Lukas Kisunas Commits to UConn

[UConnStats]

In one of the worst days in our country’s history, it was nice to get a ray of sunshine in.

 

[JMick]

Why the white guy comment? I am VERY offended.

Y

 

[hardcorehusky]

KO utilizes an NBA offense. That means pick and pop, pick and roll, Screens. This kid is KO's dream offensive center. He will also open up the post for drives and cuts well to the basket which will lead to layoffs from the guards. If he has range to 3 - it's lights out as he will be a matchup nightmare in this offense. Being a banger also helps. I don't care where he is ranked- he fits KO's system like a glove!

 

[champs99and04]

I would have banked this scholarship. This kid sounds like a fine prospect, but the word that comes to mind for me in reading most of these responses is delusional. Let me elaborate:

- He is committed to play basketball here now, so there is no sense in bemoaning his presence as if this were in some way his fault. He is just a kid realizing his dreams, and even if he never contributes anything of tangible value to the program, I support his right to be the coolest person on campus because he's a basketball player and in signing the dotted line alone will have achieved far more than most of us. However, the holier than thou act from certain posters strikes me as slightly disingenuous given the fact that it is cloaked in anti Facey and Brimah sentiment. Those guys put in four years of service here, won a national championship, and will likely be remembered as better players than this kid will ever be.

- There is no bigger dork than me when it comes to things like screening, hedging, and feel for the game. But do you know who notices things like this? People who didn't sign Alex Oriakhi or Roscoe Smith or some other player who would win a national championship. And do you know who talks themselves into the allure of the "four year guy" and "role player" and "guy that you need?" The people who can't recruit the caliber of talent necessary to compete for championships. If I have to hear one more word about how Emeka Okafor was the 96th ranked player in the country or you don't need to recruit marquee talent to compete, my head is going to explode. The idea of a player outperforming his ranking is perfectly legitimate. The idea of six players outperforming their ranking is the sort of preciousness that makes Vegas rich. I very much value the intelligence of the people on this board, so I am going to assume that I am not in on the new act and that you all simply pretend not to know how statistics work. Along those lines...

- The overall caliber of recruit that this program has landed has dipped drastically over the last two classes. The idea that UConn under Calhoun settled for scraps is purely fiction. Option B used to mean top 50 players and option C used to mean top 100 guys. Now, we scrap together our resources for top 50 players (and in fairness, a few of them have been top 10 guys that went elsewhere for one reason or another) like Carey and end up settling for a lesser talent. Back in the day, a local, top 150 kid like Carrigan would have been the backup option and we would have been pleasantly surprised to learn he can play. Now that the kid is off our radar completely, we're forced to stoop a tier further. Then we finally offer him after losing out on several other options and we celebrate. OK. If that's going to be your outlook, fine. Let's just make sure it carries over to on court play.

- This is fine in a vacuum. We do not live in a vacuum, though, and this roster is not primed with the sort of talent that can withstand another flier - Cobb, Carlton, and whoever else you want to throw into that mix already have that covered. I understand that coaches over-recruit all the time, but there are healthy logjams and then there are logjams that consist of a bunch of redundant players, none of which can separate themselves from the pack. Between de-commitments, transfers, and graduations, there are a lot of options that remain worth monitoring...unless the staff has already kicked the tires on those and received negative feedback...which again brings us back to the problem.

- Look, I love college basketball. I'll watch New Hampshire vs. Stony Brook any day and marvel at the players that, for 40 minutes in March, can rise to the level of their more highly regarded contemporaries and cement a place in college basketball lore. This kid is a lot better than the type of player that normally winds up there. This is the type of player that winds up at Butler or Creighton or Purdue, damn solid programs that are well-coached and talented enough to make a run when the stars align. We're not that program. If we are, fine. I'll continue to invest in the program. But for now we're still UConn and it starts with the recruits, who, because of our recent struggles, might not be fully appreciated as individual talents. Jalen Adams is rare. Alterique Gilbert is rare. Terry Larrier is rare. Vital is a damn solid player and I imagine Diarra and a couple of the others will hold up just fine themselves. The recruits we have hauled in recently are slightly less than that. They are damn talented, mind you, but they represent a very perceptible drop in our status as a college basketball program. I knew that was coming on the court because you don't simply replace an all-time great and roll on conducting business as usual. I didn't know that recruiting would dip. Pair the two together and the optics are somewhat foreboding, however, I do think short-term the picture could be better than most expect, which has a way of fixing things in the end. As somebody else said, 2019 will be telling.

