Karaban still weighing decision whether to return or go pro | Page 5 | The Boneyard

Karaban still weighing decision whether to return or go pro

With the transfer portal closing tomorrow and AK still not making a decision I'm looking at who is still out there who plays forward and is ranked in the top 100 or so transfer portal players and it's slim pickings at this point.

RJ Luis- NBA second round pick/2 way contract or return to college somewhere

Darrion Williams- NBA second round pick/2 way contract or return to college somewhere

Stojakovic- NBA second round pick/2 way contract or return to college somewhere

Jamir Watkins (Illinois, Kentucky, Louisville)

Baker-Mazara (Arkansas favored)

Derrion Reid (NC State, BYU, Florida, Oklahoma)

Cedric Coward (Florida, Duke, Kansas, Alabama)

Dillon Mitchell (St. John's visit)

Kennard Davis Jr (Iowa, Ole Miss, Miss State, ASU, Virginia Tech, Miamia, LSU, OSU)
Would’ve loved to have seen us go after Bol Bowen before he committed but I get that that would’ve meant immediately assuming karaban was gone
 
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He can enter the draft and come back. But he just said this past Saturday that he doesn't want to test the waters.

He could decide to test the waters again, like he did last summer, leaving the option open to return before the June 15 withdrawal deadline, but Karaban says he’d prefer to just rip the Band-Aid off.

“I think I am able to test, I just don’t know if I’ll do that,” he said. “I think I’d rather just decide if I want to stay or go and just make that decision.”


Waiting for him to test the waters and UConn waiting made sense last year. This year…no way. If you declare then UConn needs to move on….

we can all support him taking his time to decide, but he’s been through the process before. It’s time to decide and live with that decision either way.
 
Sorry to say I think we screwed the pooch on this. Regardless of what Alex decides, we needed a legitimate power forward anyway. While waiting for him make up his mind, a large number of good options have been signed leaving us with the table scraps. While I am grateful for what Alex has done for the program, no one is bigger than the team itself. I hope the coaches have a real plan and not some half ass cobbled solution.
Drama Monkey GIF
 
Conspiracy brain here, Karaban is intentionally delaying his decision to prevent the staff from going after a big name in the portal to look out for the up and coming guys on the team lol.

Him waiting for the portal to close to announce is hilarious.
 
(If AK doesn't come back)

Instead of signing one of the meh PF's still available, why not follow the Michigan model and play our two bigs together? Reibe and Reed...playing positionless, frontcourt basketball. Both would be simply post players.

If one of them fouls out, put whoever didn't at C, move Stewart to PF, and put in either Furphy or Mullins at SF.

That's a better starting 5 than anyone we'd bring in from the portal.
No, please not the double bigs thing again.

First, we literally have no third center now and we barely have any PFs. Michigan played double bigs with two highly skilled vets. Reed is a monster but his offensive game is limited to the post so he’s the 5 ostensibly, which means Reibe needs to be so advanced as a freshman that he can guard 4’s - especially stretch/undersized fours - on defense while also being able to offer enough of a shooting threat to prevent the lane from clogging up.

Double bigs in today’s game are such a rarity because it just doesn’t make sense unless you have the perfect personnel and/or no other option.
 
True. But a low return on investment. Costs-> Air fare, time, inconvenience of air travel, carfare, hotel, risk of losing luggage, meal costs.
For a handshake?
Maybe trying to get away from the hoopla of being the BMOC. Or an annoying girlfriend. I sometimes go to the grocery store without a list to get away from the madness in my house. Scan the beer/wine section, check out the steaks, etc. Sometimes ya just gotta get away.
 
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No, please not the double bigs thing again.

First, we literally have no third center now and we barely have any PFs. Michigan played double bigs with two highly skilled vets. Reed is a monster but his offensive game is limited to the post so he’s the 5 ostensibly, which means Reibe needs to be so advanced as a freshman that he can guard 4’s - especially stretch/undersized fours - on defense while also being able to offer enough of a shooting threat to prevent the lane from clogging up.

