Tyler Polley | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Tyler Polley

How does it help to develop players if put out players with weaknesses and the opposing teams exploits them? How does it help Polley to learn D if the other team is just backing down Kwintin or Diarra and abusing them? Is Polley taking a lesson by watching a Russian guy throw hook shot after hook shot? Granted, I found out yesterday that guy had the highest FG% in the league, but still...
 
Doctor Hoop said:
We have a lot of players that bring something to the table, but nobody that brings everything to the table. Onourah brings strength, reasonable timing blocking shots (although not enough length), and 5 fouls inside. The other bigs have less strength, though Cobb is close. Carlton is better offensively, Whaley is longer with even better timing, and both are better rebounders. Cobb doesn't have the lift of Onourah, and is only a marginally better rebounder. None are great on the boards. So he got 18 minutes. I'd rather it were 10, but I'm glad it wasn't 30.
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You set a low bar. Carlton is the only big that has shown more than a flash. DO wouldn’t get these minutes on most D1 teams. Whaley initially looked like he’d offer something but has does less the more he plays. MD is a foul machine and is outmatched on D. EC wanted to be a guard but since his suspension who knows. I’d like to see if he would conform to the team game. And KW who shows hustle and effort and rebounding can’t get off the bench. Out of all the things that have got me questioning KO it’s his lineups and substitution patterns that irk me the most. Of that my least fav lineup is the 3 guards Larrier, and Big Dave
 
Watching Polley in warm-ups, he was the only guy on the team that consistently made threes. Rarely missed. I'm not surprised it's started to transition towards makes in the game.
 
imno1 said:
You set a low bar. Carlton is the only big that has shown more than a flash. DO wouldn’t get these minutes on most D1 teams. Whaley initially looked like he’d offer something but has does less the more he plays. MD is a foul machine and is outmatched on D. EC wanted to be a guard but since his suspension who knows. I’d like to see if he would conform to the team game. And KW who shows hustle and effort and rebounding can’t get off the bench. Out of all the things that have got me questioning KO it’s his lineups and substitution patterns that irk me the most. Of that my least fav lineup is the 3 guards Larrier, and Big Dave
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Still have faith in Whaley being a guy who will play and impact. He has regressed a bit on the boards no doubt, but his defense can be very good and he can block shots,change them. Has to hoist 1,000 shots a day all summer from the 8-12 foot space as well as back to the basket jump hooks both hands.
 
upstater said:
He is not very good.

That being said, every other guy gets pushed around out there.

Not fun watching the Russian guy (assume he's Russian) back down our guys for easy hook shots.
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Some have said he banged into Carlton and should have been called for foul but I believe there was no Russian collision going on.
 
Polley simply weren’t ready, we all watched and deservedly so he sat .. now he’s a lot more comfortable in what we do on the offensive end.. and by him believing in his work ethic, he’s starting to feel he belongs now.. started with the Tulsa game did you see when he hit those 3’s how excited he was taken a lil of cv like celebrations lol... it felt like he got that gigantic monkey off his back..

Happy for the kid & we need him most to step up and be another contributor heading into the tourney
 
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In another thread recently, I ripped Polley a new one about playing scared even though it’s february and he should be used to D1 basketball by now. Ever since then he’s shot well and looked like he wants to be on the court. Not taking credit but ya know
 
There is a certain awkwardness to Polley on the court. He doesn't move particular quickly. But if he keeps shooting 100% he will have to get minutes. He is also a pretty good defender and will get better as he learns the game.
 
imno1 said:
You set a low bar. Carlton is the only big that has shown more than a flash. DO wouldn’t get these minutes on most D1 teams. Whaley initially looked like he’d offer something but has does less the more he plays. MD is a foul machine and is outmatched on D. EC wanted to be a guard but since his suspension who knows. I’d like to see if he would conform to the team game. And KW who shows hustle and effort and rebounding can’t get off the bench. Out of all the things that have got me questioning KO it’s his lineups and substitution patterns that irk me the most. Of that my least fav lineup is the 3 guards Larrier, and Big Dave
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I agree, that lineup is the worst.

