New Naven Newbies

[RichZ]

Short entry on last night's game. We had company, so I couldn't give it full attention. But two different guests asked if something was bothering me.
Yeah, it was the game. I know we are down three key players, but it seemed like until the last few minutes, we couldn't put any distance between us and a team playing its first real Division 1 game. They seemed able to drive through our defense for layups at will.
I know I'm over reacting, but I really expected a better performance in our first game that counts.
Seemed like we had Solo and Alex, and not much else going on.
On the other hand, Alex looked as solid as I've ever seen him, so that's encouraging.
More later, after I watch a replay to get a better perspective.

 

[Marat]

I would say give the new players (transfers, freshmen) time to get acclimated to the system.

Btw, Stewart had a pretty decent game too.

 

[Captbluefin]

I Bleed Blue. But I don’t see a team that has Solo Ball and AK as their top players being a top 10 team.

It’s starting to look like last year all over again. Mullins injury, new point guards in new system..

The Ross/Stewart project at the wing is not a top 10 team type situation.

I’m sure I’ll get killed but it’s my opinion.

2024 re-run

 

[GHSWolverines]

I Bleed Blue. But I don’t see a team that has Solo Ball and AK as their top players being a top 10 team.

It’s starting to look like last year all over again. Mullins injury, new point guards in new system..

The Ross/Stewart project at the wing is not a top 10 team type situation.

I’m sure I’ll get killed but it’s my opinion.

2024 re-run

Only time will tell if you are right.

 

[LetsGoUC]

I Bleed Blue. But I don’t see a team that has Solo Ball and AK as their top players being a top 10 team.

It’s starting to look like last year all over again. Mullins injury, new point guards in new system..

The Ross/Stewart project at the wing is not a top 10 team type situation.

I’m sure I’ll get killed but it’s my opinion.

2024 re-run

Feel the exact same. 2024 again.

 

[RuffRuff]

Feel the exact same. 2024 again.

Not a lot of jene se quois on this team. Solo/Stew/Ross really look the part physically, but lack that certain something you like to see in a basketball player (Cam Spencer stuff). I like to call it the lightbulb(doing the little things). Those three just don’t have much of it. Im not sure they ever will at this point. That 2024 team had it in spades.

AK is just not a very good athlete.

So yeah, we need to see Braylen and Tarris out there, and for Silas to figure it out. The guys we know well aren’t going to win us titles.

 

[UConnTrumbull]

We are all expecting (maybe more so hoping) for that sophomore-junior jump. Or junior-senior in Alex’s case. If we don’t get that then, well.

 

[RuffRuff]

We are all expecting (maybe more so hoping) for that sophomore-junior jump. Or junior-senior in Alex’s case. If we don’t get that then, well.

Some of our success definitely rests in that jump - in particularly with Solo since he’s slotted in as a major minutes getter. We need a lot more than the player we saw last year.

AK is what he is.

 

[Fairfield_1st]

1 game into the season and some of you have damned the team and written them to 2024 oblivion. Take a gummy. Lots of new faces and injuries can do that to a team. Add that many are learning new offensive and defensive systems and new teammates. I've heard that it takes a bit to learn our offensive system. Newton took some time, but was great once he got it. Lastly, Hurley teams are never at their best when the season starts.

 

[AllHusky]

I'm a give it time guy, and I really see the stuff Ruff and Bluefin are talking about. That said, this is not AK, Stew, Solo's team, though it should be. This is Tarris, Silas and Braylens team(+ other newbies). How they develop, we develop. Give it time.

 

[Iluvsuebird]

It's like talking to my teenagers. First, Solo and AK ARE NOT our best players. We actually were missing our best player: our freaking center. And also missing our best shooter/wing player, expected lottery selection in next year's NBA draft. This is not hard to decipher folks. We are not playing at full strength. Add to the fact that we are also missing yet another wing (Furphy) and that our starting PG just came back from being out for an extended period of time (Hurley said he was 'winded' in the game against MSU), and yes, we were a bit out of sorts at times. And yet, we nearly scored 80 while shooting a sub part % from the field and from 3. You can guys can cry all you want. I still think you are being irrational if you compare this team to last year's team. Its just objectively a bad take.

