Steph Castle goes off for 32.

[3rdbass]

There was a clip of him in a hard tussle with Edey for a loose ball. Every night there's a clip of him viciously dunking on someone. He's a lockdown defender. And he's got a real edge to him. I hate saying it, but some of those aspects are a little "Jordanesque".

Well Jordan took a backseat on that National Championship team and then flourished even more in the NBA. I don't think people saw what Jordan was going to become playing at NC. Sometimes you take a backseat until it is your time to shine.

 

[AllHusky]

I mean he looks pretty athletic is these clips. Probably due to how smooth and effortless he does it makes it seem easy? This was all regular season action last year for us.

Watching this clip makes me sad. As he was such an exciting player last year and would of loved him on this team as thee missing piece to glory.

Hmmm, UConn used to play like this? Wow!

 

[3rdbass]

Castle doesn't give the impression of being an explosive athlete because he has something called "superstar tempo". You watch him move and it all looks so fluid and effortless. Man I wonder what his statline would be like if he stayed this year...probably putting up 20/10/10 every single game

We would definitely be a lot different team and in the talk for National Champions if he was on it. Big athletic PG who plays defense can drive to the basket. Check! Then Diarra could play his natural position backup PG.

 

[aburks41]

We would definitely be a lot different team and in the talk for National Champions if he was on it. Big athletic PG who plays defense can drive to the basket. Check! Then Diarra could play his natural position backup PG.

I honestly think we would be undefeated if we had him. Maybe we lose 1 game in Maui to Auburn in the championship but theres no way we have any other losses this year with him. He's exactly what we are missing. Elite passer, elite driver, elite defender. All in one player.

 

[PAHusky]

The only knock I remember was that he was not considered a great shooter. That was true, but he kept improving. But around the basket, he was perhaps the best finsiher we've ever had, with the possible exception of Caron. Taris is now in the conversation too.

Wait....Tarris as in Tarris read is in the convo for best finisher around the basket at UConn of all time now?

Word?

 

[3rdbass]

I honestly think we would be undefeated if we had him. Maybe we lose 1 game in Maui to Auburn in the championship but theres no way we have any other losses this year with him. He's exactly what we are missing. Elite passer, elite driver, elite defender. All in one player.

Yep and to think that Hurley didn't see we would be missing this on a very undersized back court is astonishing to me. I think all the board were worried at least about rebounding and D. Scoring and passing we thought we had covered with Mahaney/Nowell. Actually Hurley missed on both points with that combo.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

Of course the NBA Rookie of the Year would’ve been great for this team. Can we imagine Clingan back too?

The better question is imagine how great he would have looked playing his natural position last year.

If he was the star freshman who lead one of the greatest runs of all time he’s easily going #1 and would’ve had the praise he’s getting now last year. College basketball career is probably remembered a lot more highly.

Kid sacrificed A LOT.

 

[aburks41]

Yep and to think that Hurley didn't see we would be missing this on a very undersized back court is astonishing to me.

Yup. Hindsight is 20/20 but it doomed us from day 1. Rosters with more athletic wings and an elite rim protector can get away with short guards. We don’t have that though. Really not sure what their vision was lol but they are course correcting that for next season I can guarantee you that

 

[aburks41]

Wait....Tarris as in Tarris read is in the convo for best finisher around the basket at UConn of all time now?

Word?

Yeah…no. Funny enough, Samson Johnson has the highest FG% in UConn history by a wide margin

 

[Umami Zen]

Spacing in NBA allows Steph to use his natural skills. Plays under control and can flip the switch and explode to the basket. He was an excellent teammate at UConn who played a valuable role for a NC team. Spurs know they hit the Lottery with him.

 

[August_West]

The kid is so strong. Like freakish. He was a brick wall as a frosh.

 

[businesslawyer]

Of course the NBA Rookie of the Year would’ve been great for this team. Can we imagine Clingan back too?

