Rahsool Diggins transferring (merged threads)

[uconnfan68]

Andre Jackson was the best defensive player (not just guards) in the Big East last season. Defense isn't his issue at all

View attachment 75021

Lies, damn lies, and statistics.

 

[3rdbass]

People who think AJ is a plus defender just don’t get it. Getting constantly beat off the dribble and every once in a while making a block from behind does not make you a good defender. One highlight reel play a game vs 5 bonehead plays a game does not make you a star. It makes you a liability.

I agree. Does he have the talent to get better? Yes. Is he there now? no way. He needs to work on his midrange shooting, 3pt shooting, keeping his man if front of him on defense and his handle. I would also like him working on his post moves as he could generate a lot of offense for us there if he tightens it up. He can jump over defenders in the post. Let's see if he improves his game more this season.

 

[JeffConn]

Hurley reducing Gaffney's minutes and not having Sool ready to play is essentially proving my point.

Hurley made the error of sticking with Gaffney early in the year. We know what kind of player Gaffney is, and it was evident early in the year... his ceiling is maxed.

What kind of player will Diggins be or what kind of player could he have been by the end of the year? We'll never know, because Hurley never allowed the opportunity for him to develop early on. He didn't get any run in semi-meaningful minutes.

Hurley reducing Gaffney's minutes and not playing Diggins is proof that he effed up the whole situation.

You make some good points that must be taken into consideration. None of us should be surprised that Diggins is leaving.

I might not precisely recall the circumstances, but as a casual observance, I believe Diggins was the first recruit in this year's freshman class. I do recall his noted reason for deciding to commit to UConn was about how Hurley had challenged him to come here and take his game to the next level and help UConn get back to elite status. Diggins then went on to actively recruit Hawkins and maybe Samson Johnson as well. Diggins may have thought that having a good relationship with Hurley would help bring him along as a player and Dan Hurley would nurture him to the next level. Exposed to the cold reality that his performance in practice (most likely, rightfully so) simply did not get him any significant game time, without a beneficial relationship with his coach, Diggins concluded that it was time to move on, get a fresh start and try it somewhere else. I seem to sense that Diggins play, while not stand-out during very limited action in the early out-of-conference games, further atrophied as the season progressed (like walking on egg shells). If Dan Hurley was fully intent on developing this high level recruit, he could have shown his commitment by putting Diggins in for 2 to 3 minutes during the first half of games, early on in the season and later as well. Given Gaffney's limited performance this season, all the more reason to invest in Diggins. Now an upperclassman, Gaffney has been given playing time during his years at UConn to grow and improve. Gaffney became the starting point guard as a freshman when Alterique faltered. But when RJ Cole became eligible to play the next year, Gaff seemed to hit a roadblock in his progression. And when he was a bright spot on the team in the disappointing loss to Maryland in last year's NCAA tourney, there was hope that Gaff would elevate his game this year. But that did not happen in any significant way even though Gaff was given the benefit of the doubt for much of this season.

Diggins never got a real chance to play any significant minutes this year the way Gaffney did in his freshman year.

 

[MilliniumPrince]

Why now when the position is his to lose?

 

[Northbound]

THANK YOU. I don't know why on earth people are saying he's a bad defender. They ain't watching the game.

That kid gets dumped on more than a statue in the park, I’ll never understand it.

 

[pj]

However, what's most important is how Hurley responds (short term and long term).

Long term: Will he improve at PG evaluation or outsource primary PG evaluation duties to an assistant?

Short term: He's got to find 2 BE starting caliber PGs in the portal... after ignoring transfers and preaching the UConn "family" the past year+.
Who knows, maybe he already has a quality transfer or two informally locked up and that's why Diggins is leaving... he sees the writing on the wall. If thats the case I'll gladly eat crow here.

At some point, you can be loyal to a fault, and I think that's the case here with Hurley and his player evaluations.
Let's see if he can learn from it.