 

[RuffRuff]

It's like talking to my teenagers. First, Solo and AK ARE NOT our best players. We actually were missing our best player: our freaking center. And also missing our best shooter/wing player, expected lottery selection in next year's NBA draft. This is not hard to decipher folks. We are not playing at full strength. Add to the fact that we are also missing yet another wing (Furphy) and that our starting PG just came back from being out for an extended period of time (Hurley said he was 'winded' in the game against MSU), and yes, we were a bit out of sorts at times. And yet, we nearly scored 80 while shooting a sub part % from the field and from 3. You can guys can cry all you want. I still think you are being irrational if you compare this team to last year's team. Its just objectively a bad take.

I tend to agree here, that our best talent is not currently playing. You have to reserve any judgement until they return. We should also give our next best player, Silas, some time to figure it out. If this team is to really go on a NC bender, the guys that need to find their way to the top of the food chain are Tarris, Braylen and Silas. You can include Solo in there too, but we've seen a lot of Solo and kinda know what he is. He's been pretty intentional about getting to the rim and has been ok, just doesn't look very natural doing it. The one he took to the basket and missed the rim completely against UNH is kinda symptomatic of his instincts around the rim. I'm at the point where I think his pull-up game will be more valuable than his rim game.

I don't know what it is about Solo, has the torso of a greek god, arms are so long and hands look so big they almost don't look like they match his body. It makes him look kinda unorthodox at times.

Furphy was not going to move the needle against UNH, so we should drop that angle. C'mon. This team without Mullins/Reed is underwhelming in this early season, it simply means we really need them to be key players when they're back.

 

[imno1]

Some of our success definitely rests in that jump - in particularly with Solo since he’s slotted in as a major minutes getter. We need a lot more than the player we saw last year.

AK is what he is.

Through 2 exhibition games and the opener Alex is averaging 18 & 8. What Alex is is a pretty damn good bb player. He's going to be in the mix to be our leading scorer and maybe our top rebounder. I feel some here underestimate Alex. Solo has already shown improvement in his ability to score at the rim and I'm not concerned about his early shooting woes. He's too good a shooter. The jury is still out on his ability to defend. I see improvement in Stewart's and Ross's games. Our team will look a lot better when we have our full complement of players available. Image the 23-24 team without Donovan and Cam.

 

[superjohn]

I tend to agree here, that our best talent is not currently playing. You have to reserve any judgement until they return. We should also give our next best player, Silas, some time to figure it out. If this team is to really go on a NC bender, the guys that need to find their way to the top of the food chain are Tarris, Braylen and Silas. You can include Solo in there too, but we've seen a lot of Solo and kinda know what he is. He's been pretty intentional about getting to the rim and has been ok, just doesn't look very natural doing it. The one he took to the basket and missed the rim completely against UNH is kinda symptomatic of his instincts around the rim. I'm at the point where I think his pull-up game will be more valuable than his rim game.

I don't know what it is about Solo, has the torso of a greek god, arms are so long and hands look so big they almost don't look like they match his body. It makes him look kinda unorthodox at times.

Furphy was not going to move the needle against UNH, so we should drop that angle. C'mon. This team without Mullins/Reed is underwhelming in this early season, it simply means we really need them to be key players when they're back.

This is hilarious. Your takes have been bipolar since the New Haven opener. Hot take after hot take and then you're urging caution and reserving judgement in some posts. It's like you're trying to coach yourself on your ridiculous overreactions.

Also, his name is Braylon.

 

[RuffRuff]

This is hilarious. Your takes have been bipolar since the New Haven opener. Hot take after hot take and then you're urging caution and reserving judgement in some posts. It's like you're trying to coach yourself on your ridiculous overreactions.

Also, his name is Braylon.

