LJ Peak top 5...

[aceboon]

Not sure what is revisionist about it, I'm pretty sure both Izzo and Calhoun used the term "cut the head off of the snake" after the game to describe the gameplan centered around taking AJ away. Our offense was centered around the high ball screen, not only did MSU put Travis Walton on him, one of the best perimeter defenders in the country that year, they jumped out on him on the high ball screen with a big every single time we ran it, smothering him on the perimeter. This was talked about during and after the game so there's nothing that's being revised. Also, while Hasheem was easily the best interior defender in CBB that year and his offense improved, calling him the most dominant player in CBB is quite the stretch. The most dominant player doesn't get gun butted like Hasheem did against DeJaun Blair that year.

I think the real revisionist history is the one remembering MSU's gameplan, and not a 5 for 20 shooting performance from our apparent best player, as the reason for our downfall in that game. Thabeet and Adrien, the two we're all apparently so quick to discount, combined for 30 points and 20 rebounds. I'm a bit confused as to why this is supposed to illustrate how good AJ was, but ok. If you're argument is that AJ was the most irreplaceable player on that team, then I would agree, but that doesn't necessarily make him the best.

What made the 09 team so good, in my opinion, was the formidable frontcourt play. Adrien was the rarest of commodities in this day and age of college basketball - a hulking power forward with a 7'2 wingspan who could protect the rim, hit the occasional twelve footer, and outright intimidate the opposition. I don't think we should discount how crucial Adrien was to those teams.

As for Thabeet, I wasn't aware that people were still arguing he wasn't the undisputed best player on that team, given he was the most dominant player in college basketball and primarily responsible for our dominance. I mean, do we really need to re-visit the unquanitfiable value of having a 7'3 mammoth of a human being patrolling the paint who can block four shots a game and alter ten more? And it isn't as if he was a slouch offensively - he averaged 14 a game on 64% shooting and converted from the line at a respectable rate for a center. Oh yeah, and he also grabbed eleven rebounds a game - there's a reason he was consensus all-American.

Look - AJ Price was one of my favorite players to ever wear the UConn jersey, and I'm not trying to diminish his accomplishments in the least bit. But what made the 09 team so good was the outrageous length and athleticism we could throw at you at the three, four, and five positions. If you think Price was better than Thabeet or Adrien, fine - but it's a slap in the face to Adrien and Thabeet to act like my statement is so absurd.

 

[bmayuc]

if Purvis is able to sucessfully transition to the 1 there's plenty of time available for another SG/SF, plus it would be nice to have depth again now that we have a full deck of scholarships to play with.

Sorry to play dreamer, but imagine this lineup:

PG Rodney Purvis 6'4
SG Calhoun 6'5
SF Daniel Hamilton 6'8
PF kentan Facey 6'9
C Pascal Chukwu 7'2

That is a BEAST lineup for 2014-15

Ok, taking off the rose colored glasses...

 

[upstater]

Sorry to play dreamer, but imagine this lineup:

PG Rodney Purvis 6'4
SG Calhoun 6'5
SF Daniel Hamilton 6'8
PF kentan Facey 6'9
C Pascal Chukwu 7'2

That is a BEAST lineup for 2014-15

Ok, taking off the rose colored glasses...

This is why I'd like to see us grab Chukwu.

Oubre, Abu, Black and Hill are great, icing on the cake. Chukwu may be even more crucial. Especially if you get a good kid coming off the bench like Carrington.

 

[mauconnfan]

I think the real revisionist history is the one remembering MSU's gameplan, and not a 5 for 20 shooting performance from our apparent best player, as the reason for our downfall in that game. Thabeet and Adrien, the two we're all apparently so quick to discount, combined for 30 points and 20 rebounds. I'm a bit confused as to why this is supposed to illustrate how good AJ was, but ok. If you're argument is that AJ was the most irreplaceable player on that team, then I would agree, but that doesn't necessarily make him the best.

