Jalen Gaffney now ready to unleash ‘above-the-rim athleticism’

[HooperScooper]

Initially only supposed to be sidelined for a couple of weeks, Jalen Gaffney wound up about six weeks behind. When he returned to action, he was tentative, rusty, could barely dunk or move laterally. It took a toll mentally, as well, after a remarkably injury-free prep career.

It showed in the early stages of UConn’s season, going scoreless — and barely attempting any shots — in his first three collegiate games. Midway through the season, the confidence and production improving, he was thrust into the role as starting point guard. The numbers improved, the wins started piling up, but the explosiveness and overall athleticism were never fully unleashed.

That will change this season.

UConn guard Jalen Gaffney ready to surprise as a sophomore

Jalen Gaffney admits he was a bit ‘timid’ as a freshman, but the UConn guard is ready...

www.ctinsider.com

For those without Register access: UConn’s Jalen Gaffney was timid as a freshman, but now ready to unleash ‘above-the-rim athleticism’

 

[Waquoit]

Bring it on!

 

[Kitaman]

I really don't think its a stretch to see him be All BE 1st team his senior year. Playing with AG and now Cole will certainly elevate his game. Surrounded by all of the scoring options will boost his stats. The confidence was evident last season. I also expect his leadership to shine.

In any event we will be in great hands for the next 3 years with Gaffney. Bouk and the rest may dominate the highlights, but I see Gaffney becoming the engine.

 

[Huskymagic]

Big East Gaff has been unleashed.

Hammer Time is Back in Storrs

 

[Stainmaster]

Big East Gaff has been unleashed.

Hammer Time is Back in Storrs

So now you've decided you like guards from New Jersey?

 

[Chin Diesel]

His added strength will help his athleticism by allowing him to maintain balance and keep his head up when contact is made in the lane. He's going to have a bunch of finishes at the rim that look mildly impressive but are a high level combination of speed, strength and balance. He seems to really like that reverse lay up to give him that last boundary of protection around the rim.
He'll also have the ability to D up his man and keep his man in front of him with his strength and lateral quickness.

 

[Huskymagic]

So now you've decided you like guards from New Jersey?

No.

Hammer Time is back thanks to Bouk, Andre, and Whaley. Gaff will just add to it.

 

[Stainmaster]

No.

Hammer Time is back thanks to Bouk, Andre, and Whaley. Gaff will just add to it.

Oh.

Okay.

Thanks for clarifying.

 

[The Frog]

His ball handle in the half court offence was so shaky last year. Would love to see a sophomore jump ..... But, really.... "Unleashing above the rim athleticism" seems a bit of a stretch.

 

[WrenchFan69]

So now you've decided you like guards from New Jersey?

The "guards from New Jersey" bit very well could be my favorite ever on the yard. What a ridiculous hill to die on

 

[Chief00]

His ball handle in the half court offence was so shaky last year. Would love to see a sophomore jump ..... But, really.... "Unleashing above the rim athleticism" seems a bit of a stretch.

I don’t agree with that analysis.

 

[Watchdog]

I don’t agree with that analysis.

We respect your opinion, but what does Chief have to say about it?

 

[nomar]

His ball handle in the half court offence was so shaky last year. Would love to see a sophomore jump ..... But, really.... "Unleashing above the rim athleticism" seems a bit of a stretch.

I wouldn't say shaky. I'd say tentative and overcautious. I wasn't worried he wasn't going to turn it over, but he was just kind of pounding and passing. He got more aggressive as the season progressed.

 

[auror]

I wouldn't say shaky. I'd say tentative and overcautious. I wasn't worried he wasn't going to turn it over, but he was just kind of pounding and passing. He got more aggressive as the season progressed.

His turnover % was also pretty high considering his low usage rate. But this is all to be expected with a rookie PG taking over midseason who battled an annoying injury during his transition summer.

 

[nomar]

His turnover % was also pretty high considering his low usage rate. But this is all to be expected with a rookie PG taking over midseason who battled an annoying injury during his transition summer.

Low usage rate, sure, but 1.2 tpg in 19 mpg is pretty low. 2.1 apg is also pretty low.

Looking forward to what he can do as a soph.

