Jalen Adams (Committed to UConn)

[JimHurley]

I'm pretty sure he's our highest rated guard recruit since Kemba. He has some big shoes to fill. I don't see him putting up D'Angelo Russell numbers as a freshman - 19PPG, 5 and 5. However I think he's more than capable of putting up 12PPG, 3 and 3, in his first year which is pretty impressive. He's going to be a huge part of this team next season and I think how good he is will determine how good this team can be. If comes and plays how he's capable of playing, we can easily make the Sweet 16. If he struggles, which I'm confident he won't, we could be in trouble again next year. What do you guys think?

 

[champs99and04]

I've never seen him play, but I've heard comparisons to Melo Trimble, who averaged 16, 4, and 3 at Maryland this season. Not sure if those are accurate or not.

 

[CTBasketball]

I can't believe we have 7 more months of these threads.

 

[Tenspro2002]

I've never seen him play, but I've heard comparisons to Melo Trimble, who averaged 16, 4, and 3 at Maryland this season. Not sure if those are accurate or not.

I think those comparisons were more like "we need Jalen Adams to be as good as Melo Trimble if we're going to have anything that would be considered a successful UConn-caliber season".

 

[jfuchs91]

I've never seen him play, but I've heard comparisons to Melo Trimble, who averaged 16, 4, and 3 at Maryland this season. Not sure if those are accurate or not.

Trimble was great this year, and I'd be ecstatic if we got that kind of production out of Adams. For someone who isn't touted as an elite one-and-done type talent, Trimble type production is about as good as you can ask for from a freshman.

What I'm hoping Adams can give us is a solid ball handler, and someone who can get into the lane to set up teammates or finish at the rim. Any sort of shooting consistency behind the arc would be great as well.

For those saying that Adams needs to "replace" Boatright, I think that's the wrong mentality. We can be a much improved team if the rest of our roster improves this offseason and Adams can serve as a primary ball handler and facilitator. I think many of our offensive woes this past season stemmed from the fact that Boat was the clearcut leader and go-to guy, to the point where our other players sometimes appeared scared to shoot. How many times did Hamilton, Purvis, or others pass up wide open shots this past season? It's not ideal when your only ball handler is also the dominant shot taker on a team. I think with a more balanced offensive approach, our offense will benefit.

It's hard to project how freshmen will fare in their transitions to college, but from all accounts, Adams is the real deal. He's touted as an explosive athlete with a tight handle, shotmaking ability, and good court vision. I'll keep my expectations in check, but Adams can be a special player here. I haven't been this excited about an incoming recruit since Drummond.

 

[Robertelamin]

I would be disappointed if he wasn't a mix of Westbrook and Chris Paul. Seriously, lets not do this.

 

[ChrisSmith]

I'm pretty sure he's our highest rated guard recruit since Kemba. He has some big shoes to fill. I don't see him putting up D'Angelo Russell numbers as a freshman - 19PPG, 5 and 5. However I think he's more than capable of putting up 12PPG, 3 and 3, in his first year which is pretty impressive. He's going to be a huge part of this team next season and I think how good he is will determine how good this team can be. If comes and plays how he's capable of playing, we can easily make the Sweet 16. If he struggles, which I'm confident he won't, we could be in trouble again next year. What do you guys think?

I think 7.8 points and 3 assists a game is a reasonable expectation. That's what 4 star recruit and 1st round pick Shabazz Napier averaged as a freshman.

 

[Danzz]

While I'm thrilled to have him and believe he will be an outstanding player at UConn, the kid is a freshman who must adjust to Div. 1. He will likely have an up and down season but better on the second half of the schedule. His success will have a lot to do with how much the returning players improve.

 

[Offhegoes]

I think he will eventually be a serious player, but will also have growing pains at times. I also think he will have some wtf? moments with decision making/passing, which comes with guys who are young and are primary ball handlers. I think Ollie will have a huge impact on the development of this kid. I think once he adjusts to D1 strength and quickness the sky is the limit. We are lucky to have signed him, especially with an open spot at PG.

