If Jalen goes for a 25-point triple-double every game...

[Matrim55]

we've got a shot to finish mid-table in the AAC!!!!! Feels good.

 

[JellyBean]

I like our chances if he goes 15/10/10 his shot selection is horrible.

 

[Matrim55]

his shot selection is horrible.

No, it's not. What's horrible is that the coach doesn't actually draw anything up for these end-of-game possessions and relies entirely on Adams to play hero-ball. What's horrible is that he has to play every second, create every shot either for himself or his teammates, and is still asked to have enough legs left 44:30 into the game to beat 3 defenders.

Recall also that MAL figured it would be better to play 12 minutes a game for a pretty crappy Providence team than to come here and play 30. For some strange reason.

@superjohn is right – this kid's career is a tragedy. If he'd played for an above average coach we'd be talking about him as a surefire 1st rounder. If he played for Calhoun he'd be a lottery pick.

 

[Walker11]

@superjohn is right – this kid's career is a tragedy. If he'd played for an above average coach we'd be talking about him as a surefire 1st rounder. If he played for Calhoun he'd be a lottery pick.

Kids need to take some ownership of their career. Jalen has never been lauded for his work ethic. Quite the contrary. Even despite Ollie, if he could shoot, he would have much better NBA prospects. I miss the days of reading about guys like Lamb hitting the gym to put up hundreds of shots late into the night.

Sure, it would be nice to have a coach who creates a culture where guys put in blood, sweat and tears into personal improvement but its a cop out to entirely blame KO for this. Blame him for a lot of other things.

I do think he would have been much better served going elsewhere but I can't absolve him fully. Its striking how different his career has turned out compared to Donovan Mitchell's. Mitchell played behind Jalen and was not nearly as good when they were 18. One kid has a a work ethic in the 1% and the other doesn't.

 

[KembaStepback]

No, it's not. What's horrible is that the coach doesn't actually draw anything up for these end-of-game possessions and relies entirely on Adams to play hero-ball. What's horrible is that he has to play every second, create every shot either for himself or his teammates, and is still asked to have enough legs left 44:30 into the game to beat 3 defenders.

Recall also that MAL figured it would be better to play 12 minutes a game for a pretty crappy Providence team than to come here and play 30. For some strange reason.

@superjohn is right – this kid's career is a tragedy. If he'd played for an above average coach we'd be talking about him as a surefire 1st rounder. If he played for Calhoun he'd be a lottery pick.

Couldn't disagree more. Adams has been very sloppy with the ball this yr. That's not Ollie. Jalen also isn't a shooter which he needs to be to get to th league.

Tulsa got fortunate some no name kid made 8 3s.
The offense looked much better tonite. Much more ball movement and movement without the ball. Much crisper possessions. The defense was good.

The inbounds play was what cost us. That wasn't ollie. Anderson threw a terrible pass.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Couldn't disagree more. Adams has been very sloppy with the ball this yr. That's not Ollie. Jalen also isn't a shooter which he needs to be to get to th league.

Tulsa got fortunate some no name kid made 8 3s.
The offense looked much better tonite. Much more ball movement and movement without the ball. Much crisper possessions. The defense was good.

The inbounds play was what cost us. That wasn't ollie. Anderson threw a terrible pass.

Jalen also plays in an offense that tells players to pass around the perimeter for 25 seconds then “give Jalen the ball, hopefully he can do something with 5 seconds on the shot clock” so maybe thats why he takes some bad shots. Matrim is right, if we ran an actual offense with off ball screens, fluid movement, and a touch of inside out play, Jalen would be either gone to the NBA already, or a potential lottery pick this year.

 

[BLUEDOGHOUSE]

Kids need to take some ownership of their career. Jalen has never been lauded for his work ethic. Quite the contrary. Even despite Ollie, if he could shoot, he would have much better NBA prospects. I miss the days of reading about guys like Lamb hitting the gym to put up hundreds of shots late into the night.

Sure, it would be nice to have a coach who creates a culture where guys put in blood, sweat and tears into personal improvement but its a cop out to entirely blame KO for this. Blame him for a lot of other things.

I do think he would have been much better served going elsewhere but I can't absolve him fully. Its striking how different his career has turned out compared to Donovan Mitchell's. Mitchell played behind Jalen and was not nearly as good when they were 18. One kid has a a work ethic in the 1% and the other doesn't.

Jessica & I think your points are very valid. Plus with 10 secs my father and I were pretty much on the same page that the last play ran was legit under the circumstances. He didn't draw a double until he was at the rack.

Tough loss but this doesn't pop the NIT bubble. The game itself was actually entertaining. On to ECU. Good chance we win by double digits in that 1!

Nice post. Hopefully our much beloved University of Connecticut Huskies make it back safely with the storm approaching. Just like everyone else here I am watching (and glued to) the weather channel and praying the team has a safe flight home.

Cheers...........................!
BDH

 

[KembaStepback]

Jalen also plays in an offense that tells players to pass around the perimeter for 25 seconds then “give Jalen the ball, hopefully he can do something with 5 seconds on the shot clock” so maybe thats why he takes some bad shots. Matrim is right, if we ran an actual offense with off ball screens, fluid movement, and a touch of inside out play, Jalen would be either gone to the NBA already, or a potential lottery pick this year.

Agree to disagree. He is not a shooter any way you slice it. Jalen led the conference in assists last yr and still hasn't gotten 2nd round consideration. Hes not bouncy enough or a good enough shooter. Love him as a player but until he becomes a knock down shooter he ain't getting drafted.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Agree to disagree. He is not a shooter any way you slice it. Jalen led the conference in assists last yr and still hasn't gotten 2nd round consideration. Hes not bouncy enough or a good enough shooter. Love him as a player but until he becomes a knock down shooter he ain't getting drafted.