The better question is imagine how great he would have looked playing his natural position last year.

If he was the star freshman who lead one of the greatest runs of all time he’s easily going #1 and would’ve had the praise he’s getting now last year. College basketball career is probably remembered a lot more highly.

Kid sacrificed A LOT.

If you don't think NBA scouts are smart enough to value a player who sacrifices his personal output for that of the team around him, I don't know what to tell you.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

If you don't think NBA scouts are smart enough to value a player who sacrifices his personal output for that of the team around him, I don't know what to tell you.

Don’t make yourself seem stupid because you want to have your cape on.

There’s more than enough evidence out there scouts weren’t expecting this. Mostly because they didn’t see it here.

 

[businesslawyer]

Don’t make yourself seem stupid because you want to have your cape on.

There’s more than enough evidence out there scouts weren’t expecting this. Mostly because they didn’t see it here.

You're talking about him like he was an undrafted free agent. He was a high lottery pick, and might have gone number one if he had proven he could hit outside shots (and his percentage would not have been higher here if he was more ball dominant).

 

[Scottzer]

So you are the one that though he was NBA average? To me as seen in the Tik Tok video above he is anything but NBA average. He was always a lever above that but weren't sure if he could elevate that since he was just coming back from a knee injury last year. In the final four watching him live my younger brother and i knew he was going to be a great NBA athlete with how he played in those 2 games. The thing is Steph is doing stuff Andre should be doing if he had any NBA offensive skills which sadly he

So you are the one that though he was NBA average? To me as seen in the Tik Tok video above he is anything but NBA average. He was always a lever above that but weren't sure if he could elevate that since he was just coming back from a knee injury last year. In the final four watching him live my younger brother and i knew he was going to be a great NBA athlete with how he played in those 2 games. The thing is Steph is doing stuff Andre should be doing if he had any NBA offensive skills which sadly he doesn't.

I don’t think I was the only person to think he was NBA average for athleticism. I got fooled by him not having Kemba speed, jump out of the gym blocks, etc. in college, there wasn’t that much sizzle to his game - it was all steak. In the NBA, I’m seeing sizzle and steak.
My evaluation for him was a boom or bust guy, and I thought he would boom just based upon strength, development, and continued D. But, damn, he is so fun to watch unleashed.!

 

[knicksin7]

I'm going to push back on the insinuation that Liam isn't athletic. He may not be a leaper but for instance his speed, and strength are definitely above average.

"deceptively quick"
"a gym rat"
"born winner"

 

[knicksin7]

I don’t think I was the only person to think he was NBA average for athleticism. I got fooled by him not having Kemba speed, jump out of the gym blocks, etc. in college, there wasn’t that much sizzle to his game - it was all steak. In the NBA, I’m seeing sizzle and steak.
My evaluation for him was a boom or bust guy, and I thought he would boom just based upon strength, development, and continued D. But, damn, he is so fun to watch unleashed.!

He is incredibly athletic from a hand/eye coordination standpoint, from a sprint/jump standpoint, he's probably 75th percentile NBA average - but that is in the 0.0001% of normal humans. He's not peak DRose, Morant, LeBron, Westbrook, Amen Thompson, john Wall in terms of raw speed, vertical but he's really up there. Albeit, he jumped a lot higher than I thought possible in the dunk contest.

 

[c29328]

I said this once before but he seems so in control and possessed of himself that it looks like he only shows the amount of athleticism he needs to make a play sometimes. There will be a time he needs something extraordinary like having to come in for a block weak side, or a steal, or a blow by and its a double take watching it. Like "where did that come from". I saw more of those last year as the year went on. Iverson used to do it at the college level, albeit at a higher rate. Not comparing the two, just comparing the behavior.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

You're talking about him like he was an undrafted free agent. He was a high lottery pick, and might have gone number one if he had proven he could hit outside shots (and his percentage would not have been higher here if he was more ball dominant).

