Hurley’s Deepest UConn Team

[Hunt for 7]

I think they can feature him at the 3 only during those moments we have two guys who can create off the dribble at the 1/2. The AK/Stew/Solo 2-4 will only lead to the same issues we had last year. No one that can really create on their own and a stagnant offense, meanwhile slowfooted on the perimeter D.

Looking forward to this season starting. I just went back and looked at video for all the new players and it really is going to be interesting to see how Hurley manages this team.

I was watching Malachi Smith highlights and if he stays healthy he will have some highlight reel plays. He would have been lethal with Samson Johnson on the pick and roll and just his ability to break down his man off the dribble and attract attention in the lane.

We did not have a player with that level skill set last year. Love Diarra heart but you can see how much smoother Smith is when he has to pull up and take a three pointer because his path to the basket has been taken away. He is quicker and he moves much smoother than Diarra. Way better form on his shot and I could see him making close to 40% of his threes.

With him, Mullins and Silas we are much better prepared to play a half court game and get quality shots when our sets don’t get them for us.

Also he goes baseline to baseline faster than any player we have had in awhile. Hurley has mentioned him as a change of pace player. Been awhile since we had someone like that.

He is not Boatright but I am having a hard time thinking of a faster player that has played for Hurley at UConn. Not saying there has not been one but no one comes to mind quickly.

 

[RuffRuff]

Looking forward to this season starting. I just went back and looked at video for all the new players and it really is going to be interesting to see how Hurley manages this team.

I was watching Malachi Smith highlights and if he stays healthy he will have some highlight reel plays. He would have been lethal with Samson Johnson on the pick and roll and just his ability to break down his man off the dribble and attract attention in the lane.

We did not have a player with that level skill set last year. Love Diarra heart but you can see how much smoother Smith is when he has to pull up and take a three pointer because his path to the basket has been taken away. He is quicker and he moves much smoother than Diarra. Way better form on his shot and I could see him making close to 40% of his threes.

With him, Mullins and Silas we are much better prepared to play a half court game and get quality shots when our sets don’t get them for us.

Also he goes baseline to baseline faster than any player we have had in awhile. Hurley has mentioned him as a change of pace player. Been awhile since we had someone like that.

He is not Boatright but I am having a hard time thinking of a faster player that has played for Hurley at UConn. Not saying there has not been one but no one comes to mind quickly.

The legs on Stew…

 

[Mister P]

Malachi is back practicing which is good to see. Missing the summer practices shouldn’t impact him being ready for the start of the season. Just stay healthy.

UConn Men's Basketball on Instagram: "Back at it 💪"

2,257 likes, 22 comments - uconnmbb on August 27, 2025: "Back at it 💪".

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[husky429]

You would not get an argument from me on Mullins starting. I also don’t think Stewart is a college three. We saw his best type matchup when he covered Dixon last year. He is a bit of a tweener to big to play the three and two small to be a four.

And we all thought Reed Jr was eventually going to start last year so Hurley can be stubborn.

Could be Mullins ends up playing more minutes than any other player as he might be too good take of the floor for extended periods. If he ends up being an average defensive player, he will make it hard for Hurley to take him out of a game.

I think Stewart’s playing time is going to hinge in some part on how much Hurley plays Alex each game. The lowest mpg Alex has averaged was his freshman year at 29 mpg. If Stewart does not play the three were do his minutes come from?

I don't think Stewart is too small to be a 4 at all. He'd be playing there if we didn't have a 2x national champion commanding 30 mins a game.

6'7 225 is a great size for a college 4.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

I think this is Hurley’s deepest team since he became UConn’s head coach. It seems we are at least two deep at every position. If Furphy steps up and becomes a Swiss Army knife with his positional size we have 10 players who would play more than mop up minutes on all but a handful of Division one teams. If you go back and look it may have been situational but during the 22-23 we had nine players average more than 12 minutes per game. Will that happen again this year?

If only we could bring a Clingan , Joey California , Diarra , Alleyne off the bench ,
I would bet on a National Championship and I don’t gamble .

 

[RuffRuff]

I don't think Stewart is too small to be a 4 at all. He'd be playing there if we didn't have a 2x national champion commanding 30 mins a game.

6'7 225 is a great size for a college 4.

100% agree with this. Case in point, Darrion Williams of Texas Tech, 6'6" 225 and one of the better PF's in the country last year. Wouldn't mind seeing Stew try to style his game after him, have a good bump in the post and could kick out and be dangerous from three as needed. Meanwhile fill the other categories in the box up like a PF. Stew really isn't a 3.

Really hard to understand how the bench will look at this point because we don't know how good Mullins/Silas are and if they're so good they will command majority minutes or not. We also don't know what Furphy/Ross will bring in terms of mixing into the rotations. I'm not jumping to any conclusions on rotation as just too much we need to see play out. Fool me once.

 

[Hunt for 7]

I don't think Stewart is too small to be a 4 at all. He'd be playing there if we didn't have a 2x national champion commanding 30 mins a game.

6'7 225 is a great size for a college 4.

Ok that was my point, he is better suited to play the four not the three. So more of a four than a three. If I was saying he was more of a three than a four then I would get your response. So it looks like we agree that his minutes are best suited at the four not the three. If Alex is playing 30 minutes a game where do the rest of his minutes come from?

