Nowell in the transfer portal

[Mister P]

I think this points to two quality guards coming in from the portal with one being a plug in starter. Probably good size with both.
I have high hopes for Adams so hopefully he’ll be groomed next year to lead this offense in a couple of years.

 

[Kitaman]

A year's investment down the drain. I expected him to be in an advantageous position next season, better understanding Hurley's offense and tutored by Hass along with having some D1 game experience.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

Ahmad was one guy I was excited about long-term, but the reality is that this team needs a sure-fire PG for next season, which would have rendered Nowell's role to the bench in Y2. Based on that, I'm not surprised he's looking elsewhere, but I wish him the best of luck. Seems like a good kid.

Moving forward, I'd love to see Mahaney stick around next season as a veteran shooter/secondary distributor alongside our talented freshmen and hopefully a shiny new PG from the portal.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

The strangest part of it is UConn didn't play them that year...

If you really think about it hard, you can probably figure out why they weren’t playing, despite a lack of quality depth at each position.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

This one feels different from Abraham - with what we have coming back, and coming in next year, I think Abraham would have been buried on the depth chart. However, with Diarra leaving, and Mahaney not the answer at the 1, I think the tea leaves pointed to Nowell as the logical replacement.

I am sure the coaches saw way more than we did in practices, etc., but perhaps they felt even with a sophomore leap, he was not the answer for next season.

I think they're pretty clearly intent on bringing in a 1 in the portal and I would assume Hurley envisions Adams in the Tristen [edit] Newton [I'm an idiot] mold of a combo guard that can be on the ball. Not crazy that a kid would not be amped to compete for at best a backup spot.

I wish the kid well, never really got any indication that he'd be poised to have an impact next year. Like most kids who leave I hope he finds a good fit.

 

[3rdbass]

Hope he does well wherever he goes. Whoever is added to UConn needs to be taller

We don't need taller if he is like Kemba Walker or Mark Sears. This kid is not fast and not a good shooter and he wasn't strong like Mark Sears going to the bucket. I just think he was way overrated.

 

[Excalibur]

I wasn’t ready to write him off yet. I think he was far more limited by his injuries than they were making public. He looked like a different player in the limited minutes that he got after the injury, and he also looked like he put on some weight while he was out. I get the sense that he can play, even if he’s not the ideal point guard for our system. My guess is that he will find some success elsewhere, which will make certain posters here insufferable.

 

[temery]

Same rules as for every player entering the portal from UConn - this is not an opportunity to trash the kid.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Wish him well. He'll get on his feet somewhere and be a contributor. Was too good in high school to not have a role somewhere.

 

[Storrs South]

 

[Deepster]

Maybe I’m just a crabby jerk but when a guy says he doesn’t want to be part of the family anymore, for whatever reason, the last thing on my head is “hey pal! Best of luck!”

You’re not with us anymore. You’re against us. You didn’t buy into our process and work hard enough to earn your time and you quit. Good riddance.

 

[VindiKate]

Duke has no one under 6’5 in their rotation - big guards worked extremely well for the good guys

 

[Zionn]

So he going to umass?

 

[Mets1432]

I'm more then sure Nowell will get better with another year however from what we saw of him, he didn't have it at this level.

His dribble wasn't tight, his speed was average at best, and his shot didn't look great. He did have some nice assists though.

Best of luck to him.

 

[Lefty2one]

Blank slate at the #1. Kind of scary, but it seemed unlikely that Nowell would be able to fill that void next year, even as a backup.

We don't have to hit a home run on every HS PG recruit but man it's strange how terrible the Hurley era has been at finding talented PGs out of HS. Thankfully it doesn't really matter these days.

 

[UCan3]

Unlike Abraham, Nowell played and got an opportunity. I can't remember him doing a darn thing.

Well, let’s not get carried away… He was not on the floor that much and only at times when the whole team was really struggling.

And furthermore, the kid was a true freshman,,,,

With all these transfers, I can’t fault Dan or his staff as let’s face it..

We should have beaten the overall #1-2 Seed in the NCAA tourney.

I still can’t believe it…

We had them on the ropes and literally handed game to them. So I can’t fault for Dan or his staff for who he played, didn’t play. They almost got there this year which to me, was unexpected.

 

[Robrio89]

I really like Nowell as a player with potential, but as many have said, we cant count on a sophomore leap. Proven by how this year managed to play out. His size was also a problem.

Hopefully Hurley fills this spot with a highly talented and experienced point guard out of the portal. A blessing really.

 

[jibsey]

Duke has no one under 6’5 in their rotation - big guards worked extremely well for the good guys

Yup, and Hurley is watching Pitino buy guys who can drive, get their own shot and defend like crazy on day 1. Hurley doesn’t want to be hamstrung again, I could see this one coming. We just have to be able to NIL now 2 point guards?

 

[Palatine]

We have had a hard time finding quality PGs. Surprising considering Danny was one. Best of luck to AN.

 

[navery12]

Yup, and Hurley is watching Pitino buy guys who can drive, get their own shot and defend like crazy on day 1. Hurley doesn’t want to be hamstrung again, I could see this one coming. We just have to be able to NIL now 2 point guards?

I'd like 2, or at the very least an experienced combo guard coming off the bench. But Darius Adams is likely getting the bulk of the backup PG minutes next year

 

[HuskyHawk]

UConn‘s offense does not need a traditional on ball dibble focused PG. That‘s what Nowell is. Bigger guys who can pass, handle well enough and create for others. I’d be surprised if Dan ever looks at another short, ball heavy PG again. Adams is ideal once he’s strong enough.

Wishing Nowell well as he moves on. He’s got talent to do well at the right place.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Predictable, especially I'd you follow his dad online. Still a loss in my opinion. But, the staff is usually excellent in finding the right guys in the portal.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

UConn‘s offense does not need a traditional on ball dibble focused PG. That‘s what Nowell is. Bigger guys who can pass, handle well enough and create for others. I’d be surprised if Dan ever looks at another short, ball heavy PG again. Adams is ideal once he’s strong enough.

Wishing Nowell well as he moves on. He’s got talent to do well at the right place.

Our struggles beating the press and inbounding the ball tell a different story.

 

[Drame]

UConn‘s offense does not need a traditional on ball dibble focused PG. That‘s what Nowell is. Bigger guys who can pass, handle well enough and create for others. I’d be surprised if Dan ever looks at another short, ball heavy PG again. Adams is ideal once he’s strong enough.

Wishing Nowell well as he moves on. He’s got talent to do well at the right place.

Disagree 1000%. Some defenses we play against are too well prepared for our offense especially with the grabbing, chipping and holding that's allowed. We need a couple guys that are strong with the ball and can drive it when necessary.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Our struggles beating the press and inbounding the ball tell a different story.

Not really. You beat a press through the air, not by dribbling. Inbounding is impacted by inadequate passers and guys who don’t have the size to make themselves available. We struggled to get it in to Diarra. In a perfect press break the ball never touches the court.