Samson Johnson

[CL82]

To be fair, the high hedge often put him out of position. He wasn’t Whaley out there, but he was usually good. I’m hoping for better rebounding, and shot blocking. He’s capable of both.

"ISAIAH WHALEY! THE WRENCH!!!!!"

 

[Hunt for 7]

Not sure if it has been said, but Samson should focus on his defense. I don’t think he will ever be good enough offensively to be much of a scorer. But with the right focus he could become an elite defender at the next level. He is athletic enough to cover almost every stretch four and could even guard a big wing at the next level.

I think we are going to see a great improvement in his defense as Danny will make him understand his chance at catching on at the next level is going to be on defense.

If he keeps his explosiveness when he jumps as he continues to add weight and fill out as he matures I really do think he has the ability to carve out a decent professional career. But his offense will not be the reason.

Defense and using those incredible gifts to become a lock down defender is what will get him a roster spot at the next level.

 

[McLovin]

I think folks on this board under estimate Samson's talent and upside. He still has plenty of head room. Remember, going into the 2022 Season when DC was a freshman, he was a starter until he got hurt. That Summer he was flashing a toolkit of skills. Given the structure and strengths of that team, Hurley and staff adjusted accordingly. It gets to a point where once a team develops a certain level of chemistry, Samson was only asked to do a few things the team needed at the time once he came back. That particular year he lost a lot of opportunity to develop real game experience with that foot injury.

Last year was a regrouping year for Samson and coming into this year I think he will be in a position to flourish and showcase some other skills that he has. I will be looking for his mindset to shift to that upper classmen leader, 2 time champion mindset and trust that Hurley and staff will put him in a position to take that next step.

Hurley as always said that Samson has the raw talent to be on that wall. One thing that I come to recognize from Coach Hurley, is that when he states these kinds of things about a player, he's been 100% spot on.

I'm going to continue to trust the process.

To be fair to Samson, I’m pretty sure when Hurley made those comments about his wall potential he was envisioning him more like a Deandre Daniels type of 4, not playing center.

Since then, our offensive system has had a complete overhaul and Samson is being used “out of position”. He is a unique player with a unique skill set and can work in our system, obviously, but people have to remember when Hurley talked about wall potential he had a different vision at the time for Samson’s role.

 

[mauconnfan]

To be fair to Samson, I’m pretty sure when Hurley made those comments about his wall potential he was envisioning him more like a Deandre Daniels type of 4, not playing center.

Since then, our offensive system has had a complete overhaul and Samson is being used “out of position”. He is a unique player with a unique skill set and can work in our system, obviously, but people have to remember when Hurley talked about wall potential he had a different vision at the time for Samson’s role.

That’s fair but vision or not his skill set doesn’t point to Daniel’s at all, even if he wasn’t directed to be a 5 now.

He is what he is right? A real nice 2nd option at the 5 and potentially with improvement in some areas could get more minutes at the 4 on occasion. But for now we’re lucky to have him as that 7th man off the bench on yet another really good Husky basketball team.

 

[gtcam]

I'm hoping that on offense he is allowed to step out and hit mid-range shots and an occasional 3.
According to DH last year that was a strength of his, but we didn't see any of that.

 

[McLovin]

That’s fair but vision or not his skill set doesn’t point to Daniel’s at all, even if he wasn’t directed to be a 5 now.

He is what he is right? A real nice 2nd option at the 5 and potentially with improvement in some areas could get more minutes at the 4 on occasion. But for now we’re lucky to have him as that 7th man off the bench on yet another really good Husky basketball team.

We have way too many bodies at the 2-4 for him to get any run at the 4, especially if he didn’t get any run there last season with Karaban having basically no back-up until Stewart came on late in the season.

But, yes, that is the point I was making… he is who he is at this point. There is obviously insane potential with his height / speed / athleticism, and if any staff in the country can get the most out of it to benefit the team as a whole, it’s our staff. But I think the expectations of him being an NBA lottery pick should be put to rest, in fairness to him.

