Vital

[YearoftheHusky]

Great article.

Christian Vital is trying to move on after the abrupt ending to his UConn career

The guard is convinced the Huskies would have made the NCAA Tournament, but now he's getting ready for a shot at the NBA.

theathletic.com

 

[Hankster]

Great news. Loved this kid since day 1. I cannot wait for the draft. Hope he catches a break.

 

[Son of Robert]

CV really grew here as a person and a player the last two years, especially this past year. He backed up all that talk of his, and showed himself and all of us his absolute best.

 

[XLCenterFan]

This kid is just a winner. Plain and simple. Won me over during his time here and I wouldn’t bet against him.

 

[Doheny]

Also, "Vital Looks Back on His UConn Career" by Gavin Keefe in the New London Day.

Vital looks back on his UConn career

Christian Vital has a plethora of fascinating stories to tell about his UConn basketball career. A great deal happened during a crazy ride that featured more turmoil than triumph at times. Vital arriv...

www.theday.com

 

[JimHurley]

Wouldn’t surprise me to see him be a Husky or Honor one day. The dude went from being the lowest ranked recruit from the 2016 class to finishing top 10 in scoring in UConn history. He played his butt off every minute of every game and led us through the transition years back to prominence.

 

[NJHusky]

A lot of people could learn about effort and belief from this young man!!

There is NO DOUBT he will be successful in many endeavors throughout his life.

Kudos to Christian

 

[CL82]

Christian is a tough guy not to like. Even this quote which is so Vital, just made me smile:

"If LeBron and everyone else isn't playing basketball, Christian isn't going to be playing basketball."

(OMG CV is Chief!)

But when hew was asked how he wants to be remembered, Vital responded:

"A guy who could be a difference, who wasn't the most talented, who knew he needed to improve and was just a good dude to be around. ... A guy who wanted to compete as well, every single day."

He's a good guy, I wish him well.

 

[HuskyFich]

I remember when he just committed his coach had said "He will give it his all on every play, and you will just grow to love him."

Don't know if he could have been more spot on. CV, you are one of the new pioneers of this program. Much love, always!

 

[boiwerebad]

Vital will always be one of my favorites. He came in my sophomore year and everyone thought he wouldn't do too much as he was the lowest rated recruit out of the 2016 class that seemed to be poised for greatness, being a top 10 class in the nation that year.

Not only did he outplay everyone in that class, but he made the 3-star label laughable by becoming a defensive pest who always tried his hardest with smart plays and incredible effort. I don't recall a single game over his four years where I was like "Vital hurt us that game". Really wish he had some post season success as he only was able to play in 3 total conference tourney wins, and 0 NCAA/NIT tourney games. He may be the greatest Husky with those qualifiers.

Also, off the court, he always seemed like a great guy. Of course I don't know for 100% certainty, but never heard a single bad thing about him. My friend was his RA and said he was always a great guy. Also got the privilege to play pickup with CV one time (and had to guard Kwint on the other end) and he was great guy to play with. Didn't try to show off and acted normal, which is sometimes the best way to be.

Wish him the best in his future. Do I see him getting drafted? Realistically, no. But do I see him having immense success for 15+ years in leagues across the world? Absolutely. I would not be surprised if down the road an NBA team gets him to be a bench 3-and-D guy, but regardless, he will always be remembered as a bright spot in a dark time for UConn.

 

[gtcam]

One of my all time top 5 favorite Husky
Best of everything in your future CV

 

[LongtimeUC]

My son interacted with him at the Hurley camp...Vital remembered him and went out of his way to say hello with a big smile and some funny and age appropriate trash talk when he'd see him at the games....seems like a special kid...I hope he gets a shot.

 

[AdamaNation]

A lot of people could learn about effort and belief from this young man!!

There is NO DOUBT he will be successful in many endeavors throughout his life.

Kudos to Christian

Imagine he and bazz as coaches. Tuff!!!

 

[mauconnfan]

Wouldn’t surprise me to see him be a Husky or Honor one day. The dude went from being the lowest ranked recruit from the 2016 class to finishing top 10 in scoring in UConn history. He played his butt off every minute of every game and led us through the transition years back to prominence.

I never thought of him as a player who deserved that honor. That is until the end of last season and how tough, persistent and good he was in trying to get to his ultimate goal, a post season tourney namely the Dance. I still believe there are others who are not on the wall that deserve the honor based on being better overall players, but there is something special about this kids career which just spells out "HUSKY".

Wish him the best and won't be too surprised on anything this young man achieves.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Hard to overstate how important his mental toughness was to Hurley being able to shift the culture of this program so effectively. His impact is far greater than what his career stats show.