 

[uchusky32]

...well then.

 

[KembaStepback]

I talked about Blaze within a day or two - the stuff that’s happened since is far from vague stuff - we are getting commitments and a guy is actually practicing with the team every day.

I get the Blaze stuff. I was asking about Brewster package. Not sure why we can't know

 

[superjohn]

I would have banked this scholarship. This kid sounds like a fine prospect, but the word that comes to mind for me in reading most of these responses is delusional. Let me elaborate:

- He is committed to play basketball here now, so there is no sense in bemoaning his presence as if this were in some way his fault. He is just a kid realizing his dreams, and even if he never contributes anything of tangible value to the program, I support his right to be the coolest person on campus because he's a basketball player and in signing the dotted line alone will have achieved far more than most of us. However, the holier than thou act from certain posters strikes me as slightly disingenuous given the fact that it is cloaked in anti Facey and Brimah sentiment. Those guys put in four years of service here, won a national championship, and will likely be remembered as better players than this kid will ever be.

- There is no bigger dork than me when it comes to things like screening, hedging, and feel for the game. But do you know who notices things like this? People who didn't sign Alex Oriakhi or Roscoe Smith or some other player who would win a national championship. And do you know who talks themselves into the allure of the "four year guy" and "role player" and "guy that you need?" The people who can't recruit the caliber of talent necessary to compete for championships. If I have to hear one more word about how Emeka Okafor was the 96th ranked player in the country or you don't need to recruit marquee talent to compete, my head is going to explode. The idea of a player outperforming his ranking is perfectly legitimate. The idea of six players outperforming their ranking is the sort of preciousness that makes Vegas rich. I very much value the intelligence of the people on this board, so I am going to assume that I am not in on the new act and that you all simply pretend not to know how statistics work. Along those lines...

- The overall caliber of recruit that this program has landed has dipped drastically over the last two classes. The idea that UConn under Calhoun settled for scraps is purely fiction. Option B used to mean top 50 players and option C used to mean top 100 guys. Now, we scrap together our resources for top 50 players (and in fairness, a few of them have been top 10 guys that went elsewhere for one reason or another) like Carey and end up settling for a lesser talent. Back in the day, a local, top 150 kid like Carrigan would have been the backup option and we would have been pleasantly surprised to learn he can play. Now that the kid is off our radar completely, we're forced to stoop a tier further. Then we finally offer him after losing out on several other options and we celebrate. OK. If that's going to be your outlook, fine. Let's just make sure it carries over to on court play.

- This is fine in a vacuum. We do not live in a vacuum, though, and this roster is not primed with the sort of talent that can withstand another flier - Cobb, Carlton, and whoever else you want to throw into that mix already have that covered. I understand that coaches over-recruit all the time, but there are healthy logjams and then there are logjams that consist of a bunch of redundant players, none of which can separate themselves from the pack. Between de-commitments, transfers, and graduations, there are a lot of options that remain worth monitoring...unless the staff has already kicked the tires on those and received negative feedback...which again brings us back to the problem.

- Look, I love college basketball. I'll watch New Hampshire vs. Stony Brook any day and marvel at the players that, for 40 minutes in March, can rise to the level of their more highly regarded contemporaries and cement a place in college basketball lore. This kid is a lot better than the type of player that normally winds up there. This is the type of player that winds up at Butler or Creighton or Purdue, damn solid programs that are well-coached and talented enough to make a run when the stars align. We're not that program. If we are, fine. I'll continue to invest in the program. But for now we're still UConn and it starts with the recruits, who, because of our recent struggles, might not be fully appreciated as individual talents. Jalen Adams is rare. Alterique Gilbert is rare. Terry Larrier is rare. Vital is a damn solid player and I imagine Diarra and a couple of the others will hold up just fine themselves. The recruits we have hauled in recently are slightly less than that. They are damn talented, mind you, but they represent a very perceptible drop in our status as a college basketball program. I knew that was coming on the court because you don't simply replace an all-time great and roll on conducting business as usual. I didn't know that recruiting would dip. Pair the two together and the optics are somewhat foreboding, however, I do think short-term the picture could be better than most expect, which has a way of fixing things in the end. As somebody else said, 2019 will be telling.