 

[RuffRuff]

Clingan shooting 3s is efficiency at its worst. Not even sure why it’s a discussion. It takes him away from the rim where he rebounds and forces defense to collapse to free up the real shooters.

I get endorphins are flying high these days, rightfully, but unless Samson makes some serious leaps, he’s not what I would call a NC caliber starting center. It’s Reeds to lose, for many reasons. Samson remains a very raw player 3 years out, with ample limitations. If you check his +\- on year I’d think you’d see one of the lowest on team.

 

[navery12]

You said Clingan didn’t shoot any threes because he wasn’t good enough. Yet he shot the same percentage as Castle who took 75. My premise that Hurley didn’t want Clingan to shoot more threes because it didn’t fit the system is correct. Your premise that Hurley didn’t want Clingan to shoot threes because he’s a bad shooter is wrong.

This is just laughably dumb. It didn't fit the system? The same system that had Sanogo put up 52 3's the year before? If Clingan was capable of consistently making 3's he would have been taking them, Hurley is not going to actively limit the offense

 

[jibsey]

If he is 5 or 10 feet open at the top of the key and he makes them consistently in practice then take it. Just one or 2 made from there will free up other players down the line. We have a ton of good 3 point shooters so it shouldn’t be common for him.

 

[AllHusky]

I'm hoping that on offense he is allowed to step out and hit mid-range shots and an occasional 3.
According to DH last year that was a strength of his, but we didn't see any of that.

I'm hoping he can hit mid-range jump shots and an occasional 3. That is a different player if it comes to pass. Not holding my breath though. Disciplined defense and rebounding gotta happen, those jumpers would be icing on a helluva cake.

 

[Kenny11]

Samson is going to be great at the 5 whether he starts or not. Foul trouble happens so even if Reed and Samson split the minutes almost evenly be design, there will be plenty of games where Samson gets around 30 minutes or so.

 

[alphasigko]

I hope this summer that he learns how to turn his foul machine off and how to rebound.

 

[Tiamat7]

remember the posts from last summer arguing samson could play stretch 4? fun times.

Right. We love Samson, but I suppose the "wall potential" and "stretch 4-- good 3 pointer stroke" talk was to light a fire and suggest the absolute ceiling, not the likely outcome.

 

[DMIL]

Does he have those skills? Does he have an inside game other than flushes? It wasn’t asked of him but I hope he does.

We are about to find out and I think he is going to exceed expectations. It's a next step for him and the ground work has been laid for him to be an effective starter. It's a different mindset.

 

[Hunt for 7]

Samson needs to focus on his defense. He has the ability and athleticism to guard multiple positions. I know he was late to start playing the game. When he was 14 or 15 years old not sure he was playing a lot of basketball. I am not going to get into the offensive discussion.

What I will say is he just might get up when he jumps as fast as anyone I have ever seen. That type of ability can be honed. I still stand by my prediction that in two years or so he will make an nba roster.

The only thing that gives me pause is Sticks who might have been the greateast athlete we ever had but never played at the next level. But Samson is a bit longer and rest his soul Sticks had other issues he was dealing with. Samson seems more grounded.

I really am looking forward to see what he brings to the table next year. Will remain optimistic until then.

 

[Drame]

This is just laughably dumb. It didn't fit the system? The same system that had Sanogo put up 52 3's the year before? If Clingan was capable of consistently making 3's he would have been taking them, Hurley is not going to actively limit the offense

This is just laughably dumb. It didn't fit the system? The same system that had Sanogo put up 52 3's the year before? If Clingan was capable of consistently making 3's he would have been taking them, Hurley is not going to actively limit the offense

Read Ruff Ruff in the above post. Yes sometimes a system might limit what a player is good at. Every year is different. Just because Sanogo took a certain amount doesnt mean that Clingan would. Sanogo wasnt the shot blocker that Clingan is. Hes 6'8" verus 7' 2.5. This is from the most recent ESPN draft analysis "Clingan appears to be Risacher's main rival at No. 1. His workout -- where he shot the ball extremely well"

 

[Palatine]

Samson Johnson did exactly what Hurley asked him to do.

