I want to take a moment to defend the seniors

[champs99and04]

This isn't a "they're nice kids who try hard" post. There are enough of those already that it's starting to feel insulting. This is about their careers as basketball players.

We'll start with Kentan Facey, who probably needs the least defending of the three. His improvement offensively has been overstated, but we ask him to do a ton defensively - switching 1-4 - that most other teams wouldn't even consider trying. This guy is a beast of an athlete who any team in the country would love to have on their team.

Amida Brimah is no more responsible for the failures of this team as he was the success of the team that won the title. There are match-ups that chase him off the floor, but his limitations offensively have been exacerbated by limited personnel around him, and on defense he remains among the countries biggest impediments to finishing at the rim. Switch him with Mathiang from Louisville and watch him thrive for a top five team. Again, any team would take this guy.

Rodney Purvis is perhaps the most difficult player to figure out. He was, at times, the best player on a borderline top 25 team last season, and he's always come to play in March. He has regressed this season in a way I have never seen, to the point that you wonder if external factors are contributing. He is still a terrific defensive player who navigates screens better than any player on the roster and sets a terrific example, never taking a possession off despite being asked to play an unreasonable amount of minutes. If every player on the team worked as hard as Rodney defensively, we're not in this spot.

I understand that it's disappointing they didn't develop further. I also understand that a lot of this isn't their fault. We loved Roscoe Smith. Facey is essentially a rich man's version of him. Put him next to Kemba and he'd look like a pro at times. Four years ago, we would have given anything for a center to average 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks in conference play. Put the current version of Brimah on the '13 or '14 team and watch them destroy the world. His improvements have been distorted by the team around him.

Rodney has never fit into any box. But the great teams fit you. This guy would have been the perfect 3 and D guy in a different system. He would have won us some games and been nailed to the bench by Calhoun in others. We all would have laughed about it later and celebrated the good instead of the bad.

This team is not good, and as senior leaders, the buck stops with them. It's fair to pin this on them. What's not fair is to act like they are dead weight being dragged along. They aren't that. For all their faults, they are, indisputably, the best defensive players on the team, and the other guys drag down the defense more than they drag down the offense. We rank 57th in defensive efficiency despite their efforts, not because of them. Enoch and Jackson are abhorrent defenders, Vital and Adams are inconsistent, and Durham doesn't play enough to make a difference. For their money, Larrier and Gilbert - supposedly two of our best three players - sucked defensively in the first couple games and did as much to get in the way as they did help. Point being, I don't want to hear about how we have this amazing nucleus of underclassmen being bogged down by these guys. They're all very promising, and I'm ecstatic to have them here, but if they don't get a lot better, they will get their asses kicked in next season. Adams, especially, gets too much of a pass for a guy shooting 38% in conference play. He has hamstrung the offense with his erratic shooting as much as anybody else. He's not there.

I'm aware that the stories of these guys aren't complete. I'm also aware that Sunday is senior day. Maybe this isn't the Bazz/Giffey class, but there should be no disclaimers attached when they are honored and there should be no thought at all to skipping out on that game or the AAC tournament. These guys care a lot and they deserve that day to be special. Let's please do it for them.

 

[Yankees32123]

Thanks for this. A lot of good points here.

 

[JSM1970]

Brimah made a huge play in the 1st round, but he was awful beyond that in the tournament and especially the FF. In the other 5 games he had a combined 8 points and 8 rebounds.

He will get a nice applause Sun because people remember the St Joe's game.

I wish they would have moved on from him by now, but whatever.

I really like Kentan. He improved late it seems and I hope he continues. He's the 1 of the 3 that could maybe get to the league.

Rodney is just too inconsistent.

 

[Hungryhusky99]

Brimah made a huge play in the 1st round, but he was awful beyond that in the tournament and especially the FF. In the other 5 games he had a combined 8 points and 8 rebounds.

He will get a nice applause Sun because people remember the St Joe's game.

I wish they would have moved on from him by now, but whatever.

I really like Kentan. He improved late it seems and I hope he continues. He's the 1 of the 3 that could maybe get to the league.

Rodney is just too inconsistent.