What made the 09 team so good, in my opinion, was the formidable frontcourt play. Adrien was the rarest of commodities in this day and age of college basketball - a hulking power forward with a 7'2 wingspan who could protect the rim, hit the occasional twelve footer, and outright intimidate the opposition. I don't think we should discount how crucial Adrien was to those teams.

As for Thabeet, I wasn't aware that people were still arguing he wasn't the undisputed best player on that team, given he was the most dominant player in college basketball and primarily responsible for our dominance. I mean, do we really need to re-visit the unquanitfiable value of having a 7'3 mammoth of a human being patrolling the paint who can block four shots a game and alter ten more? And it isn't as if he was a slouch offensively - he averaged 14 a game on 64% shooting and converted from the line at a respectable rate for a center. Oh yeah, and he also grabbed eleven rebounds a game - there's a reason he was consensus all-American.

Look - AJ Price was one of my favorite players to ever wear the UConn jersey, and I'm not trying to diminish his accomplishments in the least bit. But what made the 09 team so good was the outrageous length and athleticism we could throw at you at the three, four, and five positions. If you think Price was better than Thabeet or Adrien, fine - but it's a slap in the face to Adrien and Thabeet to act like my statement is so absurd.

Seriously you think to compare AJ Price and Jeff Adrien is a slap in the face to Adrien? #1 this is a tough comparison considering the different positions but these guys were both integral parts of the Husky puzzle when they were there so anyone's argument is a good one. Not like it's not a toss up at worst?????

 

[tentoes4rings]

Sorry to play dreamer, but imagine this lineup:

PG Rodney Purvis 6'4
SG Calhoun 6'5
SF Daniel Hamilton 6'8
PF kentan Facey 6'9
C Pascal Chukwu 7'2

That is a BEAST lineup for 2014-15

Ok, taking off the rose colored glasses...

I agree 100%. Adding Chukwu to the other four would be pretty lethal. We'd be very long and athletic for sure.

 

[CTBasketball]

Chukwu is a must get, but he will be hardest to get in this class. He WILL blow up this summer, and then you'll have the Kentucky's, Duke's, and all those other garbage places trying to rip this kid away from us. He is ours to lose.

 

[caw]

Sorry to play dreamer, but imagine this lineup:

PG Rodney Purvis 6'4
SG Calhoun 6'5
SF Daniel Hamilton 6'7
PF kentan Facey 6'9
C Pascal Chukwu 7'2

That is a BEAST lineup for 2014-15

Ok, taking off the rose colored glasses...

Chukwu is the only uncommitted player listed. It's not that much of a dream. If you want to dream, dream of something like this:

PG Rodney Purvis 6'4, Terrence Samuel 6'3
SG Omar Calhoun 6'5, Ahmed Hill 6'4
SF Daniel Hamilton 6'7, Kelly Oubre 6'7 or LJ Peak 6'5
PF Kentan Facey 6'9, Philip Nolan 6'9, Leon Tolksdorf 6'8
C Pascal Chukwu 7'2, Amida Brimah 7'0

I would love at minimum, one more guard (Hill, Carrington, Vaughn, Francis, McLaughlin, Joseph), one SF (Oubre, Peak, Gant, Chatman, Robinson) and one big (Chukwu, Black, Abu, Turner).

If UConn walks away from 2014 with one from each category above plus Hamilton and Purvis, 2014-2015 will be stacked with young talent. This is the "worst case" scenario, which would still be pretty awesome. "worse case" is based on what I assume the above listed rankings will be by end of summer.

PG Rodney Purvis 6'4, Terrence Samuel 6'3
SG Omar Calhoun 6'5, Khadeen Carrington 6'3
SF Daniel Hamilton 6'7, Kameron Chatman 6'8
PF Kentan Facey 6'9, Myles Turner 6'11, Leon Tolksdorf 6'8
C Philip Nolan 6'9, Amida Brimah 7'0

 

[OkaForPrez]

What is Amida's ceiling? We seem to dismiss him around here because he is a 3 star and a late riser. Why shouldn't I expect Thabeet like growth out of him?

 

[caw]

Chukwu is a must get, but he will be hardest to get in this class. He WILL blow up this summer, and then you'll have the Kentucky's, Duke's, and all those other garbage places trying to rip this kid away from us. He is ours to lose.

