Problem - These teams are just better.

[champs99and04]

I was on a work call with the game on mute so I don't know the specific play to which you're referring, so I'm not disputing the accuracy of your description. But the problem is that you seem to be saying that this sort of lack of situational awareness is a problem that's specific to Purvis, and it really seems to be a hallmark of the team generally. Every single guy on the team does stuff like this - repeatedly - every game. At least Rodney offsets it on occasion with some offense. Other guys don't.

You're certainly right that a lot of the bad habits Purvis exhibits plagues the entire roster. Where I will sympathize with @Cheeky regarding the position he's taken is that oftentimes it feels he is the least redeemable of everybody, which is made worse by the fact that we're dependent on him to be a lead guard. Everybody else has an excuse - Facey and Brimah are still painfully young in basketball years, Hamilton's only a freshman, and guys like Calhoun and Samuel just aren't that talented.

I don't think this is an indictment on his character or anything. He seems like a great kid. Sometimes the game just moves faster than you can think, and a lot of times I think it's something your born with.

 

[jleves]

This will be harsh and I'll no doubt be more optimistic the further in the rearview mirror this week gets, but if you're one of the peeps who posts wearing pom-poms, you should probably stop here and go look at these kittens instead.

For those of you who don't post wearing pom-poms and don't really like cute kitten pictures, here are some cats that are having a year like UConn is.

 

[ASweet3781]

Perhaps we can blame the ban for the lack of talent on this team (and can you imagine this team had Boatright left?).

But it's just not acceptable to basically only having Jalen coming in to replace Boat next year. This program needs so much more it's not even funny. Why are we playing with such fire? The margin of error is so small with this group. What happened to the stacked depth of an Okafor, Charlie V, Boone, Armstrong? Losing the amount of recruits we lost this past off season coming off a title and a new practice facility is just not getting it done.

I just can't believe this program is having this much difficulty navigating an AAC conference regular season schedule. If we can't handle the grind of SMU, Memphis, Temple than God help them if the ACC miracle invite ever comes and they have Louisville, Duke, UNC, UVA, Syracuse, Pitt staring at them.

 

[3rdbass]

TSam has had a bad stretch of games, but by no means is he less of a player than Dbev was as someone stated earlier. Hell, Tsam had some huge buckets in the NCAA tourney last year. It's growing pains. It's college basketball. This is what happens when kids stick around and grow as players. Get over it and stop being spoiled.

I disagree. Just like tsam was a help last year dbev was in 2011 run. He definitely is a better point guard than tsam even if he lacked the defense that tsam has. As we can tell from this year there isn't any point guard skills with him. He can't create offense for others due to an iffy handle and bad passing instincts. I pray we find someone this year that can handle the ball when Adams is out of the game or next season is going to scary.

 

[jibsey]

We weren't the only ones with expectations, all the college hoops mags and reporters had us inside the top 20 and these are people that do this for a living which tells us what we already know. No one had seen a Purvis for a year, he gave us a lot of down and some up. Nolan, Samuel, and Facey were projected to improve, it didn't happen. Those who are expecting improvement next year from Brimah will be rewarded I think. Calhoun came back to shoot better from 3 but it's apparent his athleticism isn't there for other needed game skills. We need an injection of new blood, we're down several pints.

 

[Chief00]

We can't shoot and that leads to a lot of bad things - turnovers, travels, crazy drives and poor transition defense. And guys eventually get discourage and jack-up really bad shots.
As for Fishy's point the Bigs are making the same stupid mistakes they made in November - I couldn't agree more and I have been pleading for a Bigs coach for a long time. In the meantime we have won 2 NCs but it's been in spite of the Bigs slow development.
Ollie has pushed all the wrong buttons this year so unlike the first two. Much is due to to the fact he doesn't have the talent to respond - and sometimes teams just don't have chemistry - 2012 had great talent but bad chemistry and a disruptive season due to NCAA suspensions.
Ollie and his staff, who you seldom hear recruits mention - need to reel in some late talent - at least 2 players who can play immediately.