Yeah don't clap for a kid on senior day, real nice.

 

[JSM1970]

Where did I say I wouldn't? I would for all 3, but for Brimah it is solely for the St Joe's game. Beyond that I wish they would have recruited over him sooner and moved on.

Yeah don't clap for a kid on senior day, real nice.

 

[Stainmaster]

Where did I say I wouldn't? I would for all 3, but for Brimah it is solely for the St Joe's game. Beyond that I wish they would have recruited over him sooner and moved on.

This is cute considering on your old account, you posted about wanting to walk up to him and literally say "Hey Brimah, you suck!" to his face.

 

[Towney007]

Brimah is a perfectly acceptable starting center to have on a mid major and/or rebuilding team. I think the tease with Brimah is that he's clearly *a freak* athletically. But raw guys who are freaks like Brimah go two ways - they turn into Shaq or they do what Brimah does every week and that's do things that make you scratch your head both in a really great way or a really bad way - which leaves lots of red meat for both sides of the argument about guys like him. He's not Shaq, he's not awful, but he shows flashes of Shaq and flashes of awful with a whole lot of figuring it out in the middle.

Facey's been a nice improvement. Might have been a mistake on the coaching staff to not use him more last year. Maybe this could have come sooner.

Rodney's probably the biggest enigma i've ever seen in an UConn uniform and I don't think i'm alone in that. There are days where I watch him and wonder how he's legitimately not one of the top 10 players in the country *easily* and I don't feel like that's an overstatement. Then there's other days where I wonder if he even wants to play division 1 basketball at all. And it's not like a game to game thing. It's a minute to minute thing. He's literally befuddling. It's not a lack of effort, it's just like 'light's on, oh wait, nope light's off.'

 

[ConnHuskBask]

They all seem like good kids and teammates, just with a lot of flaws as basketball players. Specifically basketball IQ with Brimah and Rodney.

Facey has certainly surprised and if he was younger I would have loved to see where he goes from here.

I think all three will successfully find a career overseas playing hoops if they wish to do so.

 

[JSM1970]

huh? Everyone needs some constructive criticism at times.

This is cute considering on your old account, you posted about wanting to walk up to him and literally say "Hey Brimah, you suck!" to his face.

 

[BFieldHusky]

huh? Everyone needs some constructive criticism at times.

Including you.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

This isn't a "they're nice kids who try hard" post. There are enough of those already that it's starting to feel insulting. This is about their careers as basketball players.

We'll start with Kentan Facey, who probably needs the least defending of the three. His improvement offensively has been overstated, but we ask him to do a ton defensively - switching 1-4 - that most other teams wouldn't even consider trying. This guy is a beast of an athlete who any team in the country would love to have on their team.

Amida Brimah is no more responsible for the failures of this team as he was the success of the team that won the title. There are match-ups that chase him off the floor, but his limitations offensively have been exacerbated by limited personnel around him, and on defense he remains among the countries biggest impediments to finishing at the rim. Switch him with Mathiang from Louisville and watch him thrive for a top five team. Again, any team would take this guy.

Rodney Purvis is perhaps the most difficult player to figure out. He was, at times, the best player on a borderline top 25 team last season, and he's always come to play in March. He has regressed this season in a way I have never seen, to the point that you wonder if external factors are contributing. He is still a terrific defensive player who navigates screens better than any player on the roster and sets a terrific example, never taking a possession off despite being asked to play an unreasonable amount of minutes. If every player on the team worked as hard as Rodney defensively, we're not in this spot.

I understand that it's disappointing they didn't develop further. I also understand that a lot of this isn't their fault. We loved Roscoe Smith. Facey is essentially a rich man's version of him. Put him next to Kemba and he'd look like a pro at times. Four years ago, we would have given anything for a center to average 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks in conference play. Put the current version of Brimah on the '13 or '14 team and watch them destroy the world. His improvements have been distorted by the team around him.

Rodney has never fit into any box. But the great teams fit you. This guy would have been the perfect 3 and D guy in a different system. He would have won us some games and been nailed to the bench by Calhoun in others. We all would have laughed about it later and celebrated the good instead of the bad.

