I'm not saying we're going to win the Natty

[nadavtheman]

But what I am saying is that with the addition of two 6'7" shooters as practice players I am echoing DH's comments that we have the deepest, most talented and most competitive roster that we've had in many years. Stud nucleus of Adama/Ajax/Hawk, three impact transfers, 2 frosh who should contribute immediately, and solid bench players. Richie Springs and Joey C would be playing for most other BE teams and they may not see the floor here. No one thought we were winning the Natty going into 2011 or 2014. Should be a fun year however it plays out. Let's all enjoy the ride. Just saying.

 

[HooperScooper]

@Scrappy3, is this you?

 

[jibsey]

But what I am saying is that with the addition of two 6'7" shooters as practice players I am echoing DH's comments that we have the deepest, most talented and most competitive roster that we've had in many years. Stud nucleus of Adama/Ajax/Hawk, three impact transfers, 2 frosh who should contribute immediately, and solid bench players. Richie Springs and Joey C would be playing for most other BE teams and they may not see the floor here. No one thought we were winning the Natty going into 2011 or 2014. Should be a fun year however it plays out. Let's all enjoy the ride. Just saying.

Show me a Kemba or Bazz and we’ll talk. It’s an issue of court smarts, who fills that role?

 

[navery12]

Show me a Kemba or Bazz and we’ll talk. It’s an issue of court smarts, who fills that role?

 

[UconnFanDC]

I'm excited about the season as well but I'm not content until I see us win and win convincingly. And atleast can we make the darn sweet 16 if nothing else. NIT and NCAA 1st rnd exits have to be a thing of the past.

 

[Jaydumo20]

View attachment 78948

I hope so. I think the difference, for me, is that the season before both kemba and bazz took the natty mantle, I saw real Alpha performances. Not that you're claiming Natty this year. But I think with AJax and Hawk that we are "hoping" they become something great based on projection, build, basketball smarts, body weight and all the other metrics. they haven't instilled a knowing confidence in me yet, from what I've seen (which is every game they've played)

 

[uconnever]

We don’t have one thing for me. That guy that can consistently get a shot who is battle tested. Ben Gordon, Shabazz, Kemba, Rip. That one super stud. If we had Bouknight, then we could talk titles. We’re good but not there YET.

 

[UCDaveD]

I don’t see a game on the schedule that we lose.

 

[uconngb]

We don’t have one thing for me. That guy that can consistently get a shot who is battle tested. Ben Gordon, Shabazz, Kemba, Rip. That one super stud. If we had Bouknight, then we could talk titles. We’re good but not there YET.

We need Hawk to develop into that guy

 

[huskyinfl]

I think our success was always based on team cohesion and fundamentals. Less flash and more toughness with role players stepping up when called for. Loved seeing our guys at Rucker too back in the day battling it out.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

Show me a Kemba or Bazz and we’ll talk. It’s an issue of court smarts, who fills that role?

All our NC had a leader at the point
As great a 2004 was with Emeka and Ben . Talik was the leader of that team . So the guy running the team translating the coaches plan to the floor is critical to its ultimate success.
Can an outsider ,Newton , assume that floor leadership or does Jackson ?
Successful teams rarely have ambiguity of leadership.
Every team goes into a year with questions , even 1999,and 2004 ,having them is normal,How and by whom their answered is part of the excitement
That’s why I can’t wait. Each year is like a new movie with multiple possibilities for endings.

 

[REB1094]

At this point, I would say a Sweet Sixteen this season would be considered a success. There's a LOT of unknowns. I'd say the only confident assumptions are that Sanogo will be a monster, Andre will refine his game even further, and Newton will be a solid scorer.

Listing some unknowns off the top of my head - can Hawkins be a consistent 15+ PPG takeover scorer like we think? Will Newton just be a solid scorer behind Sanogo or will he be able to take over the offense when needed like at ECU? Will Andre and Sanogo be able to shoot like the offseason videos suggest? Did Samson develop enough to be a serviceable BE starting PF? Will Karaban and/or Clingan produce year 1 or will they need a year to get accustomed to college? Are Diarra/Alleyne/Calcaterra going to be powerful bench pieces, or are they going to be Polley/Gaffney/Hawkins v2 (for what it's worth, I think this is the least unknown part of the unknowns. They should be much better). Who's going to replace the absolute DOG from RJ/Tyrese? And most importantly of all, how is DH going to design and implement his new 5 out offense?

