Corey Floyd, please tell me he has a solid handle

[Rumrunner]

For those who know how Corey has been practicing with the team, please tell me that he's going to be a solid contributor handling the ball. The writeups indicate he's a both hands to the basket scorer, but how is his handle? And this is an odd question, but from a physical stand point, why was he redshirted but Diggins wasn't? Was it based on his relatively late decision to reclassify and enroll early?

 

[auror]

He's more of a strength guard, but hopefully he's been working on it this year.

 

[HooperScooper]

Was it based on his relatively late decision to reclassify and enroll early?

Short answer is yes. Hurley told him when he wanted to enroll early he would have to redshirt.

 

[tzznandrew]

Let's not write off Diggins. He's got a year to get stronger and smarter. Plenty of freshmen can't handle pressure on the road. It was a bad situation from a clearly humiliated Georgetown team desperate to hold on to a shred of dignity.

 

[TeasenDonut]

Floyd was redshirted because he is viewed as a 4 year player and would have been playing as a 17 yo against 22-24 year olds. He did everything he could to prove he could contribute this year, and he could be proving solid backup minutes right now, but his role would not have been significant enough to burn a full year of eligibility.

 

[UofCT]

Don’t think anyone is writing him off but he’s clearly a year away from being a year away. No issues with it just need to reset my expectations

 

[king conn]

I guess we are going to ignore the one steal where Diggins was blindsided by a hit that would have made an NFL safely proud
And then followed with a drive into a crowded lane and dumped off for what should have been an easy 2 but for Johnson fumbling it away

Now you can continue with the Diggins hate

 

[BGesus4]

First of all, Diggins turning the ball over there was not a matter of bad handle, it was a matter of trying to dribble through traps instead of passing through them.

Second of all, is it necessary to have absolutely idiotic opinions about every last player on the team, even the ones we haven’t really seen play? First it’s that we haven’t seen them play so they must be the best players on the team. Then as soon as we see a minute of action, we need to recruit over them because they’re horrible.

 

[Rumrunner]

First of all, Diggins turning the ball over there was not a matter of bad handle, it was a matter of trying to dribble through traps instead of passing through them.

Second of all, is it necessary to have absolutely idiotic opinions about every last player on the team, even the ones we haven’t really seen play? First it’s that we haven’t seen them play so they must be the best players on the team. Then as soon as we see a minute of action, we need to recruit over them because they’re horrible.

I guess I was a little inartful in my use of the word handle. I should have included "can he keep that ball on a string" and knows where and for what purpose to move the ball to a particular point on the court. Dribbling through traps is something that we have seen Cole do , but Cole rarely needs to do that because he has an instinctual feel for spacing on the court given his ability to handle the ball. I know it is not fair to compare Diggins to Cole...Cole is like an alpha bringing the ball up. I see AJ being the other guy. But I want the next man up to be better than the opponent's starter. That is how UConn should operate.

 

[navery12]

I guess I was a little inartful in my use of the word handle. I should have included "can he keep that ball on a string" and knows where and for what purpose to move the ball to a particular point on the court. Dribbling through traps is something that we have seen Cole do , but Cole rarely needs to do that because he has an instinctual feel for spacing on the court given his ability to handle the ball. I know it is not fair to compare Diggins to Cole...Cole is like an alpha bringing the ball up. I see AJ being the other guy. But I want the next man up to be better than the opponent's starter. That is how UConn should operate.

He's not a PG so not really a situation he's going to be in too often. He's going to be playing the 2/3 in a Tyrese Martin role

 

[Kitaman]

Diggins handle will be fine. He may not be a diamond right now, but once polished I think he will shine.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

corey? a beastie boy with skillz. gonna dunk on all the clueless heads here.
tanned, rested, and ready for the future. our future. sweeeeet.

 

[BoukofJames]

corey? a beastie boy with skillz. gonna dunk on all the clueless heads here.
tanned, rested, and ready for the future. our future. sweeeeet.

Pretty Boy Floyd is always stylin’ - I have a feeling he’s gonna bring a Martin-like swagger to the game

 

[Kenny11]

Diggins had a bad turnover, then he had a nice move and a pass that wasn’t converted, and then get got hacked and they didn’t call it which gave him a second turnover. After sitting the first 38 minutes of this game and all of the games for the past month. He can dribble.

