Forever Dunk

[Huskyforlife]

I don't know if I'm hallucinating but bouk looks much bigger (weight wise in a good way) than at the start of the season.

The smoothness with which he does stuff like this is impressive. Elite hand-eye to go along with great raw athleticism is not common.

He's definitely not 175 anymore.

 

[Tommyboy]

Love on sportscenters IG... nice to see our highlights on nationally relevant places

the under the basket shot is my favorite. Just looks ridiculous

 

[Palatine]

Shonn Miller needs more love.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Back on First Night, Bouk's allotted number of attempts for a spectacular dunk failed. The players - Men & Women - were united to give a freshman an extra try, even in a tightly scripted program...and then another after that one failed.

Clearly, they'd seen something, and they wanted the fans to see it too.

We're seeing it.

 

[Tex-Lager93]

I thought the one against Memphis was nasty. Then the follow against USF...was nastier. This one is currently nastiest. But, it’s been a theme.

 

[Lamble]

That Tony Robertson dunk doesn't get enough credit. He let out an entire season of frustration on BC with that dunk.

 

[nomar]

That is the greatest dunk in UConn history.

 

[nashusky109]

This one is amazing...

This is the best dunk since Lamb versus Colombia. Which was probably the best dunks and Sticks versus Texas. I'm not sure which one of these is the best they were all amazing.

i would say best since his put back the other day, which was best since Purvis vs SMU at XL, which was best since Jeremy lambs dunk vs Columbia.

 

[UConn2SF]

Bouk's freshman highlight clip will be the best ever of any UConn freshman.

 

[Rico444]

Bouk throws Jalen under the bus lol

 

[Chin Diesel]

Bouk's freshman highlight clip will be the best ever of any UConn freshman.

3 for 3 in highlights last three games. Successively better.

WTF? does he have in store for Senior Night against Houston?

 

[HuskylnSC]

Dunkanation!! I loved seeing Boat fly again. Some guys got the ball higher, but nobody got their feet higher than the Boat. Great clips! thanks!

 

[Ratso]

depends on who/what team you dunk on right?

i want see dunkfest on jay wright next year.

 

[joober jones]

His arm looked like a compass on that dunk. Not the navigational type, but the kind you use to draw circles.

 

[Kitaman]

Bouk getting love here:

UCONN’S JAMES BOUKNIGHT WITH DUNK OF THE YEAR CANDIDATE

 

[superjohn]

This picture is everything...

 

[Ratso]

if it’s not an espn top ten, espn is trash

 

[goskis2018]

His ceiling is as high as any player we've ever had.

Honest question to the older heads of the boneyard from a class of '18 grad whose only seen Shabazz and afterwards , is the above hyperbolic? How does this kid compare to the "greats" during their freshman years?

 

[JB75]

Yeesh. I almost jumped off my couch. It’s Espns dunk of the day- obviously

 

[MilliniumPrince]

I'm not sure what that rim did to offend him, but damn he got even.

 

[UConnSwag11]

People already forgetting about Rudy and Stix

 

[MexicoHusky]

When college players start making plays like that, the NBA comes calling

 

[GoDAWGS]

TCF idk how you do it man, but your videos are incredible you've kept me entertained for hours.

 

[tentoes4rings]

Yeesh. I almost jumped off my couch. It’s Espns dunk of the day- obviously

I had my head down for a second and only heard the sound of the dunk and was still amazed. Then I assumed he did it off two feet from near the basket. When I saw what it actually was, I was in total shock!

 

[Chin Diesel]

Honest question to the older heads of the boneyard from a class of '18 grad whose only seen Shabazz and afterwards , is the above hyperbolic? How does this kid compare to the "greats" during their freshman years?

So I go back to a few years before JC.

Here's my take.

Bouk was a 30-60 range recruit. Some of his numbers were to missing some AAU time.

Coming in to the program there have been dozens of recruits in that range. Some, like Ben Gordon or Day Allen we were told were way under ranked. Bouk seems to be in the group.as far as hype as freshmen.
Donyell, Rip, El Amin, Drummond, Caronimo, Charlie V and a few others had higher rankings and we're expected to dominate, be AA's and great pros.
I"d also add it's not just the player's skillset it is the style of play en vogue on the NBA.
Certain players who played years ago and were okay have great games for today's NBA.
I'll close with this. I'm less worried trying to make sense of Bouk and his place in Husky lore and geared more towards enjoying his game and what it can lead to for the Huskies.

 

[Chin Diesel]

if it’s not an espn top ten, espn is trash

I think it'll safely be inside the top 5.

 

[FluxTZ]

So I go back to a few years before JC.

Here's my take.

Bouk was a 30-60 range recruit. Some of his numbers were to missing some AAU time.

Coming in to the program there have been dozens of recruits in that range. Some, like Ben Gordon or Day Allen we were told were way under ranked. Bouk seems to be in the group.as far as hype as freshmen.
Donyell, Rip, El Amin, Drummond, Caronimo, Charlie V and a few others had higher rankings and we're expected to dominate, be AA's and great pros.
I"d also add it's not just the player's skillset it is the style of play en vogue on the NBA.
Certain players who played years ago and were okay have great games for today's NBA.
I'll close with this. I'm less worried trying to make sense of Bouk and his place in Husky lore and geared more towards enjoying his game and what it can lead to for the Huskies.

To be fair, Drummond has been crushing it in the league.

 

[Huskybass]

His ceiling is as high as any player we've ever had.

I have been saying this to anyone who would listen since I saw his first highlight tape as a junior in high school. Just an absolutely special talent.

 

[Chin Diesel]

To be fair, Drummond has been crushing it in the league.

I never said he wasn't. I said Drummond was a much more highly rated recruit than Bouk and was expected to be a dominating force in college and the pros.

 

[Watchdog]

Honest question to the older heads of the boneyard from a class of '18 grad whose only seen Shabazz and afterwards , is the above hyperbolic? How does this kid compare to the "greats" during their freshman years?

The league, the style of play today and lots of other factors make that a tough question.

So many variables come into play: Quality of the other teams in the AAC compared to the OBE, fewer great players on this UConn team which makes JB more of a focus than he might have been in other times and the greater focus on defense in the OBE, especially in the six foul era. All these factors effected playing time, and how easily a freshman was able to adjust to the college game.

The major one being the Old Big East was a much tougher league from top to bottom, fouls weren't called on some of the stuff we see being called today, and defense was high on the agendas of all the teams.

So most of our great freshmen were worked into the lineups with less pressure to be "the guy" right away and and less pressure to make the plays necessary to win games.

Finally, JB really is special in how he moves, how high he can jump, how much he seems to see, how much he seems to understand the game, and (true to his nickname) seems so smooth and "effortless" so often. He glides and doesn't seem to have to make an extra effort to get up to get a rebound or throw down a dunk. We were at the ECU game and he really skied for some rebounds or to keep a ball alive several times. Ten rebounds besides his assists, etc. and the whole crowd was stunned by his dunk, even all the ECU fans around us. They all recognized and appreciated how special he is.

Long run, will he be better than Ray or Rip or Ben or Emeka or ? We'll probably know more in 2020-21 and in the next 15 to 20 years in the league.