If we hit on 50% of those, which we should, I'd say we can be a Sweet Sixteen team. If we hit on more, we're going to be very dangerous. The talent level on the roster is the highest we've seen in a while, and I think there's realistically 3-4 guys that can go pro.

Should be a fun season. I really am excited to see how they play at the PKI

 

[RichCTBB]

We need Hawk to develop into that guy

His handle was at times so shaky last year, almost like he was a year behind in that department. Really hope he's been able to clean that up. His defense had really come along at the end of last season as well. I feel like the Ajax/Hawk 1-2 punch in the backcourt will be nightmarish for most teams in the same way Kemba/Lamb and Bazz/Boatright were when they made their runs.

 

[uconnever]

We need Hawk to develop into that guy

I think he can, but timing will be off because we won’t have the team we do now when he’s ready.

 

[Chin Diesel]

With DH, right now, let's start with winning first game and then we can worry about the rest.

 

[UCfor3]

Taking guys off the dribble and scoring at the end of shot clock and end of game situations when we need a bucket is what concerns me. Yeah we could set up a play for Sanogo or Hawkins, but when/if that play breaks down.... Newton seems like the obvious choice. AJax could create for others but has not really shown an ability to score with the ball in his hands off the dribble in the half court. Diarra may have that ability but he will be a backup most likely. Seems like Newton replaces Cole in this area but we are not deep with options. With that said, I am really optomistic about this season. 4 out, more perimeter oriented with plenty of shooters. Yes please. Music to my ears. Been waiting for this kind of change and am excited to see how it looks.

 

[Huskyforlife]

I’m gonna need to see high level shot creation from guys like Jackson/Hawkins before I start thinking about national championships. Newton is gonna carry a heavy load in that regard, but championship rosters normally have at least a couple guys of that caliber(think Bazz/Boat, Kemba/Bazz). Have no doubt our defensive personnel is elite, roster is built with more spacing in mind, so I’d like to say we have a high floor.

 

[Kenny11]

I’m not saying we’re going to win the natty, but I’m also not saying we’re not going to win the natty

 

[gtcam]

Avoiding crucial injuries and winning one damn NCAA game - lets start there

 

[Ratso]

I’m not saying we’re going to win the natty, but I’m also not saying we’re not going to win the natty

one game at a time, that’s how tiafoe made it to the us open final four. queens all day

 

[UofCT]

Can we stop pretending that Joey C isn’t going to play. He’s going to dominate

 

[navery12]

I hope so. I think the difference, for me, is that the season before both kemba and bazz took the natty mantle, I saw real Alpha performances. Not that you're claiming Natty this year. But I think with AJax and Hawk that we are "hoping" they become something great based on projection, build, basketball smarts, body weight and all the other metrics. they haven't instilled a knowing confidence in me yet, from what I've seen (which is every game they've played)

If the question was who can take a big shot at the end of a game I'd agree, that's probably not going to be Jackson. I think that'll be Newton or hopefully Hawkins if he becomes the player we all hope. But the question was who on this team has shown court smarts and I think Andre has shown that plenty of times, it's part of what makes him so unique and great

 

[jibsey]

Andre is the shot clock winding down guy? If Hawk got stronger and more assertive he actually has the shooting ability skill to do it. If he does he becomes a lottery pick.

 

[CL82]

Show me a Kemba or Bazz and we’ll talk.

Why not both

You’re welcome.

 

[navery12]

Andre is the shot clock winding down guy? If Hawk got stronger and more assertive he actually has the shooting ability skill to do it. If he does he becomes a lottery pick.

Try reading again, I said he's NOT the end of shot clock guy. You asked who on this team has the court smarts like Kemba and Bazz