Ideal 2018-19 Roster

[scotty0330]

@YoungFree, Have you seen Sherif Kenney in person? When I watched him twice, Sherif Kenney was literally awful. As a guard, his handle was the equal of Terry TL. His dribble got away from him 1 out of every 3 times he put the ball on the floor. He pounded the ball into the floor as he went hard in some direction and inevitably when he spun or changed direction the ball would be chest high and get away from him. Sometimes this was at mid court when he was bringing the ball up against token pressure, and sometimes when he tried to take it to the hole. At least 6-8 times in one game, and possibly without a defender ever touching the ball or defending hard enough to be the cause of the mishandle. He chased the ball down and didn't lose the possession every time the ball got away from him, but I was stunningly unimpressed. In terms of style, he seemed like Eric Ayala lite when he didn't lose the ball. If my 2 game sample happens to be an aberration then take it for what it's worth.

I have seen him like you and think your observations are spot on.

 

[SwingDog]

20? I'm just hoping to hit that elusive .500....to me that would be a success for a team under a first year coach

Maybe 20 is optimistic but I don't think it's unreachable...even going 18-12 would be a noticeable improvement.

 

[KembaStepback]

To me, I think the roster as is with a good coach should be around 20 wins. I'm expecting at least some improvement from all the returning players since most are so young. Anything from AG is extra bonus. The bigs should focus on hitting the weight room and footwork. If the guards/wings can improve their shooting it will be a good season.

 

[puppygenius]

All I want is Terrance Clarke in 2020/2021 I'm ready to start sending cards and flowers

 

[Scrutineer]

@YoungFree, Have you seen Sherif Kenney in person? When I watched him twice, Sherif Kenney was literally awful. As a guard, his handle was the equal of Terry TL. His dribble got away from him 1 out of every 3 times he put the ball on the floor. He pounded the ball into the floor as he went hard in some direction and inevitably when he spun or changed direction the ball would be chest high and get away from him. Sometimes this was at mid court when he was bringing the ball up against token pressure, and sometimes when he tried to take it to the hole. At least 6-8 times in one game, and possibly without a defender ever touching the ball or defending hard enough to be the cause of the mishandle. He chased the ball down and didn't lose the possession every time the ball got away from him, but I was stunningly unimpressed. In terms of style, he seemed like Eric Ayala lite when he didn't lose the ball. If my 2 game sample happens to be an aberration then take it for what it's worth.

Saw him in the tournament at Albertus Magnus last November (with Kisunas) after reading Ollie was recruiting him and I was surprised at how ineffective he was. All I could think was Ollie wants a BIG guard and weight was the key.

 

[Exit 4]

For the yard basketball experts; does it seem like we are headed towards;

For 2018: B. Adams and grad transfers T. Smith and the St Johns kid.

For 2019: Leque (spelling), Mulcahy, Delaire and Cockburn or Akok?

 

[Huskyforlife]

For the yard basketball experts; does it seem like we are headed towards;

For 2018: B. Adams and grad transfers T. Smith and the St Johns kid.

For 2019: Leque (spelling), Mulcahy, Delaire and Cockburn or Akok?

Yes.

 

[HawkHusky]

For the yard basketball experts; does it seem like we are headed towards;

For 2018: B. Adams and grad transfers T. Smith and the St Johns kid.

For 2019: Leque (spelling), Mulcahy, Delaire and Cockburn or Akok?

That 2019 class would in insane.

 

[Uconnfanatic]

That 2019 class would in insane.

That 2019 contingent would be a great class obviously. I hope that's not our 2018 class. T.Smith maybe but no thanks to the other two. Akinjo was a big loss and my sense was Hurley didn't even try to re-recruit him. I
don't know why.

 

[RayIsTheGOAT]

Lecque, Delaire, Akok, and Kofi would be utterly absurd for 2019.

 

[intlzncster]

That 2019 contingent would be a great class obviously. I hope that's not our 2018 class. T.Smith maybe but no thanks to the other two. Akinjo was a big loss and my sense was Hurley didn't even try to re-recruit him. I
don't know why.

Seemed like Akinjo wasn't interested tbh. He was more about Ollie than UCONN. Not faulting the kid for that mind you.