mauconnfan said:
Still have faith in Whaley being a guy who will play and impact. He has regressed a bit on the boards no doubt, but his defense can be very good and he can block shots,change them. Has to hoist 1,000 shots a day all summer from the 8-12 foot space as well as back to the basket jump hooks both hands.
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This^^^^^

It’s not a low bar, it’s who they are right now. I want them to clear higher hurdles, eventually the highest hurdles. But the potential has to be followed up with the hard work of getting better. Whaley I think has potential, so does Carlton, and Williams has athleticism. All of them can get much better.

I was at a Celtics game early a few weeks ago and one of the Lopez twins (I forget which) was out working on post moves pre-game. For ten minutes he caught the ball in the post, made the same set of feints and moves, ending in a right hand jump hook. Over and over and over. Repetition reduces errors. Carlton and Whaley should be going to the gym together working against each other every day.
 
Of all the freshmen, Polley, I think, has suffered the most from KO's style of do-it-yourself coaching. But there is evidence he has survived to become a more mature and confident player. At the moment, the jury is out on him. Is he the 22% 3-point shooter he was for 25 games or is he the deadeye of the last two. We must hope the KO gives him the chance to answer that question. There is no certainty of that, since Anderson is suddenly the starting point of a 3-guard offense that, with Larrier entrenched at the 3, leaves exactly one position open to rotate the young bigs -- and KO has a history of forgetting who is on his bench.
 
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A point about Polley that applies also to Carlton and Whaley. These are guys we all saw as 4-year players who could be very good by their junior-senior years. The other side of that coin is the admission that they weren't going to be world-beaters in their freshman year. To expect more of them than we've seen, especially under the "tutelage" of a laid-back coach whose coaching philosophy is basically "show me what you got", is simply impatience -- and the frustration of a losing season that was probably inevitable. If you told me that our starting front-line in 2019-20 would be Pollard, Carlton and Whaley as juniors and our backcourt Gilbert/Akinjo and Vital, I would be excited about our prospects.
 
Huskyforlife said:
I did notice it seemed like Dave was making it hard for them to post up, we might not be noticing how his size may bother the opposing bigs.
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Astute point - he may have no game - but the * is tough to move.
 
Sphinx said:
A point about Polley that applies also to Carlton and Whaley. These are guys we all saw as 4-year players who could be very good by their junior-senior years. The other side of that coin is the admission that they weren't going to be world-beaters in their freshman year. To expect more of them than we've seen, especially under the "tutelage" of a laid-back coach whose coaching philosophy is basically "show me what you got", is simply impatience -- and the frustration of a losing season that was probably inevitable. If you told me that our starting front-line in 2019-20 would be Pollard, Carlton and Whaley as juniors and our backcourt Gilbert/Akinjo and Vital, I would be excited about our prospects.
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Sleep on Sid and Mathews at your own peril. Also, need more muscle up front,
 
imno1 said:
You set a low bar. Carlton is the only big that has shown more than a flash. DO wouldn’t get these minutes on most D1 teams. Whaley initially looked like he’d offer something but has does less the more he plays. MD is a foul machine and is outmatched on D. EC wanted to be a guard but since his suspension who knows. I’d like to see if he would conform to the team game. And KW who shows hustle and effort and rebounding can’t get off the bench. Out of all the things that have got me questioning KO it’s his lineups and substitution patterns that irk me the most. Of that my least fav lineup is the 3 guards Larrier, and Big Dave
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Don’t like that lineup either.
 
intlzncster said:
Need someone to develop him.
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Polley, Carlton and Whalley all seem to have good attitudes (add Kwintin too). Just once I would hope that the program can offer them everything it can in order to help them in the off season to develop their talents so that they come back better, stronger and more confident. Paying the price in the offseason has to be sold. There is just no substitute for hard work along with good skills development. This plus setting an example for the incoming recruits could go along way in reestablishing the Uconn program and the will to win.
 
