I admire this team

[yukonyc212]

I don't really interact with many people in real life that have no critical thinking ability, so I generally have a different approach.

Thanks for taking time out of your busy day of calling people bags about auto correct to chat with me though.

My day finished 3 hours ago FYI. You decided to interject yourself into a conversation you were not apart of. Similar to yesterday when you decided to basically say "your wrong because I said so." Without taking the time to actually point out a valid argument. You got beat up a lot when u were younger huh?

 

[Huskygamble19]

There are parts of this team that I admire and parts that have been extremely frustrating.

First, I hope the team stays healthy next year and we can see a healthy Jalen Adams the entire year. He's been pretty amazing with what's been going on.
I also admire the Jackson and Vital for having to learn on the fly. They at times have been frustrating, but we have to remember they're freshmen who
have been thrown into the fire at a program like UConn. I love seeing it finally click with a guy like Facey. I'm encourage by the potential of Enoch and Durham,
but Enoch needs to make the leap forward next year. Then there is Purvis who is on both lists for me. I admire his heart, both the emotional aspect and how
physically tough he is as well.

I know next year I'll miss him, but I can't wait to see Brimah go. He has been the most frustrating player to watch for me. His results are inexcusable for a
man that physically talented. He has size. He can run. He can jump. But for some reason he has not really improved much since his freshmen year. He never
learned to block with his left hand, and even more basic, he always is underneath the basket or backboard on a rebound. Also, I don't know if it's fatigue or lack
of instinct, I've seen him watching balls, some even hitting the floor. Also, as many physical gifts as he has, catching the ball is not one of them. Okafor, Armstrong
and Thabeet blocked shots, but they learned they don't have to try and block everything to be the most effective.

At times, the entire team on defense. They make the same mistake over and over that let's people get open. Know where your man is, especially if he's a
shooter camped out on the three point line.

Rodney Purvis-He is a quality player but he like all the guards loses his man way to often on the defensive end. Also, he's good at shooting 3's and shoots out onto
the fast break like a bullet, but never really developed the rest of his game. He is awful from medium range and way to often relies on refs to blow the whistle when
he drives to the hoop. There have been some games when you realize fairly early the refs are just not going to call it, but he continues to do it anyways. Which leads
to:

Making adjustments. This team (I don't know if it's coaching; I don't think so) is slow to make the adjustment. The don't make some players drive off hand when
you can tell quickly it's not their best thing. The 3 point coverage again.

Still, to me they are still not as frustrating as the last year Dyson and Robinson were in the program and it looked like everyone was playing for themselves.

And finally, I still have hope with Adams, Jackson, Vital, Larrier, Gilbert, and Enoch next year. Diarra and a few of the freshmen will need to step up quickly though.

Good post. My biggest problem with this team is the minimal improvement of Brimah in 4yrs. He jumps to block a shot and he is 7". he doesn't have to jump, just stand tall. all thejumping causes the many fouls that he is so adept at. Facey, on the other hand has really shined in his last year (unfortunately), becoming a solid big with a decent shot which is something Brimah never achieved. brimah is all dunks and blocks and basically that is his game in a nutshell. It has really hurt the team trying to go inside to the bigs. we all have to remember that all these seniors were very raw players that were recruited due to the sanctions imposed on the team. this had a lot to do with all the problems encountered over the last few years. Hamilton left early and that really hurt this year and we had to plug in graduates last year to make up a team to compete for the tourney. the sanctions caused a lasting effect. Next year should be the turnaround year with new depth and hopefully NO INJURIES!!!!

 

[Huskygamble19]

Duh Brimah is 7', not inches

 

[whaler11]

I've never gone in on anyone here that didn't go in on me first. I know that's very sophomoric but I suppose it is what it is. I also understand that coming here and complaining about how bad things are isn't going to be popular with the natives. That also is what it is. But I got to a point where I'm sick of the results the past several years and I'm sick of the people here making all kinds of excuses for them. In the "real world" if you don't produce you don't really get to make excuses for your performance. If you're a lawyer who doesn't win any cases, a salesmen that can't make sales, or a coach that can't win games. Now if you have a guaranteed salary that pays millions I suppose you do get to make excuses for performance, however that only lasts until it's time for a new contract. Ultimately if you get to the very top of your profession you need to justify being there on a continual basis with results. There's always someone else that thinks / knows they can do it better and will gladly take your place if you fail to produce. Now I can't do much about the losing except complain and stop donating / getting season tickets, but I wouldn't do that, and I need the tax write off. We are Uconn and in reading all of these posts a lot of you don't realize that. We are a top 4 program in the 30+ years of the tournament era right up there with Duke, UNC and KY. We shouldn't have to put up with below expectations and mediocrity. I know that sounds spoiled, but Jim Calhoun spoiled us. He built that legacy and I'm sure he'd like it to continue. We pay our staff comenserste with the other top Blue Bloods of the world... why shouldn't we expect the same results. Hell I'd be happy with just making the tournament every year. I understsnd the limitations of being in this conference. But there are only 2 "good" teams in this conference. We should be able to finish top 3 on a yearly basis. Not finish 6 - 9 every season. That is pathetic. I've had accounts on here for long stretches in the past. Several of them were gone when I tried to log into them, and another one I couldn't associate the email to the account to retrieve the password so i had to start a new one. I'm not as some of you say a "noob" here. I was here years back when this was associated with the recruiting site... scout / rivals? So yea... while it may come off as "complaining" there's not much else I can do. I'm not happy with the results the past few years and I think irreparable damage will be caused if we continue having seasons like this. I understand there were mitigating circumstances this year with regards to injuries so that's why I'm willing to wait and see what happens next season. If we're still middling around in this mid major conference next year I truly hope we make a change. I don't want us to become UNLV or Georgetown because that's where we're headed.