You're right when you said, "there is no bigger dork than me." That should have been the entirety of the post.

 

[pj]

Don't get your pessimism champs. Kisunas is taller than any player on the team, is strong, and skilled. Center was the one spot on the roster with minimal talent and depth, and we've upgraded it. It's a great day.

 

[zepfan]

KO utilizes an NBA offense. That means pick and pop, pick and roll, Screens. This kid is KO's dream offensive center. He will also open up the post for drives and cuts well to the basket which will lead to layoffs from the guards. If he has range to 3 - it's lights out as he will be a matchup nightmare in this offense. Being a banger also helps. I don't care where he is ranked- he fits KO's system like a glove!

I couldn't agree more. I am thrilled about this kid. He seems like the kind of power forward/center I've seen for years on numerous other teams (e.g., Kansas, Purdue, Gonzaga, NC) but rarely a Uconn kid. A big body who can bang, has skills with the ball, and can move. I know its too early to have him averaging 10 pts, 10 rebs a game, but he looks like a great find. These last 4 recruits have really changed the landscape for the next few years. Good stuff!

 

[Leebo]

People are free to feel how they want about any recruit. But his commitment thread is a pretty lousy place to complain about him. We haven't seen him play and we his ranking isn't set in stone.

I don't know where the line about "cloaked in anti-Facey and anti-Brimah sentiments" is coming from. Did anyone bash Facey and Brimah when saying "hey let's lay off the kid in his congratulation topic."

 

[Stainmaster]

Back in the day, a local, top 150 kid like Carrigan would have been the backup option and we would have been pleasantly surprised to learn he can play. Now that the kid is off our radar completely, we're forced to stoop a tier further.

Someone who's in the know correct me if I'm wrong, but it seems as if Carrigan is off everyone's radar. I've heard rumors that he's going the JUCO route, and if that were to be the case, I think it's safe to say the reason he isn't coming here out of prep school has very little to do with the program's recruiting gravitas.

This is the type of player that winds up at Butler or Creighton or Purdue, damn solid programs that are well-coached and talented enough to make a run when the stars align. We're not that program.

Each of those three programs have outperformed us by multiple metrics the past few years, whether it be on-court performance, draft picks, or the recruiting trail. If we are to vault back up to that "first-tier blue blood on a year-to-year basis" status, we can't take a superhighway from losing recruits to Rutgers, Nevada, and Texas Tech to there. The ladder of respectability has to be climbed up, and that's done by re-learning how to beat out the kind of "damn solid" programs you're maligning here before moving up.

FWIW, Kisunas had more P5 offers than any big currently on the roster (caveat - if Polley is counted as a 3), and the upper end of his list (including UVA and Pitt) is more impressive than any of the others.

This is the type of recruit who will perform at a high level against AAC competition, more than hold his own against P5 schools in OOC and in the tourney. Against Duke/UK, if we get there? He at least appears to have the BBIQ to perform within himself in those instances and not detract from the alpha dogs.

I knew that was coming on the court because you don't simply replace an all-time great and roll on conducting business as usual. I didn't know that recruiting would dip.

Part of what made JC an all-time great was his recruiting ability and the sheer amount of time he spent over a 40-year coaching career honing his craft.

The multitude of other circumstances affecting recruiting have been alluded to, but I already get labeled an apologist enough and (quite frankly) it gets kind of tiring.

 

[Fishy]

This is a perfect four-year player.

Perfect.

No grade issues. Solid fundamentals, very tough. He's somewhere around 6'9", 250 and there's this...

From Rivals -Kisunas is exactly what head coach Kevin Ollie was looking for in rounding out his 2018 class - a take-no-prisoners type of big man that can rebound his area, protect his basket and score with his back to the rim.

