Jared Sullinger-like impact from Andre this year?

[F.Courage]

I am not posting this to compare their games at all, as they are totally different players.

But from an impact point of view, do you think that Andre can dominate and affect
games in the paint, and become a go-to player in similar fashion to what Sullinger
did this past season for Ohio State? He averaged 17 and 10 on a senior laden team
and often had the ball in his hands at the end of games.

I do not see any reason why he can't, but would it be setting our expectations too high?

 

[TheChamps990411]

AD i have no doubt that as the season goes on AD will be our number 1 option in the post ahead of AO. AD will not likely score 17 ppg but should put up around 15 and 10. i think some people here are playing it safe with 12 and 8 out of him at most but i think thats too low. this type of player is a once a decade player and should play well enough to compete for BE POY.

 

[Burnsbros23]

he averaged 15 and 11 in high school think 15 and 10 is on the high side

 

[TheChamps990411]

he averaged 15 and 11 in high school think 15 and 10 is on the high side

yeah i seen those numbers too. they mean nothing come on man!

 

[Kitaman]

Does everyone really think that he will be better than Alex before he plays a collegiate game? I like everyone's enthusiasm but wow Drummond is approaching God like levels. People now talking AD as the first option on a team that returns practically all Championship winners (that has a pre-season AA). No he won't be the first option and no he won't be the best player on the team next season. Doesn't mean that he won't be a number one pro pick, but UConn is loaded with Lamb and Alex leading the charge.

To me if the kid fits in plays hard he will be fine.

 

[dogpause]

I think Drummond will be as good as the team's ability to get him the ball in scoring position. That will take some time to happen, but the end of the year, AD is going to be as reliable as Emeka was 2004.

 

[HuskyBballFan]

Andre Drummond does not have the same post game that Sullinger had as a freshman. He's 10 times the athlete that Sullinger is, but his offensive game is not as refined. When we need a basket this year, I'm pretty confident that Lamb will be option #1 and Oriakhi will be option #2.

Drummond will wow people with 3-4 highlight reel dunks or blocked shots per game. But if anyone is expecting him to be Kevin McHale in the low post, you're going to be disappointed.

 

[Scot-e]

I am holding out the hope that once practice starts he will be asked to play at a much higher level then he was in HS where they were just happy to have him. He got 15/10 in HS without playing 100% on every play. He will be riding lots of pine early if he does not put in 100% on every play on a JC coached team.
I see his numbers increasing as the season moves forward- but it is nearly impossible to know what they will be at this point and time. If he goes coo coo like our man Kemba did one year to the next ( and he does have the talent for it) he could be in the high teens per game- if he cruises he could be in the high single digits. I prefer him going coo coo but you just do not know until they hit the court.
Anything approaching Jared's level would be pretty amazing.

 

[bobbygt]

I think Drummond will be as good as the team's ability to get him the ball in scoring position. That will take some time to happen, but the end of the year, AD is going to be as reliable as Emeka was 2004.

The end of what year???

As good as Drummond might be, that doesn't seem like a fair comparison.

 

[nomar]

he averaged 15 and 11 in high school think 15 and 10 is on the high side

You mean, in high school when he played 20 minutes a game and was primarily focused on throwing passes around his back?

I think those numbers are very attainable.

 

[intlzncster]

Two points:

-Sullinger/OSU didn't have quite as many options last year as we will have this year. They required Sullinger to have big games. We are so balanced and deep, that scoring will likely be spread out.

-Andre is ranked so high based on potential. He's 6'11 with ridiculous athleticism and has a lot of skill. But he's got some very important things to work on. His motor needs work; his jump shot needs work; he's going to have to get used to banging night in and night out; no idea how tough his D is against more equal/physical competition. Sullinger played like a beast at all times.

If Andre is our focal point, UConn will not be as strong of a team as we all hoped.

 

[DogMania]

Andre Drummond does not have the same post game that Sullinger had as a freshman. He's 10 times the athlete that Sullinger is, but his offensive game is not as refined. When we need a basket this year, I'm pretty confident that Lamb will be option #1 and Oriakhi will be option #2.

Drummond will wow people with 3-4 highlight reel dunks or blocked shots per game. But if anyone is expecting him to be Kevin McHale in the low post, you're going to be disappointed.