 

[JMick]

Seemed like Akinjo wasn't interested tbh. He was more about Ollie than UCONN. Not faulting the kid for that mind you.

Akinjo was committed to Ollie, not UConn. Once he was gone, it was over. I'm not sure where this made up narrative that Hurley didn't want him comes from.

 

[husky429]

I honestly feel people are dreaming about Jalen Lecque. He would be the school's best recruit in almost 7-8 years. I don't see him passing up a UNC or Duke offer. I also think we lost the Chol Marial contest when he left Connecticut for Florida.

With that said, landing Kofi Cockburn, Akok Akok, and James Bouknight should be our priorities IMO with Akok Akok looking like one of Hurley's top targets right now. If we can't land Bouknight then getting Sherik Kenney would be a good back-up but has Hurley's new staff talked to him? I thought the last interaction was with Ollie's staff.

I am not 100% sold on Tre Mitchell, Jaiden Delaire, or Paul Mulcahy compared to the above top III but I would love to see in-state boys Mitchell and Delaire in a Husky jersey. It seemed like Ollie overlooked the talent in his own backyard and Hurley is playing it close to home.

Has Hurley reached out to Precious Achiuwa? I think that would be a coupe if we could steal him from the big schools. I can't even imagine a roster with Jalen Lecque, Precious Achiuwa, Brendan Adams, and Akok Akok. Through Kofi Cockburn or Sherif Kenney in the mix and that would be a sight to see. I am still trying to be realistic and say that we are probably 2-3 years away from Hurley pulling in a top 10-15 recruiting class.

Why arent you sold on delaire? Hes state POY.

Lack of elite athleticism?

 

[intlzncster]

Why arent you sold on delaire? Hes state POY.

Lack of elite athleticism?

So he can ball out but isn't an elite athlete (ie can't jump early). Sign me up.

 

[Uconnfanatic]

Akinjo was committed to Ollie, not UConn. Once he was gone, it was over. I'm not sure where this made up narrative that Hurley didn't want him comes from.

For sure, Akinjo committed to UConn because of Ollie but that doesn't mean hurley couldn't have won him back with a good pitch. my sense was he didn't even try. Maybe he likes bigger guards or wanted Adams because he already had a relationship with him. We'll never know what really happened but I do think Akinjo was the better recruit and not by just a little.

 

[JMick]

For sure, Akinjo committed to UConn because of Ollie but that doesn't mean hurley couldn't have won him back with a good pitch. my sense was he didn't even try. Maybe he likes bigger guards or wanted Adams because he already had a relationship with him. We'll never know what really happened but I do think Akinjo was the better recruit and not by just a little.

Where are you getting this idea that he didn't try? Besides the fact that you completely made it up

 

[Uconnfanatic]

Where are you getting this idea that he didn't try? Besides the fact that you completely made it up

Like I said, we'll probably never know but if he had wanted Akinjo I think we would have heard or seen something. We heard nothing about Akinjo. We know he didn't want Kisunas and didn't seem that interested in Matthews either. He just didn't very interested in any of Ollie's recruits. Maybe that's a misread but that's the impression I get. You are welcome to a different opinion but there is just nothing out there to suggest he wanted any of the three.

 

[JMick]

Like I said, we'll probably never know but if he had wanted Akinjo I think we would have heard or seen something. We heard nothing about Akinjo. We know he didn't want Kisunas and didn't seem that interested in Matthews either. He just didn't very interested in any of Ollie's recruits. Maybe that's a misread but that's the impression I get. You are welcome to a different opinion but there is just nothing out there to suggest he wanted any of the three.

There's literally nothing to suggest he didn't want Akinjo besides the story you've concoted

 

[Robertelamin]

Does this mean no Hami? Just kidding, there is one more scholarship left?

 

[Uconnfanatic]

There's literally nothing to suggest he didn't want Akinjo besides the story you've concoted

Not one statement from Hurley he would still like Akinjo to come to Uconn. He let all the current players know he wanted them to stay. If I had to guess, I would say he let Akinjo go without any effort to re-recruit him to UConn.

 

[3rdbass]

Not one statement from Hurley he would still like Akinjo to come to Uconn. He let all the current players know he wanted them to stay. If I had to guess, I would say he let Akinjo go without any effort to re-recruit him to UConn.