I don't really care about his ratings - he just visited Illinois, he's been to UVa, Pitt, etc. He wasn't on the AAU scene this year which I'm sure affected his ratings, but the offers tell the tale.

Dimon Carrigan is a good prospect, but there are some grade issues and do we really need to see another 6'9", 210 pound center here?

 

[KingAG]

I would have banked this scholarship. This kid sounds like a fine prospect, but the word that comes to mind for me in reading most of these responses is delusional. Let me elaborate:

- He is committed to play basketball here now, so there is no sense in bemoaning his presence as if this were in some way his fault. He is just a kid realizing his dreams, and even if he never contributes anything of tangible value to the program, I support his right to be the coolest person on campus because he's a basketball player and in signing the dotted line alone will have achieved far more than most of us. However, the holier than thou act from certain posters strikes me as slightly disingenuous given the fact that it is cloaked in anti Facey and Brimah sentiment. Those guys put in four years of service here, won a national championship, and will likely be remembered as better players than this kid will ever be.

- There is no bigger dork than me when it comes to things like screening, hedging, and feel for the game. But do you know who notices things like this? People who didn't sign Alex Oriakhi or Roscoe Smith or some other player who would win a national championship. And do you know who talks themselves into the allure of the "four year guy" and "role player" and "guy that you need?" The people who can't recruit the caliber of talent necessary to compete for championships. If I have to hear one more word about how Emeka Okafor was the 96th ranked player in the country or you don't need to recruit marquee talent to compete, my head is going to explode. The idea of a player outperforming his ranking is perfectly legitimate. The idea of six players outperforming their ranking is the sort of preciousness that makes Vegas rich. I very much value the intelligence of the people on this board, so I am going to assume that I am not in on the new act and that you all simply pretend not to know how statistics work. Along those lines...

- The overall caliber of recruit that this program has landed has dipped drastically over the last two classes. The idea that UConn under Calhoun settled for scraps is purely fiction. Option B used to mean top 50 players and option C used to mean top 100 guys. Now, we scrap together our resources for top 50 players (and in fairness, a few of them have been top 10 guys that went elsewhere for one reason or another) like Carey and end up settling for a lesser talent. Back in the day, a local, top 150 kid like Carrigan would have been the backup option and we would have been pleasantly surprised to learn he can play. Now that the kid is off our radar completely, we're forced to stoop a tier further. Then we finally offer him after losing out on several other options and we celebrate. OK. If that's going to be your outlook, fine. Let's just make sure it carries over to on court play.

- This is fine in a vacuum. We do not live in a vacuum, though, and this roster is not primed with the sort of talent that can withstand another flier - Cobb, Carlton, and whoever else you want to throw into that mix already have that covered. I understand that coaches over-recruit all the time, but there are healthy logjams and then there are logjams that consist of a bunch of redundant players, none of which can separate themselves from the pack. Between de-commitments, transfers, and graduations, there are a lot of options that remain worth monitoring...unless the staff has already kicked the tires on those and received negative feedback...which again brings us back to the problem.

- Look, I love college basketball. I'll watch New Hampshire vs. Stony Brook any day and marvel at the players that, for 40 minutes in March, can rise to the level of their more highly regarded contemporaries and cement a place in college basketball lore. This kid is a lot better than the type of player that normally winds up there. This is the type of player that winds up at Butler or Creighton or Purdue, damn solid programs that are well-coached and talented enough to make a run when the stars align. We're not that program. If we are, fine. I'll continue to invest in the program. But for now we're still UConn and it starts with the recruits, who, because of our recent struggles, might not be fully appreciated as individual talents. Jalen Adams is rare. Alterique Gilbert is rare. Terry Larrier is rare. Vital is a damn solid player and I imagine Diarra and a couple of the others will hold up just fine themselves. The recruits we have hauled in recently are slightly less than that. They are damn talented, mind you, but they represent a very perceptible drop in our status as a college basketball program. I knew that was coming on the court because you don't simply replace an all-time great and roll on conducting business as usual. I didn't know that recruiting would dip. Pair the two together and the optics are somewhat foreboding, however, I do think short-term the picture could be better than most expect, which has a way of fixing things in the end. As somebody else said, 2019 will be telling.

