Per ESPN McNeeley is going pro | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Per ESPN McNeeley is going pro

3rdbass said:
I could see him playing a Sam Hauser role off the bench. I think his outside shot is better than he showed and he won't have to create in the NBA like he did here.
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He'll be a lot better than Sam Hauser. That's his floor.
 
Fought through injury and came back and worked hard every game. 1st round talent and he should go to the league. Hopefully he gets drafted by the Spurs with Castle or him and Donovan would be cool!
 
Fatroony5 said:
Definitely got asked to shoulder way too much of the load this season, so some of his warts were showing through. Think NBA scouts will go back to his high school tape (like they did a bit with Castle) and see a guy who is a good complimentary player on a team; he should play better when he’s not expected to be such a focal point of the offense. He fits well around other guys, excited to see what’s next.
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The one difference is that Steph really did well as his season went on but his injury was earlier in the season so he had more time to get over it and it wasn't as severe. I think what people saw from Steph during the final four they knew what they were getting. A great potential scoring guard with PG passing abilities who still has to work on his outside shot. Also, a great defender. I really missed Steph this year as he was my favorite UConn freshman in along time.
 
Good for him. I think a lot of his “struggles” had to do with being asked to do too much. I don’t think he’ll be taking on as much ball handling and creation responsibility at the next level. At least not right away. I’m not sure I’d be begging my team to pick him top 10 but for sure first round. Lot of upside. Definitely a gamer

Maybe if he came back he’d play his way into top 10 or whatever who knows. Probably not worth the risk. I can’t see him not being a first rounder
 
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Hungryhusky99 said:
Bad decision but expected
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Only if he doesn't get a guaranteed NBA contract. I think he'll work hard enough to stick at the NBA level but he needs to show some defense.
 
Beowulf said:
Good for him. I think a lot of his “struggles” had to do with being asked to do too much. I don’t think he’ll be taking on as much ball handling and creation responsibility at the next level. At least not right away. I’m not sure I’d be begging my team to pick him top 10 but for sure first round. Lot of upside. Definitely a gamer

Maybe if he came back he’d play his way into top 10 or whatever who knows. Probably not worth the risk. I can’t see him not being a first rounder
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There is not much difference he can make in staying another year on his draft stock. He's getting drafted because of his potential and his physical build which is that of a prototypical NBA wing.

There is a lot of downside in coming back. Much easier for a stock to go down.

He's making the right call, 100%. No doubt.
 
NHUConnfan said:
He'll be a lot better than Sam Hauser. That's his floor.
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Well Sam and him are around the same height and athletic ability. I will say McNeeley is a better dribbler but Sam a better shooter coming into the league. I guess I see McNeeley making a similar impact as shooter coming off the bench at first when he comes into the leauge.
 
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3rdbass said:
The one difference is that Steph really did well as his season went on but his injury was earlier in the season so he had more time to get over it and it wasn't as severe. I think what people saw from Steph during the final four they knew what they were getting. A great potential scoring guard with PG passing abilities who still has to work on his outside shot. Also, a great defender. I really missed Steph this year as he was my favorite UConn freshman in along time.
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With Steph it was clear that he would be able to defend & physically he was ready to step on an NBA court. There were concerns about his ability to be a true lead guard & the shooting piece was obviously a concern as well. Lots of chatter about what he would actually be at the next level. With Liam, I think there are concerns about what his ceiling is, the shooting should get better but it wasn’t as good this year as people expected. I’m hopeful for him, I think he’ll be fine. I’d say Kon has likely passed him at this point for filling a similar role, but Liam should still be a top 20 guy.
 
NHUConnfan said:
Because LM is physically more gifted than Hauser and has shown he can be a lights out shooter. We all saw it.
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38% overall and 32% from 3 aren't lights out better. He might be stronger than Hauser but he lacked foot speed just like Sam does and it was highlited on defense.
 
3rdbass said:
Well Sam and him are around the same height and athletic ability. I will say McNeeley is a better dribbler but Sam a better shooter coming into the league. I guess I see McNeeley making a similar impact as shooter coming off the bench at first when he comes into the leauge.
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You're kidding yourself if you think Sam Hauser has the same physical gifts as Liam. Give Liam a year with NBA athletic trainers.
 
Hungryhusky99 said:
Bad decision but expected
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Says you. “Expected lottery pick”. Without question, this is the right decision. Unlike some selfish few, GMs are high on Liam’s potential. As they should be. Thanks for a great year Liam!
 
