Transfer Portal April 2023

[ibleedhuskyblue]

I'd rather make their heads explode by being good.

Already did that

 

[HU5KIES]

This is a good time to remember that stretch last year when half the board was freaking out because Akok and CFJ left and we had added no players whatsoever in the portal. Clearly, Andrew Hurley was going to play PG and the program was well and truly Doomed.

I'm sorry.. was Andrew Hurley not our closer for every NCAA game this year? Those doomers were onto something, they just didn't know what.

 

[auror]

Idk why he wasn't our first call. He is a perfect fit. Unless there is something about his game that I am missing? His athleticism?

There's a reason we beat Butler by a million every time we play them. Nobody on the team (outside Bates) is very good.

He could be a Joey (but not actually Joey, too slow for that, more of a better passing Polley). But not a starter and I'm sure he wants to be a starter somewhere. His defense is also a very big question mark.

 

[auror]

Sallis? Pass. He's a PG who has a barely positive A:TO ratio his first two years and shoots 25% from 3. There are dozens of PGs in the portal that won't hamstring your spacing. All the backdoor cutting or alley oops in the world won't matter if we're playing 4 dudes who can't shoot at once.

He's not bad (he does a lot of other good things), but he's just a bit redundant with what we have/coming in (Castle, Ball, Diarra).

 

[husky429]

He's not bad (he does a lot of other good things), but he's just a bit redundant with what we have/coming in (Castle, Ball, Diarra).

If we had a roster of 4 or 5 lights out shooters and needed a guy to defend and play tough, I'd be happy to recruit him. But we really don't have room for anyone who can't shoot right now. Too many unproven pieces as it is.

 

[gsmooth]

Would be interested in seeing if we have/will reach out to Simas.
37% on 5 attempts per game. Good size

That is interesting for sure. Hurley and staff would have to be convinced they can train Simas to play better defense and pass the ball better, two areas he was not good at. However, the style of offense UConn ran this season might amplify Simas' offense more and make him a better passer and hopefully having an erase like Clingan can help Simas defensively as well.

 

[banshee]

If we had a roster of 4 or 5 lights out shooters and needed a guy to defend and play tough, I'd be happy to recruit him. But we really don't have room for anyone who can't shoot right now. Too many unproven pieces as it is.

He was also top 10 on some lists and at least top 20 coming out of HS and expected to be one and done. He's not looking anywhere to come off the bench. Also, not a fit here either way.

 

[banshee]

That is interesting for sure. Hurley and staff would have to be convinced they can train Simas to play better defense and pass the ball better, two areas he was not good at. However, the style of offense UConn ran this season might amplify Simas' offense more and make him a better passer and hopefully having an erase like Clingan can help Simas defensively as well.

I think Simas is one of those role players that win you games. I like his game a lot, would take him in a heartbeat. I don't think he's willing to come here unless he's starting.

 

[runner11]

He was also top 10 on some lists and at least top 20 coming out of HS and expected to be one and done. He's not looking anywhere to come off the bench. Also, not a fit here either way.

Eh. Sool was top 60. Kids need to face reality. So many missed evaluations in this Covid class all across the country.

 

[Huskyforlife]

There's a reason we beat Butler by a million every time we play them. Nobody on the team (outside Bates) is very good.

He could be a Joey (but not actually Joey, too slow for that, more of a better passing Polley). But not a starter and I'm sure he wants to be a starter somewhere. His defense is also a very big question mark.

This boards fascination with Simas is so strange. He gets dominated physically every time we play them, he’s a 6’5 PF with no athleticism and a decent shot. Mid major talent at best.

 

[Scrutineer]

Get Joe Girard. Can make 3s and would make SU fans heads explode.

He'd probably make our heads explode too.........

 

[banshee]

This boards fascination with Simas is so strange. He gets dominated physically every time we play them, he’s a 6’5 PF with no athleticism and a decent shot. Mid major talent at best.

I think he was just on a bad team. He would look pretty good in our offense. I would take him even if we knew AJ and TN were coming back. He shot 38% from 3 and over 80% FT shooter.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Yeah, more post-game genius here

Yeah that was one of the dumber comments in the last week. Coaching malpractice to lose to the team coming off a win over Kansas.

 

[Scrutineer]

Sallis? Pass. He's a PG who has a barely positive A:TO ratio his first two years and shoots 25% from 3. There are dozens of PGs in the portal that won't hamstring your spacing. All the backdoor cutting or alley oops in the world won't matter if we're playing 4 dudes who can't shoot at once.

I thought you were very positive on him when we were recruiting him? Or was that Anglin?

 

[husky429]

I thought you were very positive on him when we were recruiting him? Or was that Anglin?

I was positive on him when we were recruiting him. And then he went to college for 2 years. Once you show up on a college campus, 5 stars is meaningless. You perform in the big time or you don't.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Yes Please

Kid can't shoot and has negative A:TO.

Pass.

 

[MyDorona]

The thing is there will be a season starting this upcoming fall and we will field a team. We need to accept that we may not have a squad that we can be confident in prior to opening night is capable of cutting down the nets in early April. FWIW, the three most recent times that we did cut down the nets, we did not begin the season with anyone claiming we could end up doing that.

Yes, of course, I never said anything to the contrary and I never suggested I wouldn't accept an outcome short of title #6.

I am not in any way criticizing or even commenting on Hurley's approach or this current roster. Again, all I said was that, in my opinion, under the new rules and the high-variance state of modern CBB, the best strategy for any coaching staff is to attack every single off-season with the mentality of building a championship-calibre roster for the upcoming season. Now more than ever, you can patch roster holes in one off-season, and now more than ever, you have a shot to go all the way if you just make the Tournament. Whether that is realistic or not for this team, this upcoming year, is another discussion entirely.

But this is a very different approach to team-building than the one JC used to great effect in the late '90s-early '00s.

 

[Waquoit]

A fact-of-life now is that the better you recruit, the better chances that your players leave early. Having veteran talent is going to depend on the portal. Hurley is showing he can blend new and existing players into a unified whole. All teams are going through what we're going through. Most don't have the talent running the show that we do. That's why I'm good. It also doesn't hurt to have a ton of good players on the team.

 

[AntG168]

Kid can't shoot and has negative A:TO.

Pass.

He shot 41% from 3 in 21-22 and 33% last season. If he averages out that would put him at about 36-37%. He can shoot

 

[Mooch82]

He shot 41% from 3 in 21-22 and 33% last season. If he averages out that would put him at about 36-37%. He can shoot

Ehhh…low volume in 21-22 and his FT % is really bad for a guard. Losing Hawk and Joey (and even Nahiem), we need a little bit more of a sure thing shooting wise.

 

[WrenchFan69]

I love Lukosius's game. Idk if he's a starter on a national championship squad, but I'd be very happy to have him in some role here.

 

[ucp990411]

Offensively yes, Joey was a surprisingly decent defender though.

Not initially

 

[upstater]

If Newton doesn't come back, Hassan Diarra has a golden opportunity. A little more consistency on his 3 pointer (if he can get that shot to 35% with more volume) and he'll be solid. With PT he can run the offense better, and he's already there when it comes to ballhandling (too much of it, actually) and defense.