 

[TheChamps990411]

Initially only supposed to be sidelined for a couple of weeks, Jalen Gaffney wound up about six weeks behind. When he returned to action, he was tentative, rusty, could barely dunk or move laterally. It took a toll mentally, as well, after a remarkably injury-free prep career.

It showed in the early stages of UConn’s season, going scoreless — and barely attempting any shots — in his first three collegiate games. Midway through the season, the confidence and production improving, he was thrust into the role as starting point guard. The numbers improved, the wins started piling up, but the explosiveness and overall athleticism were never fully unleashed.

That will change this season.

UConn guard Jalen Gaffney ready to surprise as a sophomore

Jalen Gaffney admits he was a bit ‘timid’ as a freshman, but the UConn guard is ready...

www.ctinsider.com

For those without Register access: UConn’s Jalen Gaffney was timid as a freshman, but now ready to unleash ‘above-the-rim athleticism’

Lets just hope "unleashing" doesnt turn into another "letting the ferrari out".

 

[CL82]

I wouldn't say shaky. I'd say tentative and overcautious. I wasn't worried he wasn't going to turn it over, but he was just kind of pounding and passing. He got more aggressive as the season progressed.

Early on guys seemed to look for opportunities to steal or pressure against him, like they did not respect his handle. As he got more playing time, he got more comfortable and became more effective. What we’re hearing now though is he was limited due to his ankle injury. I guess we’ll see how big a difference it is at the start of the season.

 

[mauconnfan]

Let’s go by what we’re hearing on the injury and see where he is this season. He did some good things as it was but he did have trouble starting the offense often from inside the hash marks against good defenders. Confidence and quickness should change that. I’m surprised we haven’t heard much about his confidence shooting the ball vs last year. He needs to be much better there also.

He looks great though and I certainly like what we’re hearing!

 

[husky429]

I wouldn't say shaky. I'd say tentative and overcautious. I wasn't worried he wasn't going to turn it over, but he was just kind of pounding and passing. He got more aggressive as the season progressed.

His confidence went up, and your handle is as much about your feet as your hands. I expect we didn't really get a good sense of his ballhandling ability as we will this year.

Even in HS he looked more like his ballhandling was pretty basic though. I don't think he's a creative/breakdown type ballhandler we would have seen with AG. Also don't care what he does as long as the TOs stay down and he leads an efficient offense.

 

[selles]

His confidence went up, and your handle is as much about your feet as your hands. I expect we didn't really get a good sense of his ballhandling ability as we will this year.

Even in HS he looked more like his ballhandling was pretty basic though. I don't think he's a creative/breakdown type ballhandler we would have seen with AG. Also don't care what he does as long as the TOs stay down and he leads an efficient offense.

Yeah, agreed that efficiency is the key. For a few years in a row our perimeter offense generally involved one guard taking a couple dribbles to probe the opportunity for a drive, then passing to another guy who'd do the same, then there'd be a pass to another guy who'd do the same, repeat, repeat. There was no pressure put on the defense because the dribbling always gave it a chance to recover.

What was transformative about Gaffney last year was that he broke the mold - he understood the value of the quick pass, and that helped with offensive flow. From Hurley's comments it sounds like Cole may have a similar understanding. Looking forward to seeing them out there together.

 

[Waquoit]

At this point, my confidence in Gaffney comes from Hurley's confidence in him. Dan trotted him out there a lot for a frosh PG and while he did a good job I had the nagging feeling he had more. And now we find out he wasn't 100%. I think he'll be a real asset this year.

 

[coachn]

Always was on Gafney bandwagon. Bouk wasn't wrong when he went after Gafney as his running mate.
That celebration they had at Blue Back was a precursor of greater things to come from both of them.

 

[businesslawyer]

Oh.

Okay.

Thanks for clarifying.

That's on you. Know when to leave well enough alone!

 

[StllH8L8ner]

I kinda don't care about above the rim athleticism from a PG. KEA was built like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and couldn't jump over a nickel but ran the offense, played defense, scored as needed, brought crazy energy and was an incredible vocal leader. We'll get plenty of highlight reel dunks by the other guys, I want a PG who is going to be a floor leader and get guys to where they need to be a la Khalid, Ricky or Taliek.