Shabazz has achieved at minimum CARON+ status. Maybe more.

[nelsonmuntz]

Napier had experience in his supporting cast. Not only were Gordon, Okafor and taliek Brown young, but those three showed as much improvement during their uconn careers as any three players in uconn history. Okafor was incredibly raw as a frosh, and Gordon was still Gentle Ben. I don't think Taliek should have been starting until his junior year.

Napier has had an amazing career that has two games left at most, and I don't want to take anything away from him. There were quite a few great uconn players that never made the final four, and I don't want to take anything away from them either.

 

[Calhoun's Court]

Bazz wins another NCAA T and he is, by far, the greatest player in UConn history.

I was having this discussion at the game today.

You could argue he is #1 or #2 already.

Judging it by the fact that he has made two Final Fours(and contributed big to both).

Mek, Rip and Kemba being the other 3 on the Huskies MT. Rushmore

I think you really have to judge it by who brought home the hardware.

BTW -I still can't figure out how Rudy Gay is in the Husky Ring of Honor. They don't get put there for their NBA careers.

 

[MattMang23]

BTW -I still can't figure out how Rudy Gay is in the Husky Ring of Honor. They don't get put there for their NBA careers.

Didn't a "mystery donor" make a big donation toward the practice facility and then a couple days later Rudy was inducted. *Wink*

 

[intlzncster]

BTW -I still can't figure out how Rudy Gay is in the Husky Ring of Honor. They don't get put there for their NBA careers.

It's reserved for AAs. And like him or not, Rudy was one of them.

 

[Calhoun's Court]

It's reserved for AAs. And like him or not, Rudy was one of them.

He didn't come close to doing what Caron did and Caron is not in.

Never looked at Rudy's UCONN career as being special-but that's just me. He always left me wanting more.

 

[intlzncster]

He didn't come close to doing what Caron did and Caron is not in.

Never looked at Rudy's UCONN career as being special-but that's just me. He always left me wanting more.

Yah agree. It's just that they only put All Americans in the rafter's. Would love to have CB up there. He's my favorite Husky. And should have been an AA.

 

[gars44]

I love Caron, but are you kidding? Napier has now been on TWO Final Four teams, and he was a very important piece of a team that won the national championship. He's now the lead dog on Husky sled NO. 1!

Caron was a great husky, but he only played for two seasons and he only made it as far as the Elite Eight round. With all due respect to Caron, Shabazz has nothing more to prove. He's already surpassed Butler and many other notable Husky stars.

I agree that Shabazz is the man. But Caron Butler carried this team to an elite 8 against a superior Maryland team, and he single handedly kept us in the game. We lost but Caron was a warrior. Always will love the kid for the way he carried this team on his back. And the way he turned his life around. Shabazz is a Caron and gets a Caron+ for everything he brings, but don't discount Caron, please.

 

[gars44]

He didn't come close to doing what Caron did and Caron is not in.

Never looked at Rudy's UCONN career as being special-but that's just me. He always left me wanting more.

Agreed. He wasn't on my top 15 list, but he's certainly a legend and deserves recognition.

 

[Deleted member 3149]

If Shabazz brings home title #4 for us, there is no question that he will go down as the best husky of all time. Period.

Without his clutch foul shooting in the 2011 NCAA tournament, you can kiss the Houston banner goodbye.

 

[patrick]

Bazz is up there with anyone. Four years to Kembas three, and with Kemba the only player to take UConn to a Final Four after having been to one and contributed as a frosh.

Rudy Gay, by the way, is not on that list. A great player to be sure, but UConn gets as far without him his two years in the program as it did with him.

Rudy CARON pissed me off!
He said if we make the sweet 16 he will come back and f#cking left!

That really grinds my gears!

 

[johnhuskies95]

He didn't come close to doing what Caron did and Caron is not in.

Never looked at Rudy's UCONN career as being special-but that's just me. He always left me wanting more.

He wasn't named to any first team All American teams, and Rudy was. Rudy was also one of four Naismith finalists his sophomore year. The last game he ever played was disappointing, but he was a very, very good player here.

 

[BlueMAB]

Rudy CARON pissed me off!
He said if we make the sweet 16 he will come back and f#cking left!

That really grinds my gears!

He wanted to come back. Calhoun basically pushed him out because he was a guaranteed lottery pick.

http://www.uconnhuskies.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/041802aaa.html

Jim Calhoun

"I think Caron and I didn't choose the time, the situation and circumstance, but in the year 2002, the situation dictated, not necessarily in Caron's heart and certainly not in my desires all the time, but I firmly sense that he will be a lottery selection, according to everybody that we talked to in the NBA draft...
...With all that said, the situation, as we look upon the world we live in today, professionally, in basketball, he's ready to go into the NBA draft, he's certainly on both sides, in my assessment and our assessment as a coaching staff and according to the NBA, he's ready to play professional basketball. The circumstances under which he finds himself simply cry out that he needs to take advantage of this tremendous opportunity. It would be foolish of me, as I said a couple of times, to have him come back..."