Give it up as this is getting old. Akinjo was attached to the hip of KO. Once he knew he was gone there was little to no chance we could get him here.

 

[Uconnfanatic]

Give it up as this is getting old. Akinjo was attached to the hip of KO. Once he knew he was gone there was little to no chance we could get him here.

That's what you want to believe but you don't know that. Doesn't really matter at this point because Adams is coming and Akinjo is not. The rest is just speculation on both our parts.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Adams, Vital, Wilson, Diarra, Carlton.

Polley, Gilbert, and Cobb/Whaley first ones off the bench

 

[UconnU]

Adams, Vital, Wilson, Diarra, Carlton.

Polley, Gilbert, and Cobb/Whaley first ones off the bench

I think we'll play a lot of 3 guard line ups with a stretch 4 and Carlton/Diarra at the 5. Lineups like Gilbert/CV, Adams, Adams/Smith, Polley/Wilson/Williams, Carlton/Diarra

 

[Jaybo]

Like that we have 5 guards on the roster. Only four if gilberts out. But we can still go three on the floor one on the bench and rotate.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Like that we have 5 guards on the roster. Only four if gilberts out. But we can still go three on the floor one on the bench and rotate.

Polley and wilson will have to get their handle up if they haven’t already. They can take a guard position

 

[Scrutineer]

Haven't we beaten Akinjo to UConn, and then not, enough for this decade? Hurley's the coach and most people on this site seem to have great confidence he was the right hire and will do a great job. So, let him do it.

So many talent evaluators here. Some want the five stars, others want the "under the radar" types, while others want the perfect mix. The good thing is we all, save some possible trolls, want to regain the status UConn had for so long that enabled some to puff out their chests and be as arrogant as the Duke and North Carolina fans. I tried to do it with "quiet" arrogance.

Also, all the comments about how Hurley will be able to get Lecque, Akok, Cockburn, Delaire, Quinones, and all the other highly touted recruits we all hope and wish would come to play for the Huskies makes me think of another word, other than the "insane" someone mentioned.

"Delusional" might be more appropriate. Not that most of us wouldn't want the delusions to become reality, but a bit of reality wouldn't hurt.

Especially if we give credence to some comments from NJ coaches after Hurley's hiring was announced. While we all got excited about the buzz created by his hiring, the optimism about a new regime, the terrific coaching staff he's assembled, etc., one coach stated pretty clearly his kids "are interested in the league more than the school".

Hype is everything to so many today and let's face it, ESPN doesn't hype the AAC. They are all ACC, some Big 12, B1G and SEC and, courtesy of Walton, there is still some talk about the "conference of champions".

Best case scenario is: Hurley really did hope someday he could be UConn's head coach; his focus on the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic is meant to capture recruits whose elders and the recruits themselves recall UConn's national dominance over the last thirty years and felt some pride for the region as a result of UConn's successes; and he's able to communicate his passion to those recruits and get them to want to give a rebirth to the 1990-2014 era.

But, hey, everyone here's a fan and being fanatic and delusional may just be the answer to getting the recruits excited about playing in front of such an enthusiastic fan base.

 

[UConnDan97]

Adams, Vital, Wilson, Diarra, Carlton.

Polley, Gilbert, and Cobb/Whaley first ones off the bench

I've gotta believe that if Gilbert is healthy, Adams will go back to the 2 and Gilbert will run the point. I agree with the rest...

 

[UConnSwag11]

I've gotta believe that if Gilbert is healthy, Adams will go back to the 2 and Gilbert will run the point. I agree with the rest...

Adams hasn’t shown that he has a jumper. I mean, I agree he can play the 2 but we can’t have a 2 with no perimeter game. Also if those two are starting who with come in off the bench?

 

[CallMeBruce]

For sure, Akinjo committed to UConn because of Ollie but that doesn't mean hurley couldn't have won him back with a good pitch. my sense was he didn't even try. Maybe he likes bigger guards or wanted Adams because he already had a relationship with him. We'll never know what really happened but I do think Akinjo was the better recruit and not by just a little.

I'm curious, is your "sense" based on anything real? Akinjo wasn't coming here once Ollie was fired. There was nothing that Hurley could have done to change that.