Hurley Roster Breakdown, Player by Player, Hartford Courant Dom Amore

[Fatroony5]

One more reading between the line comment about the PG competition. On several occasions I've heard Hurley compliment Cole on his offensive capabilities and his ability to work with others on offense. I don't know if I've seen a Hurley quote about Cole's defense.

Here you go.

“He’s really easy to play with. He can score the ball and obviously he can be a play-maker. Just like a lot of guys, he’s going to have to step up at the defensive end of the court. But he played for Bob Hurley Sr., so that shouldn’t be that big of an adjustment once the lights come on.”

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

We will see a lot of Cole and Gaffney together sure. Wouldn’t be shocked for a small lineup of:

Cole
Gaffney
Bouknight
Polley (Akok
Whaley

4 guys who can shoot, three guys who can get their own shot or create for others and a finisher/good passer in the high/low post. You can’t go zone against this lineup and there are some tough onene guards.

Don’t sleep on these dudes!

 

[Umami Zen]

We will see a lot of Cole and Gaffney together sure. Wouldn’t be shocked for a small lineup of:

Cole
Gaffney
Bouknight
Polley (Akok
Whaley

4 guys who can shoot, three guys who can get their own shot or create for others and a finisher/good passer in the high/low post. You can’t go zone against this lineup and there are some tough onene guards.

Don’t sleep on these dudes!

My two cents.. I agree w/Dream Jobbed Small Ball lineup based on DH's comments of earlier this week.. He likes Whaley at the 5.. DH is projecting Polley at the 4.. Bouk can start at either the 2 or 3.. He clearly likes the idea of JG/RJ on the floor at the same time.... Wouldn't it be cool to have a team that could full court press and create offense off of the other team's TOs?? Is this a starting lineup?? Time will tell.. Options for DH/staff are mind boggling...Akok's successful return and AJ/TM's upside potential could easily change the dynamics of this Small Ball lineup.. Playing a Big lineup is a whole different conversation.. Good problems..

 

[Chin Diesel]

Here you go.

“He’s really easy to play with. He can score the ball and obviously he can be a play-maker. Just like a lot of guys, he’s going to have to step up at the defensive end of the court. But he played for Bob Hurley Sr., so that shouldn’t be that big of an adjustment once the lights come on.”

Is that complimenting his defense?

 

[Dogdeacon]

Yeah I was agreeing with Hurley's assessment of many Husky fans, myself included. I was commenting directly on that quote to say I'm in the camp that hasn't seen any more than brief flashes. Hurley is only pointing it out because he's aware of a disparity between a pervasive public opinion based on the games and what he sees in practice and recruiting. Taken in context with this quote:
it paints a picture of a guy with potential who hasn't quite made his athleticism functional in games at the college level yet.

Gaffney had a few finishes on layups/revers layups last year that were extremely athletic yet he made them look easy. It kind of came out of nowhere each time and each time I was intrigued at how he made an incredibly athletic difficult finish look rudimentary.

 

[UCLJ0211]

Because he is too small and gets steamrolled by any legit 5 out there (which not every team has). He was unplayable at the 5 against some opponents last year. Fortunately, we have other options in those scenarios. This whole roster provides great flexibility. I don't trust those stats because he simply played better late, when he played the 5 more. He also played better when not playing with Josh last year. Will it be the same with Sanogo? Or with a more mobile Josh? We don't really know. I feel much better with Whaley at the 5 if Sanogo or Akok is the 4. Polley at the 4? No I don't like that.

Whaley is up to 230 now so he should be able to hold his own better against stronger opponents.

 

[Dogdeacon]

Whaley is up to 230 now so he should be able to hold his own better against stronger opponents.

There were some crazy weight swings in that article, a sure sign of the preseason!!

 

[navery12]

Hurley literally said that Whaley plays much better at the 5 and that he is a near lock to start.

Is it even reading tea leaves at this point. Seems pretty obvious to me. Whether you agree with Hurley's assessment or not

As someone who's spent way too much time going back and forth with him on this it's not worth it. Some people are still stuck on playing lineups from 90s basketball

 

[BGesus4]

Because he is too small and gets steamrolled by any legit 5 out there (which not every team has). He was unplayable at the 5 against some opponents last year. Fortunately, we have other options in those scenarios. This whole roster provides great flexibility. I don't trust those stats because he simply played better late, when he played the 5 more. He also played better when not playing with Josh last year. Will it be the same with Sanogo? Or with a more mobile Josh? We don't really know. I feel much better with Whaley at the 5 if Sanogo or Akok is the 4. Polley at the 4? No I don't like that.

That's a fair point, but there are so few legit 5s in college BB... especially these days

 

[Huskyforlife]

As someone who's spent way too much time going back and forth with him on this it's not worth it. Some people are still stuck on playing lineups from 90s basketball

As if Carlton is stopping Garza from eating our lunch.