PN playing well

[husky99]

Good start, nice pass to DD

 

[metsfan2323]

We just found our starting center for next season.

 

[Deleted member 3149]

Just adds to the frontcourt depth of next years team. PN, TO,AB,NG,KF ...lets goooo

 

[ibleedhuskyblue]

He is actually a good shooter. I saw him in high school, and he could really shoot.
I wish he would look for his shot occasionally when he gets the ball between the top of the key and the free throw line.
Either way..he's had a really good 6-ish minute stretch.

 

[UConn Hoops1]

Good start, nice pass to DD

Ten toes!! At the very least give him Olander's minutes for the rest of the season.

GO HUSKIES!!! BEAT THE BEARCATS!!!

 

[ChrisSmith]

Ten toes!! At the very least give him Olander's minutes for the rest of the season.

There's plenty of minutes for both. I don't know why people criticize Olander when there's not other options. Sure, he's not a good player, but he plays hard and he's kept out of trouble. It's not his fault the cupboard is bare.

 

[jfuchs91]

For most of the season, Nolan didn't show much, and while I knew he was a freshman, I didn't have high hopes that he would contribute all that much more than a big body throughout his UConn career. However, over the last three games, he's looked very solid, and has shown that he can at least hold his own while providing good defense and rebounding.

The biggest jump a player makes is usually from freshman to sophomore season, and if everyone returns next year and Nolan can develop (as well as some early contributions from Facey/Brimah), I feel much better about next year's team making a legitimate run.

 

[UConn Hoops1]

There's plenty of minutes for both. I don't know why people criticize Olander when there's not other options. Sure, he's not a good player, but he plays hard and he's kept out of trouble. It's not his fault the cupboard is bare.

Give me a break! No criticism there at all. Just recognizing where development minutes for the future of the team should go.

GO HUSKIES!!! BEAT THE BEARCATS!!!

 

[ChrisSmith]

Give me a break! No criticism there at all. Just recognizing where development minutes for the future of the team should go.

Not sure what you mean by developmental minutes. 1) They should both be back next year. Doesn't make sense to look beyond that. 2) You do most of your improving in practice, not in games.

 

[superjohn]

Are you related to Olandr by chance? We've seen what Olander can do for 3 years, you're blind if you don't think Nolan has more talent and upside than Olander.

 

[UConn Hoops1]

Absolutely do not agree. Nolan(or anybody) cannot duplicate game minutes anywhere but in games. Of course skill and tactical development benefit from practice but nothing substitutes for games played. And, despite us having a (fatigue related and no Shabazz related) mountain to climb in Cincinatti, Nolan is obviously building on a previous performance. He needs more minutes and you have to see that his ceiling is well beyond Tyler's.

GO HUSKIES!!! BEAT THE BEARCATS!!!

 

[huskyniner]

We just found our starting center for next season.

If he gains at least 10 pounds, yes.

 

[UChusky916]

Are you related to Olandr by chance? We've seen what Olander can do for 3 yeaars you're blind if you don't think Nolan has more talent and upside than Olander.

Agreed. Upside is the key here. Nolan has it. We know what TO offers and its a backup role.

Nolan has great instincts and finds himself in the right spot a lot. He needs more minutes. Olander is too slow on offense and defense and not rebounding well.

 

[Huskybass]

Phil needs minutes to develop. We already know what Olander provides.

 

[ChrisSmith]

Are you related to Olandr by chance? We've seen what Olander can do for 3 years, you're blind if you don't think Nolan has more talent and upside than Olander.

Nope. I don't think Olander is a good player either. But I don't blame him for being UConn's best option down low right now (I blame Jim Calhoun). It's just a joke that all of a sudden Nolan is the savior. Play the best players you have. Remember the goal this year, a Big East regular season championship? The goal wasn't to develop Phil Nolan for 3 years down the road. Yes, I think Nolan has more talent and upside than Olander. Olander was the better player this year. (Though maybe not anymore).