Just not a buyer in the Fab 5, never have been. BBIQ isn't high with that group. They'll show some flashes because they are physically talented, but they show no consistency because of the former. Not sure how it's any different than what I've always thought. We've seen those guys for 2+ years now? Solo was stewed multiple x on defense in exhibitions & UNH. This is the same group Hurley over-indexed on last year and it left us in a tough spot. I know we are all banking on this "leap".

Like I mentioned in a previous post, I'd expect AK & the Juniors to be really connected at this point in time, here 3 years in. What we've watched is total discombobulation. I know it's early, but these guys have been together forever per college years in today's age.

I am a buyer on Tarris, Mullins and Demary.

We can sugarcoat the UNH game as much as we want, early, down guys, blah, blah. We were up 12-13 with 10-11 minutes to go on one of the worst KP teams and new D1 team. We should be able to beat them with command with anyone in our expected rotation. We'll see, the Mullins injury is as concerning as I thought.

 

[Palatine]

AK is just not a very good athlete.

Alex is 6-8 in shoes (6' 6.5 in barefeet) with a extraordinary 6-11 wingspan. His standing vertical measured at the NBA combine was 32 inches which is also above average -- ‎Google Gemini

His above average basketball IQ also allows him to play faster than his large frame would suggest.

Saying he is "not a very good athlete" borders on an insult.

 

[Inyatkin]

Alex is 6-8 in shoes (6' 6.5 in barefeet) with a extraordinary 6-11 wingspan. His standing vertical measured at the NBA combine was 32 inches which is also above average -- ‎Google Gemini

His above average basketball IQ also allows him to play faster than his large frame would suggest.

Saying he is "not a very good athlete" borders on an insult.

Insulting UConn players is kind of his thing. You're either an all-American or you stink, somehow

 

[freescooter]

It's like talking to my teenagers. First, Solo and AK ARE NOT our best players. We actually were missing our best player: our freaking center. And also missing our best shooter/wing player, expected lottery selection in next year's NBA draft. This is not hard to decipher folks. We are not playing at full strength. Add to the fact that we are also missing yet another wing (Furphy) and that our starting PG just came back from being out for an extended period of time (Hurley said he was 'winded' in the game against MSU), and yes, we were a bit out of sorts at times. And yet, we nearly scored 80 while shooting a sub part % from the field and from 3. You can guys can cry all you want. I still think you are being irrational if you compare this team to last year's team. Its just objectively a bad take.

This is not hard to figure out, iluvsuebird. We were playing the University of New Haven, not Duke. Before that game they had never played a Division 1 game. There are 365 or so D1 teams in the country. They are ranked around 350. We are in the top 10. We looked exceedingly mediocre against the 350th team in the nation. Seems like we are not very deep if we had trouble with the #350 team with some injuries. That is why people are concerned.

And just out of curiosity when did Reed become this great center? He was good last year but he certainly didn’t make anyone forget Clingon. He averaged around 10 pt/game and played less than 20 minutes mostly off the bench. He seemed to improve as the season went on, too. It’s possible he will be our best player but I’m not as confident as you seem to be.

 

[superjohn]

Just not a buyer in the Fab 5, never have been. BBIQ isn't high with that group. They'll show some flashes because they are physically talented, but they show no consistency because of the former. Not sure how it's any different than what I've always thought. We've seen those guys for 2+ years now? Solo was stewed multiple x on defense in exhibitions & UNH. This is the same group Hurley over-indexed on last year and it left us in a tough spot. I know we are all banking on this "leap".

Like I mentioned in a previous post, I'd expect AK & the Juniors to be really connected at this point in time, here 3 years in. What we've watched is total discombobulation. I know it's early, but these guys have been together forever per college years in today's age.

I am a buyer on Tarris, Mullins and Demary.

We can sugarcoat the UNH game as much as we want, early, down guys, blah, blah. We were up 12-13 with 10-11 minutes to go on one of the worst KP teams and new D1 team. We should be able to beat them with command with anyone in our expected rotation. We'll see, the Mullins injury is as concerning as I thought.