I agree with you on the first part. Sullinger came into college with a highly advanced offensive game. OSU could throw the ball into him and against most teams he could find ways to score. Drummond has what I would call rough or raw skills. He's huge, extremely athletic and excellent coordination for a kid his size. He's one of those players you have to push beyond dunking range or he's going to kill you. Sullinger doesn't have that type of game.

I'm not sure what the lead post was driving at, but I don't think AD will have the same impact as Sullinger, nor will he need to. The team has plenty of weapons where AD simply needs to learn what are shots he can make and to take most of those shots, but also be aware of the situations when teammates have better shots or the clock is running down and he needs to take what he has. Easier said than done when the game at this new level for him is going to be so much faster. What looks like open space in HS is a trap in college. What looks like a lane to the basket is a charge waiting to happen. Boy am I happy they added that charging rule where you can't set up came in front of the basket. What was a foul looking to happen for big guys and slashers motoring to the hoop are now highlights for Sports Center.

Don't get me wrong. AD's impact will be big as long as he can stay out of foul trouble and on the floor. We need him to take away the middle on D, learn to handle the high and low screens (hedging), rebound on both ends, run the floor, convert close to the basket and set killer screens. Things like hitting the mid-range J and taking his man off the dribble are just gravy. He'll do much of this right out of the gate. He's learn to be solid in the rest by latter part of the BE season. He might just be a monster by tournament time. I think fans will be pleased by many of the things he will do but frustrated with his lack of consistency. That's what you usually see with talented big guys. He's not a project. Projects usually look bad to useless the first year or two, good maybe by the end of that 2nd year through the 3rd and then like "Wow! Where did that come from by the end of their 3rd to their 4th season, ala Hilton Armstrong, Hasheem Thabeet, etc. Drummond's contribution has the chance of being something similar to what Emeka gave us the first season, though he will probably be a better scorer by the end of the season than Emeka was his first year. It wasn't until his 3rd season when Emeka become proficient in the post.

 

[Waquoit]

The main difference between these two is that Drummond is at the start of his hoop journey while Sullinger is pretty much at his peak. He'll be a journeyman pro at best, a Big Baby type. The sky's the limit for Drummond if he can buy into the team concept.

 

[Burnsbros23]

Drummond's back the basket game is not great right now. I would be really surprised if he averaged 15 and 10 for the whole year. I see him maybe averaging that in the NCAA tournament.

Think you might be seeling Sullinger a little short with the big baby comparisons. I like the Kevin Love comparisons

 

[Dogbreath2U]

Isn't Sullinger's father a basketball coach? The kid is very skilled and savvy for his age, likely in part to having been learning the game at a high level from an early age (as well as being big and tall and fairly athletic).

I'm getting a little concerned that our expectations for Andre may jump too far ahead. Watching edited all star videos show him at his best, but he may not be ready to fully assert himself upon arrival at Storrs. Remember his statement about not being used to playing against "20 year old full grown men?" I think he may be a little more like Rudy than Jeff Adrien in personality and may take a while to find his comfort zone. I also hold out hope that he could be at UConn for a second year, but would not bet the ranch.

 

[NHUConnfan]

Man, I think a lot of you are selling AD short. He's not going to have a ridiculous year, but why talk him down? He's one of the best prospects ever to grace this team. Hasheem averaged 6.8 points per game as a freshman. AD has twice the amount of skills already...he's going to get his average of a double-double, if not very very close.

 

[Burnsbros23]

Have u seen him play a game? Not just highlights.

 

[F.Courage]

Thank you everyone for the conversation.

My point is this, JS was a Top 3 prospect entering school last year. We can look back and see his impact.

AD is a Top 3 prospect this year. Yet he is also considered the best big man prospect entering college since Greg Oden.
(almost 16 and 10 along with 3 blocks his freshman year)

Although their games are different, both JS and AD are two of the best big man to enter college in the past two years.
Since Andre is so highly regarded, I was curious to see how folks would compare him to the best big man from last
year's class.