 

[Glastonhusky]

We can't shoot and that leads to a lot of bad things - turnovers, travels, crazy drives and poor transition defense. And guys eventually get discourage and jack-up really bad shots.
As for Fishy's point the Bigs are making the same stupid mistakes they made in November - I couldn't agree more and I have been pleading for a Bigs coach for a long time. In the meantime we have won 2 NCs but it's been in spite of the Bigs slow development.
Ollie has pushed all the wrong buttons this year so unlike the first two. Much is due to to the fact he doesn't have the talent to respond - and sometimes teams just don't have chemistry - 2012 had great talent but bad chemistry and a disruptive season due to NCAA suspensions.
Ollie and his staff, who you seldom hear recruits mention - need to reel in some late talent - at least 2 players who can play immediately.

What this team really needs next season is another Nadev Henefeld type player, an older experienced high BB IQ type who can do the little things needed to win games. I had some hopes for the German kid, but I'm not sure what the story is with him. The individual pieces are in place for next season, we just need a stabilizing influence to pull the pieces together.

 

[pnow15]

We will get Hardnett or Carter or Smith. So, Adams will play the two. The other will play the point. Purvis will be an off the bench heat check guy. Don't be surprised if Ollie starts Enoch, Brimah, Dham, New point and Adams, hoping to make a run in two years. Of Course, he could bring as yet unknown fifth year and then things will change.

 

[The Funster]

Pom poms are off.

TSam is at best a 3rd or 4th guard. He can't shoot and drives down blind alleys and then gives the ball away. Purvis is a slasher with no left hand. Purvis will improve. TSam will not. Cassell belongs on the bench with TSam. Omar should slide down a little to make room.

Brimah will improve but let's face it: if he gets good enough to carry the team he's gone after next year. Nolan has come up small when we needed him. Facey has a lot to prove and I'm not I even know who Lubin is. Stubby guy that should be playing for Central, right? DHam is a stud but I worry that he'll be asked to do too much.

I see only two returning players that we can count on next year: Brimah and Hamilton.

I blame Ollie and the staff. While we shouldn't speculate on players that should leave I can say that Ollie has to take a hard look at his staff. I see a lot of deadwood. The former Husky thing ain't working.

 

[Stainmaster]

We will get Hardnett or Carter or Smith. So, Adams will play the two. The other will play the point. Purvis will be an off the bench heat check guy. Don't be surprised if Ollie starts Enoch, Brimah, Dham, New point and Adams, hoping to make a run in two years. Of Course, he could bring as yet unknown fifth year and then things will change.

Carter I can see being able to earn a spot in the starting lineup if he plays extremely well in the first practices. I have a harder time thinking that Hardnett or Smith would start over Purvis. As frustrating as he has been, he has far more upside on a college basketball court than a 3-star freshman can be assumed to have.

 

[Glastonhusky]

Pom poms are off.

TSam is at best a 3rd or 4th guard. He can't shoot and drives down blind alleys and then gives the ball away. Purvis is a slasher with no left hand. Purvis will improve. TSam will not. Cassell belongs on the bench with TSam. Omar should slide down a little to make room.

Brimah will improve but let's face it: if he gets good enough to carry the team he's gone after next year. Nolan has come up small when we needed him. Facey has a lot to prove and I'm not I even know who Lubin is. Stubby guy that should be playing for Central, right? DHam is a stud but I worry that he'll be asked to do too much.

I see only two returning players that we can count on next year: Brimah and Hamilton.

I blame Ollie and the staff. While we shouldn't speculate on players that should leave I can say that Ollie has to take a hard look at his staff. I see a lot of deadwood. The former Husky thing ain't working.

At this point I'd have to agree with your view of the staff. I don't know the inner workings of the staff but I believe the recruiting assistants are Miller, Hobbs and Ricky. Of those 3 only Hobbs is an experienced recruiter and I haven't heard his name associated with anyone UConn has recruited for next season or anyone we are looking at beyond that. I had hoped that he would have some connections in the Baltimore/DC area from his time at GW, but again, nothing.