This team is not good, and as senior leaders, the buck stops with them. It's fair to pin this on them. What's not fair is to act like they are dead weight being dragged along. They aren't that. For all their faults, they are, indisputably, the best defensive players on the team, and the other guys drag down the defense more than they drag down the offense. We rank 57th in defensive efficiency despite their efforts, not because of them. Enoch and Jackson are abhorrent defenders, Vital and Adams are inconsistent, and Durham doesn't play enough to make a difference. For their money, Larrier and Gilbert - supposedly two of our best three players - sucked defensively in the first couple games and did as much to get in the way as they did help. Point being, I don't want to hear about how we have this amazing nucleus of underclassmen being bogged down by these guys. They're all very promising, and I'm ecstatic to have them here, but if they don't get a lot better, they will get their asses kicked in next season. Adams, especially, gets too much of a pass for a guy shooting 38% in conference play. He has hamstrung the offense with his erratic shooting as much as anybody else. He's not there.

I'm aware that the stories of these guys aren't complete. I'm also aware that Sunday is senior day. Maybe this isn't the Bazz/Giffey class, but there should be no disclaimers attached when they are honored and there should be no thought at all to skipping out on that game or the AAC tournament. These guys care a lot and they deserve that day to be special. Let's please do it for them.

You and I are miles apart on almost everything.

I agree about Facey, and that the seniors are good defenders.

I don't think Brimah would thrive in very many lineups. His lack of coordination and lateral quickness make him low ceiling. He's a victim of unrealistic expectations. I still appreciate him as a player, albeit limited.

Purvis is also a very limited player. I won't go into details because I doubt you care to hear it at this point. The statement that "good teams fit you" is so wrong it's comical. On senior day, I'll cheer loudly for him too. I can easily criticize the player's game without hating the player. He's been a great contributor to the program since he's been here. But we'll never win a title of any kind with him playing as big a role in the offense as he had to this year.

Adams is the only guy who manufactures offense on the team, so your comments on him miss the point entirely.

Ollie deserves to see his first unrestricted-by-sanctions class of recruits become upperclassmen. Anything less is not really giving him a shot at all.

 

[Walker11]

huh? Everyone needs some constructive criticism at times.

You missed the point of the thread. None of these guys are scrubs. They all could benefit very good teams. People get caught up in their flaws and forget to realize this. Unfortunately, our program is in such a state that we are asking these role players to be more than they can handle.

To be a little more clear. It's not Brimahs fault that the staff has failed to recruit over him. He could be a great rim protecting, energy big off the bench who isn't asked to do much else. Rodney should be a good backup 2 who plays minutes if his shot is on, not a go to scorer. Facey actually could start for good teams IMO and has a role he is suited for.

 

[Walker11]

You and I are miles apart on almost everything.

I agree about Facey, and that the seniors are good defenders.

I don't think Brimah would thrive in very many lineups. His lack of coordination and lateral quickness make him low ceiling. He's a victim of unrealistic expectations. I still appreciate him as a player, albeit limited.

Purvis is also a very limited player. I won't go into details because I doubt you care to hear it at this point. The statement that "good teams fit you" is so wrong it's comical. On senior day, I'll cheer loudly for him too. I can easily criticize the player's game without hating the player. He's been a great contributor to the program since he's been here. But we'll never win a title of any kind with him playing as big a role in the offense as he had to this year.

Adams is the only guy who manufactures offense on the team, so your comments on him miss the point entirely.

Ollie deserves to see his first unrestricted-by-sanctions class of recruits become upperclassmen. Anything less is not really giving him a shot at all.

Champs can speak for himself but I didn't really get the impression that he thinks these guys would be great, big minute players for good teams.

 

[The Funster]

You missed the point of the thread. None of these guys are scrubs. They all could benefit very good teams. People get caught up in their flaws and forget to realize this. Unfortunately, our program is in such a state that we are asking these role players to be more than they can handle.

To be a little more clear. It's not Brimahs fault that the staff has failed to recruit over him. He could be a great rim protecting, energy big off the bench who isn't asked to do much else. Rodney should be a good backup 2 who plays minutes if his shot is on, not a go to scorer. Facey actually could start for good teams IMO and has a role he is suited for.

