OT - Hamidou Diallo testing Draft Waters

[CTBasketball]

Yes we still swung and missed on him. We could have been recruiting other players with all the time we had.

Diallo probably knows his shot and overall inefficiencies outside of his athleticism will plummet him into the 2R if he plays the 17/18 season at UK. The dude is selling high, can't blame him for that.

 

[pj]

If the kid believes he can't show well against college competition, why should an NBA GM believe he'll show well against NBA competition?

It would be insane to draft him in the first round. The kids who fear competition are exactly the ones who need to be exposed to it.

 

[Jerry1714]

Yea, because Mock Drafts are always so accurate... and because being a "fringe lottery" selection is always so indicative of future success.

How can you disageee with his actions this year being a reflection of his attitude and approach? he was eligible this year but instead of playing, he hid at Putnam for the first semester and then at a UK practice facility

All because his handlers and him knew he had a better shot of being initially drafted if he wasn't exposed. he wasted a key year of major development and a great opportunity so he could sit on a bench.

It might help his draft position right now, but it won't help in the long run. ill take the kid who wants to play, and shows a work ethic and attitude to want to get better - his own coach alluded to that. you can draft the guy hiding in the locker room based on some mock draft

Your points are fine, but they have nothing to do with the Lenny Cooke comparison. Cooke was not drafted. Never played in the NBA. Horrible comparison. The Gerlad Green comparison is much better, great athlete, lotta of questions about desire and being raw, will kick around the NBA for a bunch of years, and may or may not develop into a good player at that level.

No one said where someone is drafted is indicative of future success. The point is he is not Lenny Cooke who again went undrafted.

 

[nyhuskies13]

Your points are fine, but they have nothing to do with the Lenny Cooke comparison. Cooke was not drafted. Never played in the NBA. Horrible comparison. The Gerlad Green comparison is much better, great athlete, lotta of questions about desire and being raw, will kick around the NBA for a bunch of years, and may or may not develop into a good player at that level.

No one said where someone is drafted is indicative of future success. The point is he is not Lenny Cooke who again went undrafted.

Again, the comparison was purely based on attitude and approach - especially these past two years. Cooke also loved the spotlight, listened to the wrong people, and attempted to take an easier route to the NBA because he thought he 'should' be playing in he league.

Would be silly for either of us to predict where he'll be in 3years. But if he doesn't mature and become a professional soon, I don't think it's unrealistic to think he won't be in the NBA after his guaranteed rookie contract.

We all wanted him in a Huskies uniform - mostly because of the time, money, and effort spent recruiting him and his potential. This turned into a blessing in disguise - it might have really forced the AD to look at Ollie if Hamidou pulled this off at UConn during this particular offseason.

 

[UCweCONN]

The kids who fear competition are exactly the ones who need to be exposed to it.

You mean like Waters?

 

[intlzncster]

You mean like Waters?

I still think Waters is thinking of showcasing his talent for a year in order to get picked up by one of the big boys. jmo tho

 

[tzznandrew]

If he stays in the draft, do we still count this as a big swing and a miss by Ollie, or Miller? I understand we put a lot of effort into his recruitment, but it's not like we'd be losing him to someone else.

Well, sort of, in that our pursuit of Hami led to us missing on other players who would be here now if we figured out sooner we weren't even going to get him to enroll in summer camp here (Bruce Brown, for instance).

 

[Danzz]

I still think Waters is thinking of showcasing his talent for a year in order to get picked up by one of the big boys. jmo tho

Waters isn't good enough to be a 1 and done IMO if that is what you mean. He would e nice to get but what we really need is a beefy big and a shooter.

 

[intlzncster]

Waters isn't good enough to be a 1 and done IMO if that is what you mean. He would e nice to get but what we really need is a beefy big and a shooter.

Not what I meant. I was implying he wanted to go somewhere to be THE guy and showcase his skills. So that he could transfer to one of the big boy schools he really wants to go to. The idea being, they see how good he is, and sign him up.

 

[pj]

Not what I meant. I was implying he wanted to go somewhere to be THE guy and showcase his skills. So that he could transfer to one of the big boy schools he really wants to go to. The idea being, they see how good he is, and sign him up.

If that's his plan, it's foolish. The top programs rarely take transfers in, because then they have to use 4 years of scholarship to get 3 years of player or 3 years of scholarship to get 2 years. It is like a self-imposed scholarship reduction. If he's not getting offers from Duke or Kentucky as a high school senior, he shouldn't expect to get one as a transfer. They have taken a good luck at him and decided to pass; it's more than likely they'll decide the same later on.

 

[djct1999]

Not what I meant. I was implying he wanted to go somewhere to be THE guy and showcase his skills. So that he could transfer to one of the big boy schools he really wants to go to. The idea being, they see how good he is, and sign him up.

That logic makes no sense. Why would someone like waters want to showcase his skills with the goal of sitting out a year?

 

[nyhuskies13]

Not what I meant. I was implying he wanted to go somewhere to be THE guy and showcase his skills. So that he could transfer to one of the big boy schools he really wants to go to. The idea being, they see how good he is, and sign him up.

Usually you're my guy, but can't say I agree here.

That would imply his plan to play for a year, and then be forced to sit out a full year before stepping back on the court.

Nothing about his recruitment indicates he's willing to be that patient with his development. If chatter is correct and he wants to start day1, doubt he's that patient.

It's unfortunate. Most of these kids get led the wrong direction by their fathers (oriakhi, soon to be Vance) or the Ed Smiths of the world (ater). While they are certainly well intentioned parents, they fail to realize they have the most biased and non neutral opinions on the planet when evaluating their son.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

While they are certainly well intentioned parents, they fail to realize they have the most biased and non neutral opinions on the planet when evaluating their son.