The biggest problem I think is philosophical. He's trying to build an NBA style roster and sees that college shooting guards often become NBA point guards. A former PG he seems to think he doesn't need a PG on the court - he still wants to be PG from the sideline? He thinks he can teach a SG to be a PG? Whatever it is, in general the roster has lacked natural PGs. Last year he recruited one natural PG (Diggins) and two combo guards (Cole, Gaffney) and only played the combo guards.

Whereas Calhoun & Ollie had greatest success playing two PGs and converting PGs to SG - Ricky Moore playing off Khalid, Doron playing off Ollie, Shabazz off Kemba, Boatright off Shabazz.

We need a little more creativity on the court to get to the highest level. Personally I like watching guards play more than watching Samson Johnson, Richie Springs, Akok Akok sitting on the bench while two centers are on the court. I get that big men need time to develop, and Whaley and Sanogo were two of our best players, but if we can have so many big men why can't we have one natural PG who plays?

 

[HU5KIES]

Is it possible that Rasool Diggins decided to transfer because R.J. Cole has decided to stay at Uconn for 1 more year?

I could be wrong, but if Cole is gone than this upcoming year Sool would have had ample playing time being the only natural point guard who could play that position. Gaffney and Floyd are not natural point guards, so this kid would have free reign in the 1 year before Castle arrives.

RJ Cole not returning

www.the-boneyard.com

 

[Deleted at users request]

Sure, but he knows who Castle is. And if he's been told we are bringing in a transfer PG to start, one who probably has two years of eligibility, then he's what? The 3rd point guard as a junior and maybe the backup as a senior? Even next year he might be 3rd again. I understand how he'd read the room and make this choice.

This is why I don’t like transfers for us. It’s year what 4? And we aren’t going to have our own guard to develop until Castle. We aren’t going far getting caught up in this cycle of bringing in transfers.

 

[Khal Drogo]

You make some good points that must be taken into consideration. None of us should be surprised that Diggins is leaving.

I might not precisely recall the circumstances, but as a casual observance, I believe Diggins was the first recruit in this year's freshman class. I do recall his noted reason for deciding to commit to UConn was about how Hurley had challenged him to come here and take his game to the next level and help UConn get back to elite status. Diggins then went on to actively recruit Hawkins and maybe Samson Johnson as well. Diggins may have thought that having a good relationship with Hurley would help bring him along as a player and Dan Hurley would nurture him to the next level. Exposed to the cold reality that his performance in practice (most likely, rightfully so) simply did not get him any significant game time, without a beneficial relationship with his coach, Diggins concluded that it was time to move on, get a fresh start and try it somewhere else. I seem to sense that Diggins play, while not stand-out during very limited action in the early out-of-conference games, further atrophied as the season progressed (like walking on egg shells). If Dan Hurley was fully intent on developing this high level recruit, he could have shown his commitment by putting Diggins in for 2 to 3 minutes during the first half of games, early on in the season and later as well. Given Gaffney's limited performance this season, all the more reason to invest in Diggins. Now an upperclassman, Gaffney has been given playing time during his years at UConn to grow and improve. Gaffney became the starting point guard as a freshman when Alterique faltered. But when RJ Cole became eligible to play the next year, Gaff seemed to hit a roadblock in his progression. And when he was a bright spot on the team in the disappointing loss to Maryland in last year's NCAA tourney, there was hope that Gaff would elevate his game this year. But that did not happen in any significant way even though Gaff was given the benefit of the doubt for much of this season.

Diggins never got a real chance to play any significant minutes this year the way Gaffney did in his freshman year.

I don’t believe we saw enough of him to comment in his potential.

 

[Thirty Three]

I don’t believe Diggins was good enough this year. In limited minutes he struggled against even light pressure. I think he’ll be a great upperclassman.

Does anyone know if Castle is a reclass possibility? We could use a big PG right now.

I heard that Castle may reclass. Personally, I have no idea if this is actually a possibility.

 

[Rico444]

I heard that Castle may reclass. Personally, I have no idea if this is actually a possibility.

Where did you hear this?