 

[UConnStats]

Adams plays above the rim and is the long, athletic type. Trimble is incredibly skilled and is a deadly shooter. They're not really comparable, and you shouldn't set expectations as high as Trimble's results this year.

 

[D-NICE]

Jalen Adams is more gifted than Kemba, Shabazz, or Boatright, coming in as a freshman. He has great court vision, atleticism, creativity, and swag. He is a winner, who likes to take over during crunch time. He played against great competion, while playing at Brewster this year.
He needs to work on his outside shot and finishing with his left hand. I predict him to be a 2 or 3 year player at UCONN, before entering the NBA draft.

 

[FeedTheDove]

Jalen Adams is more gifted than Kemba, Shabazz, or Boatright

 

[D-NICE]

He is going to be a ptpr

 

[CAHUSKY]

To be fair, you paraphrased his quote. He said "coming in as a freshman" which, in my opinion, is a reasonable assesment.

 

[Rumrunner]

Whenever I get a hankering to swim in an ocean full of stupidity, I always know where the kiosk is to book my ticket.

 

[Irishboy9780]

From what i've seen and heard this kid is something special. He'll need to come in right away and be a key piece of this team. He doesn't need to be a kemba or shabazz this year, but he will need to be the ball handler and facilitator. I don't think the pressure will get to him. Really though his success will come if purvis and hamilton play better and make better shot selections next year. Both a very talented but their shot selection and settling for some god awful shots this season definitely hurt us.

Obviously as a husky fan we should all be very excited for jalen adams coming to Uconn, but we must also realize that he will be a freshman and coming to a husky team that needs to fix their problems (which i think they will). Temper your expectations for him individually, but he will be a key piece in what appears to be a solid squad next season.

 

[Kitaman]

Jalen Adams is more gifted than Kemba, Shabazz, or Boatright, coming in as a freshman. He has great court vision, atleticism, creativity, and swag. He is a winner, who likes to take over during crunch time. He played against great competion, while playing at Brewster this year.
He needs to work on his outside shot and finishing with his left hand. I predict him to be a 2 or 3 year player at UCONN, before entering the NBA draft.

You do know that he was playing against high school players.

 

[caw]

he and Trimble are not really similar players. I'm very impressed (as most should be) with Trimble this year but he and Adams have very different games.

They both have good handles abd similar heights. Trimble appears much stronger but with less hops. Trimble also appears to be a better 3pt shooter and makes up for less athleticism with very good footwork. Adams and Trimble both have good body control though Adams displays his while in the air and Trimble with his footwork. If Adams wants to have as good a year as Trimble he will need to get stronger and improve his shot this summer (it looks much better this past year in high school). Just my opinion though.

 

[Danzz]

he and Trimble are not really similar players. I'm very impressed (as most should be) with Trimble this year but he and Adams have very different games.

They both have good handles abd similar heights. Trimble appears much stronger but with less hops. Trimble also appears to be a better 3pt shooter and makes up for less athleticism with very good footwork. Adams and Trimble both have good body control though Adams displays his while in the air and Trimble with his footwork. If Adams wants to have as good a year as Trimble he will need to get stronger and improve his shot this summer (it looks much better this past year in high school). Just my opinion though.

How can you tell if Trimble is a better shooter? Adams makes all of his shots on his highlight videos.

 

[caw]

How can you tell if Trimble is a better shooter? Adams makes all of his shots on his highlight videos.

Lol true.

 

[eireman]

You do know that he was playing against high school players.

The nepsac is not like a typical high school league plus you have post grads who typically were very good high school players. Most high school's best players would not start for the top two nepsac tier schools

 

[UConn990411]

I think 7.8 points and 3 assists a game is a reasonable expectation. That's what 4 star recruit and 1st round pick Shabazz Napier averaged as a freshman.

He's not a 4-star, and he's about 60 spots ahead of Shabazz coming outta high school.

It's always hard to project freshmen - especially frosh PGs - but I'm not sure UConn's ever had a point as talented as Jalen. That doesn't mean he'll be their best one ever, but from a pure talent standpoint, he's short on weaknesses.