This is a wild take after 1 game against a cupcake.

You've decided Solo is the exact same player he was in the past and that's not good enough. At the very best Jaylin and Jayden are 7th and 8th guys in our rotation and you've decided they simply aren't good enough for those roles.

It's wild you think a team with two brand new point guards who missed the preseason and a team missing two of their starters/best players would look totally connected and in many of your posts you seem to be projecting the future of this team based on this game.

 

[Deepster]

I like this place so much more in the offseason.....

 

[RuffRuff]

This is a wild take after 1 game against a cupcake.

You've decided Solo is the exact same player he was in the past and that's not good enough. At the very best Jaylin and Jayden are 7th and 8th guys in our rotation and you've decided they simply aren't good enough for those roles.

It's wild you think a team with two brand new point guards who missed the preseason and a team missing two of their starters/best players would look totally connected and in many of your posts you seem to be projecting the future of this team based on this game.

It's been 3, and it's the larger body of work.

And yeah, really want to see how the new pieces including Tarris look. It's not like I'm not still really high on this team, it's just that I don't think it rests with the returners as much as does with the new pieces + Tarris in a starting role.

Here is what I think about Solo - talented shooter, limited elsewhere. I think he'll improve in other areas, but not so much that he's not still a liability. Then what you have is a 2G you have to offset weaknesses and play around. Need to see how Demary & Mullins offset defensively and from a playmaking perspective. We know Stew at the 3 is not the answer.

 

[uconn_jack]

People who see this as a redux of 2024 are nuts. These teams and situations are apples and oranges. The Mullins/McNeeley injury comp is even only slightly comparable since the point in the season is so different. We have multiple new kids getting integrated into the system and have been down 2-3 key players each game. Each of the returner seem to have leveled up to some degree (except maybe Alex who is still Alex), and we are CLEARLY in better shape at the PG position. We also have more experience and talent 1-10 than we did last year. BC/MSU/NH were all messy, but I feel better about them than what we saw in Maui last year.

 

[superjohn]

It's been 3, and it's the larger body of work.

And yeah, really want to see how the new pieces including Tarris look. It's not like I'm not still really high on this team, it's just that I don't think it rests with the returners as much as does with the new pieces + Tarris in a starting role.

Here is what I think about Solo - talented shooter, limited elsewhere. I think he'll improve in other areas, but not so much that he's not still a liability. Then what you have is a 2G you have to offset weaknesses and play around. Need to see how Demary & Mullins offset defensively and from a playmaking perspective. We know Stew at the 3 is not the answer.

It's been one game. If you want to include the exhibitions and you think Solo is the same as in the past you weren't paying attention, he drove and finished more than he did at any time in the past.

 

[RuffRuff]

It's been one game. If you want to include the exhibitions and you think Solo is the same as in the past you weren't paying attention, he drove and finished more than he did at any time in the past.

Let's keep watching through these 6 OOC contests to see what that part of his game really looks like. Consider me a skeptic that he's going to be any good at it.

 

[Iluvsuebird]

I tend to agree here, that our best talent is not currently playing. You have to reserve any judgement until they return. We should also give our next best player, Silas, some time to figure it out. If this team is to really go on a NC bender, the guys that need to find their way to the top of the food chain are Tarris, Braylen and Silas. You can include Solo in there too, but we've seen a lot of Solo and kinda know what he is. He's been pretty intentional about getting to the rim and has been ok, just doesn't look very natural doing it. The one he took to the basket and missed the rim completely against UNH is kinda symptomatic of his instincts around the rim. I'm at the point where I think his pull-up game will be more valuable than his rim game.

I don't know what it is about Solo, has the torso of a greek god, arms are so long and hands look so big they almost don't look like they match his body. It makes him look kinda unorthodox at times.

Furphy was not going to move the needle against UNH, so we should drop that angle. C'mon. This team without Mullins/Reed is underwhelming in this early season, it simply means we really need them to be key players when they're back.

true, I only brought up Furphy in the context of losing Mullins, that is all.