UCONN 2014-15

[mcs333]

Let's look at what we lose. 4 of our top 5 scorers and 65% of our offense. We also lose 60% of our assist and 55% of our rebounds. Our top two scorers that return are RB at 12 PPG and AB at 4.

The team makeup looks to be very balanced.
AB ,Nolan
KF, Rock
DH, OC
RB, TS
RP, SC
4 Bigs, 6 guards,wings. We could probably use another Big(5 year player)

Defensively we should be very good. Big enough, athletic, quick. I really like this team defensively.

Offensively is a really unknown. We lost a ton of outside shooting, our best three shooters, all over 40% from deep. We return only RB who shoot 37.6 from deep. We have some potential with RP, DH, SC and OC but are all unproven. All 4 bigs are also unproven scorers in the paint. This could be a team that takes it hard to the basket, runs well in transition and gets a ton of points from the FT line but could be challenged from the outside. One real concern is do we have a player who can get his shot off late in the shot clock like Bazz. Right now I know of no one who could be that player. RB has not proven he could consistently be that player.
KO has a lot of work to do to make this team a top 25 team as projected in several of the rankings. I like the makeup of the team esp. defensively but I am really looking to see how this team comes together offensively.
Can't wait!

 

[UconnU]

Team is very typical Uconn..right? kind of what you'd expect historically.. 2 long athletic shot blockers inside, a long wing who can shoot, a smaller mentally tough scrappy PG...More of a defensive lineup than an offensive. I'd like to see us do more in transition next year as the make up of our team lends itself better to that style of play rather than the half court spread we ran last year. Especially with multiple shot blockers and some scrappy guards I think our defense could be our best offense. Really excited to see how KF is going to progress, we really haven't seen much of him but he will have to play major minutes next year.

 

[otp85]

I do not think this team will struggle to score next year. Boat, Hamilton and Purvis are all capable of creating shots for themselves. And if they can turn that into easy shots for the bigs then they can be very good.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

I think Facey is going to be our best offensive big since Charlie. Maybe not next year but he's going to show flashes of it a lot. He's pretty fluid and long. He just needs some muscle.

 

[otp85]

I think Facey is going to be our best offensive big since Charlie. Maybe not next year but he's going to show flashes of it a lot. He's pretty fluid and long. He just needs some muscle.

I think/hope he makes the jump at some point. He most certainly has the talent. On the other hand I hope he's nothing like Charlie. He regularly infuriated me; mostly by shooting jump shots from 40 feet in warm ups.

 

[mauconnfan]

mcs good post……..you don't realize the numbers walking out the door until now! There's a lot of question marks for sure and it will be an exciting season for the fans as we get to see how new faces step up and become Huskies right before our eyes. And while the NC season compares a lot with 2010's the follow up season will be a lot different. 2011 brought us back Bazz, Jeremy, Giff, Alex and Roscoe among others as well as a Top 2-3 recruit and how did that work out?

I like the potential of this team and believe it will be really good come Feb/March………as usual!!

 

[UConn3432]

Just wish there were more bodies. One injury/suspension and down to only 9 scholarship players.

 

[patrick]

I'm excited to see ko drive that Ferrari!

 

[Rocktheworld]

Only glaring concern here imo is for the 4 because Rock will be fresh and Facey averaged less than 5 mpg last year. 5 gets better, and we have big guards who could play the 3 in a 3-guard lineup.

 

[mcs333]

Potential scoring needed by player combo vs last year team.

SN, LK= 24. RP, SC= 19

RB, TS= 14. RB, TS= 18

NG, OC=12. DH, OC=14

DD, KF =14. KF, Rock=8

PN, AB=7. PN, AB=12

Total points =71 for each year.
As you can see a lot of unknowns. Can we get a double double from the 5 position.
RP needs to ave. around 15ppg, can we get 14 ppg from the wing?, Can our PG's give us 18 ppg and finally can we get more than 8 ppg from the 4 position. It is going to be an interesting year and one that may take for each player to understand their rolls and for the team to come together. Let's hope they can peak in March!

