UConn out on Valdir Manuel | Page 2 | The Boneyard

UConn out on Valdir Manuel

blue93 said:
Amazing how many people are taking the "didn't really want him anyway" approach all of a sudden.
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And how quickly people are trying to talk themselves into the idea of Whaley being our backup center is good enough lol
 
-Well I for one liked him, but he's not going to be a significant needle mover.

-I've always been in the camp that we should bank the scholarship and lose our MFing minds next year on the recruiting trail

-Anyone who thinks Whaley is a viable backup center needs to visit a doctor. We're going to struggle down low. Just is the way it is.
 
Towney007 said:
-Well I for one liked him, but he's not going to be a significant needle mover.

-I've always been in the camp that we should bank the scholarship and lose our MFing minds next year on the recruiting trail

-Anyone who thinks Whaley is a viable backup center needs to visit a doctor. We're going to struggle down low. Just is the way it is.
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That's where I'm at. Get a badarse class for when we step into the Big East but down low remains a huge problem for us.
 
other than the USF kid & Wiseman, who are the Bigs we need to worry about in conference play?
 
I would rather have him. Hopefully we can find at least a live body grad transfer. It doesn't cost us anything since it leaves the scholarship open in 2020.

Whaley reportedly up over 220 pounds, so I think he can probably fill in for 10 minutes a game. He's a good shotblocker and rebounder. We aren't looking for offense from a backup 5. The main issue is what happens if Josh has foul trouble.
 
MDHuskFan said:
other than the USF kid & Wiseman, who are the Bigs we need to worry about in conference play?
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WSU has an effective big guy, but that's about it.
 
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MDHuskFan said:
other than the USF kid & Wiseman, who are the Bigs we need to worry about in conference play?
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Ugh dude don't do that. We're going to be bashed on the boards.

We've got great back court depth - but it's just gonna be an entire season of Josh Carlton having to be scooped up off the floor with a spatula after games. And if he gets hurt - oh boy.

I still think banking the scholarship is the better move. At this point, you don't make a 2-3 year scholarship decision on a player who's really not going to be a bedrock kinda player. I think the Big East move reinforces that.
 
To me, it was important to have a competent backup center in 2020-2021 (So not this year, next) when we make our next big run as dictated by the roster and experience. Coincidentally it will also be our big splash in the Big East.

Which ideally meant bringing someone in for this year who could be ready for decent minutes in Hurley's system by next year as a sophomore instead of a raw freshman.

The move to the Big East somewhat lessens that acute need to really make an impactful NCAA run, as just being competent in the Big East will help our recruiting as much as a tourny run in the AAC would.

And maybe that boost has already been realized and will pay dividends soon, making the run in '20-'21 less important than just recruiting the best longterm talent.
 
Are there even any grad transfers left at this point? Either way would much rather have the scholly for next season.
 
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Huskyfan4evr said:
Ya Stuck with what we have. I'm not a Whaley fan. He's an undersized foul machine who cant shoot. I think Carlton and Akok will be a good duo but they will need rest and foul trouble. Unless Whaley improves a lot he is a liability. imo
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Carlton improved dramatically at the start of the year and then though out the season. It's a good bet that that trend line continues. I'm not sure of what Akok will do. His size and his work with Sal makes me hopeful though. I'd expect that he'll get some rebounds, be a decent help defender, and stretch the floor on offense. I'm hopeful that Whaley's additional size will help him box out and hold his position. We are in a better position down low than we have been in years. IMHO.
 
CL82 said:
Carlton improved dramatically at the start of the year and then though out the season. It's a good bet that that trendline continues. I'm not sure of what Akok will do. His size and his work with Sal makes me helpful though. I'd expect that he'll get some rebounds, be a decent help defender, and stretch the floor on offense. I'm hopeful that Whaley's additional size will help him box out and hold his position. We are in a better position down low than we have been in years. IMHO.
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I hope your right. I'm definitely hoping for a better year.
 
Barring injury, our defense should improve no matter what.

- Our worst defensive guard (Jalen) led the team in MPG last year
- Whaley is undersized, but it's borderline impossible to be worse than Cobb was on defense
- Akok is a huge improvement in rim protection and rebounding over Polley, who is better suited to guard the 3 or soft stretch 4s than some of the 4s he had to guard this year
 
Loosing Kofi really hurts. I hope lessons were learned.. We had a lot of eggs in the Kofi basket.
 