As opposed to message board posters. I'm not sure you're the guy to be making these points - you're drawing all sorts of conclusions about a kid you've never met based on some pretty convoluted speculation.

 

[nyhuskies13]

As opposed to message board posters. I'm not sure you're the guy to be making these points - you're drawing all sorts of conclusions about a kid you've never met based on some pretty convoluted speculation.

My conclusions, specifically on well intentioned parents leading their influential teenagers down a poor road, was based on the examples I gave. Oriakhi. Soon to be Vance.

But you're right. I don't know any of these kids personally. And these are less personal attacks and speak more to the general state of college basketball, social media, and society in general.

 

[nyhuskies13]

If you're talking about my comments on Hamidou, that's based on coaches comments, his well publicized recruiting process, and his decisions over the past 6 months.

If you're referring to Ater Majok and Alex O, it's based on Ed Smith gassing him up to declare before he was ready so he could cash in - only to have Ater flame out.

Oriakhi's pops clearly thought he was the 2nd coming of Demarcus Cousins and felt Calhoun was unfairly tough on him.

I don't need to know these kids personally to draw conclusions on how their basketball careers turned out based on poor advice

 

[intlzncster]

That logic makes no sense. Why would someone like waters want to showcase his skills with the goal of sitting out a year?

Because he wants to play for Duke/UK/KU. None of them are biting, but if he goes and puts up 20+ and 8ass at KSU, they'll take a good hard look.

If that's his plan, it's foolish. The top programs rarely take transfers in, because then they have to use 4 years of scholarship to get 3 years of player or 3 years of scholarship to get 2 years.

Kansas does. They've done it a fare bit in the past 8 years.
Heck, they've got 3 this year! Charlie Moore and the Lawson brothers. And then Malik Newman last year.

Duke and UK have some in the fold too.

Usually you're my guy, but can't say I agree here.

It's unfortunate. Most of these kids get led the wrong direction by their fathers (oriakhi, soon to be Vance) or the Ed Smiths of the world (ater). While they are certainly well intentioned parents, they fail to realize they have the most biased and non neutral opinions on the planet when evaluating their son.

I'm somebody's guy on here. That's kinda neat.

What I know is that he wants to play for Kansas/Duke/UK etc. He's not being offered. And perhaps he thinks this is a way to make it happen. To play in the big spotlight.

He's thinking about making the NBA, but probably realizes he doesn't have an ideal physical makeup. So I imagine he wants to be successful on the biggest stage possible.

jmo of course. I'm not even saying that's definitely what it is, just a possibility. You are right, he wants to play ASAP. The question is, why exactly?

 

[intlzncster]

If you're referring to Ater Majok and Alex O, it's based on Ed Smith gassing him up to declare before he was ready so he could cash in - only to have Ater flame out.

From what I know of Majok, it was mostly a tribal decision iirc. There's a group of Sudanese refugees in Oz, and they convene to decide kids futures, for a number of things. I thought it was determined Majok should go pro asap to start making money for this family and community.

That said, Ed Smith has been accused of being 'selfish' on a few occasions.

 

[Fishy]

Not what I meant. I was implying he wanted to go somewhere to be THE guy and showcase his skills. So that he could transfer to one of the big boy schools he really wants to go to. The idea being, they see how good he is, and sign him up.

You do better when you think less.

 

[upstater]

Diallo already knows how he stacks up against Kentucky level talent. If he is assured a 1st round selection, he may go if he already feels/knows the score at Kentucky. Practice should have been enlightening for him.

 

[Doctor Hoop]

I reserve most (read: all) of my dislike for Cal and the whole system. Diallo's a kid trying to maximize his chance to make money. Can't fault him much, if we don't know to what extent he was telling UConn he was coming. It wouldn't be the first time that staff got caught off guard.

I can fault him, only in that he should have been more up front with a team that wanted him for at least two years but for whom he didn't really even want to contribute one.

 

[TheChamps990411]

The biggest LIE in college athletics history.

"Part of what makes Kentucky so special is that it prepares you for the NBA better than anywhere else"

This is the biggest lie. Are kids getting more stupid or has it always been this way?

 

[TRest]

"Part of what makes Kentucky so special is that it prepares you for the NBA better than anywhere else"

This is the biggest lie. Are kids getting more stupid or has it always been this way?

It's part of the quid pro quo. Cal markets the kids to NBA teams, the kids market the program to other kids. Plus cash, of course. I've always been amazed by the "Cal knows the NBA" spin because he spent a couple of years with the Nets. One would hope KO has an answer to that.

 

[Kembacity]

If karma is a B, then are we hoping that teams give him a promise they'll take him in the teens and he sits on the board until mid second round? Probably not likely, but I'll be sending karma some well wishes if he stays in the draft

 

[pj]

"Part of what makes Kentucky so special is that it prepares you for the NBA better than anywhere else"

This is the biggest lie. Are kids getting more stupid or has it always been this way?

This is the kid marketing himself to the NBA, and Calipari marketing himself to recruits. You have to expect Calipari co-wrote anything he puts out to the public. To the NBA, the goal is to say, I was only here 3 months and didn't play in games, but I still got prepared for the NBA, i.e., I am now much better than I was when your scouts saw me playing at Putnam Science Academy. Calipari is trying to help him get drafted high so he can use him as a sales tool, and also having one more player re-affirm his message to recruits.

 

[Storrs South]