Mix in a paragraph.

First of all the term 'blue blood' means nothing. It's maybe the most exhausting concept in all of college basketball. You may as well spend your day arguing that Joe Flacco is 'elite'.

Second, what are you proposing they do? Fire Ollie and hire who? What name do you have that will take the job that you can guarantee will be better than KO?

I'll hangup and listen.

 

[IMind]

I just want to say that I still admire this team...

Second!

Me too!

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Mix in a paragraph.

First of all the term 'blue blood' means nothing. It's maybe the most exhausting concept in all of college basketball. You may as well spend your day arguing that Joe Flacco is 'elite'.

1) Love the PFT Commenter reference re: Flacco. Can't believe that guy has taken off the way he has.

2) Determining Blue Bloods is EASY. All you have to do is assign arbitrary point values to different levels of the NCAA Tournament, Regular Season titles, All Americans and NBA All Stars, then just add up the totals. Done.

 

[BlueDogs]

A source of embarrassment?

Take a vacation from fandom for awhile, you've lost all sense of perspective.

Been around since Tony Hanson and Joey Welton. Seen it all. The great, the good, the mediocre and the bad. A fan wants the best for the program always, and you need to recognize each when you see it. Yes, getting blown out in Storrs is not a source of celebration as many seem to spin it.

 

[BlueDogs]

It's only embarrassing to see people pile on a no-win situation. You want embarrassing, ask KO and staff how they feel. Ask the players who go out undermanned but still feel they can win, wonder how they feel. I really don't give a rats a** how you feel or anyone else for that matter. I feel frustrated as we've become a program that expects to play in March and April, I do. But when everything fell apart early i already took the pressure off the team and staff to a point. I certainly like wins but look at the team, if you expected to win 20 with this team then I guess you just didn't know the make up of the team left to put on the court. There's reality somewhere in anyone who really appreciates who KO is and as I've stated a million time to throw the pile on his this year to me is ridiculous. But hey pile away!

I don't think anyone expected a 20+ season. That's a red herring. Clearly the worst season in 30 years warrants some introspection. The notion of piling on is silly. Yes, I'm sure they feel bad. My contention is the players are very talented and capable, but KO got little out of them because there is little emphasis on sound execution and fundamentals. Brimah is a classic case of limited to no improvement in basic fundamentals like blocking out, catching passes in the lane, etc.. Anyway, there is little to be gained by continuing this debate. Time will tell, and I hope KO comes through.

 

[mauconnfan]

I don't think anyone expected a 20+ season. That's a red herring. Clearly the worst season in 30 years warrants some introspection. The notion of piling on is silly. Yes, I'm sure they feel bad. My contention is the players are very talented and capable, but KO got little out of them because there is little emphasis on sound execution and fundamentals. Brimah is a classic case of limited to no improvement in basic fundamentals like blocking out, catching passes in the lane, etc.. Anyway, there is little to be gained by continuing this debate. Time will tell, and I hope KO comes through.

The only thing which there is no debate for is Brimah. If you honestly don't believe he went through hours and hours of boxing out drills you're crazy. The 3 on 3 throw the ball off the backboard and keep your man away from the ball and do it again and again until you can keep them away for a certain count, it may be the one fundamental hammered into these guys at all the programs. The guy had no natural instincts, still doesn't, can't teach anyone who doesn't get the game. He played hard, he blocked some shots, he threw down a few alley oops but whether he went to Duke, Kentucky or UConn he would be this same guy. Pretty easy to see!

 

[BlueDogs]

The only thing which there is no debate for is Brimah. If you honestly don't believe he went through hours and hours of boxing out drills you're crazy. The 3 on 3 throw the ball off the backboard and keep your man away from the ball and do it again and again until you can keep them away for a certain count, it may be the one fundamental hammered into these guys at all the programs. The guy had no natural instincts, still doesn't, can't teach anyone who doesn't get the game. He played hard, he blocked some shots, he threw down a few alley oops but whether he went to Duke, Kentucky or UConn he would be this same guy. Pretty easy to see!