It's sad that anyone wouldn't want what is best for the player and his family. That someone wouldn't be incredibly happy for him rather than being upset about something that happened 14 years ago and didn't affect him personally.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

JC has coerced a couple of his players to turn pro when they weren't sure if they wanted to solely because it made little sense for them to stick around (and risk a career ending injury before ever receiving a paycheck).

From what I understand Andre Drummond may have still been here today if JC didn't convince him to enter the draft two years ago.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Rudy CARON pissed me off!
He said if we make the sweet 16 he will come back and f#cking left!

That really grinds my gears!

I hope you aren't serious. These kids do not have any moral obligation to return to school and play for free if they have a shot at making real money in the NBA. I do criticize kids for making dumb decisions such as going pro when they don't have a good shot of getting drafted in the first round or would make a lot more money long-term if they came back, but if a kid is a high probability Top 20 pick, he owes it to himself and his family to go pro.

 

[joober jones]

Strong goof no doubt. Not sure he saw enough court time to start, but he's definitely on the team.

Mandeldove is our all time leader in threads and message board mentions per minute played.

 

[patrick]

I hope you aren't serious. These kids do not have any moral obligation to return to school and play for free if they have a shot at making real money in the NBA. I do criticize kids for making dumb decisions such as going pro when they don't have a good shot of getting drafted in the first round or would make a lot more money long-term if they came back, but if a kid is a high probability Top 20 pick, he owes it to himself and his family to go pro.

I wasn't upset that he left, I woulda done the same thing. It's the fact that he came out and made that statement!

Don't say your coming back just to leave. I get it he was a kid and if he was in the same situation now he would probably do it differently, I hope!

 

[Waquoit]

It's reserved for AAs. And like him or not, Rudy was one of them.

There are no rules.

 

[BankShot]

Bazz plays great, leads UCONN to two more victories = BEST HUSKY OF ALL TIME

My UCONN Mount Rushmore, it's RIPPER, 'Meka, Kemba, and Jesus Shuttlesworth, but with a victory Shabazz takes Jesus's place

Shabazz in 11 > Kemba in 09, not by much, but he was key down the stretch, especially versus Kentucky

If the run ends here, Shabazz is on par with KEA, but above BG and AJ, only behind Kemba

 

[SubbaBub]

I think once you're a consensus all-american, the rest is splitting hairs.

It is kind of fun to compare 2011 to 2014 because the parallels are so obvious. I was trying to think of which had the better supporting cast and had a difficult time with it because the teams are built slightly differently.

Bazz - Kemba (obv.)
Boat over young Bazz
Lamb over Giffey
Daniels over Roscoe
Brimah/Nolan/TO over AO/Chuck/TO
Jamal Coombs-McDaniel over Kromah

Could easily have said Lamb over Daniels and Roscoe over Giffey. In the end, I think 2014 has better players but 2011had more quality depth with Bazz/Giff/Jamal Coombs-McDaniel/young TO.

 

[patrick]

I think once you're a consensus all-american, the rest is splitting hairs.

It is kind of fun to compare 2011 to 2014 because the parallels are so obvious. I was trying to think of which had the better supporting cast and had a difficult time with it because the teams are built slightly differently.

Bazz - Kemba (obv.)
Boat over young Bazz
Lamb over Giffey
Daniels over Roscoe
Brimah/Nolan/TO over AO/Chuck/TO
Jamal Coombs-McDaniel over Kromah

Could easily have said Lamb over Daniels and Roscoe over Giffey. In the end, I think 2014 has better players but 2011had more quality depth with Bazz/Giff/Jamal Coombs-McDaniel/young TO.

Don't forget T sam!

 

[7774]

BTW -I still can't figure out how Rudy Gay is in the Husky Ring of Honor. They don't get put there for their NBA careers.

Because he was named 1st team All America by NABC, and 2nd team All America by a bunch of other places.

Rudy really gets a raw deal. He could have gone straight to the league out of high school, but chose to show up and get yelled at by Jim Calhoun and become a better player. Then he could have been a top 10 pick after his freshman year, but chose to stick around again. Even when he left, it was well known he would have come back for a 3rd year but Calhoun told him he was a top 10 pick and it was time to go.

The problems with that 2006 team were caused way, way more by the fact that we had 1 legitimate high level ball handler on the team rather than anything Rudy did.

 

[swami7774]

Why is showing Caron love making people angry? I didn't realize blawyer was anti-caron

Doesn't make me angry. Butler carried the team for the final 6 weeks of the '01-'02 season.

 

[swami7774]

The problems with that 2006 team were caused way, way more by the fact that we had 1 legitimate high level ball handler on the team rather than anything Rudy did.

Excellent point. The current team's success illustrates--again--the value of having TWO great ballhandlers in the backcourt. Our previous 3 title winners had that formula.

 

[Deleted member 3149]

What shabazz did for the program by staying is single handedly enough to make him the greatest husky of all time.

 

[SubbaBub]

Don't forget T sam!

Didn't play enough minutes this season. When I checked I was surprised that Jamal Coombs-McDaniel played so many.