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Peacefrog said:
Maybe he wasn’t making the grades needed in summer school to gain admission. That seemed to be the sticking point originally, right? I would have preferred to have him this year for depth but don’t think it’s the end of the world. I expect Hurley will use the spot for someone even better.
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"Maybe he wasn’t making the grades needed in summer school to gain admission"
Very possible since he didn't commit anywhere.
 
Captbluefin said:
Loosing Kofi really hurts. I hope lessons were learned.. We had a lot of eggs in the Kofi basket.
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Hurley doesn't need to learn any lessons. I don't think you realize how hard it was to recruit in the AAC after two losing seasons. We are in a much better position to recruit for 2020 then for 2019. It's not like the staff fell asleep at the wheel and just recruited Kofi, but they had a late start because of the hire date.
 
kansashusky said:
Hurley doesn't need to learn any lessons. I don't think you realize how hard it was to recruit in the AAC after two losing seasons. We are in a much better position to recruit for 2020 then for 2019. It's not like the staff fell asleep at the wheel and just recruited Kofi, but they had a late start because of the hire date.
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Imagine landing three out of your four primary targets in the top 100 coming off a year where your predecessor threw the program's reputation in the toilet, you're playing in a total dung hole of a conference against schools like East Carolina and people are mad you missed one of them.
 
BFieldHusky said:
We are in really good shape with multiple Top 50 players for 2020. Let it play out. Big East news really is helping.

Hurts for 2019 no doubt. A lot of small ball.
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Besides maybe Jackson do you really believe we lead with any of these kids? Why aren’t they mentioning us more in interviews? why aren’t recruiting gurus linking us more often with some of these kids? why aren’t there more players taking unofficials? Xavier seems to be confident in Lane; Cliff, Cam and Lance all still seem like long shots to me. Hate to sound like a pessimist but it seems like we are behind where we were last year.
 
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UcannUconn said:
Besides maybe Jackson do you really believe we lead with any of these kids? Why aren’t they mentioning us more in interviews? why aren’t recruiting gurus linking us more often with some of these kids? why aren’t there more players taking unofficials? Xavier seems to be confident in Lane; Cliff, Cam and Lance all still seem like long shots to me. Hate to sound like a pessimist but it seems like we are behind where we were last year.
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Lead? Hard to say. Fairly in the mix or better? Yes.

I don't listen to interviews, no comment there.

The insiders are linking us w these players. It's just in private because of how much they get roasted when a kid changes his mind on this board. Zion used to be much more active on here, for one example.

We just moved to the big east a month ago. Kids are unbelievably busy through August. Visits will happen in the fall. Give it time.

Xavier is condident in Lane. Of the 4 recruits you mention, he's probably the least likely. The other 3 are far from longshots. I know for as close to a fact as possible in recruiting that Cliff is barely, if ever, being contacted by Kentucky and Jackson has had his eye on UConn since May.

We're not behind. Our first commitments weren't until September for 2019. And better players commit later--the timeline is pushed back every year for top 100 players. Some kids commit on official visits or shortly after, some wait until the hs season is starting, others until the spring. No one is commiting in July without a visit a week after peach jam
 
UcannUconn said:
Xavier seems to be confident in Lane; Cliff, Cam and Lance all still seem like long shots to me
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even if this turns out to be the case...i'd still be optimistic about idk...

SG-mashburn
SF- jackson
PF- lewis or springs
C- cardwell

beyond that is when it starts getting a bit dicey...
 
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McLovin said:
I'm assuming your kids are bigger than these...?

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Looks great against middle schoolers. Except for that drive at about 1:00 into it, where he took 4 complete steps through traffic after picking up his dribble. That didn't look good at all.
 
RichZ said:
Looks great against middle schoolers. Except for that drive at about 1:00 into it, where he took 4 complete steps through traffic after picking up his dribble. That didn't look good at all.
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Only a travel if they blow the whistle ;)
 
bendm said:
even if this turns out to be the case...i'd still be optimistic about idk...

SG-mashburn
SF- jackson
PF- lewis or springs
C- cardwell

beyond that is when it starts getting a bit dicey...
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Throughbacks list from the 90s?
 
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