 

[pnow15]

Adams will start over Purvis. Why? Adams look like a big time scorer and we don't want him running the offense. Leave that to lesser mortals. Purvis can't run the show. This means we have to find our starting point.

 

[tzznandrew]

Adams will start over Purvis. Why? Adams look like a big time scorer and we don't want him running the offense. Leave that to lesser mortals. Purvis can't run the show. This means we have to find our starting point.

I'm going to go out on a limb and suggest that our starting lineup will be Adams-Purvis-Hamilton-????-Brimah, provided all are healthy.

Purvis has the potential to be a serious scorer. We saw that, and I suspect he'll get more consistent. Since the Houston game he is averaging 12.7ppg. That's opposed to 9.3ppg before that.

Brimah and Hamilton are obvious. Adams will be a PG for this team. We'll probably play those 4 plus another ball-handler with some frequency.

 

[Chief00]

Quite frankly, while I like guys who can shot - if you have some shooters there is always a spot on the team for a TSam type - I love his toughness and attitude - he plays hard. He is a good kid who competes. He fills a role and will give us energy off the bench with defense and occasionally driving the ball on offense; however he should not take the open 3 - since there is a reason he is open on the 3 point line.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

We will get Hardnett or Carter or Smith. So, Adams will play the two. The other will play the point. Purvis will be an off the bench heat check guy. Don't be surprised if Ollie starts Enoch, Brimah, Dham, New point and Adams, hoping to make a run in two years. Of Course, he could bring as yet unknown fifth year and then things will change.

I'm pretty sure that Adams will be playing the 1 as he has this entire year. He could certainly switch to the 2 at times, but his future is at the 1 and that is where I expect him to play primarily.

 

[8893]

Forget the AAC Tournament.

Four wins in four days? No. The teams above us in the conference are better and play harder and smarter than we do. If they all get off the plane at Bradley, we're not making it.

***

The irony is that we probably will win the AAC tourney.

So, to recap, we should lose the AAC tournament but we probably will win it.

 

[Offhegoes]

Adams will start at the 1 from day 1.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

We will get Hardnett or Carter or Smith. So, Adams will play the two. The other will play the point. Purvis will be an off the bench heat check guy. Don't be surprised if Ollie starts Enoch, Brimah, Dham, New point and Adams, hoping to make a run in two years. Of Course, he could bring as yet unknown fifth year and then things will change.

Take a break.

 

[huskyharry]

[/QUOTE]
Thanks for the kittens...at least that cheered me up a bit!

 

[Edward Sargent]

Great post. I also heard Kevin Ollie owns a snow plow company on the side and it's just been a busy season for he and the guys who he uses as drivers.

Well there is an 800 lb gorilla that most often goes unsaid for good reason but KOs personal difficulties have no doubt affected his performance all year long both on the court and off.

 

[tennmike]

How's this for an 800 lb gorilla? We have a coaching staff littered with point guards and from a developmental standpoint, none of our players improved their ability to dribble, pass, break a press, run an offense, inbound the ball, make foul shots, recognize...court awareness or know when and when not to shoot. These wait till you see next years' fantastic development folks are delirious. If you want to take solace by looking at Brimah's gain, you have to see that ~50% of his scoring improvement is directly attributable to DHam.

If you want to lean on the KO is distracted argument, where are the "we got your back" assistants? This is, after all, UCONN basketball.

I used to think we were simply better than everyone else...
Better at recognizing talent and intangibles...
Better at player development...
Better at instilling toughness...
Better at motivating players...
Better at game management...
Better at in-game thinking, mental awareness...
Better at outworking our opponents...
Better at imposing our will...

Sadly, we've fallen far and this years' performance may cause some recruits to wonder why they would want to get mixed up with this mess. The sky may actually be falling. All I can grasp onto now is the I hope I am badly mistaken. That would be just great.