He wouldve went #1 if he showed if he was a franchise superstar guard. And the role we put him in had everything to do with teams believing if he can be that or not. Which is silly given how clear it looks to everyone who can watch him now.

It had nothing to do with a jumpshot.

 

[superjohn]

Steph is a very good athlete but anyone comparing his athleticism to DRose didn't see peak DRose

I'm surprised by Castle's athleticism in the NBA, he's right up there already in the current league and he's putting people on posters routinely. I did not see this and I watched a fair amount of him before UConn and then everything at UConn.

Derrick Rose is like Barry Sanders in that he had to be seen to be believed. I watched pretty much every one of his games before the injury and I remember exactly how I felt when he got injured. The most athletic point guard ever hands down. He was freaky.

 

[3rdbass]

He is incredibly athletic from a hand/eye coordination standpoint, from a sprint/jump standpoint, he's probably 75th percentile NBA average - but that is in the 0.0001% of normal humans. He's not peak DRose, Morant, LeBron, Westbrook, Amen Thompson, john Wall in terms of raw speed, vertical but he's really up there. Albeit, he jumped a lot higher than I thought possible in the dunk contest.

No one is saying he is Elite athletic but definitely above average for NBA player. Probably a level below those you mentioned. He is a lot faster than you think. He makes some huge strides when he moves. Look at that Tik Tok video. I definitely start seeing some of that Great NBA athleticism we are seeing now. Plus, I'm sure the knee injury impacted his play but by the end of the season he was flying all over the court.

 

[3rdbass]

He wouldve went #1 if he showed if he was a franchise superstar guard. And the role we put him in had everything to do with teams believing if he can be that or not. Which is silly given how clear it looks to everyone who can watch him now.

It had nothing to do with a jumpshot.

The NBA is about having a jump shot. It is nice to jump out of the building like Ja Morant but if you can't shoot the ball in today's NBA it is going to hurt you. You can thank Steph and the Warrors for changing the NBA. Funny Steph Curry just did his first dunk in 6 years. He barely made it. LOL!

Golden State Warriors on Instagram: "Stephen Curry DUNKED THE BALL "

249K likes, 905 comments - warriors on March 1, 2025: "Stephen Curry DUNKED THE BALL ".

www.instagram.com

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

The NBA is about having a jump shot. It is nice to jump out of the building like Ja Morant but if you can't shoot the ball in today's NBA it is going to hurt you. You can thank Steph and the Warrors for changing the NBA. Funny Steph Curry just did his first dunk in 6 years. He barely made it. LOL!

Golden State Warriors on Instagram: "Stephen Curry DUNKED THE BALL "

249K likes, 905 comments - warriors on March 1, 2025: "Stephen Curry DUNKED THE BALL ".

www.instagram.com

Is that why one of the other bright young stars of today is Amen Thompson?

This train of thought is how the Rockets end up drafting Reed Sheppard over Castle lol

Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner have the Magic playing above their talent level while they both shoot 30% from the field.

 

[3rdbass]

Is that why one of the other bright young stars of today is Amen Thompson?

This train of thought is how the Rockets end up drafting Reed Sheppard over Castle lol

Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner have the Magic playing above their talent level while they both shoot 30% from the field.

Yeah Reed Sheppard player getting drafted that high when he is a 6-1 SG always baffled me. I know he was supposed to be a great shooter and athlete but he is puny and not the greatest dribbler in the world. Definitely not a person who really has PG instincts either.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

Yeah Reed Sheppard player getting drafted that high when he is a 6-1 SG always baffled me. I know he was supposed to be a great shooter and athlete but he is puny and not the greatest dribbler in the world. Definitely not a person who really has PG instincts either.

They saw a guy who was a 52% 3 point shooter on high volume and had the train of thought shooting is the most important skill out there lol.

Just to see the guy who can’t shoot outside of 8 feet that they drafted the year before go out and become unbenchable.