Double bigs in today’s game are such a rarity because it just doesn’t make sense unless you have the perfect personnel and/or no other option.
When Reed was at Michigan, he had more to his offensive game than he was able to show as a 5 in UConn's offense.

Your point is well-taken about Reibe or Reed guarding an undersized, athletic, stretch 4. Conversely that 4 would have a very difficult time trying to guard Reibe or Reed.

If there's a PF who surfaces who's better suited for that position than Reibe/Reed then definitely sign him if possible. In agreement on that. Otherwise, I'd rather roll the dice and go with talent/size over bringing in a portal PF who's just 'meh'.
 
People trying to microanalyze Karaban's travel to Chicago is one of the more bizarre things I've read on here recently.
Hartford's the Insurance Capital so I'm guessing it's our BY insurance actuaries getting pumped up about the statistical significance of this new travel data... they'll have a risk factor measure out on this travel business any minute now
 
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Waiting for him to test the waters and UConn waiting made sense last year. This year…no way. If you declare then UConn needs to move on….

we can all support him taking his time to decide, but he’s been through the process before. It’s time to decide and live with that decision either way.
My god I would hope if/when he declares that staff would actively try to fill his spot. Waiting for him to declare before signing a replacement transfer is one thing, but we cant afford to wait for him to test and decide whether he wants to withdraw his name from the draft. That might not be until June 15th. The portal closes Friday I think, there won’t be anyone left to sign by May let alone mid June.
 
My god I would hope if/when he declares that staff would actively try to fill his spot. Waiting for him to declare before signing a replacement transfer is one thing, but we cant afford to wait for him to test and decide whether he wants to withdraw his name from the draft. That might not be until June 15th. The portal closes Friday I think, there won’t be anyone left to sign by May let alone mid June.
Portal closes today. But we won't have to worry about waiting on Alex to go through the draft process again, he said if he declares he's going
 
Portal closes today. But we won't have to worry about waiting on Alex to go through the draft process again, he said if he declares he's going
Jeeze I was hoping at least 1 more quality PF would enter before it closed…
 
With the transfer portal closing tomorrow and AK still not making a decision I'm looking at who is still out there who plays forward and is ranked in the top 100 or so transfer portal players and it's slim pickings at this point.

RJ Luis- NBA second round pick/2 way contract or return to college somewhere

Darrion Williams- NBA second round pick/2 way contract or return to college somewhere

Stojakovic- NBA second round pick/2 way contract or return to college somewhere

Jamir Watkins (Illinois, Kentucky, Louisville)

Baker-Mazara (Arkansas favored)

Derrion Reid (NC State, BYU, Florida, Oklahoma)

Cedric Coward (Florida, Duke, Kansas, Alabama)

Dillon Mitchell (St. John's visit)

Kennard Davis Jr (Iowa, Ole Miss, Miss State, ASU, Virginia Tech, Miamia, LSU, OSU)
Forget a one for one Alex replacement at this point, who on this list can give us 15-20mpg as a backup 4/5 off the bench?

Right now the only two guy capable of backing up Stew and Reed are Ross and Reibe. Can we make another run at Monroe? We can make an offer he can’t refuse with some of the NIL Alex was getting. Tick tock.
 
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Forget a one for one Alex replacement at this point, who on this list can give us 15-20mpg as a backup 4/5 off the bench?

Right now the only two guy capable of backing up Stew and Reed are Ross and Reibe. Can we make another run at Monroe? We can make an offer he can’t refuse with some of the NIL Alex was getting. Tick tock.
Portal closing is for incoming to the portal, not in the portal signing. We can sign in a week, two, three...
 
Forget a one for one Alex replacement at this point, who on this list can give us 15-20mpg as a backup 4/5 off the bench?

Right now the only two guy capable of backing up Stew and Reed are Ross and Reibe. Can we make another run at Monroe if Alex declares? We can make an offer he can’t refuse with some of the NIL Alex was getting
The only names I've seen them involved with at this point are Williams and Stojakovic and they seem to be the only guys available. They would both start but we're probably behind other schools for them. AK has really put us in a tough position, I will be pretty bummed if he doesn't return now.
 

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