2025 Recruiting: Dwayne Aristode

[Deleted at users request]

Not sure what your freshman Hawkins take is but we don't win the title last year with freshman year version of Hawkins. The best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores. I'll take an experienced vet from the portal to plug in whatever needs we will have to fill this offseason over any freshman not named Cooper Flagg

Pretty much that he was good freshman year but wasn’t handle properly. I site his first 3-4 games here before having a major fall off.

If he was given the reigns early I think we would’ve saw a freshman who was ready to be the best scorer on the team. But there wasn’t room for him to do that with Martin playing a similar position (and being a terrible passer) at the time.

 

[UCTitleTown]

I cannot stress enough, the staff didn’t love the talent pool of the 24 class and acted accordingly. Did we miss on targets, yes? But in this day and age, why reach for a kid and use resources if you don’t have to.

So Abraham is better than the other 2024 talent out there? Everything I'm hearing is he's a defensive glue guy who needs to develop offensively. Not knocking the kid at all, but his signing doesn't support the argument you're making.

 

[Jbirdp5]

So Abraham is better than the other 2024 talent out there? Everything I'm hearing is he's a defensive glue guy who needs to develop offensively. Not knocking the kid at all, but his signing doesn't support the argument you're making.

He’s a great culture fit and Hurley is going to invest in helping him reach his potential….he will most likely not be counted on next year like Ross was this year

 

[Jbirdp5]

There are very very few freshman who could come in next year and make an immediate impact. Even freshman year Hawkins wasn't anywhere close to what he gave us his sophomore season. We'll have a great core of Ball, Diarra (I assume he's back), Karaban (hopefully), Stewart, and Nowell. We'll need to go out to the portal and find another Cam Spencer and a veteran starting center. I love Samson but he isn't a starting caliber center in such a physical conference. He'll be a strong backup again though.

That would put us at 8 deep, and then we can still probably find a shooter to come off the bench which would get us to 9. I'm not sure how much Abraham or Ross would play next year so I'm not really counting them in the rotation depth. Next years roster is really going to come down to what we do at Center and how we can replace Cam. We got the best staff in the country. They'll find the perfect fit just like they always do

I agree with your points but I wonder about the center position. The league is losing basically all off their bigs this offseason so Samson may be able to handle starting depending what other rosters look like next season.
Kalkbrenner, oduro, Soriano are all gone

 

[MDHuskFan]

Retaining/Re-Recruiting our stud freshmen on our roster now, so that they’re here as sophomores will be more beneficial than 95% of the freshmen that we could bring in.

From some of Dan Hurley’s post game and pre-game comments, it seems like that’s where a lot of the “recruiting” time is being spent.

 

[husky429]

So Abraham is better than the other 2024 talent out there? Everything I'm hearing is he's a defensive glue guy who needs to develop offensively. Not knocking the kid at all, but his signing doesn't support the argument you're making.

Better player =/= better for our team. Abraham is better for our team, because he is locked into our culture and has the work ethic to improve.

 

[husky429]

Samson may be able to handle starting

There is no way anyone would predict a summer where Samson improves enough to handle a starting position. That rate of improvement would be unbelievable. At this point, we need to be wondering if Samson is even able to handle a bench big role. A quality big in the portal and a strong off-season from Singare need to be priorities.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Seems like our biggest need is at the 5 and 4

 

[Jbirdp5]

There is no way anyone would predict a summer where Samson improves enough to handle a starting position. That rate of improvement would be unbelievable. At this point, we need to be wondering if Samson is even able to handle a bench big role. A quality big in the portal and a strong off-season from Singare need to be priorities.

No argument that Samson hasn’t been great of late, the broader point I was trying to make was that the league is loaded with really big physical centers this year and that might not be the case next season as most of the bigger centers will be moving on. Having a bruiser might not be a necessity

 

[superjohn]

Seems like our biggest need is at the 5 and 4

5 and shooting guard.

 

[BlueMAB]

Dude I’m not attacking him just trying to have a discussion on recruiting strategy. But contrary to what you’re saying he Was prioritizing two other freshmen so we could very well have had a big 4 recruit class. I hypothesized in my last post maybe he thought cooper and pat were the only freshmen he’d rather have than transfers. Do you buy that?

But those 2 are 5 star players who would come in and start, one of whom is a one and done.

If you can bring that talent in, you do it. If you swing and miss....transfer portal.

This seems to make sense to almost everyone but you.

 

[upstater]

There is no way anyone would predict a summer where Samson improves enough to handle a starting position. That rate of improvement would be unbelievable. At this point, we need to be wondering if Samson is even able to handle a bench big role. A quality big in the portal and a strong off-season from Singare need to be priorities.

Is he really that far off from where Hilton Armstrong was when he made his jump?

 

[Tenspro2002]

There is no way anyone would predict a summer where Samson improves enough to handle a starting position. That rate of improvement would be unbelievable. At this point, we need to be wondering if Samson is even able to handle a bench big role. A quality big in the portal and a strong off-season from Singare need to be priorities.