He is very bouncy. We just never get out in transition so we never dunk. He is a very good athlete.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Jalens jumper has not improved at all. Good thing he can get to the rim when he wants

 

[Huskybass]

Agree to disagree. He is not a shooter any way you slice it. Jalen led the conference in assists last yr and still hasn't gotten 2nd round consideration. Hes not bouncy enough or a good enough shooter. Love him as a player but until he becomes a knock down shooter he ain't getting drafted.

That's just bs. He will get drafted for sure.

 

[UconnFanDC]

Man, its simple. We get out played and out coached often

 

[superjohn]

we've got a shot to finish mid-table in the AAC!!!!! Feels good.

Think of how Jalen must feel seeing his former teammate Donovan Mitchell (slightly ranked below Jalen coming out of high school) absolutely tearing up the NBA as Jalen plays every minute of every game for a rudderless team with no gameplan as his draft stock is nonexistent.

Once upon a time most Uconn fans thought he would be a surefire lottery pick when he left UConn.

 

[Walker11]

He is very bouncy. We just never get out in transition so we never dunk. He is a very good athlete.

He has a nice first step and great balance. I remember seeing him throw down tomahawks off of a stand still in HS and tip dunks galore. How many dunks has he had at UCONN?

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Think of how Jalen must feel seeing his former teammate Donovan Mitchell (slightly ranked below Jalen coming out of high school) absolutely tearing up the NBA as Jalen plays every minute of every game for a rudderless team with no gameplan as his draft stock is nonexistent.

Once upon a time most Uconn fans thought he would be a surefire lottery pick when he left UConn.

He should be

 

[mauconnfan]

Jalen was really good on offense tonight more of what I expected all year. He could do that every game if he wants no matter who’s coaching but you guys keep your piling on your so good at it and it entertains the crap out of each other I can tell.

Miserable fan base Wow. What’s funny is how much happier the idiots are that we lost, it’s unbelievable, or is it?

 

[Matrim55]

He could do that every game if he wants ...

Yes he could play literally the best all-around game of his career every time out, mau. That makes sense.

 

[DMIL]

Jalen also plays in an offense that tells players to pass around the perimeter for 25 seconds then “give Jalen the ball, hopefully he can do something with 5 seconds on the shot clock” so maybe thats why he takes some bad shots. Matrim is right, if we ran an actual offense with off ball screens, fluid movement, and a touch of inside out play, Jalen would be either gone to the NBA already, or a potential lottery pick this year.

Inside to who? Pass out to who? We have no shooters or a true PG. We have a few scorers who are streaky, inconsistent and turnover prone. They pass up good open shots for contested shot opportunities and commonly lack situational awareness. Enough with blaming everything on Ollie's offense.

 

[Huskybass]

Inside to who? Pass out to who? We have no shooters or a true PG. We have a few scorers who are streaky, inconsistent and turnover prone. They pass up good open shots for contested shot opportunities and commonly lack situational awareness. Enough with blaming everything on Ollie's offense.

Isn't the role of a head coach to attract, teach and develop good players? If it's not happening, doesn't some of that speak to his performance?

 

[superjohn]

Yes he could play literally the best all-around game of his career every time out, mau. That makes sense.

Mau's only beef with Ollie is that he recruits kids who can't possibly improve. It has nothing to do with Ollie that many of his players seem to stay the same of regress, it's just in the kids DNA.

He loves to rip on these players and lash out like a teenager when others find fault with the guy getting paid 3 million dollars per year to win games instead of blaming all the players who get paid nothing.

 

[Walker11]

Think of how Jalen must feel seeing his former teammate Donovan Mitchell (slightly ranked below Jalen coming out of high school) absolutely tearing up the NBA as Jalen plays every minute of every game for a rudderless team with no gameplan as his draft stock is nonexistent.

Once upon a time most Uconn fans thought he would be a surefire lottery pick when he left UConn.

The thing is that guys get drafted off of crappy teams with crappy supporting casts all the time. Jalen didn't make the best decision in coming to UCONN. Jalen also bears a lot of the blame in his development. A kid like Mitchell would have been successful everywhere he went. Jalen, not so much.

 

[superjohn]

The thing is that guys get drafted off of crappy teams with crappy supporting casts all the time. Jalen didn't make the best decision in coming to UCONN. Jalen also bears a lot of the blame in his development. A kid like Mitchell would have been successful everywhere he went. Jalen, not so much.

Do you recognize how sad that is? We no longer think it's a good decision for borderline 5 star recruits to come to UConn.

And yet it still seems like half this place thinks Ollie should be our coach next year. I'll never understand this loony bin.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Call me crazy but Jalen has more god given talent than Bazz, Boat, and possibly Kemba. Not saying he’s a better player than any of those guys but even in a completely disfuntional offense with very limited other threats,getting double teamed all night he’s probably going to finish this year 20/5/5. The game is just so easy for him. Get him a shooting coach and a personal trainer and he’s a decent NBA player.

 

[Walker11]

Do you recognize how sad that is? We no longer think it's a good decision for borderline 5 star recruits to come to UConn.

And yet it still seems like half this place thinks Ollie should be our coach next year. I'll never understand this loony bin.

Granted I have a large ignore list but I haven't seen anyone besides Kembastepback who think KO should return. Yea, it is sad but it is clearly the truth.