Tarin Smith

[UConnStats]

Thought I’d make a thread for our 6th man this year.

He looked good to me last night. Probably took the most steps defensively and stayed engaged, and offensively he’s an attacker like Gilbert (albeit less skilled).

Last year he drew 4.8 fouls/40. His FT rate was 43.6%. Nearly identical to Vital’s numbers and this was Vital’s best offensive trait. Gilbert is always attacking the rim so he should draw fouls too. It should help UConn get other teams in foul trouble and manufacture some free points, which we failed to do last year because...

Adams - 3.5 FD/40, 20.2% FT Rate (these are absolutely horrible)

 

[HawkHusky]

Needs a poll.

 

[auror]

There were a few possessions where Tarin got up on his man and had real defensive energy. And on those possessions didn't just let his man blow by him.

The 9 FTAs speak for themselves.

 

[uchusky32]

Thought I’d make a thread for our 6th man this year.

He looked good to me last night. Probably took the most steps defensively and stayed engaged, and offensively he’s an attacker like Gilbert (albeit less skilled).

Last year he drew 4.8 fouls/40. His FT rate was 43.6%. Nearly identical to Vital’s numbers and this was Vital’s best offensive trait. Gilbert is always attacking the rim so he should draw fouls too. It should help UConn get other teams in foul trouble and manufacture some free points, which we failed to do last year because...

Adams - 3.5 FD/40, 20.2% FT Rate (these are absolutely horrible)

I dont know why you call yourself Stats. You need to start talking in 3rd person.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

If Gilbert stays healthy, Smith playing this well, Brendan Adams earning minutes and Jalen doing his thing, my expectation is for Vital to have the least amount of minutes-per-game of his career and this will help the overall efficiency of the team's offense.

What I like most about Smith is his energy, poise, defense, ability to attack the rim and left-hand bringing some versatility to the backcourt.

 

[superjohn]

If Gilbert stays healthy, Smith playing this well, Brendan Adams earning minutes and Jalen doing his thing, my expectation is for Vital to have the least amount of minutes-per-game of his career and this will help the overall efficiency of the team's offense.

What I like most about Smith is his energy, poise, defense, ability to attack the rim and left-hand bringing some versatility to the backcourt.

Christian should be an instant offense guy playing the 6th man, unfotunately he thinks of himself as a star.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Christian should be an instant offense guy playing the 6th man, unfotunately he thinks of himself as a star.

Would it kill you (and others) to leave him alone, and give him a chance to find his right-sized place?
It could happen, and what does it cost you to keep an open mind?
And if it doesn't happen, and you really need to, you can quote your own post.

Meantime, why not be grateful that we may 5 good guards? Didn't we just have a game (albeit exhibition against D-2) with all 5 scoring in double figures?

To be clear, I'm not really addressing this just to you, but it costs so little to pull positive, especially as the new season takes form.

 

[JimHurley]

Would it kill you (and others) to leave him alone, and give him a chance to find his right-sized place?
It could happen, and what does it cost you to keep an open mind?
And if it doesn't happen, and you really need to, you can quote your own post.

Meantime, why not be grateful that we may 5 good guards? Didn't we just have a game (albeit exhibition against D-2) with all 5 scoring in double figures?

To be clear, I'm not really addressing this just to you, but it costs so little to pull positive, especially as the new season takes form.

Thank you. CV gives 110% every second he’s on the court. He doesn’t take plays off. He will be a big part of this team.

 

[superjohn]

Would it kill you (and others) to leave him alone, and give him a chance to find his right-sized place?
It could happen, and what does it cost you to keep an open mind?
And if it doesn't happen, and you really need to, you can quote your own post.

Meantime, why not be grateful that we may 5 good guards? Didn't we just have a game (albeit exhibition against D-2) with all 5 scoring in double figures?

To be clear, I'm not really addressing this just to you, but it costs so little to pull positive, especially as the new season takes form.

Who made you the arbiter of what we discuss on this board?

I watched the game and think we have good guard play which could he great if Jalen figures things out and everyone learns their role. We need great guard play and for Sid to come back and be a big contributer because the frontcourt is horrendous.

Guard play wins in college but you need something from your frontcourt.

If you haven't figured out by now, I'm not a ra-ra guy just for the sake of being a rah-rah guy. I'll always be real about what we're good at, bad at, and what needs fixing.