It would literally have to be a Hilton Armstrong type of growth, which has happened once in program history.

We will be hitting the portal hard. Fortunately, Hurley has killed it in the portal for 4 years.

 

[upstater]

Why are people saying things have changed and that with 2024 recruiting we still have half the class open and/or uncommitted?

I just checked the top 100 for the first time and only 4 out of 100 players are uncommitted.

 

[superjohn]

Why are people saying things have changed and that with 2024 recruiting we still have half the class open and/or uncommitted?

I just checked the top 100 for the first time and only 4 out of 100 players are uncommitted.

What's your question?

Things have changed with the transfer portal. We have the best backcourt in the country because of it.

 

[StllH8L8ner]

Bag of cash to Yale Payne Whitney Gymnasium over the summer. Big man problem solved…

 

[upstater]

What's your question?

Things have changed with the transfer portal. We have the best backcourt in the country because of it.

I think you might be the only one in America who has noticed that.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Is he really that far off from where Hilton Armstrong was when he made his jump?

Can’t tell if this is serious, but pretty clearly the exception, not the rule. Could Samson have a huge jump? Sure. Should Hurley count on it when assembling the team for next year? Absolutely not.

 

[Deleted at users request]

Is he really that far off from where Hilton Armstrong was when he made his jump?

Yes, absolutely. Armstrong could do some big man things at this point.

Samson almost exclusively runs and jumps right now.

As a go with your recruited guys advocate even I’m saying we’ll need to hit the portal here.

 

[Chief00]

i dont think that's necessarily news. there's thousands of high school players that want to play for UConn but they have to be good enough to be recruited in the first place.

having said that you gotta make time for recruits like aristode. Hurley cast too small a net in 2024 and we're gonna have to strike gold in the transfer portal for the 3rd time in 3 years to make up for it.

That’s a fair point, did we not want to appear to recruit over this year’s freshmen class? Did we maybe over evaluate Samson?

 

[NEforceUConn]

Are a lot of kids taking official visits because they want to watch college basketball games?

Maybe some are looking for that old Louisville experience?

 

[BGesus4]

Can’t tell if this is serious, but pretty clearly the exception, not the rule. Could Samson have a huge jump? Sure. Should Hurley count on it when assembling the team for next year? Absolutely not.

Samson doesn’t have quite a long enough neck to go full hilton

 

[superjohn]

I think you might be the only one in America who has noticed that.

What's your question?

 

[navery12]

Why are people saying things have changed and that with 2024 recruiting we still have half the class open and/or uncommitted?

I just checked the top 100 for the first time and only 4 out of 100 players are uncommitted.

Because there's about to be 1000+ uncommitted kids available within the next month

 

[jibsey]

That’s a fair point, did we not want to appear to recruit over this year’s freshmen class? Did we maybe over evaluate Samson?

We can only go by what we see now. Those comments way back by Hurley or someone that said “wall potential” or to that effect sound pretty funny.
I will be excited to see who we get for a 5.

 

[uconnever]

There is no way anyone would predict a summer where Samson improves enough to handle a starting position. That rate of improvement would be unbelievable. At this point, we need to be wondering if Samson is even able to handle a bench big role. A quality big in the portal and a strong off-season from Singare need to be priorities.

Totally disagree that he can’t start next year. It’s not ideal, but looking at where our other freshmen will be next year, he fits right in. And he has started this year and has held his own. He definitely needs to improve but he’s more than capable. I too think we need a better big, but Samson isn’t like having only Singare, that would be bad.

 

[aburks41]

Seems like our biggest need is at the 5 and 4

Center, yes absolutely. But the 4 spot is locked down with Karaban and Stewart. Karaban's mom probably won't let him leave without a degree haha so I would bet he's back next season.

We need another high impact shooter like Hawkins or Spencer. That's the biggest role aside from Center that we'll need to fill

 

[Chief00]

We can only go by what we see now. Those comments way back by Hurley or someone that said “wall potential” or to that effect sound pretty funny.
I will be excited to see who we get for a 5.

For some of that time he was injuried, so difficult to evaluate. And was also part of a crowded practice position with Sanogo and Clingan. Other players raved about him as he does make highlight dunks. But, he needs more strength, post moves and an identity on defense.

 

[upstater]

Because there's about to be 1000+ uncommitted kids available within the next month

Sorry, I thought we were talking about the Class of 2024, not UConn's recruiting class.

Mixed it up. Anytime I hear 2024 mentioned, I think "Class of" right now -- doing a lot of pre-college application stuff for my kid.

 

[husky429]

Is he really that far off from where Hilton Armstrong was when he made his jump?

Yes, he is very far off from where Hilton was. You're bringing up Hilton because his improvement is practically unheard of. Expecting that is nuts.

Hilton also had a better rebounding rate, lower foul rate, hit a better FT% on a higher rate, had a better block rate, and double the assist rate of SJ his junior year. The foundation was there for Hilton to turn himself into a legit big (however rare the improvement) because he was a baller, not just an athlete.