Samson Johnson

[bendm]

He was the starting 4 going into the 22-23 season, so someone saw something

So I’ve heard but im talking about a full year after that

 

[husky429]

It's june. We've had like 2 days of practice. Nobody is a starter until they walk onto the floor on gameday.

Well, technically... sure. But just how we could pencil in DC, TN, and AK as starters last year, if we aren't penciling in AK, Mahaney and possibly Reed we're kidding ourselves.

 

[dogpause]

I was impressed that Sampson put on muscle throughout last season, while also improving his skills, especially on the defensive end. I think that with some additional bulk he's going to be really good this year.

 

[Staven]

Samson is one of the most patient players I've seen at UConn in quite some time. As we know injuries have slowed him down considerably but he worked hard to get healthy and remained patient for playing time. I admire him for his hard work and loyalty to the program and I hope this upcoming season he steps up as the starter and proves to any doubters that he can be the man.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Well, technically... sure. But just how we could pencil in DC, TN, and AK as starters last year, if we aren't penciling in AK, Mahaney and possibly Reed we're kidding ourselves.

Tend to think it’s a bit of a coin flip at the 5 (and likely not a big minutes differential regardless of who starts). If SJ is actually up 20 pounds of muscle from last season, I’d be a lot more optimistic of his chances to start.

 

[Husky68]

UConn lists him at 6'10" and 225 lbs. Still pretty young (turns 22 next month, only 3 months older than Karaban). Still lot of time to improve body, skills and BBIQ. Look at how Hassan improved in one year.

He is freaky athletic, I'm calling breakout player for 2024-25. 3 seasons at UConn has played 68, 46 and 641 minutes. UConn had 6 players who played more minutes last year than SJ has played in his whole career, lot of upside to come.

 

[BGesus4]

All muscle

 

[UofCT]

If he wants to have a chance to start at the 5, he needs to be able to handle actual centers without fouling constantly or being physical overpowered.

Lol he’s definitely starting.

 

[jibsey]

UConn lists him at 6'10" and 225 lbs. Still pretty young (turns 22 next month, only 3 months older than Karaban). Still lot of time to improve body, skills and BBIQ. Look at how Hassan improved in one year.

He is freaky athletic, I'm calling breakout player for 2024-25. 3 seasons at UConn has played 68, 46 and 641 minutes. UConn had 6 players who played more minutes last year than SJ has played in his whole career, lot of upside to come.

Who can stop him on a pick and roll slam?

 

[caw]

I will say Samson is a fairly good passer also, not as good as DC but he did a good job of hitting cutters last year.

 

[UConnSwag11]

After Hurley's comments yesterday, it seems like Tarris is going to be the starter. The kid is exceptionally talented when he cuts down on the TOs. But overall, it would be nice to have both of these guys available to throw different looks at opponents.

Last year, Samson wasn't really someone you could throw in as a change of pace very often because of the liability he brought on defense in big games. If he can truly be that change of pace center we'll have a solid rotation.

I see Reed as the starter either from the start or my conference play. So much talent and size

 

[jdb50]

The breakout player for this season is Stewart. Period. Samson gets off the floor faster than any player I have seen at UConn. He gets up and down the court way faster than opponents bigger players can. He passes well. He is a team player. Fans here may under rate him but opposing coaches don't.

 

[Drame]

We'll see how quickly Reed gets coached up to Uconn's standards. He's got a lot to learn. Samson is going to be the starter, but unless he gets his fouling under control, Reed will be playing huge minutes.

 

[TheChamps990411]

BIG development if true

Lets hope the weight gain is a positive and not an issue like it quickly became for DC last season. If he put on that weight and its mostly muscle and hes still the explosive athlete hes shown he could have a huge breakout next season and end up a first round pick. Lets hope he ends up the latter because we all love that kid. I think besides making this team yet another ridiculous power house its safe to say we would just be happy that such a hardworking and loyal kid puts himself in a position to take care of his family for many years to come. Hurley did say he had insane upside when he first stepped on campus.

 

[AllHusky]

How fast can Reed get close to his potential? I think he is a big talent, not a matter of if, but when. He has alot to do, but he can do it.

Samson going to bring it, my question is how much can he bring? I think we’ve seen his limitations(and I love SJ!!)

 

[jibsey]

The breakout player for this season is Stewart. Period. Samson gets off the floor faster than any player I have seen at UConn. He gets up and down the court way faster than opponents bigger players can. He passes well. He is a team player. Fans here may under rate him but opposing coaches don't.

Stew is intriguing. We saw him explode from 3 in that game last year, and we also saw him defend pretty big players. Can’t wait.

 

[Waquoit]

Stew is intriguing. We saw him explode from 3 in that game last year, and we also saw him defend pretty big players. Can’t wait.

He looked like he belonged whenever he got in there. He's going to be really good this year.

 

[FreeKlaiber]

Still think Samson continues to be overlooked and underappreciated by the board. While he has areas to improve, his positives are taken for granted. By the end of this year most will be surprised by his break out season, while others of us saw it coming.

 

[ctchamps]

How fast can Reed get close to his potential? I think he is a big talent, not a matter of if, but when. He has alot to do, but he can do it.

Samson going to bring it, my question is how much can he bring? I think we’ve seen his limitations(and I love SJ!!)

Samson had three limitations last year.

Moving when setting screens resulting in a foul.
Reaching for the ball playing the high hedge resulting in a foul.
Using his arms instead of his body when an opposing five was backing him down near the basket resulting in a foul.

Samson’s problem was staying on the court because of foul trouble. I believe he had the best offensive efficiency on the team in his limited minutes.

The majority of his fouls were the result of those first two reasons with the exception of the times he was defending against really strong centers.

More important than weight gain is increasing his lower body strength and core. That will help with the third foul issue. If that is not possible that’s where Reed will be utilized . But for many if not most games he has to overcome his reflexive bad habits that result in fouls in the first two situations I listed.

I would love to see what Samson could do if he could play 25-30 minutes a game.

 

[uh-no]

johnson had good court vision, which is why he was able to pick up so many easy slams. he's gotta work on fouls and strength though to really get major minutes. He was a critical sub last year, but still has to show more to be 1/1a kind of option.

 

[DMIL]

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.

 

[jibsey]

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.

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.

 

[Iluvsuebird]

Samson isn't going to ever bring something other than rim running, dunks, putbacks. He's far too behind offensively to make the jump to an Adama-esque post game. We don't NEED anything more than that from him to be effective.

I've said it for the past two years: all you need from a backup big is rebounding and defense. If he defends, doesn't foul, and gets boards, he have 6MOTY potential. This weight gain is going to help make both of those possible.

That’s a leap too big for me. This coaching staff has too many success stories for us to say that. What I will say is this: Samson often times shows very low b-ball IQ defensively. Even if he improves on that aspect, it would make him invaluable.

 

[CL82]

Who can stop him on a pick and roll slam?

Not Edey, apparently.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I would love to see practices and scrimmages between Johnson and Reed.