 

[Rico444]

Nope. I don't think Olander is a good player either. But I don't blame him for being UConn's best option down low right now (I blame Jim Calhoun). It's just a joke that all of a sudden Nolan is the savior. Play the best players you have. Remember the goal this year, a Big East regular season championship? The goal wasn't to develop Phil Nolan for 3 years down the road. Yes, I think Nolan has more talent and upside than Olander. Olander was the better player this year. (Though maybe not anymore).

Nobody's saying Phil should've played all year, but he's clearly improved to the point now where he's a better option than TO.

 

[ChrisSmith]

Absolutely do not agree. Nolan(or anybody) cannot duplicate game minutes anywhere but in games. Of course skill and tactical development benefit from practice but nothing substitutes for games played. And, despite us having a (fatigue related and no Shabazz related) mountain to climb in Cincinatti, Nolan is obviously building on a previous performance. He needs more minutes and you have to see that his ceiling is well beyond Tyler's.

Sure, you can't duplicate game minutes in practice. But you can't duplicate practice minutes in a game. Practice is much more important than playing in a game. You play 30 games, and get 25 minutes a game - that's 750 minutes. Half the time you're playing defense, and you only have the ball in your hands 1/5 of the time your team has the ball. That's 70 minutes a season in which you have the ball in your hands (and that's probably overstated, considering guards like Nappier and Boatright have the ball in their hands more than 1/5). If he practices 60 minutes a day 365 days a year, that's over 20,000 minutes.

Nolan will get much, much, much more out of his 20,000 minutes of practice then he will out of 750 minutes of playing time, let alone the 75 minutes he'll actually be touching a basketball in a game.

 

[ChrisSmith]

Nobody's saying Phil should've played all year, but he's clearly improved to the point now where he's a better option than TO.

Actually people in other threads are saying Phil should have played all year. UConn clearly needs both Nolan and Olander the last 2 games.

 

[UConnSwag11]

kid almost had a double double, i love his energy

 

[Huskies4ever]

If he gains at least 10 pounds, yes.

You're being a little generous here.

 

[Rico444]

Actually people in other threads are saying Phil should have played all year. UConn clearly needs both Nolan and Olander the last 2 games.

People can argue that if you want, that he should have been developing even if he didn't give us the best shot to win. I could see either side of that argument.

Right now, there isn't much of an argument. Nolan is the better player.

 

[ChrisSmith]

Play the best player. For most of the season, Olander has been the better player. If Nolan is the better layer now (he was today), play him more (he did tonight).

Some of you guys get so caught up in developing guys for the future. Game time is 10% of improving, if that. Who knows if Nolan will get homesick and transfer or get booted. Who know's if Nolan will be recruited over. Play to win today, and the other stuff takes care of it. An extra win or two this year might be the difference in landing a kid for 2014, and that kid might make Nolan irrelevant.

 

[ChrisSmith]

People can argue that if you want, that he should have been developing even if he didn't give us the best shot to win. I could see either side of that argument.

Right now, there isn't much of an argument. Nolan is the better player.

Based on 1 game he's the better player? I don't know, I'll let Ollie make that call. He knows a lot more about basketball, and he sees them both everyday in practice.

 

[Rico444]

Play the best player. For most of the season, Olander has been the better player. If Nolan is the better layer now (he was today), play him more (he did tonight).

Some of you guys get so caught up in developing guys for the future. Game time is 10% of improving, if that. Who knows if Nolan will get homesick and transfer or get booted. Who know's if Nolan will be recruited over. Play to win today, and the other stuff takes care of it. An extra win or two this year might be the difference in landing a kid for 2014, and that kid might make Nolan irrelevant.

Personally, I agree. Keep playing Nolan until he shows this two game stretch was a fluke.

 

[Rico444]

Based on 1 game he's the better player? I don't know, I'll let Ollie make that call. He knows a lot more about basketball, and he sees them both everyday in practice.

What has Olander shown you to make you think he's better? Nolan played better D and rebounded better in this game and against Georgetown. He deserves the chance to prove that he's legit.