 

[August_West]

It means nothing. It's his first game action in forever and he's thrown into a blowout where you aren't expecting the team of starters to be pressing you. Our rotation is set and has been for a while, it's 8 players- Cole, Jackson, Martin, Whaley, Sanogo, Polley, Hawkins, Gaffney.

Hurley was throwing Diggins and Samson a bone and Ewing acted like a putz.

Puhhleeeze.....Samson and diggins are the 56 and 59 ranked recruits. As Andrew said we weren’t playing walkons. Gtown was playing 4 frosh from same class at times; ranked 24(Mohammed ) 119 (mutumbo) and beard and bilingsley (149 and 225) . Why should Patrick take it easy on high level d1 recruits who are across the board ( except for Mohammed) way better than his? This ain’t tiddlywinks. Should Hurley have gone easy on mutumbo?

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Now you can continue with the Diggins hate

Did I miss a post with Diggins hate?

Seems like the consensus above is much more that he'll be fine, and that today's situation (how he was played and how contact wasn't called) wasn't to his favor.

As to criticisms of Ewing keeping up the pressure, we've already had the Oral Roberts-North Dakota State and Wisconsin-Michigan post-game fight threads, so Dan Hurley simply subbed players back in, rather than call a timeout to have the bench players settle & regroup. He took no chances as to upsetting a game-losing coach.

I'm grateful that 30 bench points included Hawkins & Polley hitting double figures, and that Gaffney was solid from the line at the end...except for missing his 6th free-throw. That miss left bettors shy of the 11.5 margin before the final garbage basket.

Again, I'm very glad I do not bet, even though there are more and more TV commercials & other promos for me to do so.

 

[dennismenace]

Did I miss a post with Diggins hate?

Seems like the consensus above is much more that he'll be fine, and that today's situation (how he was played and how contact wasn't called) wasn't to his favor.

As to criticisms of Ewing keeping up the pressure, we've already had the Oral Roberts-North Dakota State and Wisconsin-Michigan post-game fight threads, so Dan Hurley simply subbed players back in, rather than call a timeout to have the bench players settle & regroup. He took no chances as to upsetting a game-losing coach.

I'm grateful that 30 bench points included Hawkins & Polley hitting double figures, and that Gaffney was solid from the line at the end...except for missing his 6th free-throw. That miss left bettors shy of the 11.5 margin before the final garbage basket.

Again, I'm very glad I do not bet, even though there are more and more TV commercials & other promos for me to do so.

Grateful we can have short tape delays with dvr's so we can keep zipping through commercials and at times inane commentary.

 

[BGesus4]

Puhhleeeze.....Samson and diggins are the 56 and 59 ranked recruits. As Andrew said we weren’t playing walkons. Gtown was playing 4 frosh from same class at times; ranked 24(Mohammed ) 119 (mutumbo) and beard and bilingsley (149 and 225) . Why should Patrick take it easy on high level d1 recruits who are across the board ( except for Mohammed) way better than his? This ain’t tiddlywinks. Should Hurley have gone easy on mutumbo?

Agreed. Also if I’m coaching a team that’s 0-16 in the league I’m doing everything I can to convince them to not give up no matter what the score or your record says. Ewing doesn’t control when the other team decides the game is over and puts in subs. He’s telling his guys to not stop playing until the final buzzer. I don’t have a problem with that.

 

[CTFAN4LIFE]

Yes, he has a solid handle. He'll be able to take care of the ball with handle but maybe more importantly with his court awareness and passing ability.

He has a solid build, strong hands, powerful legs, nice footwork, and yet has quick feet.

He makes very solid decisions at high speeds. Can pass both in half court and longer, fast break situations.

Scores at all 3 levels..

Excellent basketball pedigree.

I think if he continues his development, he'll be all-BE caliber.

 

[husky429]

Haven't read the thread. Have watched him play quite a bit, up to his AAU season last summer.

Don't expect Floyd to be a lead guard. He's a complimentary ballhandler.

 

[Umami Zen]

It means nothing. It's his first game action in forever and he's thrown into a blowout where you aren't expecting the team of starters to be pressing you. Our rotation is set and has been for a while, it's 8 players- Cole, Jackson, Martin, Whaley, Sanogo, Polley, Hawkins, Gaffney.