 

[UconnU]

Only glaring concern here imo is for the 4 because Rock will be fresh and Facey averaged less than 5 cost year. 5 gets better, and we have big guards who could play the 3 in a 3-guard lineup.

And overall shooting...teams are going to play off our guards and wings because we dont have as good of a shooting team as we had this year. We lost 4 consistent shooters.

 

[Rocktheworld]

And overall shooting...teams are going to play off our guards and wings because we dont have as good of a shooting team as we had this year. We lost 4 consistent shooters.

No question this team will be more "athletic" than last year's but is unproven as far as shooting. Jr. can shoot and Omar has shown potential in the past, but returning guards Purvis TS and Boat seem more inclined to slash and penetrate. Who knows if/how DHam will find his space at this level.

 

[selles]

I do not think this team will struggle to score next year. Boat, Hamilton and Purvis are all capable of creating shots for themselves. And if they can turn that into easy shots for the bigs then they can be very good.

I'm optimistic about the offense as well. I think Boat buys into the concept that the more he excels as a pure point, the better his NBA chances. Boat as a pure point with Purvis and Hamilton on the wings has me excited, and that's before even thinking about Samuel, Sam Jr, and Omar coming off the bench.

I'm more concerned about the D. Having 2 versatile defenders with size in Giffey and Kromah was a huge plus. When we need to shut down a tough 6'5"-6'7" scorer next year, who's going to step up? Also, while DD was inconsistent I think he was more of a rebounding and defensive presence on the low block than we give him credit for, especially late in games. He was also our only shot blocker after Amida. We'll need Facey and the Rock to step up on D and on the glass. I'm hopeful they can but it's a complete unknown at this point.

It's going to be fun to watch the team forge its own identity.

 

[otp85]

And overall shooting...teams are going to play off our guards and wings because we dont have as good of a shooting team as we had this year. We lost 4 consistent shooters.

Daniel Hamilton can and will shoot from anywhere. If defense's give him space he'll fire. Whether that'll be a good or bad thing will likely differ game to game though.

 

[Rocktheworld]

I'm more concerned about the D.

I think we could be seeing a bit more zone looks on D this year. We have the quick, long, athletic bodies to do it assuming Facey has started to get a feel for the speed of the game at this level as well as developing his collapsing help skills. PN/AB in the middle, PN/Facey and DHam/Omar on the wings, two of Purvis/Boat/TS/Jr on the perimeter

 

[otp85]

I'm optimistic about the offense as well. I think Boat buys into the concept that the more he excels as a pure point, the better his NBA chances. Boat as a pure point with Purvis and Hamilton on the wings has me excited, and that's before even thinking about Samuel, Sam Jr, and Omar coming off the bench.

I'm more concerned about the D. Having 2 versatile defenders with size in Giffey and Kromah was a huge plus. When we need to shut down a tough 6'5"-6'7" scorer next year, who's going to step up? Also, while DD was inconsistent I think he was more of a rebounding and defensive presence on the low block than we give him credit for, especially late in games. He was also our only shot blocker after Amida. We'll need Facey and the Rock to step up on D and on the glass. I'm hopeful they can but it's a complete unknown at this point.

It's going to be fun to watch the team forge its own identity.

I could not agree more. I know our guards will put pressure on with the best of em and the bigs will protect the rim but the lack of wing defenders is a bit concerning. Hamilton and Calhoun are all we really have and neither are exactly know for their defense.

 

[Horatio]

Major pressure on Omar and Facey this Summer going into next season.

 

[David 76]

We need a big. A good defensive 4 or a 5 to eat minutes. Please don't save all those scholarships until next year. I can see PN and AB in foul trouble. Not sure KF & RL can hold that fort. It will be a fun year but I don't want to have to play with a 4 wing line-up out of necessity.