 

[itsasport]

I think Andre chose UConn this year because he knew it would be a great opportunity to improve his game before he went to the NBA -great coaching and competition. He knew that was not going to happen if he played another year where he was. Also, perhaps he wanted to wear the UConn uniform for a year and have a chance to participate in a national championship. I think that attitude is really laudatory. We should enjoy the opportunity to see him grow under a great coach. He is going to do his best; and, whatever that is, we should appreciate as a gift from him to us.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

Considering the makup of our team I don't see how AD can put up the numbers his freshman year that JS did for OSU. This does not mean he won't be as good of a player, merely that he will have fewer opportunities for points and rebounds.

 

[ArizonaHusky]

His impact will be he can sprint the length and get in the blocks before any big man in the country can set up. He is athletic, and when we play fast and loose he will be the most effective. I think missed shots may be our best "play" as how do you box out our length? We also have a ton of shot blockers which should help push that speed.

 

[Walker11]

Anyone who thinks Drummond will be the first option over Lamb is just wrong. Lamb may be the best pure scorer in the country, especially if his ability of the bounce keeps on improving (he looked really good in Europe pulling up off the dribble and taking it to the hole) His entire game vs. Lithuania is/was up there.

Drummond just doesnt look to be a go to scorer yet. I see him in the low teens because he will get a lot of alley-oops and put back dunks and maybe taking some bigs off the dribble from the high post. If his low post game is better than expected he will simply be unreal. I just dont think its realistic to expect mid to high teens in points. The team is going to average around 70 ppg. I expect Jeremy to be high teens, AO and Shabazz to be low teens, DD and Roscoe to be somewhere between 15-20 combined and guys like Giffey and Boatright will occasionally chip in with 10 + points. Maybe AD could average high teens if the team wasn't so stacked, but fortunately for us, it is.

 

[Hugo]

I think Drummond will be as good as the team's ability to get him the ball in scoring position. That will take some time to happen, but the end of the year, AD is going to be as reliable as Emeka was 2004.

I would be very surprised but extremely delighted if this were to happen by the end of this year. But IMO you just don't develop the overall consistency and BB IQ in one year of college to be able to perform at the level EO did in his Jr. year. EO was the best player in college in 2004 and although AD may have greater potential, I just can't see him being as reliable as EO was in 2004 after only a single year. Getting him the ball in "scoring position" will depend on how his offensive game expands to include more than dunks and put-backs. Don't forget that by 2004 EO's game extended to a pretty consistent 10' or 12' jumper as he became much more of an offensive threat.

 

[Maniaman]

Does everyone really think that he will be better than Alex before he plays a collegiate game? I like everyone's enthusiasm but wow Drummond is approaching God like levels. People now talking AD as the first option on a team that returns practically all Championship winners (that has a pre-season AA). No he won't be the first option and no he won't be the best player on the team next season. Doesn't mean that he won't be a number one pro pick, but UConn is loaded with Lamb and Alex leading the charge.

To me if the kid fits in plays hard he will be fine.

I believe AD will be better from the get-go. He changes the whole dynamics of this team. More so than any other player we have had !!

 

[aceboon]

This, I know alot of people didn't get a chance to watch the games, but alot of posters are going to be impressed by the variety in which Jeremy can score now. The floaters and spot up jumpers we've already seen, but he was taking guys off the dribble and pulling up with ease. The youtube highlights of Drummond are great, but he's still unrefined in the post and he's not someone you can just dump the ball into and let him go to work. Jeremy can have the same plays run for him that all of our other great guards/wings have had and he can take people off the dribble in iso situations.

Anyone who thinks Drummond will be the first option over Lamb is just wrong. Lamb may be the best pure scorer in the country, especially if his ability of the bounce keeps on improving (he looked really good in Europe pulling up off the dribble and taking it to the hole) His entire game vs. Lithuania is/was up there.

Drummond just doesnt look to be a go to scorer yet. I see him in the low teens because he will get a lot of alley-oops and put back dunks and maybe taking some bigs off the dribble from the high post. If his low post game is better than expected he will simply be unreal. I just dont think its realistic to expect mid to high teens in points. The team is going to average around 70 ppg. I expect Jeremy to be high teens, AO and Shabazz to be low teens, DD and Roscoe to be somewhere between 15-20 combined and guys like Giffey and Boatright will occasionally chip in with 10 + points. Maybe AD could average high teens if the team wasn't so stacked, but fortunately for us, it is.