Hurley ponders his options to go double big

[Rico444]

Put me in the camp that thinks this would be a complete disaster against good teams. It would mean either our two bigs are clogging the paint, which will lead to terrible spacing and poor offense, or we'll be relying on our two centers to take threes, which is not a good idea. I hope this is just coach talk and isn't a realistic option outside of rare situations where we face a team that plays two immobile bigs.

 

[JohnFSilver]

Double bigs won’t work in Big East. Also, I imagine Donovan is a better shooter than Adama. Both need to be able to shoot 3s if they want a long pro careers, though maybe Donovan can be a rim protector and rebounder. I gotta see him at the college level first.

Adama won’t play in the nba if he doesn’t extend his range.

 

[CL82]

I'm not sure Donovan is even going to get all the backup 5 minutes. It will be interesting to see, but I'm concerned about the defense.

It’s going to depend on the matchup. And if he has to guard someone added the perimeter or if they expect him to switch on defense, you are probably right. I guess that we will play a lot of zone while he is in, but he has lost a ton of weight, so maybe he’ll surprise us a bit.

 

[Scrutineer]

Lots of Boneyardin' in this discussion.
The facts are it's two weeks to the opener and the exciting additions to the roster have everybody speculating:
-Lots of experts on high/low, inside/outside, yada yada;
-Many believe Dan Hurley is fixated on playing a certain way and can never change, even if he has a roster like he's never had;
-Nobody knows how much or little AS has improved his shot;
-Nobody knows if SJ and RS aren't shaping up as the guys capable of giving AS a breather;
-Nobody knows how the rest of the team looks;
-Nobody knows how good or bad DC looks so far;
-Nobody knows if Dan Hurley is overwhelmed with how good DC actually is or is just trying to pump DC up to work harder; but
we'll find out some answers in two weeks and lots more in late November.
I'm ready. Is everybody else ready? Go Huskies...........

 

[August_West]

Double bigs won’t work in Big East. Also, I imagine Donovan is a better shooter than Adama. Both need to be able to shoot 3s if they want a long pro careers, though maybe Donovan can be a rim protector and rebounder. I gotta see him at the college level first.

Adama won’t play in the nba if he doesn’t extend his range.

There have been lineups in practice where Adama is camping out in the corner, think of what Whaley's positions were in our sets last year. Dear lord I don't want him in the corner hoisting threes though. He may be an improved outside shooter, but I don't think he is THAT improved.........yet.

 

[JustbrewitMan]

It would be coaching malpractice to not tinker with and try out some unique lineups in preseason and/or in early-season creampuff games based on the unique skillsets that players on your deep talented team possess.

Good on Coach Hurley.

Plus it makes for a fun BY thread!

 

[AZHuskiePop]

Lots of Boneyardin' in this discussion.
The facts are it's two weeks to the opener and the exciting additions to the roster have everybody speculating:
-Lots of experts on high/low, inside/outside, yada yada;
-Many believe Dan Hurley is fixated on playing a certain way and can never change, even if he has a roster like he's never had;
-Nobody knows how much or little AS has improved his shot;
-Nobody knows if SJ and RS aren't shaping up as the guys capable of giving AS a breather;
-Nobody knows how the rest of the team looks;
-Nobody knows how good or bad DC looks so far;
-Nobody knows if Dan Hurley is overwhelmed with how good DC actually is or is just trying to pump DC up to work harder; but
we'll find out some answers in two weeks and lots more in late November.
I'm ready. Is everybody else ready? Go Huskies...........

But or IF
To paraphrase an old baseball saying.
In the ( Spring) Autumn Hope Springs Eternal

 

[Vancat]

 

[methodology]

Hasheem and Adrien never worked. Or Hilton and Boone, etc

I think there are situations and instances where it can create mismatches and turn the other team into one dimensional, outside shooting teams that avoid the paint. Never say never it can be an added weapon

 

[uconnfan68]

Lots of Boneyardin' in this discussion.
The facts are it's two weeks to the opener and the exciting additions to the roster have everybody speculating:
-Lots of experts on high/low, inside/outside, yada yada;
-Many believe Dan Hurley is fixated on playing a certain way and can never change, even if he has a roster like he's never had;
-Nobody knows how much or little AS has improved his shot;
-Nobody knows if SJ and RS aren't shaping up as the guys capable of giving AS a breather;
-Nobody knows how the rest of the team looks;
-Nobody knows how good or bad DC looks so far;
-Nobody knows if Dan Hurley is overwhelmed with how good DC actually is or is just trying to pump DC up to work harder; but
we'll find out some answers in two weeks and lots more in late November.
I'm ready. Is everybody else ready? Go Huskies...........

-Many believe Dan Hurley is fixated on playing a certain way and can never change, even if he has a roster like he's never had;

My worst fear.

 

[Chin Diesel]

There have been lineups in practice where Adama is camping out in the corner, think of what Whaley's positions were in our sets last year. Dear lord I don't want him in the corner hoisting threes though. He may be an improved outside shooter, but I don't think he is THAT improved.........yet.