I disagree with almost all of this.

Chukwu would be a fantastic get but if the rotation of bigs at UConn is Facey, Black, Nolan, Brimah and Tolksdorf in 2014-2015 UConn will be fine. I do think a high quality big is a must get, but not necessarily Chukwu.

Black, Hill, Vaughn, McLaughlin and others will be just as hard or harder to get than Chukwu.

 

[caw]

What is Amida's ceiling? We seem to dismiss him around here because he is a 3 star and a late riser. Why shouldn't I expect Thabeet like growth out of him?

He's athletic, but is really skinny. Thabeet had a wider frame than Amida does. Amida could be really good by his junior year, but he's got a long way to go, especially in the weight room.

 

[champs99and04]

I would rank the importance of the 2009 players as 1) Thabeet, 2) Price, 3) Adrien, but I don't think there's a huge gap between any of those three guys. Price was really, really good but I imagine every opposing coach in the country built their gameplan around how to deal with Hasheem.

This is basically how I see it, though I have Adrien and Price flipped. AJ Price was extremely good and, IMO, the most important player to the 2009 team due to the way the roster was constructed. But you're right: there were about a dozen other guards in the country similar to Price (not as good, but similar), whereas nobody could replicate a towering shot-blocking machine in the middle of the lane.

 

[champs99and04]

Not sure what is revisionist about it, I'm pretty sure both Izzo and Calhoun used the term "cut the head off of the snake" after the game to describe the gameplan centered around taking AJ away. Our offense was centered around the high ball screen, not only did MSU put Travis Walton on him, one of the best perimeter defenders in the country that year, they jumped out on him on the high ball screen with a big every single time we ran it, smothering him on the perimeter. This was talked about during and after the game so there's nothing that's being revised. Also, while Hasheem was easily the best interior defender in CBB that year and his offense improved, calling him the most dominant player in CBB is quite the stretch. The most dominant player doesn't get gun butted like Hasheem did against DeJaun Blair that year.

I wasn't disputing the fact MSU constructed their gameplan around stopping AJ, I just didn't think that was why we lost the game. I think we lost the game because of the following four reasons, in no particular order:

1. MSU had a rare commodity in Goran Suton, somebody who shot 44% from three point range and had the ability to stretch the defense. This largely negated Hasheem's impact on the game defensively as he was forced to roam the perimeter rather than enforce the paint. Note: Hasheem's dominance was predicated on the lack of a three second rule in college basketball - if you forced him to adapt and guard the perimeter, UConn's defense was vulnerable. That's why MSU was unusually efficient against a generally stingy UConn defense, IMO.

2. Kemba played one of the worst games of his career, turning the ball over four times in 20 minutes, shooting 1 for 5 from the field, and 3 for 9 from the line. This touches on your main point, which is that MSU made a concerted effort to force the ball out of AJ's hands and into a more unproven floor general in Kemba. Clearly, Izzo bet correctly in this regard.

3. UConn struggled to adapt to MSU's defensive gameplan. Price forced the issue a bit, recording one of the worst shooting performances of his career (5 for 20). UConn also turned the ball over 16 times, which, unfortunately, unveiled the achilles heel of that team, which was the inability of their guards sans AJ to consistently create offense and protect the ball. Kemba wasn't suited to shoulder the burden at the PG position in a game of that magnitude, and Craig Austrie was more of a steadying presence than somebody who could be relied on to create.

4. Detroit - I was there, and it was the loudest sporting event I have ever been apart of. There comes a time, as a visitor, when there's really nothing to do. The energy from the crowd transitioned flawlessly to the players, to the point I half expected players on MSU to start flying up and down the court. The Summers dunk damn near brought down the roof, and from that point there was no way the Spartans were losing.

