Freshman Castle appreciation thread

[HailUConn]

Have we had a freshman like Castle before, this good in both defense and offense? Imagine he did not have that knee op!

I don’t think it’s any stretch to say He is our best 1-4 defender now.

Offense wise, he is unstoppable in the open court. I cannot even begin to fathom how good we are if his outside shooting is somewhat decent.

And you know what’s more impressive? He has no ego, so humble, and coachable. You can see why he came to Storrs. Like those
UConn greats before him, He come here under Hurley to work on his games and that’s the greatest trait of all to make him so special.

Stephon, I hope you make your own mark in the stay here, however short that may be.

 

[GlastonTim]

Kid’s a stud! He’s a team first guy too. Dan made a comment on how he elevates the culture here. He got game.

 

[MTBingNinja]

Love how athletic he is, uses his body to draw fouls and finishes at the rim with his strength. His jumper will come.

 

[KyUCONN]

LOTS OF GREAT QUALITIES/ one thing he needs to work on is his hesitation when he is at top of key starting the offense ….

 

[caw]

Want to say Caron as the closest to Castle but Caron didn’t have nearly the team around him as a freshman.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Castle is the best UConn player in history. Got it.

 

[CL82]

As good as he is, I still don't feel like he's operating on all cylinders yet. He will be better come the end of the season.

 

[StllH8L8ner]

As good as he is, I still don't feel like he's operating on all cylinders yet. He will be better come the end of the season.

 

[husky429]

But @UconnU says he has ADHD. Who am I to believe?

 

[EZPass]

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

Outside of Rudy, have we ever had a Big East Freshmen of the Year?

 

[HooperScooper]

Outside of Rudy, have we ever had a Big East Freshmen of the Year?

Rudy was the last one in 2005. Also, Khalid El-Amin in 1998, Doron Sheffer in 1994, Nadav Henefeld in 1990, and Earl Kelley in 1983.

 

[Bazz2014]

I felt like yesterday he got a little bit mad and he hit yet another level. There was a missed foul call in the first half where a Butler kid was on the ground and essentially took Steph’s legs out when he came down from a layup. Steph gave the ref a look and jawed a bit, you could tell he was boiling over about it, and from there on out he seemed to stop over thinking so much and was more downhill/in attack mode the rest of the game. That might just be the switch that needs to flip for him to realize that seeking his shot aggressively is sometimes the best move for the team offense. When he creates because his drive is there, without hesitating, it opens up our offense.

Up til yesterday, it seemed like he was almost waiting for permission to call his own number. Hopefully yesterday’s game was the green light he needs.

 

[MexicoHusky]

Have we had a freshman like Castle before, this good in both defense and offense? Imagine he did not have that knee op!

I don’t think it’s any stretch to say He is our best 1-4 defender now.

Offense wise, he is unstoppable in the open court. I cannot even begin to fathom how good we are if his outside shooting is somewhat decent.

And you know what’s more impressive? He has no ego, so humble, and coachable. You can see why he came to Storrs. Like those
UConn greats before him, He come here under Hurley to work on his games and that’s the greatest trait of all to make him so special.

Stephon, I hope you make your own mark in the stay here, however short that may be.

I dont follow recruiting that much. In the summer I log into the yard off and on to see how things are going. So maybe my expectations are a bit uneducated, but im very surprised by Castle's athleticism, physicality and D. I thought we were getting a great player but someone who needed to work on his body..... thats not the case at all

 

[alphasigko]

I am loving his game and belive that he will only get better as the season progresses. He is a perfect fit and the right compliment to Cam, Tristen, Alex and DC. Would love to see more of him here beyond a year, but that does not appear to be a possibility.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Castle is the best UConn player in history. Got it.

And you wonder why you get the reactions you do.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

As good as he is, I still don't feel like he's operating on all cylinders yet. He will be better come the end of the season.

You can see the improvement game to game. It's fun to watch.

 

[DawgEnjoyer]

Two things that have become very clear to me in the last week.

1.) Castle is very good and improving game by game.

2.) A LARGE amount of fans, particularly ones of prior generations have ZERO idea what the NBA looks for in lottery picks and still have a weird dislike for the concept of guys leaving early.

 

[DogMania]

Want to say Caron as the closest to Castle but Caron didn’t have nearly the team around him as a freshman.

How about somewhere between Marcus Smart and Derrick Rose?

 

[Umami Zen]

Castle's best game.. Played like an experienced veteran. Nine boards.50/50 balls. Doing the dirty work and played excellent D.Is a great teammate that's all about winning. His style is the opposite of hero ball. Tough dude.

 

[uconnfan68]

Two things that have become very clear to me in the last week.

1.) Castle is very good and improving game by game.

2.) A LARGE amount of fans, particularly ones of prior generations have ZERO idea what the NBA looks for in lottery picks and still have a weird dislike for the concept of guys leaving early.

I think a lot of people have been saying the NBA doesn’t know what they’ll get. Potential is their key.

 

[HailUConn]

23 NBA scouts in UConn vs Bulter game, who they are there watching? It’s not that hard.

 

[HooperScooper]

"Coach has mentioned that to me a lot," Castle said on Friday night, after helping the Huskies to a come-from-behind road win over Butler at Hinkle Fieldhouse. "I'm just trying to embrace that role and help the team in the ways that Andre helped last year. Being able to do that for the team and get this tough win was great."

UConn men's basketball freshman Stephon Castle boasts several similarities with Andre Jackson, Jr.: 'Embrace that role'

His pedigree is greater and future brighter, but Stephon Castle conjurs up plenty of similarities with Andre Jackson, Jr. And that's a good thing.

www.nhregister.com

Alternate access:

UConn men's basketball freshman Stephon Castle boasts several similarities with Andre Jackson, Jr.: 'Embrace that role'​

 

[UCan3]

Castle is a bit of an enigma in the sense he has tough time with hitting jumpers and 3 point shots. Some of his misses look unusually off… Like Jackson I suppose…

Now with that being said, he‘s got the best attitude and maturity I’ve seem in quite some time from a Freshman. Who doesn’t want him on the court? He passes, plays D, finishes on breakaways and seems to pick up these quiet points on the way and all of the sudden he’s in double figures….

All this being said, it is his cool attitude and doing whatever is asked of him and his north south playing style/finishing while playing lock down D that will keep him in the first round.

I knew he would be very good coming in. What I didn’t expect is such a cool character that was locked into the UConn mentality since Day 1. What is UConn? Look no further than Stephon Castle.

He is only going to get better and better…. Scary…

 

[RedStickHusky]

Starting to look like a Swiss army knife stat stuffer.