If Adama is going to be hoisting 3's, I'd prefer it from the top of the key. If he clangs one from there, he has a fighting chance to get back on Defense and stop transition baskets. If he is hoisting 3's from the corner, I'll assume every miss leads to transition points from the opponent.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I would do high / low. Foul line entry pass to guy on box. I agree neither is a 3 point threat. On this team we have Hawkins, Karaban and Joey California for the 3’s. Newton may be a threat also.

Alleyne is the best shooter on the team and you didn't even mention him.

The days of high/low post are gone. That's too much lane-clogging and not enough spacing for penetrators or shooters.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Alleyne is the best shooter on the team and you didn't even mention him.

The days of high/low post are gone. That's too much lane-clogging and not enough spacing for penetrators or shooters.

I agree that it has trended away. I wouldn't say it's gone. NBA rosters are getting bigger again. You're going to see some post play, simply because most teams can't actually defend it very effectively. Not many college teams even have a big with back to the basket post skills, but we do. Kareem would score at will in the modern game.

It's no different than the NFL where we see shifts to spread offenses and dime packages, and then we see a lot of teams gashing those defenses on the ground. The running game is cool again.

 

[CL82]

Alleyne is the best shooter on the team and you didn't even mention him.

Is he, though? We haven’t been hearing that much about him in the off-season.

 

[ToolzieFan]

Here is some big man content for all of you.

 

[CTFAN4LIFE]

Here is some big man content for all of you.

Great piece - looking forward to seeing the guards.

 

[Castlevania]

Here is some big man content for all of you.

So... Hurley doesn't go by who plays Center and who plays Power Forward. It's Guards, Wings, and Forwards.
Coach Murray broke it down for us, nicely.

 

[JustbrewitMan]

So... Hurley doesn't go by who plays Center and who plays Power Forward. It's Guards, Wings, and Forwards.
Coach Murray broke it down for us, nicely.

This confirms Donovan will be running the point since there’s no center position!

 

[Tenspro2002]

I agree that it has trended away. I wouldn't say it's gone. NBA rosters are getting bigger again. You're going to see some post play, simply because most teams can't actually defend it very effectively. Not many college teams even have a big with back to the basket post skills, but we do. Kareem would score at will in the modern game.

It's no different than the NFL where we see shifts to spread offenses and dime packages, and then we see a lot of teams gashing those defenses on the ground. The running game is cool again.

Post play, yes, that's the "1 in" that pairs with "4 out".

My point was just that we're not going to see big-to-big passing from the foul line to the block anymore. It's insanely inefficient and closes down driving lanes for guards and wings, while leaving too-few shooters on the perimeter to keep spacing and punish a collapsing defense.

 

[CL82]

Here is some big man content for all of you.

Adama, Donovan and Alex, in particular, look terrific

 

[husky429]

So... Hurley doesn't go by who plays Center and who plays Power Forward. It's Guards, Wings, and Forwards.
Coach Murray broke it down for us, nicely.

Pretty much standard everywhere. Even if you do have a "center," it's not in vogue, so coaches just call 'em a forward.

 

[Chief00]

Nearly every successful D1 team has a big who is a good distributor. A good distributer keeps his head up, on a swivel, and knows that there are times he needs to fool the opponent guards as to where the ball is going. UConn has not had that type of player in a while.
I think it talks big when Sanogo praises DC's passing and not talk about how he has worked on improvement in this area
If UConn has improved its outside shooting it will need an effective post passer.
AS will only play at the next level at a 4 position so an improvement at the midrange game is a must and if he has improved this area that is awesome and he needs to use it.
Playing AS and DC together is not as crazy as it sounds

Excellent points. A Big distributing the ball has certain advantages. Never underestimate the power of teammates liking a guy who passes them the ball.

 

[Chief00]

And both of those guys were more mobile and athletic than either Sanogo or Clingan. I don’t expect this except very situationally where it would help us defensively.

Sanogo is Big East preseason MVP and Donovan is a 7-2 guy who can play. When you start one on the box and the other on the foul line you create all kinds of matchup problems without clogging the lanes. Realistically, you will need 3 defenders to stop these two and that opens up Jordan, Karaban or Joey California for a 3.

 

[Chief00]

Double bigs won’t work in Big East. Also, I imagine Donovan is a better shooter than Adama. Both need to be able to shoot 3s if they want a long pro careers, though maybe Donovan can be a rim protector and rebounder. I gotta see him at the college level first.

Adama won’t play in the nba if he doesn’t extend his range.

Tom Moore made a good point about not allowing second shots and double Bigs start the fast break with a rebound/outlet. The game changes but fundamentals remain.

 

[mauconnfan]

Going to be very interesting between Alex and Samson. Love how natural it looks for the dribble, spin for AK to the left hand but SJ is long and bouncy. 2 nice options who will be fun to watch mature!