 

[Uconn77Duke74]

Adams won't be as good next year as Boatright was this year. Not sure how we then make the leap of faith from a first round NIT loss with Boatright to an "easy": sweet sixteen with a Freshman Adams. I'd like to assume that the rest of our team will be somewhat better next year to help compensate for the loss of Boat but many of our players have actually been getting less productive; Nolan and Samuel. The only way we make "Sweet Sixteen is if Enoch is solid enough to completely replace one of our unproductive Bigs.

 

[mauconnfan]

Adams won't be as good next year as Boatright was this year. Not sure how we then make the leap of faith from a first round NIT loss with Boatright to an "easy": sweet sixteen with a Freshman Adams. I'd like to assume that the rest of our team will be somewhat better next year to help compensate for the loss of Boat but many of our players have actually been getting less productive; Nolan and Samuel. The only way we make "Sweet Sixteen is if Enoch is solid enough to completely replace one of our unproductive Bigs.

Well #1 Boat didn't play in the NIT loss. And they are different players and the unknown with Adams will be interesting. His talent and potential is exceptional and if he's a mature freshman who likes the pressure he may very well be as good. There's plenty of freshman who make a splash right away and there's others who don't do so well. We'll see I guess but I like what I see coming in. Agree on needing Enoch to be something, maybe not a lot, but some accruing, occasional rebounds etc etc..

 

[CardiacAndre7]

Adams won't be as good next year as Boatright was this year. Not sure how we then make the leap of faith from a first round NIT loss with Boatright to an "easy": sweet sixteen with a Freshman Adams. I'd like to assume that the rest of our team will be somewhat better next year to help compensate for the loss of Boat but many of our players have actually been getting less productive; Nolan and Samuel. The only way we make "Sweet Sixteen is if Enoch is solid enough to completely replace one of our unproductive Bigs.

Let's stop with saying Samuel became less productive. He barely played until the tournament, and though he played really well there, its not like he was a star. Teams hadn't seen him so didn't really know what they were facing. They did this year, they knew he wasn't a shooter and was a slashing PG with good not great handle, and teams took advantage of that.

 

[uchusky32]

I understand not much to read/write about on the board. But the expectations for Adams need to be realistic. Prep school, even the best prep school and league aren't major D1 ball. The level of intensity on defense will be at a much higher level.
Who was our best point guard ever? I hope he lives up to some of your expectations. But it always seems like some of you believe that the highlight tapes are what your going to get when they hit the hardwood for a college game. The pressure will be 100 fold compared to what it is now. The rims will look much smaller.
What I'm hoping to get from him is good handle. Being able to find the open man. Being a threat with the ball that Tsam isn't. Staying in front of his man on D, cutting down the amount of times our bigs have to protect the rim because a guard went right down the lane.

We need Dham and Purvis to be the focal points on offense.

 

[mauconnfan]

Let's stop with saying Samuel became less productive. He barely played until the tournament, and though he played really well there, its not like he was a star. Teams hadn't seen him so didn't really know what they were facing. They did this year, they knew he wasn't a shooter and was a slashing PG with good not great handle, and teams took advantage of that.

I think that everyone saw that small sampling and expected a bit more than when they saw this year, that's all. I agree with you though, they knew his weaknesses because he played 20 minutes a game and exploited them to their advantage.

 

[polycom]

Jalen Adams will be as good as his talent and development will allow him to be.

 

[Uconn77Duke74]

I think that everyone saw that small sampling and expected a bit more than when they saw this year, that's all. I agree with you though, they knew his weaknesses because he played 20 minutes a game and exploited them to their advantage.

The point is he didn't make any real progress (that I could tell) as the season went on. I would love for us to secure a second pg/ball handler to go with Adams. Our two guard formula Kemba /Shabazz, Shabazz/Boat, was lethal come tourney time. Wonder what could have been if we had Adams this year.

 

[mauconnfan]

The point is he didn't make any real progress (that I could tell) as the season went on. I would love for us to secure a second pg/ball handler to go with Adams. Our two guard formula Kemba /Shabazz, Shabazz/Boat, was lethal come tourney time. Wonder what could have been if we had Adams this year.

No doubt, he didn't make any progress. He can still be helpful but 20 minutes a game next year is too much.