Well the Vandy and Jerry Meyers are a little off with that info then. I saw that thread on there saying that Vandy could land both Morgan and Baptist. Apparently Vandy is trying to sell Baptist on being the next Ezeale but why not the next Emeka?
Djery Baptiste (Committed to Vanderbilt)
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Huskyforlife
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Because the odds of being the next emeka are not in anyone's favor.
Why not give it a try though lol
Fishy
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I tried.
Didn't work.
But he's not half the internet poster that I am, so I guess it evens out.
intlzncster
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Whelp, looks like we gotta go get Stone.
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Yup. Though I think we're ok even if we don't get either of them this year. We'll have Phil (sr), Amida (jr) and Enoch (fr) all able to play the 5 next season, so I'm not going to sweat it.
Wouldn't surprise me if we ended up with a class of Adams, Enoch, Clarke and Jones.
CTBasketball
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The next Festus Ezeli? So...a NBA 12th man?
Silk31
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Not sweating this at all, just gave me quite a laugh when people are saying he chose Vandy over us because of the way they develop their bigs....................
CTBasketball
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We're not the best big developer either, only really Okafor, Armstrong, and Adrien can be labeled as accomplishments. None of which turned out to be stars, but Vanderbilt? Everything they do is mediocre. The only thing appealing is their benches in the basketball arena.
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How is Adrien a bigger accomplishment than, say, Boone or Thabeet? Adrien was incredibly polished when he got to UConn.
intlzncster
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Thabeet. Jake and Travis too. Amida seems to be coming along.
CTBasketball
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You usually don't point at Thabeet and say, "Wow he's an accomplishment - such a fine NBA player." Same goes for Travis and Jake. Adrien I guess was a push. Boone failed in the NBA.
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Thabeet - $16.8mm
Knight - $22.6mm
Voskuhl - $12.3mm
Boone - $5.5mm, not counting playing overseas
None of these guys turned out to be stars, but every one of them made it to the NBA and got paid. If Djery Baptiste is expecting more than "become a multi-millionaire," then he needs to calm down.
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I do. I always compare freshman Thabeet to a baby giraffe - certainly tall, but spends an awful lot of time falling down when trying to do anything somewhat athletic. He was a fringe top 100 recruit who wasn't considered an NBA prospect coming into college, and became a first-team All-American, the defensive anchor of a FF team, and a high lottery pick (#2).
Whatever he did from there isn't so much on UConn. The program put him in a position to succeed, molding a guy who came in with limited skill and coordination and developing him to the point that the NBA saw potential. He had to keep developing, and for whatever reasons (lack of drive/passion, hit his ceiling early, etc.), he didn't get better in the league.
Of course, that was a previous coaching staff, so it's sort of a moot point.
Dshelby @HoopSwag 16h
So proud of my kid Djery Baptiste. He has chosen Vanderbilt. A great kid and a phenomenal education.
So proud of my kid Djery Baptiste. He has chosen Vanderbilt. A great kid and a phenomenal education.
Silk31
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How do you possibly consider Thabeet not an accomplishment in terms of development?!...he was an uncoordinated piece of African tree when he 1st came to campus with little bball experience and JC turned him into the #2 pick in the draft after his junior year.
It's not about what these guys did once they got to the league it's about providing the chance to get to the next level. Thabeet is the poster child for developing a little known big into BE DPOY & Co-BE POY
Meanwhile who can Vandy point to in terms of development for any player, let alone a big man? Festivus for the rest of us Ezeli?!...child pleaseeee.
Again, do you Djery but if he was truly considering us or Vandy and thought them to be the better option in terms of big man development then good luck to you young man
CTBasketball
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From a UConn fan's perspective he was a great accomplishment. Outside of UConn he was a bust.
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Turning any player outside of the top 15 into an NBA player is a huge accomplishment. Thabeet was extremely far from a sure fire pro when he came in and he is still in the league. Armstrong's development is also an enormous accomplishment for himself and the program.
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The narrative of Thabeet as a bust drives me nuts.
Yes he was a bust in relation to his draft spot. But considering where he was when he got to UConn, he should be considered the crowning achievement in big men development.
When he got here he literally couldn't catch a basketball or make a layup. Three years later he's the defensive POY, most impactful player in the country, and the #2 pick in the draft.
And this is somehow a bust from a development perspective?? Insanity.
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