Meet UConn's Newcomers: Tyler Polley | The Boneyard

Meet UConn's Newcomers: Tyler Polley

tcf15

tcf15

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Mr. Polley sounds great

Meet UConn's Newcomers: Good Genes Helped Tyler Polley Get To Storrs

"I was joking with him in the summertime," Tommy Polley said. "I said, 'I'm going to be like [Lonzo] Ball's daddy and do this and that.' And he said, 'no, no, no.' I was joking. I could never do that.

"I let the kids have their own experiences. I don't want to overshadow Tyler's experiences. I'm going to come to a couple of games early on. I want him to experience the good and the bad, not always be there walking hand in hand, week to week. What happened this week? What happened this day? He has to learn to overcome adversity and learn if you made a good decision or a bad one. Whatever decisions you make, you need to make them because you're an adult now."
 
"because growing up, watching UConn, I was like, 'Man, if I could play for this program.' It was like my dream to go here. Playing for this program is an honor and I just really want to be a part of something special."

I'm so excited after reading that. My favorite freshman (so far). This is who we want in terms of choice reasons. The rest is up to Ollie (and staff) and Tyler to not turn it into a nightmare.

Nonetheless its the perfect foundation, and the perfect clay to mold a 'UConn' player.
 
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UCFan1513 said:
Wow. Being able to play the way he does at that height. Reminds me a little of DeAndre Daniels.
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Good comp but seems a lot more athletic. Just based on the put back, two handed dunks and elevation, and body control to the rim. No euro step from dd
 
MervthePurvis said:
Good comp but seems a lot more athletic. Just based on the put back, two handed dunks and elevation, and body control to the rim. No euro step from dd
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I found Daniels to be more of an explosive athlete than what I've seen on video from Polley. Not to say that Polley doesn't seem to have great athleticism or agility, but I think DD was a bit more explosive coming out of HS which is what probably led to his top 25 ranking.
 
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MervthePurvis said:
Good comp but seems a lot more athletic. Just based on the put back, two handed dunks and elevation, and body control to the rim. No euro step from dd
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iirc DD was a 5* recruit. Let's let TP be TP and not overestimate his abilities. He's got a great attitude and potential but he's a long way from proving himself to be a DD, yet.
 
UCFan1513 said:
I found Daniels to be more of an explosive athlete than what I've seen on video from Polley. Not to say that Polley doesn't seem to have crazy athleticism or agility, but I think DD was a bit more explosive coming out of HS which is what probably led to his top 25 ranking.
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Agreed and Daniels is bigger. Polley looks to have some ability but there is a reason they aren't ranked the same.
 
superjohn said:
Agreed and Daniels is bigger. Polley looks to have some ability but there is a reason they aren't ranked the same.
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For sure. Also believe I read somewhere too that Polley had a late growth spurt which may have to do with the lower ranking as well
 
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Polley really does remind me of DD, albeit a tiny bit shorter and less athletic.

Although DD improved a lot over his career at UConn, he was still pretty mechanical at the end and never developed a tight handle.

Tough to tell from highlight videos how good Polley is with the ball and/or taking people off the dribble.
 
Drumguy said:
iirc DD was a 5* recruit. Let's let TP be TP and not overestimate his abilities. He's got a great attitude and potential but he's a long way from proving himself to be a DD, yet.
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Yeah, we beat Kansas (!) for him.
 
Skills aside in the comparison to DD, I do think Polley looks about 100x more confident in his offensive game and moves than DD did in his high school tape, and about 10x more confident than DD during his senior year (except the NCAAT, I have no idea what possessed his soul those 6 games).

Also I feel like if there is going to be a "2011 Jeremy Lamb" on this team it would most likely be TP.
 
Drumguy said:
iirc DD was a 5* recruit. Let's let TP be TP and not overestimate his abilities. He's got a great attitude and potential but he's a long way from proving himself to be a DD, yet.
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And lets not forget it took DD 2 1/2 years to be play to the level expected out of high school. TP looks like a poor mans DD and thats no insult.
 
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There's a guy who you can put in the middle of the zone and can make 12-15 footers from the top of the post and in. As sledog says above isn't concerned with traffic you can tell, is comfortable when they collapse on him. Like to see if he can pass it to the low post and baseline, but love that video.

And dad, 33 has it right - breath of fresh air especially after last year.
 
He is a lot like Deandre just 3 inches shorter. It will be interesting to see how he develops.
 
pj said:
He is a lot like Deandre just 3 inches shorter. It will be interesting to see how he develops.
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I think they're closer in height than that. TP's listed at 6'8" or 6'7". DD is 6'8.5".
 
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I don't really have a logical reason to support why but Polley's game in highlight tape form showcasing what he's capable of reminds me of Obi Enechionya from Temple. He was a great player for them too so it's certainly good company but their game is similar.
 
If we play a classic lineup, he'll get minutes by default. Combo forwards are valuable if they don't have any extreme deficiencies, let's hope he can guard 4s.
 
Yeah I know you don't expect to see much defense in a highlight video, but he does look a little too slow and careful to be a great defender early on. Hopefully that thirst to wear the UConn jersey motivates him to put it all in at practice and grow into a great defender. If he's been a fan of UConn, chances are he likes to watch a defense shut down a talented team and shock the world.

Is it November yet!? I need some basketball!!!!
 
Tyler strikes me as being focused and modest. Team oriented. I think he has a solid all around game and will be on the court this year contributing. He's mostly stuck playing behind Larrier although we could see them both on the floor. More importantly though he's got a high ceiling for how good he might be in the following years with greater strength and development. He's got all the tools to be an excellent player.
 
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