Why are people choosing to ignore that Akinjo and sid Wilson are both top 100 players. Last yr was the only real dip. The yr before we brought in 3 top 100 recruits and a MCDAA. Before those classes Ollie realed in guys like Jalen Adams, Daniel Hamilton, and purvis/Larrier as transfers. We are already recruiting better than all the AAC, 95% of the big east(sans villanova) and the majority of power 5 teams. Why paint the perception that we are recruiting on a mid major level? It isnt reality

 

[awfuldan]

We absolutely needed a big man in this class. Dave O is gone next year. Cobb is gone the year after that. Carlton can play as a slightly undersized center. Who else?

Should we wait till April to scramble for whatever couple serviceable big men are left? Or should we take this solid player from a prestigious program who our staff and other high major staffs seem to really like?

I'm trusting our coaches on this one. Excited to watch this kid play.

 

[superjohn]

This is a perfect four-year player.

Perfect.

No grade issues. Solid fundamentals, very tough. He's somewhere around 6'9", 250 and there's this...

From Rivals -Kisunas is exactly what head coach Kevin Ollie was looking for in rounding out his 2018 class - a take-no-prisoners type of big man that can rebound his area, protect his basket and score with his back to the rim.

I don't really care about his ratings - he just visited Illinois, he's been to UVa, Pitt, etc. He wasn't on the AAU scene this year which I'm sure affected his ratings, but the offers tell the tale.

Dimon Carrigan is a good prospect, but there are some grade issues and do we really need to see another 6'9", 210 pound center here?

Carrigan may be 6'9 210 lbs. but his wingspan is huge and he is the best sbotblocker in high school ball, he is definitely someone I wanted/still want but grades.

 

[QDOG5]

Watching the video I was expecting to witness an almost unheard of no dunk mix tape but he got one very late. Even when he's uncontested under the rim he lays it in. Guys are gonna send that back in his face if he doesn't go hard. I expect he'll make that adjustment once he starts practicing at UCONN.

Watching Kennedy Meeks and Isiah Hicks throw down jam after jam as UNC won the NC last year was impressive. Oh wait,they didn't, they used their big bodies for rebound putbacks. Something that has been in short supply for the Huskies lately. Kind of reminds me of a bigger Jack Cooley. He had a nice college career for ND.

 

[selles]

You're right when you said, "there is no bigger dork than me." That should have been the entirety of the post.

You know, I've read a few personal attacks on champs lately and I don't much care for it.

Champs deserves a lot more respect around here than this. I don't always agree with him, and I don't agree with that post, but he always makes an effort to be rational and articulate and he always focuses on basketball instead of trying for gratuitous cheap shots. I appreciate that and enjoy reading his thoughts, even when I disagree.

I also think it's more than a little silly that you're going after him when his post is simply a logical continuation of the chicken with its head cut off posts you, UCDaveD and others were making non-stop this past spring and summer.

 

[Towney007]

TBH, the idea that UConn's going to magically getting back to having a pick of any 2 of the top 50 is kind of far-fetched. It's not that easy and we don't have the platform to offer that we once did.

I think there's *A LOT* to be said for taking super high floor/lower ceiling guys when you're at where UConn is at and that's kind of what this kid is - AND he fills a gaping hole this program's had for the better part of the last 3 or 4 years, arguably longer. And I think he's going to be a rock-solid college basketball player who fits this system. They do it a lot in baseball, but more successful programs are able to blend some high-end talent with guys who will fill in gaps - not necessarily be role players - but contribute in a big way at the college level even though their pro prospects are relatively low. Some Major League organizations draft those guys like crazy in the lower rounds because they do basic things well, might have a tool or two - but most importantly - push the elite talent in an organization to get better and force their hand a bit. And I like the overall mix.

Then there's playing the long game in recruiting...

