Postgrad Watch 3.0

[superjohn]

That makes more sense.

I disagree with your conclusion, but appreciate your reasoning.

I think it is in the best interests of both parties that he go elsewhere. He's got one year left - he can actually get on the court and contribute for a lot of teams, just not at this level.

Agree with you, it would be better for both parties if he ended up elsewhere but he already contributed greatly to a national championship team. Got it done at this level on the biggest stage.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

I think you'll see a lot of rotations with Jackson at the four and Larrier on the wing. I don't think we'll see Larrier at the four much - at best, he might be a point forward down the road, but he's more of a wing/shooting guard at this point.

A lot of what they do will depend on what happens with Durham. If he improves, they really have a lot of options one through four.

First, agree tsam should not come back to UConn. He made some contributions as a freshman, but that was under completely ideal circumstances for him where he had talent all around and did not have to try to do more than he was capable.

Second, I also think that Durham is a key to next year. He is the one who I felt did not get the attention he should have this year, although who knows what he showed in practice. He was too nice and too deferential as a freshman. I hope he can find some inner Jeff Adrien because he might not produce much if he does not compensate for his thin frame with aggressive play, quickness, and smarts. Juwan could be awesome as the guy who flashes to the foul line against zones. I hope that KO gives him the message that he needs to be a key player for next year's team to be good.

I hope that Vance can get stronger and quicker to be able to give us solid minutes at the 4 as well as the 3. Not easy to improve quickness, but hope he makes lateral movement a priority for defense.

 

[Fishy]

Agree with you, it would be better for both parties if he ended up elsewhere but he already contributed greatly to a national championship team. Got it done at this level on the biggest stage.

Ah, that's really overstating his contributions.

He did virtually nothing in the regular season. Played very well against Nova and Iowa State in the tournament. Did nothing as a sophomore and just lost his spot on the roster at Penn State. High-major hoop is not where he belongs.

 

[champs99and04]

That makes more sense.

I disagree with your conclusion, but appreciate your reasoning.

I think it is in the best interests of both parties that he go elsewhere. He's got one year left - he can actually get on the court and contribute for a lot of teams, just not at this level.

I don't disagree with that. I mentioned a school like New Hampshire earlier - they lost both starting guards but return an all-conference caliber front court and figure to compete for the America East crown. That's a situation where Samuel could come in, play big minutes, and work towards a grad degree.

If he's hell-bent on returning to UConn and willing to twist in the wind for a few weeks, I don't think a reunion would hurt either party.

 

[UConnKev]

Another shooting guard to consider: Elijah Brown from New Mexico | Elijah Brown College Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com

Big NO from me. Not a team player and a guy entirely focused on getting his points and nothing else. I've seen him play the past 2 seasons at UNM and he's the type of player we do not need.

 

[superjohn]

Ah, that's really overstating his contributions.

He did virtually nothing in the regular season. Played very well against Nova and Iowa State in the tournament. Did nothing as a sophomore and just lost his spot on the roster at Penn State. High-major hoop is not where he belongs.

Just pointing out again how unfair it is saying he can't compete at this level. You don't play the way he did against a couple of the best teams in the country in the tournament if you can't play at this level. I do agree he should look towards a mid-major/lower tier team to finish his career out as a starter instead of an end of the bench guy though.

 

[husky429]

I think you'll see a lot of rotations with Jackson at the four and Larrier on the wing. I don't think we'll see Larrier at the four much - at best, he might be a point forward down the road, but he's more of a wing/shooting guard at this point.

A lot of what they do will depend on what happens with Durham. If he improves, they really have a lot of options one through four.

Agreed, I don't know why people keep thinking larrier is more suited to the for than Jackson. Jackson is 6'8-9 and 230lbs. He has perfect college 4 size.

With Jackson playing outside on O we could pull a big man from the basket.

On the other end, it could maybe help to mitigate some of jacksons lead-footedness if he could play inside more.

It's not a 35mpg option, but with certain matchups, especially if Jackson can get stronger, it could be very helpful

 

[Fishy]

Just pointing out again how unfair it is saying he can't compete at this level.

It's most definitely not unfair - he's proven that he cannot contribute at a high-major level. He simply cannot score - he's played three years and scored in double digits maybe four times?

It's fortunate for us that he had two games where he played well in the tournament, but two programs have now pointed him towards the door. One of them was Penn State which is pretty close to the bottom of the high-major barrel.

 

[methodology]

Big NO from me. Not a team player and a guy entirely focused on getting his points and nothing else. I've seen him play the past 2 seasons at UNM and he's the type of player we do not need.

Isn't he Mike Brown son? I'm pretty sure he would be team oriented and not a me first player on uconn coming off the bench in a new role

Not sure if Ollie and Mike Brown were ever on the same team as coach/player

 

[Huskyforlife]

Adding Samuel as the 13th man does nothing to hurt this team, I think people forget during a normal season that players 11-13 don't play. It would be nice to bring him back.

 

[Matrim55]

Love TSam but he was vastly overrated defensively.

His defense against PGs was overrated. His ability to guard 2s and 3s is somehow becoming underrated.

I understand @Fishy's reluctance and still agree there are other, better fits. But Samuel's defense & speed on the break in certain situations were major weapons for us once KO figured out his rotations as a freshman – putting a third guy on the court who could guard SFs but still run the break was a legit game-changer, especially against Villanova.

Regardless it seems this is moot. I believe the folks who are saying we don't have any real interest in a reunion.