Bingo. Too often fans look at everything in a vacuum.

 

[JSM1970]

Good points. My frustration with Brimah should be directed to the staff for not upgrading the position earlier.

In their defense, Brimah has such poor basketball IQ it's a square peg-round hole thing with him.

Bingo. Too often fans look at everything in a vacuum.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

They would all be fine playing in Asia/Europe. Omar Calhoun is killing it in Finland. These guys are certainly on his level.

 

[huskiesNhoos]

I don't think your position really works...

You're basically stating that all 3 seniors are good players in their own right, but if you put them with other good players they'd be even better. First, that is pretty much true for every player ever, and second, doesn't saying they'd be better around other good players contradict the fact that each of the 3 is a good player?

Maybe I'm off base, or didn't quite grasp what you were getting at. To me it just seems like all 3 are great kids who we're lucky to have had wear the uconn jersey, but as players they never reached the potential we all saw in them. Not every guard is going to turn out like kemba, bazz etc, and not every big is going to be Emeka, Donyell etc

In the end they're all huskies

 

[champs99and04]

Champs can speak for himself but I didn't really get the impression that he thinks these guys would be great, big minute players for good teams.

Hence the Brimah/Mathiang comparison. Thing is about fans is, they tend to drastically overstate the flaws of their players. Go to any board in America and you'll see literally dozens of fans piling on a kid who the rest of college basketball would love to have. It's not something specific to UConn fans and I'm sure I'd fall into the trap more if I wasn't such a degenerate - but other people have more exciting lives than me and only have time to watch one team, which gives them tunnel vision. I watch a lot of teams and Brimah/Facey would be 15+ minute guys virtually anywhere, as would last years version of Purvis. I guarantee if the identical versions of Brimah and Facey were playing on different teams, fans here would be salivating at the prospect of acquiring them.

As for Adams, @Mr. Wonderful , yes I do think he's gotten a bit of a pass. He's our best, most important player, and his trajectory is right where we want it to be, but this team would be so much better if he was a year older. I wouldn't call him our only player capable of creating offense - Facey certainly can, Jackson has shown the ability, and even Enoch makes good moves when he catches the ball in the post. Adams is trying to play the role of Marcus Williams on a team that needs him to be Kemba Walker. For us to survive offensively, he needs to get his own offense and a lot of it. He's not even performing at a replacement level a lot of nights, and it's not because of the personnel around them. He flat out struggles to score one on one and it's compounded by the fact that he hardly ever gets to the line.

 

[pj]

Brimah is a Charles Okwandu who got more playing time.

 

[Yankees32123]

They deserve a long, emotional standing ovation for 2 reasons. 1) They are huskies. 2) They are national champions

 

[Carrkus]

Agree on Facey, and wish we had another year with him.
Purvis is an enigma, plain & simple. There are times he's borderline spectacular and other times he makes me pull my hair out.
I'm disappointed in Brimah's lack of growth/maturation over his 4 years here. I don't think it is asking too much for him to develop a reliable low post move in 4 years - just one move would be nice, but he's got nothing! Defensively, yes, he is an impediment to opponents getting to the rim. So was Emeka his freshman year, but he still picked up silly fouls all the time. By his senior year, he was an absolute monster on the defensive end of the floor. AB is not much better than he was his Freshman year; he goes for pump fakes and gets drawn into the air, tries to block shots he has no business trying for, and for the most part blasts the blocks he makes into the stands. Look at the minutes he plays in games we've lost, most of them he's logging 20 or less, and he needs to be on the floor no less than 30 a night.

I would never boo a kid on Senior Day (or any other day, frankly), and if I get tix for Sunday I'll clap and cheer for these guys loud & Husky proud. This is a season that "never was," because of the injuries, etc. It's a damn shame.

 

[huskyrob1]

This isn't a "they're nice kids who try hard" post. There are enough of those already that it's starting to feel insulting. This is about their careers as basketball players.