That overall mix seems to be a combination of a few super talented, high ceiling prospects mixed in with guys who should be solid to very good college basketball players with 2-3 guys who are lottery tickets - of which i'm sure the staff looks at and hopes to hit on one of. You put that all together and you should set yourself up to be pretty good for the next few years. Big time recruits like to know they can come in and A.) make an immediate impact, B.) play immediately and C.) be the key ingredient to getting a very good team over the top. The roster as it's laid out right now - seems set up to do that. Which makes me think they can focus more time and resources on those bigger fish more in the next few years. But not JUST more resources on bigger fish - but on the *right* bigger fish. Which gets them back to where they want to be.

My knock on Ollie as a recruiter has never been his ability to find TALENT, but rather his poor performance in finding guys with more ability - *now*. I can't tell you how many times i've watched this team in the last three seasons have stretches in games where that talent just emerges and they look like world beaters. And then there's time where the lack of ability just gets abused and they barely look like a college basketball team, never mind a good one. Ollie's been looking at tool boxes and trying to make them fit in a system instead of having a system and finding the right parts to compliment and make it a formidable one.

So I like this move. I'm not sure how good or great we are.... but Williams is 9,000 years old and age is a big thing in college basketball, so i'd bet he's pretty good. The 'good' players they have - guys like Vital, this kid - will be good. Not superstars, but really good B-actors who can be used to enhance the 2-3 super talented kids we can get our hands on. That formula - time after time - usually works. So i'm all for this approach. Might not be the quick way to get there, but there's no quick way back. Gotta do it the right way.

 

[mauconnfan]

Brimah and Facey likely better than this kid will ever be?

Don't even need to read the rest of that book it won't be a best seller or close. Lol

 

[Burnsbros23]

Matthews and kikunas both have good offer list. They also look very good on tape. Think they will out play their rankings. Now missing out on a spring recruit doesn't kill us.

 

[Edward Sargent]

Yeah, the Blaze strategy is blazing hot. Let’s celebrate the moment and enjoy. This is the night after the win - only thinking one thing - time to party!

I will say the time horizon is longer than most are comfortable with on this board for step 2 - but as Chief predicted step 1 in is the books and step 2 will come.

After the WSJ article about Blazer involvement in the FBI sting operation let's put Blaze talk to bed

 

[Mr. French]

I love this vague Blaze "strategy" it's one of the better Chief efforts.

 

[pj]

After the WSJ article about Blazer involvement in the FBI sting operation let's put Blaze talk to bed

It's not a violation to buy Chill an extra slice when a recruit commits.

 

[UConnStats]

I think the biggest thing is just filling out scholarships with talent capable of taking the next step.

Yes, it’s statistically unlikely that all of our 3* kids pan out, and the same even goes for 4* kids. However, when you have 13-14 players on a roster, it hurts a lot less when you find a lemon than it does with a 9 man roster.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

I would have banked this scholarship. This kid sounds like a fine prospect, but the word that comes to mind for me in reading most of these responses is delusional. Let me elaborate:

- He is committed to play basketball here now, so there is no sense in bemoaning his presence as if this were in some way his fault. He is just a kid realizing his dreams, and even if he never contributes anything of tangible value to the program, I support his right to be the coolest person on campus because he's a basketball player and in signing the dotted line alone will have achieved far more than most of us. However, the holier than thou act from certain posters strikes me as slightly disingenuous given the fact that it is cloaked in anti Facey and Brimah sentiment. Those guys put in four years of service here, won a national championship, and will likely be remembered as better players than this kid will ever be.

- There is no bigger dork than me when it comes to things like screening, hedging, and feel for the game. But do you know who notices things like this? People who didn't sign Alex Oriakhi or Roscoe Smith or some other player who would win a national championship. And do you know who talks themselves into the allure of the "four year guy" and "role player" and "guy that you need?" The people who can't recruit the caliber of talent necessary to compete for championships. If I have to hear one more word about how Emeka Okafor was the 96th ranked player in the country or you don't need to recruit marquee talent to compete, my head is going to explode. The idea of a player outperforming his ranking is perfectly legitimate. The idea of six players outperforming their ranking is the sort of preciousness that makes Vegas rich. I very much value the intelligence of the people on this board, so I am going to assume that I am not in on the new act and that you all simply pretend not to know how statistics work. Along those lines...