Hurley was throwing Diggins and Samson a bone and Ewing acted like a putz.

Two of the Diggins "turnovers" were fouls. You don't get those calls on the road at garbage time. Dan Hurley was doing Patrick a favor by taking out the starters. Ewing is fighting for his job which is why he was pressing

 

[uconngb]

It means nothing. It's his first game action in forever and he's thrown into a blowout where you aren't expecting the team of starters to be pressing you. Our rotation is set and has been for a while, it's 8 players- Cole, Jackson, Martin, Whaley, Sanogo, Polley, Hawkins, Gaffney.

Hurley was throwing Diggins and Samson a bone and Ewing acted like a putz.

Couldn’t agree more. Like throwing raw meat to rabid dogs. Can’t make any assessment off that. Gimme a break.

 

[Ts5034]

You would think the staff would bring in another ball handler through the portal for next season. It doesn’t have to be a star point guard. Somebody with experience and a good handle would more than suffice. A Craig Austrie level player would be great.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Hilton Armstrong and perhaps Phil nolan

Hilton Armstrong started as a freshman.

 

[kobebeanbryant]

You would think the staff would bring in another ball handler through the portal for next season. It doesn’t have to be a star point guard. Somebody with experience and a good handle would more than suffice. A Craig Austrie level player would be great.

if cole doesn’t come back, i think we will need more than that.

out of this group, who would you be comfortable with as our starting point guard for next year:

• gaffney
• diggins
• jackson
• floyd

major question marks all around. surprisingly, i would probably be most comfortable with jackson (given his playmaking ability, handle, and work ethic/track record of improvement).

regardless, i think we will need to bring someone in from the outside.

 

[slepers]

Hilton Armstrong started as a freshman.

You are correct about two thirds start 11 minutes a game and almost 3 points per game. Soph and junior years 1 start combined. With around 3 point average. Big improvement senior year and a first round draft choice. Mea culpa.

 

[Ts5034]

if cole doesn’t come back, i think we will need more than that.

out of this group, who would you be comfortable with as our starting point guard for next year:

• gaffney
• diggins
• jackson
• floyd

major question marks all around. surprisingly, i would probably be most comfortable with jackson (given his playmaking ability, handle, and work ethic/track record of improvement).

regardless, i think we will need to bring someone in from the outside.

I Agree. With all due respect, as of right now, none of the above has shown they can take over the starting PG role at this point in time. If Cole leaves, those are big shoes to fill.

 

[Edward Sargent]

For those who know how Corey has been practicing with the team, please tell me that he's going to be a solid contributor handling the ball. The writeups indicate he's a both hands to the basket scorer, but how is his handle? And this is an odd question, but from a physical stand point, why was he redshirted but Diggins wasn't? Was it based on his relatively late decision to reclassify and enroll early?

He's a 4 star Aminu Mohammed for all you who count stars

 

[UCfor3]

The only mark in Diggins's favor is that this is an unusual year with a lot of super-seniors that have limited opportunities for freshmen on good teams across the board.

Every other indicator points badly. There have almost never been freshmen to contribute as little as Diggins (and Johnson) are this year becoming meaningful contributors down the line.

Whaley and Gavin Edwards come to mind. It also worked in reverse for Rashamel Jones. Major contributor as a freshman in a rebuilding year. Bench role player as a senior for 99 championship team when we had better and deeper talent. Accepted and excelled at his reduced role. Big men develop slower and we are deep in the frontcourt. Zero worries about Johnson who was a little raw coming in. Diggins is slightly more concerning, but players develop at different rates. It's a big step up both in terms of talent, speed of the game, and most of all mentally which is a big part of being a point guard. Like others have pointed out, Nova has players ranked higher than Diggins that don't get a sniff of playing time. We have an actual top level program again. We don't need to throw guys into the fire anymore regardless of their readiness. If it's more of the same next year then yeah, maybe start being concerned. Too early to push the panic button now though. Big ask for a guy to look good thrust into a pressing situation after warming the bench for a month. The experience he gathers against the early part of the schedule next year will be huge for him. I will say he has done a great job in the weight room because physically he looks so much stronger than he did in November. That shows me he is a hard worker and wants to get better which is a great sign for his future.

 

[millertime7774]