So, while it's clear AJ was the architect of the offense and player we could least afford to lose that season, the identity of that team was cultivated in the paint. Sure, Thabeet struggled mightily against DeJuan Blair, which looking back, should have served as a warning sign for what was about to become of his pro career. And yeah, Adrien was limited offensively, but for most schools playing that UConn squad had to have been like playing the bad boy Pistons. They were one of the last old-school college basketball teams - they overwhelmed you physically, kicked your a** in the paint, and suffocated you with their length and athleticism. Give that frontcourt to any decent college coach and it's difficult to not win a load of games.

 

[champs99and04]

Seriously you think to compare AJ Price and Jeff Adrien is a slap in the face to Adrien? #1 this is a tough comparison considering the different positions but these guys were both integral parts of the Husky puzzle when they were there so anyone's argument is a good one. Not like it's not a toss up at worst?????

You're mis-understanding: I said Adrien and Price were extremely close in terms of importance, and that it was a slap in the face to Adrien to act like Price was significantly better.

 

[superjohn]

What some of you seem to forget is that team couldn't score and had a hell of a time dribbling, AJ had to be the scorer, facilitator and was the only really good ball handler. Without him it would have been Austrie and Garrison in the backcourt. As good as Thabeet and Adrien were, AJ was by far the most important player on that final 4 team. With that said let's get back to talking about LJ Peak, hate it when these threads get hijacked.

 

[SeattleHoop]

PG Rodney Purvis 6'4, Terrence Samuel 6'3
SG Omar Calhoun 6'5, Khadeen Carrington 6'3
SF Daniel Hamilton 6'7, Kameron Chatman 6'8
PF Kentan Facey 6'9, Myles Turner 6'11, Leon Tolksdorf 6'8
C Philip Nolan 6'9, Amida Brimah 7'0

That Myles Turner kid seems severely underrated. Been watching some vids of him. Moves better than of the other big men we are going after though he is thinner. Still, he is almost 7 feet tall with a nice bounce and quick feet. Can knock down the mid range and long range J. And can even put it on the floor when under pressure. Would be a huge get in my opinion. On tape he looks like he could be better than Black or Abu.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaIFtcsEVbw

 

[SeattleHoop]

 

[SeattleHoop]

Haha I guess I take back my previous statement. ABU is a freak! Myles Turner is a little taller but ABU is almost NBA ready in terms of physicality and athleticism.

 

[3uconn]

Haha I guess I take back my previous statement. ABU is a freak! Myles Turner is a little taller but ABU is almost NBA ready in terms of physicality and athleticism.

Oh yea. Very strong player with explosiveness.

 

[SeattleHoop]

And why not! New vid for Black, posted 3 weeks ago.
If we can get either of those 3, Turner, Black or ABU to play PF and possibly Center depending on the line-up, we are in damn good shape. Chukwu would be a straight up Center.

 

[BearJWS]

I’ll settle this out of topic argument….

The 2008-2009 Team was all about balance. There’s no one player that should be singled out as more important than another. It’s all a tie in my opinion. That’s why this team was so good. Too bad Dyson got hurt near the end of the season or maybe there could have been another banner hanging in the rafters….

Valuable Stats from 2008-2009 Season
Price: 14.7 ppg, 4.7 apg, 3.5 rpg, 0.7 spg, 40% 3FG
Adrien: 13.6 ppg, 9.9 rpg, 1.2 bpg, 1.7 apg, 50% FG
Thabeet: 13.6 ppg, 10.7 rpg, 4.2 bpg, 64% FG
An Extra Dimension…
Dyson: 13.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.8 spg, 35% 3FG
Walker: 8.9 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.1 spg, 47% FG
Robinson: 8.5 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.1 bpg, 50% FG
Balance most teams would LOVE to have…

Ok… back to discussing LJ Peak, as this forum was intended to do…

 

[ctchamps]

I’ll settle this out of topic argument….

The 2008-2009 Team was all about balance. There’s no one player that should be singled out as more important than another. It’s all a tie in my opinion. That’s why this team was so good. Too bad Dyson got hurt near the end of the season or maybe there could have been another banner hanging in the rafters….