 

[Rico444]

You’re missing the bigger picture. In Year 5, we have at PG - wait for it - Jalen Gaffney. That’s it. The single most important position in the game and we have a 4th year guy who is a mid major level role player. The argument really isn’t whether or not Diggins should have played more - for the sake of ending the argument, let’s agree that Dan Hurley recognized that he wasn't a Big East level player back in October, - how are we here?!! In a guard dominated world, we’re debating either malpractice by Dan Hurley in not using a talented player as a freshman, or some pretty unacceptable miss in recruiting when a PG in the Class of ‘21 was the single biggest recruiting need. And for a coach that shunned the portal publicly a year ago, it’s an even bigger miss.

You bring up some good points for sure, but to be fair you can't say "We only have Jalen Gaffney as our PG in year 5" when year 5 hasn't started yet. There's no way he'll be our only PG to start the season.

 

[husky429]

The biggest problem I think is philosophical. He's trying to build an NBA style roster and sees that college shooting guards often become NBA point guards. A former PG he seems to think he doesn't need a PG on the court - he still wants to be PG from the sideline? He thinks he can teach a SG to be a PG? Whatever it is, in general the roster has lacked natural PGs. Last year he recruited one natural PG (Diggins) and two combo guards (Cole, Gaffney) and only played the combo guards.

Whereas Calhoun & Ollie had greatest success playing two PGs and converting PGs to SG - Ricky Moore playing off Khalid, Doron playing off Ollie, Shabazz off Kemba, Boatright off Shabazz.

We need a little more creativity on the court to get to the highest level. Personally I like watching guards play more than watching Samson Johnson, Richie Springs, Akok Akok sitting on the bench while two centers are on the court. I get that big men need time to develop, and Whaley and Sanogo were two of our best players, but if we can have so many big men why can't we have one natural PG who plays?

Cole is not a combo-guard. Agree with you otherwise.

 

[KingLurk]

You bring up some good points for sure, but to be fair you can't say "We only have Jalen Gaffney as our PG in year 5" when year 5 hasn't started yet. There's no way he'll be our only PG to start the season.

Feels like 2008-2009 with Austerie as the point guard much of the year. That team was pretty loaded in other positions on the floor though.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Feels like 2008-2009 with Austerie as the point guard much of the year. That team was pretty loaded in other positions on the floor though.

2008-2009 had AJ Price, Kemba, and Dyson at the guard spots in addition to Austrie.

 

[HuskyHawk]

It's actually not closer. Pennsylvania is a pretty big state compared to the small northeast states.

Philadelphia to Pittsburgh = 305 miles
Philadelphia to Storrs = 235 miles

I'd bet that distance really isn't an issue as his high school coach said. We'll see.

Yes, and the traffic variance between the two drives is extreme. It's a much longer drive from Storrs.

I don't get the people fixated on a simple comment that Pitt would seem a good fit from the schools showing interest in him. He can go to the ACC, so not a step down. Be in his home state and get playing time on a team that badly needs players. It's not complicated.

 

[Hungryhusky99]

Yes, and the traffic variance between the two drives is extreme. It's a much longer drive from Storrs.

I don't get the people fixated on a simple comment that Pitt would seem a good fit from the schools showing interest in him. He can go to the ACC, so not a step down. Be in his home state and get playing time on a team that badly needs players. It's not complicated.

Pitt is a major step down

 

[Greedo]

Yes, and the traffic variance between the two drives is extreme. It's a much longer drive from Storrs.

I don't get the people fixated on a simple comment that Pitt would seem a good fit from the schools showing interest in him. He can go to the ACC, so not a step down. Be in his home state and get playing time on a team that badly needs players. It's not complicated.

I agree, the fit at Pitt would be good, but the drive is definitely farther to Pitt. I didn't grow up far from Philly. The drive to UConn took me 4 hours on the dot 9/10 times, and 5 hours to Pitt (where I visited friends often). The other 1/10 drives to UConn took around 7 hours with traffic, but those times were rare. As someone who grew up in PA, Pittsburgh feels like a totally different state. There's eastern PA, then a bunch of nothingness in the middle, then Pittsburgh. If he truly cares about distance to home and UConn is too far, then Pitt would not be a good fit. But I tend to think he doesn't actually care about distance to home, and he just needed give a generic reason. We've all done it.