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Marcus Johnson and Kwintin Williams would've made for a Globetrotter-esque combination.
 
I like Polly a lot especially for a Freshman. Carlton has legit potential, wish they would run more post plays for him. Kwintin is a end of the bench guy......looks like he has a good attitude and surely has athletic ability but cant see him turning into a player anytime soon.
 
imno1 said:
Starting seems to be the kiss of death for our young. But More Tyler less 3 guard ( @Chief00 I mean small guards) and more KW and EC less DO. But I believe KO promised big Dave minutes if he came here. It’s the only reasonable explanation
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Imno I believe you are right on. Why else is DO out there? His next clean rebound will be his first.
 
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Not that praise from KO means much to fans these days, but Polly got a shot out from the coach - says he's in been in the gym on his own, getting shots up. My only question is why did it take until February to start seeing this type of personal accountability? You can have a HOF coach or a chump HS coach, you as a player still need to put the work in to get better. Freshman especially, should be in the gym on their own from the day they step on campus. I don't care if you can't have a coach there with you, go to the field house if you need to. Plenty of UConn students around that would love to say they were the ball b***h for a husky.

Either way, at least Tyler is putting the work in now, and he's seeing the results. Hope it's a sign of a good next 3 years from him. Now hit the weight room kid.
 
spudzj6 said:
Not that praise from KO means much to fans these days, but Polly got a shot out from the coach - says he's in been in the gym on his own, getting shots up. My only question is why did it take until February to start seeing this type of personal accountability? You can have a HOF coach or a chump HS coach, you as a player still need to put the work in to get better. Freshman especially, should be in the gym on their own from the day they step on campus. I don't care if you can't have a coach there with you, go to the field house if you need to. Plenty of UConn students around that would love to say they were the ball b***h for a husky.

Either way, at least Tyler is putting the work in now, and he's seeing the results. Hope it's a sign of a good next 3 years from him. Now hit the weight room kid.
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You are assuming he just started putting in the extra time when he’s probably been at it for some time. Tyler doesn’t seem like an alpha so it’s taking time for him to know his role and gain some confidence. However praise from Ollie doesn’t necessarily mean more time on the court as we have seen with KW
 
Polly is 8-28 shooting on 2-pointers. 12-29 shooting on three pointers. For a guy who should have a size advantage against many opponent small forwards or third guards this seems a little out of whack and shows where he has to make progress to be a complete player.
 
imno1 said:
You are assuming he just started putting in the extra time when he’s probably been at it for some time. Tyler doesn’t seem like an alpha so it’s taking time for him to know his role and gain some confidence. However praise from Ollie doesn’t necessarily mean more time on the court as we have seen with KW
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True, he could have been in the gym for a good while, but seeing the hard work pay off in games certainly will help his confidence. Unlike KW, I think the whole season KO has wanted to play Polly more, indicated by his starting the first handful of games. But he wasn't getting "it". I'm just happy that by the end of year 1, we may start seeing the Tyler Polly we recruited, (however that's also leading into an unknown situation next year). And I would LOVE to see more KW, just not in garbage time minutes.
 
UConn runs a penetrate-and-dish offense that hasn't had anyone to dish to. A deadeye 3-point shooter changes everything. Six threes in a row and counting are impressive circumstantial evidence that we have found one. Add a rim protector and KO becomes the genius coach of a tournament-class team.
 
Sphinx said:
UConn runs a penetrate-and-dish offense that hasn't had anyone to dish to. A deadeye 3-point shooter changes everything. Six threes in a row and counting are impressive circumstantial evidence that we have found one. Add a rim protector and KO becomes the genius coach of a tournament-class team.
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Because those are their only issues...
 
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