We agree on one thing. Where we separate is I can't imagine you can't get the guy doing fundamentals. Maybe you're right, but that is one scary thought after 4 years.

 

[BlueDogs]

I just want to say that I still admire this team...

At least you're consistent. I'll give you that.

 

[mauconnfan]

We agree on one thing. Where we separate is I can't imagine you can't get the guy doing fundamentals. Maybe you're right, but that is one scary thought after 4 years.

I am right and you're right, it is scary. You would think mostly any decent player would improve over 4 years just alone, without coaching. Playing 125 games and summers you should improve, he's just one of those guys. Kind of laugh now when he's flailing around under the hoop trying to box out and they're already going the other way with it. Love the kids attitude, but just a waste of breath teaching the young man, still gets only one of 3 jump hooks to the rim.

Now we have Steve who can't really do much on the defensive end as we speak, but has shown some offensive skills. But he also is short on the natural instincts required to play good defense, be a thought or 2 ahead of the play to make up for slower feet. It's all scary, I admit that.

 

[yukonyc212]

Mix in a paragraph.

First of all the term 'blue blood' means nothing. It's maybe the most exhausting concept in all of college basketball. You may as well spend your day arguing that Joe Flacco is 'elite'.

Second, what are you proposing they do? Fire Ollie and hire who? What name do you have that will take the job that you can guarantee will be better than KO?

I'll hangup and listen.

What do I suppose they do? I said it right in there. If theres's another brutal season start looking elsewhere for a coach. If they miss 3 out of 4 NCAA tournaments coupled with losing seasons in this conference I hope that we interview some candidates and find the best fit going forward. Also let's face it.. if we're in a p5 conference last year we don't make the tournament either. I'm sure we can find a fully qualified candidate to coach at Uconn for 3mm+ per year.

Archie Miller has been killing it at Dayton the last few years and he's only making 700k. I would imagine a substantial salary increase might wet his beak.

 

[whaler11]

What do I suppose they do? I said it right in there. If theres's another brutal season start looking elsewhere for a coach. If they miss 3 out of 4 NCAA tournaments coupled with losing seasons in this conference I hope that we interview some candidates and find the best fit going forward. Also let's face it.. if we're in a p5 conference last year we don't make the tournament either. I'm sure we can find a fully qualified candidate to coach at Uconn for 3mm+ per year.

Archie Miller has been killing it at Dayton the last few years and he's only making 700k. I would imagine a substantial salary increase might wet his beak.

You mean the Archie Miller that NC State fired Gottfried for in the hopes they can hire him? The Archie Miller that played at NC State and they still probably can't land him?

He's going to turn down his alma mater in the ACC but you think UConn can hire him?

Ha.

There is not a single sure fire candidate you can hire here. None. Zero.

You think 3 million dollars guarantees success? It does not.

 

[intlzncster]

This is amazing.

 

[yukonyc212]

You mean the Archie Miller that NC State fired Gottfried for in the hopes they can hire him? The Archie Miller that played at NC State and they still probably can't land him?

He's going to turn down his alma mater in the ACC but you think UConn can hire him?

Ha.

There is not a single sure fire candidate you can hire here. None. Zero.

You think 3 million dollars guarantees success? It does not.

Yup that same Archie Miller. 3+ million is a lot more than NC St is paying Gottfried and NC St is hardly anyones dream job.

It at least warrants consideration if things continue on the current trajectory.

And yes most of the time "money talks"

 

[Towney007]

I don't think anyone expected a 20+ season. That's a red herring. Clearly the worst season in 30 years warrants some introspection. The notion of piling on is silly. Yes, I'm sure they feel bad. My contention is the players are very talented and capable, but KO got little out of them because there is little emphasis on sound execution and fundamentals. Brimah is a classic case of limited to no improvement in basic fundamentals like blocking out, catching passes in the lane, etc.. Anyway, there is little to be gained by continuing this debate. Time will tell, and I hope KO comes through.

This is pretty much where i'm at with things right now.

You can cut the cake an which way you please - at the end of the day this is the worst season this team has had in decades - and to be completely honest - by a pretty safe margin. And there's a lot of reasons for that and they all deserve a lot of scrutiny. This whole 'oh whatever, you guys are being negative or spoiled' is just nonsense. This was a bad basketball team by almost every conceivable metric - and not just by 'UConn standards.' And a lot of those habits that bubbled over this year have been going on for a few years now. It's not a trend YET, but it's sure starting to look like one.

