Per ESPN McNeeley is going pro | Page 5 | The Boneyard

Per ESPN McNeeley is going pro

Lmaoo this is the best decision he could have taken. He gets to start maximizing his earning at age 19 and gets to solely focus on basketball. I would even say its the best decision for the program as well. Him coming back for a second year would have given other programs a lot of ammo to negatively recruit against u
Yes Liam should be a great pro. He has the tools to be very solid and maybe even really good at the next level. All of that is true. However, his time at UConn did not meet expectations. He did not win any team trophies and in the last few games (Creighton in the BE tourney and against Florida) he came up short. That's not putting the young man down. That is just stating facts. Was it the injury? yes that probably derailed him somewhat. But I also saw a kid that is far from a finished product. Will he get coaching to help him improve at the next level? That's hardly a sure thing. We all know that depends on the franchise. And if you don't believe me, think back about how many talented kids (from all schools) amounted to nothing in the pro's. I was on record saying he should have stayed. I felt that way, never having met the family, or knowing anything about his finances, because I know the kind of coaching that he would have gotten at UConn. And because I want him to succeed when he turns Pro. But that train left the station. I wish the kid all the best. I will be rooting for him. But my advise would have been to stay one more year. I just cannot think that Hawkins enjoyed a year of playing in front of 500 people is front of empty gyms, when he could have been with us. Maybe I am wrong.....I do not presume to be in the know.
 
Nothing but love for Liam here! He is 100% making the correct decision and I think he ends up in the lottery. Kids has heart, desire and wants to be great. I see some knocking his shooting percentage but to be fair him getting hurt had a definite impact on his and our season. Also thought he rebounded the ball much better than I had anticipated.
 
I refuse to cry over this until he has an agent. Maybe if he misses the lottery he will come back. Just my thinking ….
That is not a thing. He'd have to go undrafted, which isn't happening. Plus the NCAA doesn't actually let you come back post draft even though the NBA does
 
I don’t see him as a pro but good for him.
Really? You don't think he can catch on and at least be in a Sam Hauser role? I think you are underselling him. I mean I was a little let down with his performance especially at the end of the year but he probably was playing at 80% due to his ankle injury at best and he does have skils. It will just be interesting how it translates at the next level. I will agree that for being labeled a great shooter he had an awful year shooting the rock.
 
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This goes back a bit, but the player he reminds me of most is John Havlchev. Looks like him, built like him, moves like him and has a similar game. I selfishly wish he’d stick around to develop but understand his desire for the next level.
 
Yes Liam should be a great pro. He has the tools to be very solid and maybe even really good at the next level. All of that is true. However, his time at UConn did not meet expectations. He did not win any team trophies and in the last few games (Creighton in the BE tourney and against Florida) he came up short. That's not putting the young man down. That is just stating facts. Was it the injury? yes that probably derailed him somewhat. But I also saw a kid that is far from a finished product. Will he get coaching to help him improve at the next level? That's hardly a sure thing. We all know that depends on the franchise. And if you don't believe me, think back about how many talented kids (from all schools) amounted to nothing in the pro's. I was on record saying he should have stayed. I felt that way, never having met the family, or knowing anything about his finances, because I know the kind of coaching that he would have gotten at UConn. And because I want him to succeed when he turns Pro. But that train left the station. I wish the kid all the best. I will be rooting for him. But my advise would have been to stay one more year. I just cannot think that Hawkins enjoyed a year of playing in front of 500 people is front of empty gyms, when he could have been with us. Maybe I am wrong.....I do not presume to be in the know.
Jordan Hawkins has been gone for two years. He was also at the peak of his draftability when he left. What a moronic comparison.

both Liam and Coach have infinitely more information about his draft prospects than us, and if both are on the same page that he should leave then that means theyve gotten some sort of confirmation that he will be picked in the lottery. As good of a program and coaching staff that we have, one year of development in the NBA will ALWAYS beat one year in college.
 
Jordan Hawkins has been gone for two years. He was also at the peak of his draftability when he left. What a moronic comparison.

both Liam and Coach have infinitely more information about his draft prospects than us, and if both are on the same page that he should leave then that means theyve gotten some sort of confirmation that he will be picked in the lottery. As good of a program and coaching staff that we have, one year of development in the NBA will ALWAYS beat one year in college.
There is no guarantees he will be picked in the lottery. He is definitely a first round pick.
 
