Nadav interviewed by Donny

[mauconnfan]

You'd have to be at least 6-7 years old to even have memories of the Dream Season.

So basically anyone born after 83-84 has no real time memories of that season.

To them it's history just like peach baskets on barn doors.

Or 66-67 lol. Yikes time flies

 

[Punkbo]

That 1990 E8 loss to you know who and the shot by you know who is still the lowest I've ever been after a UConn loss. That magical season just seems like it wouldn't end until we had won it all. It all seemed so predestined, especially after the Clemson win. It was all so new and it hurt so much. Like that first girlfriend break up. It was the end the world.
Then came the local news report that summer that Nadav wouldn't be coming back to Storrs.

I’ve been thinking about the most painful loss ever. The Duke loss was brutal, but that was the Dream Season for a reason. It truly was a dream for our fans. The most painful for me was the 1994 loss to Florida. The missed FTs by Donyell in a year we could have done some serious damage. The 1996 loss to Mississippi State was also a tough one to stomach. Anything after 1999 is caveated by the fact that we’ve won 6 championships since then. Talk about a dream. Wow.

 

[karstenkibbe]

I’ve been thinking about the most painful loss ever. The Duke loss was brutal, but that was the Dream Season for a reason. It truly was a dream for our fans. The most painful for me was the 1994 loss to Florida. The missed FTs by Donyell in a year we could have done some serious damage. The 1996 loss to Mississippi State was also a tough one to stomach. Anything after 1999 is caveated by the fact that we’ve won 6 championships since then. Talk about a dream. Wow.

I looked at ‘96 as the toughest loss because it was the third consecutive year of frustration and the team was 32-2(!!!) going into that game. The Donyell missed FTs felt like a tragedy because fans felt we should have won that game. ‘95 vs UCLA we were on fire offensively… but UCLA was even more on fire scoring the ball. We didn’t actually play poorly in that game and we knew UConn was facing a juggernaut. Then ‘96, Ray and Sheffer were ice cold and it wasn’t even Dampier or Dontae Jones who crushed our dreams. Some guy named Darryl Wilson went berserk from 3. And our bench of freshman Rash, Hayward and Dion Carson contributed 3 points. A crazy-talented, but not deep team, crapped the bed that day and the fan base felt like we were never getting over the hump. But we did. We really did.

 

[HCCForever]

I’ve been thinking about the most painful loss ever. The Duke loss was brutal, but that was the Dream Season for a reason. It truly was a dream for our fans. The most painful for me was the 1994 loss to Florida. The missed FTs by Donyell in a year we could have done some serious damage. The 1996 loss to Mississippi State was also a tough one to stomach. Anything after 1999 is caveated by the fact that we’ve won 6 championships since then. Talk about a dream. Wow.

I thought loss to George Mason was worse than loss to Florida in 1994 and I was there in Miami in 1994. I didn’t think UConn had much of a chance against Mississippi State due to their size.

 

[Chuck]

That incident went beyond intimidation. Nadav took the high road and never really talked about it. But people knew. Any respect I had for Mourning was gone after that game.

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Providence fans yelled some stuff towards him also, but a player doing it is crazy. Mourning would probably say it was to get in his head, and that's just what guys do. But there are lines.

Regarding worst loss... it was the Florida one for me. We were going to make that first Final 4. It was right there. I had to pick my sister up at the airport and there was no DVR. I listened to the game on the car radio. Donyell was a great free throw shooter and clutch. I was just shocked.

I honestly thought we'd get steamrolled by UNLV in 1990. I was upset we lost, but I was at UConn and every game was just a bonus compared to what I thought my college basketball experiences would be. I didn't have a couch to cry on thanks to the Clemson win.

 

[jdb50]

Early in the Dream season we got beat at St Johns and it looked like we were in for another long season. To be able to beat them in the Gampel opener was great. Does anyone remember the song they were playing on the radio as the regular season came to a close and we won the BET? "What I like about UConn". I remember it being played in the morning as I drove to work in my truck. The whole State was nuts. The loss to Duke made worse when Nadav said he was not coming back. But then big recruits from other areas of the country started to show up. Ray, Donyell, Donny, KO, Jake Voskuhl, Emeka and we eventually broke through. Rip returning for his junior year was so important.

 

[cwh20]

Great interview. There will never be a season like the Dream Season. What a high to be on all season long! mauconnfan has it right. Nadav was clutch. He wasn’t a great foul shooter or three point shooter overall but late in games he was incredible at making those shots. He had great hands and anticipation. He could read the opponents offense like no other and flash into the passing lane for a steal or tip. Going to the hoop he always made the right decision to pass for an assist or shoot himself when the Huskies had the numbers. (And as an aside, I don’t think anyone compares to Chris Smith going to the hoop on fast breaks even when one on two. He always scored). There is no player since the Dove with that feel for the game that he had. It was a huge blow to know he wasn’t coming back.

And as for AlexD’s comment I remember my SIL casually trying to cheer me up after the Elite 8 game. She knows nothing about sports and I don’t even know why she was there. I really wished she would just shut up and go away. I wanted to be miserable for awhile. Anyway, Nadav is on my all time favorites list as he is with so many other UConn fans.

 

[Fairfield_1st]

Henefeld reminded me of Bird, and no, I'm not saying he was as good. It was his smarts and ability to do things on the court with less athleticism. You would have thought he was a senior in that 1 year, just so smart and ready to play. Loved him. Played a great center field when the press was on.