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Message: [QUOTE="Hunt for 7, post: 5254164, member: 12414"] Well I have always been a fan. It is just amazing how Hurley and staff get these high level athletes to stay. Now we only need the answer on one more player. But Ross coming back more than likely means he is going to see minutes. The pattern with Hurley is that if these young men make it to year three he is going to find them a roll. Also you have to consider is he probably has seen his NIL market value and UConn was/is still willing to pay him near or at his market value and he believes long term the best way to get to the next level is with this coaching staff. He will be a defensive stopper and maybe he takes the type of one year jump that a few players have made in their junior years. He was a 6’2” kid his sophomore and part of his junior year. Clearly he bloomed late from a physical standpoint and it takes time to learn how to play in your body when you grow almost a foot in high school. I am seeing it with my son. He has grown almost 8” from his freshman year to his now middle of his junior year. From 5’3” as a freshman and being small but very athletic and he could hit. Now as a junior they moved him from second base to centerfield because he did not lose his speed or ability to defend. But he has improved arm strength. Only problem so far this year is he is not hitting. His coach told him not to worry about it this year or until he stops growing. His coach has a theory on the hitting problems this year but they are going to stick with him because all the physical attributes especially speed have not slipped. He was the fastest kid on the team as a 5’5” sophomore and he is still the fastest kid on the team at 5’11”. And I will say this the competitive landscape for a high school student in south Florida is completely different than it is in CT. Perhaps my personal experience is why I root for Jayden, I would like to think that what I saw was by one of the best athletes on the team (maybe Samson was better ), but no one else. Another example of how special UConn is these kids want to stay after being here two years. So far not sure the first few weeks of the off season could have gone better as I really thought Ross was going into the portal. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach