Of the 5 incoming freshmen

[DbaltUC628]

Besides Castle who we know is going to play a huge role on next years squad, who is most ready to contribute solid minutes? I don’t know much about the other 4. Castle clearly is a stud and day 1 contributor. Thoughts?

 

[Huskyforlife]

For me my projected rotation would probably be

Newton/Timberlake/Jackson/Karaban/Clingan
6. Castle
7. Johnson

So in that case I think our biggest need for our 8th man is a wing Shooter/Scorer. The candidates for that role would be; Roumoglou/Ross/Stewart. Balls redundancy with Castle makes me think he’s looking at the Diarra bit role as the occasional 9th man for certain matchups. Singare will be good for depth in case of fouls/injuries, but his rawness probably means he’s not beating junior Samson Johnson for center minutes.

TLDR: Whoever is better right away between Ross/Stewart.

 

[REB1094]

I like Jaylin Stewart a lot. He's already got the size to play at the next level and based on more recent highlights I've seen, he's been getting in better shape. I'm sure there will be an adjustment period playing college athletes instead of high school athletes, but he looks like a 3 level scorer that can just take the ball from the perimeter and get a bucket. Super excited about him

Solo Ball strikes me as an energy and hustle guy, so he will definitely find a role on the team but honestly I'm not expecting too much in year 1. He's strong and explosive but at 6'3 I'm not sure how successful he would be playing at the rim off the bat

I think Ross can find some minutes when we need shooting but will be a multi-year guy. Singare is our only backup C so he will probably get minutes by default, unless Clingan is going for 27-30 minutes a game. I think Singare is the most interesting in terms of potential. Really don't know what to expect from him next year

 

[Thirty Three]

I would say Solo Ball or Jaylin Stewart. I think people are sleeping on both of them, particularly Stewart.

 

[husky429]

I would expect Ross, Ball and Stewart to have an equal likelihood of playing. They all have experience ahead of them in the rotation right now. Whoever can defend(!), shoot the rock, and limit TOs will get minutes.

Singare strikes me as a redshirt candidate. Great size and strength, bit very raw.

 

[caw]

Ball would be my guess.

Singare may get time as a backup big.

Stewart and Ross need to get in the training room but both could be big players by end of year.

 

[Deleted at users request]

Fwiw I think Solo Ball is Hurley’s second highest ranked recruit ever after Castle. Between him and Akok depending on what rankings you look at.

 

[Connecticut13]

Solo Ball for sure. Lots of potential and he’s got a build that’s ready for the physicality of the Big East from day one.

 

[MJKI]

Castle is not coming here and not starting. He will be PG1

 

[PNolanFan]

Ball and stewart especially will probably expect 10-15 minutes at a minimum. Ball is ranked above Bronny James on some sites. Stewart is a top 100 recruit who would expect minutes wherever he went. Think balancing their time will be Hurleys most important problem to solve next year

Edit, just looked and Stewart is the exact same on composite rankings 247 as Bouknight was

 

[superjohn]

For me my projected rotation would probably be

Newton/Timberlake/Jackson/Karaban/Clingan
6. Castle
7. Johnson

So in that case I think our biggest need for our 8th man is a wing Shooter/Scorer. The candidates for that role would be; Roumoglou/Ross/Stewart. Balls redundancy with Castle makes me think he’s looking at the Diarra bit role as the occasional 9th man for certain matchups. Singare will be good for depth in case of fouls/injuries, but his rawness probably means he’s not beating junior Samson Johnson for center minutes.

TLDR: Whoever is better right away between Ross/Stewart.

You're seriously sleeping on Ball.

 

[Skies17]

Probably Solo Ball, but Stewart not far behind.

I expect Singare to be behind Samson for backup C minutes.
Ross is a dark horse if his shooting is better than advertised, but he may not be physically ready to contribute big minutes off the bench.
I think I haver higher expectations for Stewart than others. He looks physically ready for this level, although he may lack some quickness and that could limit the role he can fill as it would be tough to play him at the 3 with Karaban at the 4. I think his shooting is a plus, and he could be a primary backup for Karaban, but typically when AK sat we moved AJax to the 4 and went 4 out. Anticipating we may do the same next year, that leaves Solo.
Ball can be a plus defender, which will help him see minutes early. He also has a slashing skillset most of our other guards/wings don't (save AJax).

If Stewart can be an effective AK backup and Solo ends up the 5th or 6th guard behind Newton, Castle, AJax, Timberlake, and Diarra, then I could see it being Stewart. But I think it's more likely Solo is one of AJax's primary backups (particularly if Jackson gets in early foul trouble) and is in the mix at guard/wing, thereby seeing a consistent 10-15 a game.

 

[Palatine]

Ball would be my guess.

Singare may get time as a backup big.

Stewart and Ross need to get in the training room but both could be big players by end of year.

Don't under estimate Johnson's ability as a rim protector. His wingspan is 7-5. And he has been in the system for two years. The real question about him at the five is strength. Will he be strong enough carve out space in the lane.

If he can get minutes at the four and the five, it would give us serious quality depth inside.

 

[Huskyforlife]

You're seriously sleeping on Ball.

I think he’s great, but rotation spots are hard to come by on the nations best team. Who’s he passing in that rotation I laid out?

 

[caw]

Fwiw I think Solo Ball is Hurley’s second highest ranked recruit ever after Castle. Between him and Akok depending on what rankings you look at.

Depending on where you look about ten-fifteen spots higher than Hawkins, Jackson, Clingan and Johnson but yes aside from Castle, Ball is Hurley's highest ranked recruit ever.



Sidenote: Hurley has had five wing recruits so far at UConn that were not Euro/grad-transfers.

2018 (Martin - URI/UConn - 200's)
2019 (Bouknight - UConn - 60's)
2020 (Jackson - UConn - 50's)
2021 (Hawkins - UConn - 50's)
2022 (Floyd - UConn/PC - 90's) DNP - RS then transfer

Aside from Floyd there is very good chance the other four get drafted from UConn into the NBA and play, with not a single one being in the top 50 (consensus) in their class.

Don't under estimate Johnson's ability as a rim protector. His wingspan is 7-5. And he has been in the system for two years. The real question about him at the five is strength. Will he be strong enough carve out space in the lane.

If he can get minutes at the four and the five, it would give us serious quality depth inside.

Was more thinking there may be games where Clingan picks up an early two and both Johnson and Singare are needed to eat minutes. Possibly could see a small-ball lineup at those times also.

 

[Deleted at users request]

Depending on where you look about ten-fifteen spots higher than Hawkins, Jackson, Clingan and Johnson but yes aside from Castle, Ball is Hurley's highest ranked recruit ever.



Sidenote: Hurley has had five wing recruits so far at UConn that were not Euro/grad-transfers.

2018 (Martin - URI/UConn - 200's)
2019 (Bouknight - UConn - 60's)
2020 (Jackson - UConn - 50's)
2021 (Hawkins - UConn - 50's)
2022 (Floyd - UConn/PC - 90's) DNP - RS then transfer

Aside from Floyd there is very good chance the other four get drafted from UConn into the NBA and play, with not a single one being in the top 50 (consensus) in their class.



Was more thinking there may be games where Clingan picks up an early two and both Johnson and Singare are needed to eat minutes. Possibly could see a small-ball lineup at those times also.

As the self proclaimed leader of the Ross bandwagon I can see him adding to that list.

 

[metsfan2323]

Hopefully all of them contribute. The UCONN staff knows how to get freshman ready for the season. Nobody expected Clingan to be one of the best freshman in the country, Bouknight was a 4 star who became an instant star his freshman year.

 

[gsmooth]

Depending on where you look about ten-fifteen spots higher than Hawkins, Jackson, Clingan and Johnson but yes aside from Castle, Ball is Hurley's highest ranked recruit ever.



Sidenote: Hurley has had five wing recruits so far at UConn that were not Euro/grad-transfers.

2018 (Martin - URI/UConn - 200's)
2019 (Bouknight - UConn - 60's)
2020 (Jackson - UConn - 50's)
2021 (Hawkins - UConn - 50's)
2022 (Floyd - UConn/PC - 90's) DNP - RS then transfer

Aside from Floyd there is very good chance the other four get drafted from UConn into the NBA and play, with not a single one being in the top 50 (consensus) in their class.



Was more thinking there may be games where Clingan picks up an early two and both Johnson and Singare are needed to eat minutes. Possibly could see a small-ball lineup at those times also.

That's what intrigues me the most. If Clingan gets in foul trouble, I would love to see a small ball lineup that makes the opposing big center uncomfortable by playing away from the basket. Now if Samson can develop a decent 3 pt shot, him at the 5 becomes interesting as well.

 

[dogpause]

Wow, how cool is it to have a thread like this and not less than a half dozen names are offered up as responses? Can't wait for the next season to begin.

 

[navery12]

You're seriously sleeping on Ball.

And Castle. Anyone not putting Castle in the starting lineup is asking to be wrong

 

[Jaydumo20]

You're seriously sleeping on Ball.

His film excites me the most. My father and I drank beer and watched Solo film on repeat all weekend. I got a little too fired up. He's Versatile and tough as nails.

 

[nashusky109]

For me my projected rotation would probably be

Newton/Timberlake/Jackson/Karaban/Clingan
6. Castle
7. Johnson

So in that case I think our biggest need for our 8th man is a wing Shooter/Scorer. The candidates for that role would be; Roumoglou/Ross/Stewart. Balls redundancy with Castle makes me think he’s looking at the Diarra bit role as the occasional 9th man for certain matchups. Singare will be good for depth in case of fouls/injuries, but his rawness probably means he’s not beating junior Samson Johnson for center minutes.

TLDR: Whoever is better right away between Ross/Stewart.

Not a doubt in my mind Castle starts and Newton and Andre play the 2 and 3 respectfully (if they come back).

 

[navery12]

I expect Ball and Stewart to get consistent minutes. We were spoiled by Clingan and Karaban, so I expect a lot more ups and downs, but both should be able to carve out 10 MPG roles. Ross is a wild card, I think he could give some shooting off the bench if needed, but I think he'll be behind a lot of other guys

 

[Scrutineer]

I would expect Ross, Ball and Stewart to have an equal likelihood of playing. They all have experience ahead of them in the rotation right now. Whoever can defend(!), shoot the rock, and limit TOs will get minutes.

Singare strikes me as a redshirt candidate. Great size and strength, bit very raw.

Not to argue about Singare, but he sure didn't look as raw as I expected in his highlights. Defended well, dunked (of course), but also showed he could catch on the run, drive to the basket from out at or beyond the FT line and even took and made a near three pointer.
If SJ doesn't play to the level he's reputed to be capable of playing we could see Singare for 10 to 15 minutes unless what's on the highlight videos is all fluff of course.

 

[3rdbass]

For me my projected rotation would probably be

Newton/Timberlake/Jackson/Karaban/Clingan
6. Castle
7. Johnson

So in that case I think our biggest need for our 8th man is a wing Shooter/Scorer. The candidates for that role would be; Roumoglou/Ross/Stewart. Balls redundancy with Castle makes me think he’s looking at the Diarra bit role as the occasional 9th man for certain matchups. Singare will be good for depth in case of fouls/injuries, but his rawness probably means he’s not beating junior Samson Johnson for center minutes.

TLDR: Whoever is better right away between Ross/Stewart.

Ball is more of SG while Castle has been groomed this year in high school as a PG. They play a little different. Ball is going to be a guy who can score and penetrate. He isn't an assist guy and is a way better athlete than Diarra.

 

[superjohn]

And Castle. Anyone not putting Castle in the starting lineup is asking to be wrong

I didn't notice that. If Newton and Jackson are coming back they start along with Castle, Karaban, and Clingan.

I'm sure I'll be told that starting 5 can't shoot. Yes they can, not quite like this past season but they'll do some things even better and Timberlake will play a ton because of his shooting.

 

[Huskyforlife]

Ball is more of SG while Castle has been groomed this year in high school as a PG. They play a little different. Ball is going to be a guy who can score and penetrate. He isn't an assist guy and is a way better athlete than Diarra.

Yeah they’re absolutely not the exact same players. But they’re both guys whose greatest impacts will be getting down hill to score at the basket or create for their teammates. He might be the best 4th playmaker for a team in the country, but how many minutes can he secure with Newton/Jackson/Castle taking the vast majority? Especially when all 4 of our playmakers will need floor spacing to thrive. I think when people have these conversations, they forget how few minutes really exist outside of the first 6 rotation players.

 

[bendm]

10 man rotation:

Castle (20) Ball (10) Diarra (10)
Newton (27.5) Timberlake (12.5)
Jackson (27.5) Timberlake (12.5)
Karaban (30) Stewart (10)
Clingan (25) Johnson (15)

30: Karaban
27.5: Newton, Jackson
25: Timberlake, Clingan
20: Castle
15: Johnson
10: Ball, Diarra, Stewart

 

[AdamaNation]

I like Jaylin Stewart a lot. He's already got the size to play at the next level and based on more recent highlights I've seen, he's been getting in better shape. I'm sure there will be an adjustment period playing college athletes instead of high school athletes, but he looks like a 3 level scorer that can just take the ball from the perimeter and get a bucket. Super excited about him

Solo Ball strikes me as an energy and hustle guy, so he will definitely find a role on the team but honestly I'm not expecting too much in year 1. He's strong and explosive but at 6'3 I'm not sure how successful he would be playing at the rim off the bat

I think Ross can find some minutes when we need shooting but will be a multi-year guy. Singare is our only backup C so he will probably get minutes by default, unless Clingan is going for 27-30 minutes a game. I think Singare is the most interesting in terms of potential. Really don't know what to expect from him next year

Unless we get another C don’t be surprised to see AK get spot minutes at the 5 like AJ did the 4. He’s smart enough.

 

[Mr. French]

I get that Ball is a bulldog attacking guard, but I wouldn't compare him to Hassan Diarra too quickly.

He's going to be able to score right away.