We'll start with Kentan Facey, who probably needs the least defending of the three. His improvement offensively has been overstated, but we ask him to do a ton defensively - switching 1-4 - that most other teams wouldn't even consider trying. This guy is a beast of an athlete who any team in the country would love to have on their team.

Amida Brimah is no more responsible for the failures of this team as he was the success of the team that won the title. There are match-ups that chase him off the floor, but his limitations offensively have been exacerbated by limited personnel around him, and on defense he remains among the countries biggest impediments to finishing at the rim. Switch him with Mathiang from Louisville and watch him thrive for a top five team. Again, any team would take this guy.

Rodney Purvis is perhaps the most difficult player to figure out. He was, at times, the best player on a borderline top 25 team last season, and he's always come to play in March. He has regressed this season in a way I have never seen, to the point that you wonder if external factors are contributing. He is still a terrific defensive player who navigates screens better than any player on the roster and sets a terrific example, never taking a possession off despite being asked to play an unreasonable amount of minutes. If every player on the team worked as hard as Rodney defensively, we're not in this spot.

I understand that it's disappointing they didn't develop further. I also understand that a lot of this isn't their fault. We loved Roscoe Smith. Facey is essentially a rich man's version of him. Put him next to Kemba and he'd look like a pro at times. Four years ago, we would have given anything for a center to average 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks in conference play. Put the current version of Brimah on the '13 or '14 team and watch them destroy the world. His improvements have been distorted by the team around him.

Rodney has never fit into any box. But the great teams fit you. This guy would have been the perfect 3 and D guy in a different system. He would have won us some games and been nailed to the bench by Calhoun in others. We all would have laughed about it later and celebrated the good instead of the bad.

This team is not good, and as senior leaders, the buck stops with them. It's fair to pin this on them. What's not fair is to act like they are dead weight being dragged along. They aren't that. For all their faults, they are, indisputably, the best defensive players on the team, and the other guys drag down the defense more than they drag down the offense. We rank 57th in defensive efficiency despite their efforts, not because of them. Enoch and Jackson are abhorrent defenders, Vital and Adams are inconsistent, and Durham doesn't play enough to make a difference. For their money, Larrier and Gilbert - supposedly two of our best three players - sucked defensively in the first couple games and did as much to get in the way as they did help. Point being, I don't want to hear about how we have this amazing nucleus of underclassmen being bogged down by these guys. They're all very promising, and I'm ecstatic to have them here, but if they don't get a lot better, they will get their asses kicked in next season. Adams, especially, gets too much of a pass for a guy shooting 38% in conference play. He has hamstrung the offense with his erratic shooting as much as anybody else. He's not there.

I'm aware that the stories of these guys aren't complete. I'm also aware that Sunday is senior day. Maybe this isn't the Bazz/Giffey class, but there should be no disclaimers attached when they are honored and there should be no thought at all to skipping out on that game or the AAC tournament. These guys care a lot and they deserve that day to be special. Let's please do it for them.

Nice post but I think you took a lot longer than a moment. Lol

 

[Hankster]

Larrier and Gilbert - supposedly two of our best three players - sucked defensively in the first couple games and did as much to get in the way as they did help.

Exactly my point in another thread. Of course we should honor them on Senior night. They deserve all the respect.

 

[JSM1970]

Also, someone said recruiting isn't affected by being in the AAC -- huh?

VJ King vs Vance

Light years.

A future elite wing, vs. slow footed guy who can't defend and shoots push shots from his chest

This is the new normal being in this league

 

[Walker11]

Also, someone said recruiting isn't affected by being in the AAC -- huh?

VJ King vs Vance

Light years.

A future elite wing, vs. slow footed guy who can't defend and shoots push shots from his chest

This is the new normal being in this league

LOL. I know you are incapable of thinking positively. But instead of framing it like that, why can't you say that Vance is the leader of the entire conference in 3 point shooting as a freshman, in an era where 3 point shooting is more important than ever.

You are an absolute joke. Someone ban this phuhktard.

Edit. What even compelled that trolling strawman irrelevant post? It must have been the total of 6 points King has scored in his last 6 games since blowing up at UVA? Try harder.