 

[tuvent08]

Christian should be an instant offense guy playing the 6th man, unfotunately he thinks of himself as a star.

Well said. The upside is that I don’t think Hurley will allow him to try to be a Tim Hardaway Jr.-like volume scorer. He can be a really valuable player if he can play to his strengths and not think he’s Carmelo circa 2011.

 

[ctkaiser]

I like the fact that it looks like we have 5 solid guards. I think Coach will figure out playing time based on practice and performance. I'm still very concerned however about the bigs. It's early but I didn't see any marked improvement on the offense for Cobb or Carlton.

 

[Chief00]

Quite frankly, I think both Smith and Vital will have the opportunity to make good contributions. When you play pressure defense like that all game, you will be playing 9-10 guys for significant minutes.
A couple of years ago I asked KO why he was playing that zone nonsense and KO said he and his staff had decided they did not have the depth or ability to pressure man to man throughout the game. He would ideally like to but he reluctantly was convinced they couldn’t do it. Ironically, I think that was one of the key downfalls, in both Glen Miller’s and KO’s career. They lost that UConn identity then. Somehow, I bet Glen Miller won’t be as “successful” convincing his current head coach to play zone. Even George couldn’t convince Calhoun to stay in a zone after that first made shot. He would turn and look at George and say I told you so.

 

[Son of Robert]

Tarin gets by his first defender no problem making the defense shift. Exactly what Hurley wants as it creates opportunities. Tarin, from the looks of things, is solid with the ball, and gives us a third guard who can penetrate and make things happen. Curious to see if B.Adams has these skills.

Great to have another good ballhandler on the floor. That's two more than last year and it changes everything for the better. Excellent defender too.

 

[auror]

Quite frankly, I think both Smith and Vital will have the opportunity to make good contributions. When you play pressure defense like that all game, you will be playing 9-10 guys for significant minutes.
A couple of years ago I asked KO why he was playing that zone nonsense and KO said he and his staff had decided they did not have the depth or ability to pressure man to man throughout the game. He would ideally like to but he reluctantly was convinced they couldn’t do it. Ironically, I think that was one of the key downfalls, in both Glen Miller’s and KO’s career. They lost that UConn identity then.

We had 3 guards total the last 2 years. 3 guys shorter than 6'7" each year. Plus 2 years ago our only wing at all was a freshman not in the best condition, so we were essentially forced to play all 3 guards at the same time frequently. High pressure man would have been suicide. It would have killed our offense.

It wasn't an ideal situation all around, and the roster construction is on KO 100% (other than the injuries). But the decision to not play high pressure man is very defensible. We couldn't have played Hurley ball those 2 years once Gilbert went down.

 

[Edward Sargent]

Would it kill you (and others) to leave him alone, and give him a chance to find his right-sized place?
It could happen, and what does it cost you to keep an open mind?
And if it doesn't happen, and you really need to, you can quote your own post.

Meantime, why not be grateful that we may 5 good guards? Didn't we just have a game (albeit exhibition against D-2) with all 5 scoring in double figures?

To be clear, I'm not really addressing this just to you, but it costs so little to pull positive, especially as the new season takes form.

Well said

 

[polycom]

Quite frankly, I think both Smith and Vital will have the opportunity to make good contributions. When you play pressure defense like that all game, you will be playing 9-10 guys for significant minutes.
A couple of years ago I asked KO why he was playing that zone nonsense and KO said he and his staff had decided they did not have the depth or ability to pressure man to man throughout the game. He would ideally like to but he reluctantly was convinced they couldn’t do it. Ironically, I think that was one of the key downfalls, in both Glen Miller’s and KO’s career. They lost that UConn identity then. Somehow, I bet Glen Miller won’t be as “successful” convincing his current head coach to play zone. Even George couldn’t convince Calhoun to stay in a zone after that first made shot. He would turn and look at George and say I told you so.

If you don’t know why we played zone then you don’t understand basketball.

 

[TheChamps990411]

Christian should be an instant offense guy playing the 6th man, unfotunately he thinks of himself as a star.

Well technically he is a star. A black hole.

 

[Stainmaster]

Well technically he is a star. A black hole.

No, not really.

