Juwan Durham update??

[JimHurley]

So Vance will be the clear best player on a team who wins an NCAA tournament game?

And will be AAC freshman of the year, AAC tournament MVP and 2nd team all AAC his sophomore year?

Just an FYI when you have the same opinion as Jim you need to reconsider your opinion

Dude Hamilton had such an unforgettable career, no doubt about it. Vance might not do what Hamilton did in his first two years but he will definitely leave UConn with a better legacy.

 

[BearJWS]

Wow, so someone is posting positive comments about our incoming Freshman, but the Negative Nancys want to dump on him yet again? Really??? Obviously, a no win situation here.... Tip: before one criticizes, please provide an explanation to support theory!

I agree, Durham will be great player for us, once he's fully healthy. And based on this latest article, Durham is doing well in his rehab (yes, still more to come). Still 5 months until he would play his first game at UConn in November (21 months after his 1st ACL injury & 15 months after his 2nd). He was essentially a 5 Star guy before he got injured, but he has great offensive skills, long & athletic. We've got a Top 10 class for a reason, because we have excellent players coming in. Lots of "needs" coming in this year. I think Ollie has put together an excellent class, so we should be optimistic!

 

[Hungryhusky99]

So Vance will be the clear best player on a team who wins an NCAA tournament game?

And will be AAC freshman of the year, AAC tournament MVP and 2nd team all AAC his sophomore year?

Just an FYI when you have the same opinion as Jim you need to reconsider your opinion

You can't say he is the clear best player when he was nonexistent for a good majority of the season . And he was a projected lottery pick and only ended up second team aac . I would say he had a dissapointing season .

 

[7774]

Dude Hamilton had such an unforgettable career, no doubt about it. Vance might not do what Hamilton did in his first two years but he will definitely leave UConn with a better legacy.

I'm sure he will, just like Cassell was going to average 10ppg this season

 

[Jerry1714]

You can't say he is the clear best player when he was nonexistent for a good majority of the season . And he was a projected lottery pick and only ended up second team aac . I would say he had a dissapointing season .

He was one of only two players in the country (also Ben Simmons) with 450 points, 300 rebounds, and 150 assists. He lead the team in rebounding in 27 games last year and in assists in 26 games. Yup non-existent for a "good majority of the season". You are funny

 

[Hungryhusky99]

He was one of only two players in the country (also Ben Simmons) with 450 points, 300 rebounds, and 150 assists. He lead the team in rebounding in 27 games last year and in assists in 26 games. Yup non-existent for a "good majority of the season". You are funny

The object of the game is to put the ball in the hoop. For a majority of the season Hamilton had a very difficult time doing this.

 

[nomar]

The object of the game is to put the ball in the hoop. For a majority of the season Hamilton had a very difficult time doing this.

So when you pass the ball to someone and they put it in the hoop, you did good, right? What if you did that twice as much as anyone else on the team? Would that be good?

 

[JMick]

So when you pass the ball to someone and they put it in the hoop, you did good, right? What if you did that twice as much as anyone else on the team? Would that be good?

If they were that good they'd just put it in the hoop themselves

 

[Hungryhusky99]

So when you pass the ball to someone and they put it in the hoop, you did good, right? What if you did that twice as much as anyone else on the team? Would that be good?

How about that 11 game stretch in the middle of the season where he shot 30%?If your clear best player can't efficiently score that's a problem .

 

[Stainmaster]

I'm sure he will, just like Cassell was going to average 10ppg this season

I forgot about this. Thanks, I needed a laugh tonight.

 

[mbt0512]

Good video update here on Juwan

http://static.baynews9.com/newsvideo/bn9/web_video/6-3-16 Juwan Durham Recovery PKG.f4v

Thanks for posting this-I am really excited to see him don a Husky uniform and hopefully prove his doubters wrong. He seems to have a big ceiling and not only a great head on his shoulders but the right mentality to succeed. If his rehab progresses well, think he could be a much bigger contributor than many seem to expect..