 

[huskymagic]

Fish why do we need a big man according to you Cobb is really good so that along with the returning bigs should give us plenty of depth in the front court. Of course Ollie shouldn't have wasted a scholarship on Cobb to begin with and should have been looking for a good Euro/Australian big man who can play instead like the types Michigan, Xavier, Butler, St. Mary's, Gonzaga's etc always seem to have.

Unless we can get a Shak Juiston or a Kam Johnson(a more athletic/defensively sound Vance Jackson not to mention a great shooter) with the last scholarship, it doesn't hurt to give T-Sam the last scholarship if he is looking to return and not be a hero at Iona. It's not like the 13th guy on the bench is expected to be a major contributor. Ollie isn't getting anyone good late for next year as the Cobb signing indicates.

 

[Stainmaster]

Of course Ollie shouldn't have wasted a scholarship on Cobb to begin with

You are far less smart than Ollie is, so how you could say this is beyond me.

 

[80shusky]

TSam is not coming here and we don't need him. What we need is not him. He's a Husky and I love his contributions for us but yeah. Any decently athletically gifted player can come in and have a few minutes here and there of magic that make us pine for him to play more. It's like rooting for the backup quarterback all the time. I fall for it just like everyone else but yeah.
Most of the minutes Noyes got this year were to have him give fouls at the end of games because our starters were always in foul trouble.

 

[Walker11]

You are far less smart than Ollie is, so how you could say this is beyond me.

You wonder how he could say this? Have you read any of his posts? A better question is how he can figure out to operate a keyboard.

 

[Hugo]

We don't need a stud big man; 3 of UCONN's championships were won without one. Just a serviceable one. He has to be able to rebound/D/set screens/pass a little and score garbage. We'll see about the guys on our roster.

Think we are saying pretty much the same thing. I mentioned D and rebounding. Add your screening and passing and we are on the same page. A Jake or an AO would be a major upgrade to what it appears we have at the 5 next year. However, I would love to have a true stud as it opens up the inside-out game which we have not had recently.

 

[HuskyHawk]

You are far less smart than Ollie is, so how you could say this is beyond me.

I love the irony of people worrying about depth at center and saying we wasted a scholarship on Cobb. Are people even watching the NCAA tournament? A lot of teams with 6'9" space eaters at the 5. I think Durham will be solid and put on some muscle too since he's finally not injured.

 

[RayIsTheGOAT]

Here's a Post Grad worth considering. For those of you who can remember three years ago a common opinion on this board from Janury on was that we "always seem to go on a run when TSAM is in the lineup". In this video TSAM gets 2 points, 1 rebound, and an assist from the forward position.

I see TSAM as a point forward in a three guard lineup. He is not a point guard.

No. We need a big or a sniper that we know can contribute immediately.
Only way we should consider taking back TSam is if we have ABSOLUTELY no options to fill a need.

 

[UConnSwag11]

Here's a Post Grad worth considering. For those of you who can remember three years ago a common opinion on this board from Janury on was that we "always seem to go on a run when TSAM is in the lineup". In this video TSAM gets 2 points, 1 rebound, and an assist from the forward position.

I see TSAM as a point forward in a three guard lineup. He is not a point guard.

dude no way...not at all

 

[mauconnfan]

I love the irony of people worrying about depth at center and saying we wasted a scholarship on Cobb. Are people even watching the NCAA tournament? A lot of teams with 6'9" space eaters at the 5. I think Durham will be solid and put on some muscle too since he's finally not injured.

I know he's not going to be like Shaq from Wichita State but similar body and their defense with I'm in the middle was really good clogging it up. Don't need shot blockers as much as you need smart space eaters. Agree Hawk!!

 

[Fishy]

Elijah Brown is leaving New Mexico and no, UConn should not recruit him.

Not a good shooter, takes a ton of bad shots and doesn't even know what defense is.

 

[pj]

I think most informed posters with half a brain would disagree with you. He was the "6th man" in 14 and a key cog. Apparently he also ran over your dog which is unfortunate.

Terence Samuel 2014 stats, 2013-14 UConn Huskies Roster and Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com: 9th on the team in minutes played with 9.0 per game; 9th on the team in points with 1.4 per game; 12th on the team in rebounds with 0.9 per game. For a "sixth" man he's awfully 9th-12th ish.

 

[mauconnfan]

And yet we don't win a national champiship in 14 without him. So suck on that.

Are you kidding me? He made some plays in some big moments no doubt. But he was never a very good player, hard nosed kid who couldn't shoot a lick and handled it like a forward. But timing is everything and AB knows a little about that too. Doesn't mean these are people we need or want. He was never the best player off the bench or the 6th man unless it was him they needed right away. This was not a microwave coming off the bench.

Hey again, some big moments I will be forever grateful for as a Husky fan. But this is a huge pass.

 

[intlzncster]

Are you kidding me? He made some plays in some big moments no doubt. But he was never a very good player, hard nosed kid who couldn't shoot a lick and handled it like a forward. But timing is everything and AB knows a little about that too. Doesn't mean these are people we need or want. He was never the best player off the bench or the 6th man unless it was him they needed right away. This was not a microwave coming off the bench.

Hey again, some big moments I will be forever grateful for as a Husky fan. But this is a huge pass.

Come to think of it, imagine Brimah's story were he a 2nd or 3rd option at the 5 his whole career. He might be really well thought of here. He just wasn't a starting caliber center at UCONN.

 

[Burnsbros23]

This thread is about if we should take Terrence Samuel back.... was not expecting that.

Absolutely not. Agree with fishy clearly not a high major guard.