Valuable Stats from 2008-2009 Season
Price: 14.7 ppg, 4.7 apg, 3.5 rpg, 0.7 spg, 40% 3FG
Adrien: 13.6 ppg, 9.9 rpg, 1.2 bpg, 1.7 apg, 50% FG
Thabeet: 13.6 ppg, 10.7 rpg, 4.2 bpg, 64% FG
An Extra Dimension…
Dyson: 13.2 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.8 spg, 35% 3FG
Walker: 8.9 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.1 spg, 47% FG
Robinson: 8.5 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.1 bpg, 50% FG
Balance most teams would LOVE to have…

Ok… back to discussing LJ Peak, as this forum was intended to do…

Now you've done it. Peak hijacked to AJP hijacked to Dyson!!!!

 

[UConn990411]

If every single point guard in UConn history played up to his potential, I think Price would be the second best after Kemba.

People forget how good he was because it took him awhile to get back to form after the brain hemorrhage, and then again after the ACL tear. All things considered, we probably only got to see two half-seasons of A.J. Price at his peak level.

In any event, he's easily one of the most underrated guys to have played at UConn.

 

[BearJWS]

What is Amida's ceiling? We seem to dismiss him around here because he is a 3 star and a late riser. Why shouldn't I expect Thabeet like growth out of him?

I expect a nice shot blocking presence off the bench from Brimah, plus some added rebounds & dunks. Any scoring is a bonus. He's much more mobile than Thabeet. More finesse at this point. He'll score close to the basket, provided our guards look for him down low on occasion. He'll need to develop a post game outside put backs & easy dunks. He'll struggle guarding the strong, physical guys defensively. This is why someone like Abu coming in could help, to stand ground physically, with someone like Brimah and/or Chukwu standing behind Abu to swat shots away! Ala, the Adrien/Thabeet days.

But hey, seeing that Potential #1 Draft pick N.Noel weighed in at a whopping 206 lbs just for his defense, it's encouraging to me....

 

[superjohn]

Myles Turner looks really good from his videos, has a huge frame and is extremely well spoken for a 17 year old kid, very impressive.

 

[Huskyforlife]

hey aj price is great but can we get back to the topic of this thread?

 

[HuskyNationJE]

Meant Gant. Hill can run the 3, he's 6"5

 

[Danzz]

forget underrated, AJ might be the most disrespected player to wear a UConn jersey. I don't know if its the laptop issue or what that leads to the downplaying of his career, but his last 2 years once the rust wore off were two of the best from a UConn PG in regards to play and leadership.

AJ deserves some disrespect. Laptopgate was the worse thing that ever happened to Uconn's basketball reputation.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

AJ deserves some disrespect. Laptopgate was the worse thing that ever happened to Uconn's basketball reputation.

I agree it was a really stupid, bad thing for the program and he went through a lot for his part in it. But if you don't also recognize how much he matured by going through that and his medical problems, you miss what was as big a story--not nationally, but for those who follow the team closely. To me, the way it was handled resulted in his life changing in a really positive way and he gave back to UConn by sticking the course and being a really positive leader his last two years. I prefer that outcome to freescooter's continuing desire to deal with every transgression in the most severe way possible with UConn's image being the primary concern. I think it should be a concern, just not the only or dominant one.

 

[bmayuc]

That Myles Turner kid seems severely underrated. Been watching some vids of him. Moves better than of the other big men we are going after though he is thinner. Still, he is almost 7 feet tall with a nice bounce and quick feet. Can knock down the mid range and long range J. And can even put it on the floor when under pressure. Would be a huge get in my opinion. On tape he looks like he could be better than Black or Abu.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaIFtcsEVbw[/quote]

totally different players. Black/Abu have excellent speed/quickness/skill package. Turner seems like a much more traditional Pivot/rim protector who can step out once in a while. Black/Abu will be firmly in the 3/4 mold while turner is a 5.

 

[aceboon]

AJ deserves some disrespect. Laptopgate was the worse thing that ever happened to Uconn's basketball reputation.

I guess if you want to use that to discredit someone's game(and also ignore the fact that he matured as a person from that) then I guess that's your prerogative. It comes across as bitter, petty and immature, but carry on...