 

[husky429]

Ok that was my point, he is better suited to play the four not the three. So more of a four than a three. If I was saying he was more of a three than a four then I would get your response. So it looks like we agree that his minutes are best suited at the four not the three. If Alex is playing 30 minutes a game where do the rest of his minutes come from?

You said this about Stewart: "He is a bit of a tweener to big to play the three and two small to be a four."

This is not correct. Stewart has almost ideal size for a 4.

Presuming Jaylin doesn't start at the 3, I'd expect him to get 10 minutes at the 4 and 15 or so at the 3.

 

[Umami Zen]

Was impressed with Stewart's D and lower body strength last year when defending vs Eric Dixon of Nova. Dixon is a big-boned dude. With an additional 15-18 lbs gained this off season in the SnC Program- He has the measurables to play some strong physical D. Non-conference OOC schedule should be very telling re: his progress.

 

[RuffRuff]

You said this about Stewart: "He is a bit of a tweener to big to play the three and two small to be a four."

This is not correct. Stewart has almost ideal size for a 4.

Presuming Jaylin doesn't start at the 3, I'd expect him to get 10 minutes at the 4 and 15 or so at the 3.

Not sure where Furphy & Ross get any minutes if Stew is taking 15 at the 3.

There are so many possibilities in terms of how the 1-3 rotation can look. We have 7 players across those 3 positions. No one has any clue at this point how that will look.

 

[Hunt for 7]

You said this about Stewart: "He is a bit of a tweener to big to play the three and two small to be a four."

This is not correct. Stewart has almost ideal size for a 4.

Presuming Jaylin doesn't start at the 3, I'd expect him to get 10 minutes at the 4 and 15 or so at the 3.

Almost does not equal ideal.

But no reason to go back and forth as opinions will remain unchanged.

I have read enough of your posts to know that you know hoops.

Regarding your comment that Stewart will get 15 minutes at the three.

I don’t agree and really hope you are not correct because I am in the camp that thinks for us to be cutting down nets is April we will need Mullins to be a star. Reed to perform closer to his talent level, a confident dagger hitting Alex and Demary being a version of Tristen.

I don’t think our success hinges on Stewart or Ross being much better players than they have been in their first two years.

Of course I want Stewart to get opportunities and to reward his loyalty but I hope to see Mullins playing 32-35 minutes a game and if he is on the floor he will be at the three mostly.

Maybe some time at the two but I do envision a primary guard rotation to be Demary, Ball and Smith. 80 minutes to use and I can certainly see Demary and Ball each averaging close to 30 minutes a game. But who knows as Ruff said there are too many variations on what rotations Hurley is going to settle into.

That is why I am looking so forward to this season. Seems like the coach will have limitless options and his job will be to find the right one, which I trust he will do.

 

[husky429]

Almost does not equal ideal.

But no reason to go back and forth as opinions will remain unchanged.

I have read enough of your posts to know that you know hoops.

Regarding your comment that Stewart will get 15 minutes at the three.

I don’t agree and really hope you are not correct because I am in the camp that thinks for us to be cutting down nets is April we will need Mullins to be a star. Reed to perform closer to his talent level, a confident dagger hitting Alex and Demary being a version of Tristen.

I don’t think our success hinges on Stewart or Ross being much better players than they have been in their first two years.

Of course I want Stewart to get opportunities and to reward his loyalty but I hope to see Mullins playing 32-35 minutes a game and if he is on the floor he will be at the three mostly.

Maybe some time at the two but I do envision a primary guard rotation to be Demary, Ball and Smith. 80 minutes to use and I can certainly see Demary and Ball each averaging close to 30 minutes a game. But who knows as Ruff said there are too many variations on what rotations Hurley is going to settle into.

That is why I am looking so forward to this season. Seems like the coach will have limitless options and his job will be to find the right one, which I trust he will do.

Stewart playing at the 3 doesn't preclude Mullins getting 30 a game. At all.

PG: Demary (20), Smith (20)
SG: Solo (25), Demary (10), Mullins (5)
SF: Mullins (25), Stewart (15)
PF: AK (30), Stewart (10)
C: Reed (25), Reibe/Koroma (15)

That's the rotation in games that matter. Furphy or Ross will push in and cut the wing minutes so guys can stay at 25 or less when possible.

 

[RuffRuff]

Almost does not equal ideal.

But no reason to go back and forth as opinions will remain unchanged.

I have read enough of your posts to know that you know hoops.

Regarding your comment that Stewart will get 15 minutes at the three.

I don’t agree and really hope you are not correct because I am in the camp that thinks for us to be cutting down nets is April we will need Mullins to be a star. Reed to perform closer to his talent level, a confident dagger hitting Alex and Demary being a version of Tristen.

I don’t think our success hinges on Stewart or Ross being much better players than they have been in their first two years.

Of course I want Stewart to get opportunities and to reward his loyalty but I hope to see Mullins playing 32-35 minutes a game and if he is on the floor he will be at the three mostly.

Maybe some time at the two but I do envision a primary guard rotation to be Demary, Ball and Smith. 80 minutes to use and I can certainly see Demary and Ball each averaging close to 30 minutes a game. But who knows as Ruff said there are too many variations on what rotations Hurley is going to settle into.

That is why I am looking so forward to this season. Seems like the coach will have limitless options and his job will be to find the right one, which I trust he will do.

The great part about it is that Hurley can roll the ball out there in the next two months and see who earns the spots.