Jordan Hawkins has been gone for two years. He was also at the peak of his draftability when he left. What a moronic comparison.

both Liam and Coach have infinitely more information about his draft prospects than us, and if both are on the same page that he should leave then that means theyve gotten some sort of confirmation that he will be picked in the lottery. As good of a program and coaching staff that we have, one year of development in the NBA will ALWAYS beat one year in college.
This was not a Castle situation, a lot was thrown on this kid. There are only so many freshman ready to take on the role of being the man on a winning college team. You had two top 5 picks together on the same team and they couldn't even make the B10 tourney. Our roster this year was massively underwhelming.

Hurley's note hit the reasons while he will succeed - he has a great attitude and works his tail off. That goes a long way. He's barely scratched the surface of what he'll be. An NBA team will likely pay much closer attention on what his top end games were then his low end games were due to their focus on potential. His rutt was a product of trying to do too much, because he had to on a team that had zero playmakers. AK & Solo do nothing off the dribble, Hass was hurt and our bench was terrible. He was trying to do things that weren't in his bag yet. Liam isn't going to be a dribble drive guy in the NBA, he's going to be more catch and shoot.
 
One of my favorite things the past few years is reading all the out of touch opinions on posts like this. As if the posters here wouldn't choose the same option in his shoes.

Liam was always going to be a 1 and done, unless something went monumentally wrong in his year here. This is the way of the basketball world nowadays.

Thanks for choosing UConn, Liam, and I'm looking forward to following your NBA career.
 
I was hoping McNeeley's game was more like Reeves but obviously not quite the playmaker or athletic talent as him. How did Reeves go undrafted? I just read he turned down Detroit drafting him in the 2nd round but he definitely should of been late first round like Jaime Jaquez Jr was drafted by Miami. I know he was a Sr. but the draft isn't an exact science on finding stars. One of my favorite NBA players.

 
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Expected news from Liam and let's hope he has a long successful career.

I think he will be a bit more efficient in the NBA, as he won't be tasked with being a go to player as he ultimately wound up being for us this past season.

Since we're making comparisons, Liam reminds me a bit of Bojan Bogdanović.
 
One of my favorite things the past few years is reading all the out of touch opinions on posts like this. As if the posters here wouldn't choose the same option in his shoes.

Liam was always going to be a 1 and done, unless something went monumentally wrong in his year here. This is the way of the basketball world nowadays.

Thanks for choosing UConn, Liam, and I'm looking forward to following your NBA career.
I agree
Magic Johnson and Larry Bird would have done the same if available to them....thankfully we got to see them play against each other as college seniors
 
I wish Liam the best, I respect his competitive spirit. But, do I think he would be better off long term from a basketball perspective, getting stronger and playing at UConn another year - absolutely.
I admire his mom and other family members, always being there to cheer him on throughout the season.
 
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.
Due to NIL $, I was thinking he should stay one more year, to develop. I think he could have improved with one more year while still making $ and set himself up for quicker ramp up in NBA.

If he is lottery pick and that’s what he’s being told, I will gladly say good decision, go now.

If he falls out of lottery, then I will wish him the best, root for him in the NBA and be a fan for life but also think about what could have been for him with one more year to develop.
 
Anyone who says Liam should come back for another year does not know ball.

If you’re a lock to be a first round pick, which comes with a guaranteed 2 years (plus 2 more team option years), you go. Period.

The last pick (30th) in the first round makes 2.5m dollars in year 1. The last lottery pick (14th) makes 4.5m dollars in year 1.

It could be said about almost every single player in the draft, especially freshman and sophomores, that coming back would make them better off as basketball players, especially as the 18-19yos get physically stronger and more athletic. What else would make them better off? Playing basketball full-time for an NBA franchise, even if it’s in the G league.

As a fan, yes it sucks, but it’s about the paycheck and grabbing one of the 450 NBA jobs available when the opportunity presents itself.
 
I agree
Magic Johnson and Larry Bird would have done the same if available to them....thankfully we got to see them play against each other as college seniors
Magic was a sophomore.
Yes, Magic left for the draft after his sophomore season.

Bird also had an option. He spent his freshman year at Indiana but left early in the secons semester as he couldn't deal with Bobby Knight. After the required year sitting out, then a sophomore and junior year at Indiana State, he was eligible to enter the draft (Celtics picked him 6th) and retain college eligibility (this rule only lasted another year).
 

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