 

[Rumrunner]

I agree, the fit at Pitt would be good, but the drive is definitely farther to Pitt. I didn't grow up far from Philly. The drive to UConn took me 4 hours on the dot 9/10 times, and 5 hours to Pitt (where I visited friends often). The other 1/10 drives to UConn took around 7 hours with traffic, but those times were rare. As someone who grew up in PA, Pittsburgh feels like a totally different state. There's eastern PA, then a bunch of nothingness in the middle, then Pittsburgh. If he truly cares about distance to home and UConn is too far, then Pitt would not be a good fit. But I tend to think he doesn't actually care about distance to home, and he just needed give a generic reason. We've all done it.

Before this becomes an epidemic, get this perfectly sane and rational post off of this board.

 

[UconnU]

2008-2009 had AJ Price, Kemba, and Dyson at the guard spots in addition to Austrie.

He’s thinking of 2005-2006

 

[Ports21]

This is why I don’t like transfers for us. It’s year what 4? And we aren’t going to have our own guard to develop until Castle. We aren’t going far getting caught up in this cycle of bringing in transfers.

Miami got to the elite 8 with their best 2 players being transfer guards (Moore and McGusty)

Caleb Daniels, Brady Manek (not a guard), and Remy Martin all in the final four, all transfers playing key roles on their teams.

It'd be great to have all 4 year players who develop but it's just not the environment anymore. If player's don't get to play -- they leave.

Adapt or die

 

[KingLurk]

He’s thinking of 2005-2006

whoops, confused his senior year with the year he played a lot.

 

[KingLurk]

whoops, confused his senior year with the year he played a lot.

That 2005-2006 season is fun to look at... Marcus Williams missed half the season due to suspension.. they had 5 future NBA players plus Rashad/Denham... and Craig Austerie started 24 games.

 

[UCSouth]

Pitt is a great fit. Close to home as he said he wants and they need players. He will get a chance.

What are your thoughts on RD playing for Pitino?

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

That 2005-2006 season is fun to look at... Marcus Williams missed half the season due to suspension.. they had 5 future NBA players plus Rashad/Denham... and Craig Austerie started 24 games.

The most unpleasant Elite Eight run I can imagine. Every single game was a struggle. I still remember leaving the office when they were down 12 to Albany in the second half.

 

[tzznandrew]

The most unpleasant Elite Eight run I can imagine. Every single game was a struggle. I still remember leaving the office when they were down 12 to Albany in the second half.

I get flashbacks every St. Pattie's Day because I remember being out partying in Hartford with it on in the background of every bar...and the growing sense of dread ruining the evening.

 

[Waquoit]

call it a recruiting miss or call the kid a bust, same difference in the end.

Exactly, call it whatever you want. I'm glad were not indulging in the sunk cost fallacy.

 

[JeffConn]

I don’t believe we saw enough of him to comment in his potential.

Not speculating on his potential. All I am saying is that he was a top 100 recruit which is where the national rating services graded him. How many high school players are there across the country? Thousands? After getting the sales pitch from various high level college programs (affirming they can play) and after making a school decision, a lot of top 100 recruits and their families come in expecting to get some serious playing time in the first year. Diggins didn't get any significant minutes.

 

[upstater]

I am fairly shocked at the lack of a handle for so many of our players. Whatever we're doing in scouting recruits, we're really not looking at how they handle the ball.

It's been going on now for a few years.

I am always nervous when Gaffney and Hawkins have the ball.

From the little I saw of Diggins, I was very concerned at how he was handling it for a PG.

I mean, I had infinitely more confidence in Tyrese dribbling out there as a small forward than I did with Hawkins, Gaffney and Diggins.

If it takes bringing in a guy like Taliek Brown who has a handle and can run an offense, I am all for it.

 

[Waquoit]

Problem is that Dan Hurley is the one making the assessment on who the top portal guards are. Not his strong suit so far is it??

He's 1-1 in picking up transfer point guards. Try ginko biloba.