 

[imno1]

Well there is an 800 lb gorilla that most often goes unsaid for good reason but KOs personal difficulties have no doubt affected his performance all year long both on the court and off.

Not buying it

 

[Palatine]

For some unknown reason, these player do not know their own strengths and weaknesses. They don't know their own sweet spots on offense. They don't react quickly on defense. They play the game but the don't anticipate it.
And they are -for the most part- soft.

When saw Nolan hit the side jumper for the second game in a row, it was like watching him learn before my eyes. I thought, why couldn't he have figured that out in the first few games? Then I realized, his learning curve was ahead of most of the squad.

 

[husky91]

Our 1-3 are as talented and capable as almost any teams'. The 4-5 fall off a cliff and then the whole thing ends up in the ditch.

Hopefully Brimah has a Hakeem transformation over the summer and Enoch is ready.

 

[tzznandrew]

We have a coaching staff littered with point guards and from a developmental standpoint, none of our players improved their ability to dribble, pass, break a press, run an offense, inbound the ball, make foul shots, recognize...court awareness or know when and when not to shoot.

Let's not pretend that Shabazz, Giffey, and Boatright didn't improve immensely, largely under KO and his crew. As much as we've been complaining, Facey has improved from last year as well. And, at least defensively, Nolan from his freshman year.

Some of the other players haven't improved yet as much as we'd like, but off-season injuries (Calhoun, Purvis, Brimah) could be playing a large role in that. I'm going to be worried about our coaching staff if, with a year under their belt and a summer, Hamilton, Purvis, and Brimah look the same.

 

[willie99]

KO claiming Temple made no 2nd Half adjustments on Boat was terrifying.

Was he watching the game?

he was blinded by his own tears

 

[husky91]

Facey has improved? To what exactly? From an F to a D-, that might even be a reach.

Again, the UK front court is Stein, Town, Johnson and Lyles


UConn's is Brimah, Facey, Nolan and Lubin -- flat out embarrassing

Let's not pretend that Shabazz, Giffey, and Boatright didn't improve immensely, largely under KO and his crew. As much as we've been complaining, Facey has improved from last year as well. And, at least defensively, Nolan from his freshman year.

Some of the other players haven't improved yet as much as we'd like, but off-season injuries (Calhoun, Purvis, Brimah) could be playing a large role in that. I'm going to be worried about our coaching staff if, with a year under their belt and a summer, Hamilton, Purvis, and Brimah look the same.

 

[tzznandrew]

Facey has improved? To what exactly? From an F to a D-, that might even be a reach.

Again, the UK front court is Stein, Town, Johnson and Lyles


UConn's is Brimah, Facey, Nolan and Lubin -- flat out embarrassing

Yes, the UK front court is Cauley-Stein, Towns, Johnson and Lyles. So what? We don't have those players. It's not like any of those kids came in like Brimah and Calipari coached them up.

UK is performing some real recruiting VooDoo right now, and no school is keeping up with them.

As for Facey, he went from averaging 5 mpg, and getting 1.4 ppg and 1.7 rpg (largely against poor competition) to getting 21.8 mpg and getting 4.5 ppg and 5.2 ppg. We need him to be better, especially on defense and rebounding, but he's clearly better than he was last year.

We're not going to compete with talent against UK. That's just not going to happen while Calipari is there. Our best chance against them--and what we did the two times in the last 4 years we beat them in the Final Four--is have some experienced upper classmen and some talent. We have players on the team right now who are talented. Just not enough. And not enough in the post.

 

[Lefty2one]

This has been such a mess of a year that's hard to put it into perspective. We just went 10-8 in 'n AAC.

Next year, unless Adams is an absolute stud, will be the worst collective backcourt we've had in the past 25 years.

 

[mussels]

The irony is that we probably will win the AAC tourney.

Foul. If you're going to give up on the team - then give up on them and take your beating when they win on Sunday. No leaving the door open just a crack - those kittens are cute by the way