 

[JimHurley]

I'm sure he will, just like Cassell was going to average 10ppg this season

That was before Gibbs committed, clown. I said once Gibbs committed Cassell would barely see the court. Get your facts straight

 

[lange10]

Usually don't side with @JimOllie and I might catch flack for this but I somewhat agree about his assessment of DHam. However, "unforgettable" is probably the wrong word to describe his career.

DHam was an incredible facilitator and rebounder, but often times was frustratingly inconsistent, lackadaisical and seemingly disinterested (perhaps why he decided to just forego his last 2 seasons despite everyone telling him to return. Also makes sense when factoring in the rumors that he had his mind made up before the season that it was his final year in a husky uniform no matter what). His jump shot, handle, and athleticism were all mediocre. Still, though, DHam was great numerous times at UConn and was a huge reason for some of our successes this season, especially late in the season (ie. Cincy - he was fricken incredible).

DHam is a great basketball talent, but it never came to fruition like we all thought it would and for that reason I'd say he underachieved here. But still, to definitively say a freshman who you haven't seen play a lick of live basketball will "definitely" out perform DHam and what he was able to accomplish at UConn is a bit naive.

 

[JimHurley]

Usually don't side with @JimOllie and I might catch flack for this but I somewhat agree about his assessment of DHam. However, "unforgettable" is probably the wrong word to describe his career.

DHam was an incredible facilitator and rebounder, but often times was frustratingly inconsistent, lackadaisical and seemingly disinterested (perhaps why he decided to just forego his last 2 seasons despite everyone telling him to return. Also makes sense when factoring in the rumors that he had his mind made up before the season that it was his final year in a husky uniform no matter what). His jump shot, handle, and athleticism were all mediocre. Still, though, DHam was great numerous times at UConn and was a huge reason for some of our successes this season, especially late in the season (ie. Cincy - he was fricken incredible).

DHam is a great basketball talent, but it never came to fruition like we all thought it would and for that reason I'd say he underachieved here. But still, to definitively say a freshman who you haven't seen play a lick of live basketball will "definitely" out perform DHam and what he was able to accomplish at UConn is a bit naive.

Ok so maybe "underachieved" was the word I was looking for. We all thought he would have been better.

 

[uchusky32]

Hey fellas, look, the Durham thread is over here!

 

[Cassius Klaiber]

Actually, given the explosion of posts I half-expected the thread to tell me Juwon needed a 3rd ACL surgery. So it's kinda a relief that it's just another derailed thread.

 

[7774]

That was before Gibbs committed, clown. I said once Gibbs committed Cassell would barely see the court. Get your facts straight

Gibbs committed in the middle of May last year. Here's a post from you in June of last year stating Cassell is more than capable of averaging 10 ppg.

Who is going to surprise this year?

It's like you have a disability that doesn't allow you to be factually accurate at any time.

 

[Leebo]

Gibbs committed in the middle of May last year. Here's a post from you in June of last year stating Cassell is more than capable of averaging 10 ppg.

Who is going to surprise this year?

It's like you have a disability that doesn't allow you to be factually accurate at any time.

Or it's even worse... every time he posts he forgets that it stays on the board.

 

[BearJWS]

Who cares? Enough of the personal witch hunts. Does this constant attacking of him make you feel like a better person? Should we monitor all your posts too to see how accurate they are a year later? What's your ratio for accuracy?

 

[Paesano]

Who cares? Enough of the personal witch hunts. Does this constant attacking of him make you feel like a better person? Should we monitor all your posts too to see how accurate they are a year later? What's your ratio for accuracy?

Sweet baby THIS^^^^^^^^!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the bizzare group behavior that makes me call this place a frat house.