 

[EBonz30]

Kid has a very strong left hand...

 

[Danzz]

Thank you. CV gives 110% every second he’s on the court. He doesn’t take plays off. He will be a big part of this team.

He will have a role for sure but his minutes will be down because Hurley has a more talented option in Gilbert. Hurley will have a quicker hook on Vital with Gilbert and B. Adams on the roster. Vital is going to have play under more control or he could end up being the 4th guard.

 

[pj]

He will have a role for sure but his minutes will be down because Hurley has a more talented option in Gilbert. Hurley will have a quicker hook on Vital with Gilbert and B. Adams on the roster. Vital is going to have play under more control or he could end up being the 4th guard.

Or the 5th with Smith. He should be able to beat out Smith and B Adams, but he's going to have to play the way the coach wants him to play.

 

[Kitaman]

CV is in unfamiliar territory and not in an ideal situation. He started last year when Gilbert went down. Now his new team is guard heavy, and he apparently will not start. Then add a new coach, who Vital may not be a Hurley favorite. Coach already displays a demanding and less tolerable mindset than Ollie. So Vital has to work his way out of any bad habits 'allowed' under Ollie. Lastly he had NBA dreams and now almost certainly will have to postpone them.

Bottom line he has to find his role/place and excel in it. He is probably the one player having the biggest adverse effect with our new coach.

Just saying we need to cheer him and not demean him. He will need to adjust and will need time. I never want to see him play with a lack of confidence or cockiness (that's his basketball personality). Who knows, if he quickly adjusts, his minutes will rise and our guards will thrive. We need a new and improved Vital to threaten his teammates (i.e. guards) and our opponents.

 

[Stainmaster]

CV is in unfamiliar territory and not in an ideal situation. He started last year when Gilbert went down. Now his new team is guard heavy, and he apparently will not start. Then add a new coach, who Vital may not be a Hurley favorite. Coach already displays a demanding and less tolerable mindset than Ollie. So Vital has to work his way out of any bad habits 'allowed' under Ollie. Lastly he had NBA dreams and now almost certainly will have to postpone them.

Bottom line he has to find his role/place and excel in it. He is probably the one player having the biggest adverse effect with our new coach.

Just saying we need to cheer him and not demean him. He will need to adjust and will need time. I never want to see him play with a lack of confidence or cockiness (that's his basketball personality). Who knows, if he quickly adjusts, his minutes will rise and our guards will thrive. We need a new and improved Vital to threaten his teammates (i.e. guards) and our opponents.

?

"He goes hard every day, and I have short memories for guys who go hard every day." -- Dan Hurley on CV, 11/2/18

 

[RayIsTheGOAT]

I don't get the CV bashing on here. Sure, he can be frustrating on offense at times, but I think that largely has to do with our previous coaching era's offensive scheme (or lack thereof) and allowing CV to take whatever shot he wants in a stagnant offense. Therefore, he wasn't really coached properly for the first two years of his college career. Also, he was inserted into a different role than he should have been in, due to lack of guard depth.

He clearly can be a very important part of the team with the right coaching, and Hurley is obviously better suited for CV than what CV had before. His role will be different this year, but we will see an improved CV who will help us win multiple games this season, whether he plays 15 minutes or 30 minutes on a given night.

Again, I think CV's effort and attitude in the last game of the Ollie era shows what kind of player and person he is. He was balls to the wall up to the last whistle of a horrendous, lost season.

 

[AntG168]

I don't get the CV bashing on here. Sure, he can be frustrating on offense at times, but I think that largely has to do with our previous coaching era's offensive scheme (or lack thereof) and allowing CV to take whatever shot he wants in a stagnant offense. Therefore, he wasn't really coached properly for the first two years of his college career. Also, he was inserted into a different role than he should have been in, due to lack of guard depth.

He clearly can be a very important part of the team with the right coaching, and Hurley is obviously better suited for CV than what CV had before. His role will be different this year, but we will see an improved CV who will help us win multiple games this season, whether he plays 15 minutes or 30 minutes on a given night.

Again, I think CV's effort and attitude in the last game of the Ollie era shows what kind of player and person he is. He was balls to the wall up to the last whistle of a horrendous, lost season.

I know i've made it clear on here multiple times. But I love CV. His effort and heart is special and should be appreciated