Fatroony5 said:
With Steph it was clear that he would be able to defend & physically he was ready to step on an NBA court. There were concerns about his ability to be a true lead guard & the shooting piece was obviously a concern as well. Lots of chatter about what he would actually be at the next level. With Liam, I think there are concerns about what his ceiling is, the shooting should get better but it wasn’t as good this year as people expected. I’m hopeful for him, I think he’ll be fine. I’d say Kon has likely passed him at this point for filling a similar role, but Liam should still be a top 20 guy.
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Yeah, I hope Liam continues to improve and work on his shot and athletic ability(especially on Defense). He has really good strength and dribbling abiiity to do carve out time as a shooter/scorer at the next level if he does.
 
Im shocked at how many people in this thread don’t understand the modern NBA
 
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NHUConnfan said:
You're kidding yourself if you think Sam Hauser has the same physical gifts as Liam. Give Liam a year with NBA athletic trainers.
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Sam Hauser isn't a horrible athlete as he does have a 34.5 inch vertical which is better than Alex 32 inch. We all thought Liam was more athletic than Alex but he didn't blow him away.
 
3rdbass said:
Sam Hauser isn't a horrible athlete as he does have a 34.5 inch vertical which is better than Alex 32 inch. We all thought Liam was more athletic than Alex but he didn't blow him away.
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May I remind you that Liam is 19.
 
NHUConnfan said:
May I remind you that Liam is 19.
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Ok that is fine. Either way being a key reserve in his 3rd year in the NBA on a championship team is not a bad ceiling for Liam at least to start his career. I'm not saying he will be like Bouknight out of the league in 3 years.
 
djct1999 said:
Says you. “Expected lottery pick”. Without question, this is the right decision. Unlike some selfish few, GMs are high on Liam’s potential. As they should be. Thanks for a great year Liam!
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I would be stunned if he is lotto but if he is good for him
 
3rdbass said:
Ok that is fine. Either way being a key reserve on a championship team is not a bad ceiling for Liam. He could end up like Bouknight out of the league in 3 years.
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His ceiling is much higher than "key reserve" lmao.
 
3rdbass said:
Yeah, I hope Liam continues to improve and work on his shot and athletic ability(especially on Defense). He has really good strength and dribbling abiiity to do carve out time as a shooter/scorer at the next level if he does.
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I think Liam will be fine once he gets on an NBA floor. I see a lot of Hauser talk, if Liam can get to that level, that’s a successful career. He just signed a $45 million contract, not too bad..
 
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NHUConnfan said:
His ceiling is much higher than "key reserve" lmao.
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OK I disagree. I don't see that yet out of him. His shooting was sub par and his defense was way below average. He has potential but he is going to have to improve a lot to be that type of player. Not saying he can't but I don't see it now. Also, like someone just mentioned Hauser singed a big contract in just his 3rd year. I would love for all our UConn players to at least do that when they get into the NBA. I think us UConn fans sometimes put our players on higher pedestals because they played for our team. Hawkins while a good player might have issues getting a new contract after his 3rd year and many of us thought he was a sure thing can't miss shooter.
 
NHUConnfan said:
There is not much difference he can make in staying another year on his draft stock. He's getting drafted because of his potential and his physical build which is that of a prototypical NBA wing.

There is a lot of downside in coming back. Much easier for a stock to go down.

He's making the right call, 100%. No doubt.
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Absolutely. I think he's even getting credit for things he struggled with. Going into the draft with a good shooter rep with a meh shooting season overall.

He's got the tools and teams see that, hence the first round projection. Coming back would just be a risk
 
3rdbass said:
38% overall and 32% from 3 aren't lights out better. He might be stronger than Hauser but he lacked foot speed just like Sam does and it was highlited on defense.
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Liam is a much more well rounded player after just 1 season than Hauser was after 4, which is why Liam is a lottery pick and Hauser went undrafted.

Hauser's turned himself into a good NBA player but Liam will start out his career with more tools in his belt. His offensive repertoire contains moves that Hauer took years to develop.
 
3rdbass said:
OK I disagree. I don't see that yet out of him. His shooting was sub par and his defense was way below average. He has potential but he is going to have to improve a lot to be that type of player. Not saying he can't but I don't see it now. Also, like someone just mentioned Hauser singed a big contract in just his 3rd year. I would love for all our UConn players to at least do that when they get into the NBA. I think us UConn fans sometimes put our players on higher pedestals because they played for our team. Hawkins while a good player might have issues getting a new contract after his 3rd year and many of us thought he was a sure thing can't miss shooter.
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Liam is a much better prospect than Hawkins. I don't think that's up for debate.
 
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