On the subject of Hamilton, I too was surprised by his lack of improvement and thought he underperformed last year. His rebounding was very good. That is undeniable. But you can't talk about point and assist totals in a vacuum. You need to also look at FG% and A/TO ratio. Hamilton's shooting was horrid at times.

On a related note, just like Hamilton was a very good rebounder, 7774 is undeniably good at looking stuff up and he, apparently, has the time to do it. Be prepared to give him credit for proving you wrong from time to time.

 

[KemBuckets21]

Ok so maybe "underachieved" was the word I was looking for. We all thought he would have been better.

"underachieved" and "unforgettable" have extremely different meanings. Agree with your second sentence though.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Not to further derail the thread, but I think a lot of our view of Hamilton is colored by the fact that he left well before he was prepared to do so, and before he accomplished much of note at a team level.

If he stays for a 3rd year, earns 1st team all-AAC and 2nd or 3rd team All-American, and we go on to win the AAC regular season and tournament, get a #3 seed and make the Elite 8, then I think we look back on his 2nd year more charitably as a season of learning and growth.

As it is, he curtailed that process, leaves UConn with an incomplete legacy.

In a vacuum, for a sophomore he had a pretty good year. For a sophomore who left after 2 years, he had a pretty mediocre year and a fairly forgettable career on a team level.

 

[Huskyforlife]

The middle ground has to be somewhere between he was a good player who underachieved.

 

[ctchamps]

Usually don't side with @JimOllie and I might catch flack for this but I somewhat agree about his assessment of DHam. However, "unforgettable" is probably the wrong word to describe his career.

DHam was an incredible facilitator and rebounder, but often times was frustratingly inconsistent, lackadaisical and seemingly disinterested (perhaps why he decided to just forego his last 2 seasons despite everyone telling him to return. Also makes sense when factoring in the rumors that he had his mind made up before the season that it was his final year in a husky uniform no matter what). His jump shot, handle, and athleticism were all mediocre. Still, though, DHam was great numerous times at UConn and was a huge reason for some of our successes this season, especially late in the season (ie. Cincy - he was fricken incredible).

DHam is a great basketball talent, but it never came to fruition like we all thought it would and for that reason I'd say he underachieved here. But still, to definitively say a freshman who you haven't seen play a lick of live basketball will "definitely" out perform DHam and what he was able to accomplish at UConn is a bit naive.

Somewhere when this thread left the rails apparently the word unforgettable took on a new meaning.

 

[KembaStepback]

I hate to further bring this thread off track - but just to make a point here. I hope JimOllie is right. I hope Vance has a great legacy at UConn. I didn't see Hamilton as a problem. Did he underachieve a bit as a soph? Yes. However he did certainly improve. His rebounding and assist numbers were good, even though his scoring wasn't great. He GREATLY improved as a FT shooter, which was a huge plus. (Improved 20% in this area!) One flaw he didn't correct was his 3 point shooting. He actually was slightly worse as a soph. To me, his defense was inconsistent at best, and when watching him on offense, I thought he looked weak. If he hit the weight room and also his 3 point shot, I think he'd have come back and had a MONSTER season. Obviously that's all moot. The other interesting stat I noticed is that he only took 1 more shot per game as a soph. I feel like that's a little low. The reason for this is that the team loaded up with post-grad vets in Gibbs and Miller who demanded more shots. Ive said it before and this will be the last time I say it...but Hamilton really would have benefitted from one more year in Storrs. I wish him the best of luck with the draft process.

As for Vance - to be honest all I really know about him is that he's a shooter. I know he's an IQ guy and he's crafty. I don't know how that translates to the college game. So I cant really speak about him.

As far as legacy goes...Hamilton's legacy is winning us an AAC Tournament in which he was named Tournament MOP. Which is nothing to sneeze at. I know we're used to winning National Titles, but winning your conference tournament is an amazing honor.

Last years team got unlucky. They started playing their best ball in March. Won their conference tournament then got very unlucky to run into a loaded Kansas team.