So did Clingan.

So did Castle.

What's not to get? He prepares them for the NBA every day. That's not necessarily how they play games. Clingan rarely shot a three in games. He worked on them every day in practice. In games, Clingan, like everyone else, performed his role as dictated by the game plan. When someone says, Samson can not do this or that. It simply means that Hurley is not asking him to do this or that in games. It does not mean Samson is incapable of something. We should all be aware of this by now.

 

[7774]

Samson Johnson did exactly what Hurley asked him to do.

So did Clingan.

So did Castle.

What's not to get? He prepares them for the NBA every day. That's not necessarily how they play games. Clingan rarely shot a three in games. He worked on them every day in practice. In games, Clingan, like everyone else, performed his role as dictated by the game plan. When someone says, Samson can not do this or that. It simply means that Hurley is not asking him to do this or that in games. It does not mean Samson is incapable of something. We should all be aware of this by now.

Why would Hurley prevent a player from doing something that would help us win games?

 

[JustbrewitMan]

I'm so happy that all the yarders are chipping in & doing their parts to make a ton of fun bulletin board material to help Samson reach his full potential this year!

Dude is gonna be a monster in 2024-25!

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Samson Johnson did exactly what Hurley asked him to do.

So did Clingan.

So did Castle.

What's not to get? He prepares them for the NBA every day. That's not necessarily how they play games. Clingan rarely shot a three in games. He worked on them every day in practice. In games, Clingan, like everyone else, performed his role as dictated by the game plan. When someone says, Samson can not do this or that. It simply means that Hurley is not asking him to do this or that in games. It does not mean Samson is incapable of something. We should all be aware of this by now.

Or he just has a limited but specific offensive skill set that the staff maximizes. Maybe he improves and adds some perimeter or back to the basket offensive game but in the few times we’ve seen it, it’s been very clear why we don’t see it more. Don’t mean that as a knock on him, that’s just not his game.

 

[AntG168]

Why would Hurley prevent a player from doing something that would help us win games?

Because we clearly didn’t need it to win games…….

 

[7774]

Because we clearly didn’t need it to win games…….

lol

 

[navery12]

Yeah and if he took more shots his percentage would have increased to way more than Castle's. Clingan is a naturally better shooter than Castle. That is the point. You should try providing statistical facts to back up your point. Clingan has shot up the draft board because of his shooting. From ESPN this morning" Clingan appears to be Risacher's main rival at No. 1. His workout -- where he shot the ball extremely well". Also thumbs down on the personal insults.

Clingan shot 58% on his free throws last year, he was objectively a bad shooter in game. I have no doubt he's been working hard on it and will develop into a capable 3 point shooter in the NBA, but he was not last year. If he was Hurley would have had him shooting 3's because it would have helped UConn immensely and it also would have benefitted Donovan in showcasing him for the NBA

 

[jibsey]

Speculation running rampant on Samson. By Dec 15th we’re gonna pretty know what the 24-25’ version is. I would bet on him.

 

[AntG168]

Clingan shot 58% on his free throws last year, he was objectively a bad shooter in game. I have no doubt he's been working hard on it and will develop into a capable 3 point shooter in the NBA, but he was not last year. If he was Hurley would have had him shooting 3's because it would have helped UConn immensely and it also would have benefitted Donovan in showcasing him for the NBA

His shooting is not a secret to NBA scouts. It’s why he rumored to potentially go #1. He’s shot the crap out of the ball in workouts. He hasn’t made THAT much of an improvement in 2 months.

And again 3’s and fts are not the same especially for big men. Some bigs find shooting from deep easier than figuring out the touch from the line. Even with that DC’s ft percentage was weighed down by his slow start early on. He shot much better from the line late in the season.

Our staff hunts the highest percentage shot available in our offense. A DC 3 was way down that list even if he was capable of making it.