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I think you have a better chance of Akok, Martin and Whaley starting once Akok gets healthy. I don't think you can play two forwards, Martin and Jackson, incapable of stretching or spreading the floor.
BParkDog
I will see number 5.
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I am very happy Cole is here, but I am less sanguine than most as to his prospects going forward, especially at point guard.
In his first 2 games with us, shot well, but 7 assists, 6 turnovers, 2 rebounds.
Cole, at Howard, shot 43% from 2, 37% from 3, had 6.2 and 3.5 Assists/TOs per game for a 1.8 Assist/TO ratio. Those numbers were against opponents who would be considered "cupcakes" for BE teams, such as American, Fordham, George Washington, Ball State, Hampton, and so on. That year, against Georgetown, with a final RPI of 84, and the highest ranked team he played, I believe, he had 6 assists, 6 turnovers, and 2 rebounds. He shot well. I did not see, but could have missed, any other top-100 RPI team on Howard's schedule (schedule is here . . . 2018-19 Men's Basketball Schedule - Howard University Athletics (hubison.com))
It seems, to me, that Cole will almost certainly struggle when he plays against top 50 teams. I expect his shooting % to drop and his assist/TO to move toward the Georgetown game last year. Further, at his age, with his experience and level of athleticism, I think he is at or near his ceiling.
Ultimately, I see Cole as a guy who will, at season's end, come off the bench or have an Olander-esque starting role. He will be a guy who we can, hopefully, turn to for some instant offense.
Gaffney is the most critical piece of our puzzle - we absolutely need him to play exactly as he finished last year and picked up this year. He is a true point, and his ball-safety is top notch.
Gaffney this year, so far 5 assists to 1 turnover (5:1 assist/TO), 4 for 10 from 2, 2 for 5 from 3, so 40% from both 2 and 3, 3 blocks, 7 out of ten from the line.
Unfortunately, I think Cole has been substantially over-hyped because of his numbers at Howard and rumors about practice. Caution encouraged when comparing success as far-lesser basketball schools (Cassel Jr) or performance in practice (Wilson/Purvis). "We talken bout PRACtice" people, not the game.
I will consider him a success at UConn if he can play 20 minutes a game, average 40% from 2 and 40% from 3, and maintain at least a 2:1 assist ratio. We need him to spell Gaffney, provide a reliable 3 point shooter, and act as a reliable 3rd ball handler in smaller line ups.
In his first 2 games with us, shot well, but 7 assists, 6 turnovers, 2 rebounds.
Cole, at Howard, shot 43% from 2, 37% from 3, had 6.2 and 3.5 Assists/TOs per game for a 1.8 Assist/TO ratio. Those numbers were against opponents who would be considered "cupcakes" for BE teams, such as American, Fordham, George Washington, Ball State, Hampton, and so on. That year, against Georgetown, with a final RPI of 84, and the highest ranked team he played, I believe, he had 6 assists, 6 turnovers, and 2 rebounds. He shot well. I did not see, but could have missed, any other top-100 RPI team on Howard's schedule (schedule is here . . . 2018-19 Men's Basketball Schedule - Howard University Athletics (hubison.com))
It seems, to me, that Cole will almost certainly struggle when he plays against top 50 teams. I expect his shooting % to drop and his assist/TO to move toward the Georgetown game last year. Further, at his age, with his experience and level of athleticism, I think he is at or near his ceiling.
Ultimately, I see Cole as a guy who will, at season's end, come off the bench or have an Olander-esque starting role. He will be a guy who we can, hopefully, turn to for some instant offense.
Gaffney is the most critical piece of our puzzle - we absolutely need him to play exactly as he finished last year and picked up this year. He is a true point, and his ball-safety is top notch.
Gaffney this year, so far 5 assists to 1 turnover (5:1 assist/TO), 4 for 10 from 2, 2 for 5 from 3, so 40% from both 2 and 3, 3 blocks, 7 out of ten from the line.
Unfortunately, I think Cole has been substantially over-hyped because of his numbers at Howard and rumors about practice. Caution encouraged when comparing success as far-lesser basketball schools (Cassel Jr) or performance in practice (Wilson/Purvis). "We talken bout PRACtice" people, not the game.
I will consider him a success at UConn if he can play 20 minutes a game, average 40% from 2 and 40% from 3, and maintain at least a 2:1 assist ratio. We need him to spell Gaffney, provide a reliable 3 point shooter, and act as a reliable 3rd ball handler in smaller line ups.
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Hurley recruits a lot of bad defenders for a supposed defensive coach. Does he think he can change them?
Bouk, Gaff, Cole are all bad defenders. Jackson was not known for defense coming in, but I guess the athleticism was obvious. Sanogo the jury is still out imo.
Has he maybe learned his lesson? Sool is an terrible defender, but imo Hawkins and Johnson are difference makers on D day 1.
Bouk, Gaff, Cole are all bad defenders. Jackson was not known for defense coming in, but I guess the athleticism was obvious. Sanogo the jury is still out imo.
Has he maybe learned his lesson? Sool is an terrible defender, but imo Hawkins and Johnson are difference makers on D day 1.
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Bouknight has the ability to be a good defender. He has quick feet and long arms. He just has to try harder.
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Yeah I don't really care about the numbers but I'm thinking more on defense with Tyler guarding their 4.
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Agreed. Sterling Gibbs had a fraction of Cole's passing ability.
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I think so much of being a PG is showing energy and competitiveness to the rest of your floor mates and neither Cole or Gaffney are displaying enough offensively or defensively. Given that, I'd recommend Dan Hurley separate them for now and make them compete for minutes. That will force them to pick up their game and if both rise to the occasion then he can play them together/start later in the season.
Huskyforlife
Akokbouk
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I'm a Gaffney guy, but I think it says a lot how split we are on who should be the only starting PG. No matter who it is, half of us will think Hurley is wrong.
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