I have a hard time laying it at the feet of probation and sanctions. In the past three years he's roped in three or four top-50 guys and the two top grad transfers in last year's class. Purvis was a ****+ guy out of high school and transferred here. Larrier was a ****+ guy who transferred here. They were in it to the end on Diallo and Stone. To me - recruiting has been the least of their problems. They've put plenty of talent on paper here in spite of everything but they don't have much to show for it. To me the problem strictly has been the lack of development across the board. The team having the basketball IQ issues. The same cohesion issues. It's like watching the same play every year with different actors. There's a disconnect somewhere with something. And if the talent's just not good enough to be here - then that's on Ollie. If the talent's not developing - that's on Ollie, too.

It just kind of all comes back to him. He's gotta be better. I don't want to see him fired or asked to leave or any of that. I think he can be a long-term guy. We've seen what he's capable of before and to me - that just doesn't disappear. If he did it once, he should be able to do it again. But there's gotta be improvement next year. If this looks anywhere close to what it did this year, I don't know how he saves his bacon. But something's gotta happen. Given the whole backdrop of everything with the Big East money drying up, the conference and almost an odd race against the clock - the leash is almost a bit shorter. If next year DOES look like this season, then how much worse does it have to get for him to get tossed? That's an honest question. What *in addition to that* would have to happen for you to not make a move? I'm not there yet, but it's all stuff that I think should be on people's radars.

What I DO think - is that it's time to seriously shake up his staff. That's a place to start. Cause if things aren't clicking with the group, you've gotta find some new voices. So I think there are some necessary changes due, but I don't think one of them involves Ollie being tossed off a flaming boat.

 

[yukonyc212]

This is pretty much where i'm at with things right now.

You can cut the cake an which way you please - at the end of the day this is the worst season this team has had in decades - and to be completely honest - by a pretty safe margin. And there's a lot of reasons for that and they all deserve a lot of scrutiny. This whole 'oh whatever, you guys are being negative or spoiled' is just nonsense. This was a bad basketball team by almost every conceivable metric - and not just by 'UConn standards.' And a lot of those habits that bubbled over this year have been going on for a few years now. It's not a trend YET, but it's sure starting to look like one.

I have a hard time laying it at the feet of probation and sanctions. In the past three years he's roped in three or four top-50 guys and the two top grad transfers in last year's class. Purvis was a ****+ guy out of high school and transferred here. Larrier was a ****+ guy who transferred here. They were in it to the end on Diallo and Stone. To me - recruiting has been the least of their problems. They've put plenty of talent on paper here in spite of everything but they don't have much to show for it. To me the problem strictly has been the lack of development across the board. The team having the basketball IQ issues. The same cohesion issues. It's like watching the same play every year with different actors. There's a disconnect somewhere with something. And if the talent's just not good enough to be here - then that's on Ollie. If the talent's not developing - that's on Ollie, too.

It just kind of all comes back to him. He's gotta be better. I don't want to see him fired or asked to leave or any of that. I think he can be a long-term guy. We've seen what he's capable of before and to me - that just doesn't disappear. If he did it once, he should be able to do it again. But there's gotta be improvement next year. If this looks anywhere close to what it did this year, I don't know how he saves his bacon. But something's gotta happen. Given the whole backdrop of everything with the Big East money drying up, the conference and almost an odd race against the clock - the leash is almost a bit shorter. If next year DOES look like this season, then how much worse does it have to get for him to get tossed? That's an honest question. What *in addition to that* would have to happen for you to not make a move? I'm not there yet, but it's all stuff that I think should be on people's radars.

What I DO think - is that it's time to seriously shake up his staff. That's a place to start. Cause if things aren't clicking with the group, you've gotta find some new voices. So I think there are some necessary changes due, but I don't think one of them involves Ollie being tossed off a flaming boat.

This year is far worse than what the record says. We don't win 9 games if we're in the ACC. This terrible conference has masked many of our deficiencies the past 3 years bumping up our win totals considerably.

With that said I don't see any reason why next year we can't win 22 - 23 + games and get back to the tournament. If Gilbert, Larrier, and Ashton-Langford, are as good as advertised along with Jalen we should be fine. There's no reason on paper why we can't compete with Cincy and SMU for the conference title. Villanova plays small ball every year. They never have a Jeff Adrien type crushing people on the blocks and they're the defending champions. If our shooters are good enough we don't need as many rebounds..... that's their philosophy anyways. Their tallest starter is 6 - 7 and Heart is their top rebounder at 6 per game.

Maybe with Jalen playing off the ball more will open up the offense for everyone else? How is Ashton-Langford as a 3pt shooter??

However if we see similar results next year as this year than I think a lot of questions need to be asked in terms of the direction of the program.

 

[selles]

However if we see similar results next year as this year than I think a lot of questions need to be asked in terms of the direction of the program.

Very few people, if any, disagree with this. So if this is your basic point, why have you posted approximately 85,000 times over the past few days?

For heaven's sake. Relax. Root for the team next week. Then we'll see what happens next year.