- The overall caliber of recruit that this program has landed has dipped drastically over the last two classes. The idea that UConn under Calhoun settled for scraps is purely fiction. Option B used to mean top 50 players and option C used to mean top 100 guys. Now, we scrap together our resources for top 50 players (and in fairness, a few of them have been top 10 guys that went elsewhere for one reason or another) like Carey and end up settling for a lesser talent. Back in the day, a local, top 150 kid like Carrigan would have been the backup option and we would have been pleasantly surprised to learn he can play. Now that the kid is off our radar completely, we're forced to stoop a tier further. Then we finally offer him after losing out on several other options and we celebrate. OK. If that's going to be your outlook, fine. Let's just make sure it carries over to on court play.

- This is fine in a vacuum. We do not live in a vacuum, though, and this roster is not primed with the sort of talent that can withstand another flier - Cobb, Carlton, and whoever else you want to throw into that mix already have that covered. I understand that coaches over-recruit all the time, but there are healthy logjams and then there are logjams that consist of a bunch of redundant players, none of which can separate themselves from the pack. Between de-commitments, transfers, and graduations, there are a lot of options that remain worth monitoring...unless the staff has already kicked the tires on those and received negative feedback...which again brings us back to the problem.

- Look, I love college basketball. I'll watch New Hampshire vs. Stony Brook any day and marvel at the players that, for 40 minutes in March, can rise to the level of their more highly regarded contemporaries and cement a place in college basketball lore. This kid is a lot better than the type of player that normally winds up there. This is the type of player that winds up at Butler or Creighton or Purdue, damn solid programs that are well-coached and talented enough to make a run when the stars align. We're not that program. If we are, fine. I'll continue to invest in the program. But for now we're still UConn and it starts with the recruits, who, because of our recent struggles, might not be fully appreciated as individual talents. Jalen Adams is rare. Alterique Gilbert is rare. Terry Larrier is rare. Vital is a damn solid player and I imagine Diarra and a couple of the others will hold up just fine themselves. The recruits we have hauled in recently are slightly less than that. They are damn talented, mind you, but they represent a very perceptible drop in our status as a college basketball program. I knew that was coming on the court because you don't simply replace an all-time great and roll on conducting business as usual. I didn't know that recruiting would dip. Pair the two together and the optics are somewhat foreboding, however, I do think short-term the picture could be better than most expect, which has a way of fixing things in the end. As somebody else said, 2019 will be telling.

I'm not the least bit surprised that recruiting would dip to something below what would align with the handle "champs99and04" and what was created and sustained through those years, and before and after.

I'm surprised that you might be surprised.

You've been here throughout, you've watched how the landscape has shifted in so many ways, and you've watched the play on the court.

It's not that you can't write, and it's not that you're not perceptive, but I question the timing and necessity of this post, within days of the first practice of a new season, when by all indications yesterday's news was far more good than not. I don't consider that to be a delusional statement, and imagine you don't either.

 

[Hoophound]

I really like that we’ve traded out last year’s front court. I just needed to adjust to losing a few players. None of them were going solve the rebounding problem. The group we have now and coming in next year should be much more aggressive. Diarra is going to bring tons of energy and easy dunks. Something we really need.

 

[3rdbass]

I would have banked this scholarship. This kid sounds like a fine prospect, but the word that comes to mind for me in reading most of these responses is delusional. Let me elaborate:

- He is committed to play basketball here now, so there is no sense in bemoaning his presence as if this were in some way his fault. He is just a kid realizing his dreams, and even if he never contributes anything of tangible value to the program, I support his right to be the coolest person on campus because he's a basketball player and in signing the dotted line alone will have achieved far more than most of us. However, the holier than thou act from certain posters strikes me as slightly disingenuous given the fact that it is cloaked in anti Facey and Brimah sentiment. Those guys put in four years of service here, won a national championship, and will likely be remembered as better players than this kid will ever be.

- There is no bigger dork than me when it comes to things like screening, hedging, and feel for the game. But do you know who notices things like this? People who didn't sign Alex Oriakhi or Roscoe Smith or some other player who would win a national championship. And do you know who talks themselves into the allure of the "four year guy" and "role player" and "guy that you need?" The people who can't recruit the caliber of talent necessary to compete for championships. If I have to hear one more word about how Emeka Okafor was the 96th ranked player in the country or you don't need to recruit marquee talent to compete, my head is going to explode. The idea of a player outperforming his ranking is perfectly legitimate. The idea of six players outperforming their ranking is the sort of preciousness that makes Vegas rich. I very much value the intelligence of the people on this board, so I am going to assume that I am not in on the new act and that you all simply pretend not to know how statistics work. Along those lines...

- The overall caliber of recruit that this program has landed has dipped drastically over the last two classes. The idea that UConn under Calhoun settled for scraps is purely fiction. Option B used to mean top 50 players and option C used to mean top 100 guys. Now, we scrap together our resources for top 50 players (and in fairness, a few of them have been top 10 guys that went elsewhere for one reason or another) like Carey and end up settling for a lesser talent. Back in the day, a local, top 150 kid like Carrigan would have been the backup option and we would have been pleasantly surprised to learn he can play. Now that the kid is off our radar completely, we're forced to stoop a tier further. Then we finally offer him after losing out on several other options and we celebrate. OK. If that's going to be your outlook, fine. Let's just make sure it carries over to on court play.

- This is fine in a vacuum. We do not live in a vacuum, though, and this roster is not primed with the sort of talent that can withstand another flier - Cobb, Carlton, and whoever else you want to throw into that mix already have that covered. I understand that coaches over-recruit all the time, but there are healthy logjams and then there are logjams that consist of a bunch of redundant players, none of which can separate themselves from the pack. Between de-commitments, transfers, and graduations, there are a lot of options that remain worth monitoring...unless the staff has already kicked the tires on those and received negative feedback...which again brings us back to the problem.

- Look, I love college basketball. I'll watch New Hampshire vs. Stony Brook any day and marvel at the players that, for 40 minutes in March, can rise to the level of their more highly regarded contemporaries and cement a place in college basketball lore. This kid is a lot better than the type of player that normally winds up there. This is the type of player that winds up at Butler or Creighton or Purdue, damn solid programs that are well-coached and talented enough to make a run when the stars align. We're not that program. If we are, fine. I'll continue to invest in the program. But for now we're still UConn and it starts with the recruits, who, because of our recent struggles, might not be fully appreciated as individual talents. Jalen Adams is rare. Alterique Gilbert is rare. Terry Larrier is rare. Vital is a damn solid player and I imagine Diarra and a couple of the others will hold up just fine themselves. The recruits we have hauled in recently are slightly less than that. They are damn talented, mind you, but they represent a very perceptible drop in our status as a college basketball program. I knew that was coming on the court because you don't simply replace an all-time great and roll on conducting business as usual. I didn't know that recruiting would dip. Pair the two together and the optics are somewhat foreboding, however, I do think short-term the picture could be better than most expect, which has a way of fixing things in the end. As somebody else said, 2019 will be telling.

Good write up. I think 2018 is a bigger year. We can't afford another year like last one if we want to compete at the highest levels of college basketball. Recruiting is getting affected by our conference but also the perception that UCONN isn't a winning program anymore.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Carlton seems more like a forward to me, Kisunas is clearly a center. Carlton may fill in for us at center because minutes are more available there, but if he develops as we hope his best spot may be power forward.

True, but even in the NBA, a lot of the guys playing center are power forwards. Horford for example. Back to the basket post moves are a lost art. It's almost ironic that one of the best at that, all time, Kevin McHale, was a power forward.

I do like the idea of guys who bring different skill sets up front.

 

[UCDaveD]

I also think it's more than a little silly that you're going after him when his post is simply a logical continuation of the chicken with its head cut off posts you, UCDaveD and others were making non-stop this past spring and summer.

@ me, bro.

 

[jibsey]

What have we gotten used to seeing from our big men in the last several years? They catch the ball in the post, hold it, stop to think about things followed by something bad happening like getting thrown to the floor or getting stuffed. This kid is big, strong, with good and quick hands. looks like he has Basketball IQ which we have been lacking around the rim. I'm jacked about this signing and don't care what his number is. This is the kind of under the radar player shows up on opposing teams who torches us and then we ask why we couldn't recruit someone like that. If my thinking is flawed i would like to know why?