Way-Too-Early Big East Rankings | Page 3 | The Boneyard

Way-Too-Early Big East Rankings

JimHurley said:
We have to stop comparing the two eras. One coach had no idea how to coach and our current coach has a great eye for finding and developing talent. We seem to be forgetting that. You can’t compare Ollie’s transfers to Hurley’s transfers.
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Larrier blew his knee out before we knew how good he was or will be if we want to be fair.
 
businesslawyer said:
Barring injuries, on opening day I expect Cole, Gaffney and Bouk to all be on the floor as starters. Cole/Gaffney is not an either/or.
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I’d rather start a Martin/Jackson at the 3 than bouk. Defensively your at a disadvantage at the 2 and 3 when u start gaff and Cole together. I think staggering them is the move
 
Let Gaffney lead a second unit and make the most of Brendan Adams, Martin/Jackson, Springs/Polley and sprinkle in Carlton as running mates.
 
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JimHurley said:
That would be the worst defensive back court in the Big East. Either Jackson or Martin will start at the 3.
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i'm not buying gaff starting for many reasons:
1) in that infamous deleted post hurley said the moment might still be too big for gaffney next year;
2) hurley said AJ is going to have as big an impact as bouk did meaning he's eventually starting at SF;
3) AJ is not a stretch 4- hurley said he'll eventually develop into a PG for the nba;
4) starting cole and gaff risks early PG foul trouble and further complicates the deep wing rotation.
 
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bendm said:
i'm not buying gaff starting for many reasons:
1) in that infamous deleted post hurley said the moment might still be too big for gaffney next year;
2) hurley said AJ is going to have as big an impact as bouk did meaning he's eventually starting at SF;
3) AJ is not a stretch 4- hurley said he'll eventually develop into a PG for the nba;
4) starting cole and gaff risks early PG foul trouble and further complicates the deep wing rotation.
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Correct on all 4. I think my locks to start are Cole, Bouknight, Jackson, and Whaley. That fifth spot is a question mark. Do we play the traditional lineup and go Carlton at C? Stretch the floor and go Polley at the 4? Go with small ball and put Martin at the 4? We’ll see.

Also correct in the fact that we need at least ball handler off the bench. Adams is a SG/SF so that leaves Gaffney as the only option to run the point off the bench, which we need.
 
JimHurley said:
That fifth spot is a question mark.
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this is the 10 man rotation i'd like to see in BE conference play, dependent on who fills the last scholly of course. i'm not divvying up the minutes but lots of interchangeability

Cole—-Gaffney
Bouk—-Adams
Jackson-Polley
Martin---Akok
Whaley-Carlton
 
bendm said:
this is the 10 man rotation i'd like to see in BE conference play, dependent on who fills the last scholly of course. i'm not divvying up the minutes but lots of interchangeability

Cole—-Gaffney
Bouk—-Adams
Jackson-Polley
Martin---Akok
Whaley-Carlton
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I think you're going to really like Richie S..Don't sleep on him..Dan Hurley loves his upside and Bouk obviously does.. He was instrumental in recruiting him to UConn (as a former teammate of his)
 
Grey Goose said:
I think you're going to really like Richie S..Don't sleep on him..Dan Hurley loves his upside and Bouk obviously does.. He was instrumental in recruiting him to UConn (as a former teammate of his)
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i got high hopes for springs but he's still just a redshirt freshmen and i dont see the point of giving your eleventh man ~8 mpg.
i'd rather give whaley, carlton, akok, martin, and polley another 1 or 2 mins each.
going ten deep is plenty imo
 
bendm said:
i got high hopes for springs but he's still just a redshirt freshmen and i dont see the point of giving your eleventh man ~8 mpg.
i'd rather give whaley, carlton, akok, martin, and polley another 1 or 2 mins each.
going ten deep is plenty imo
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Wow..Let's talk mid-season and see if you have a different opinion.. Dan Hurley might override your projections..
 
Grey Goose said:
Wow..Let's talk mid-season and see if you have a different opinion.. Dan Hurley might override your projections..
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my projections will change well before that once the last scholly is filled. those are my pointless projections for today

edit-for instance, if we get sanogo springs is even less likely to get meaningful PT.
 
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bendm said:
my projections will change well before that once the last scholly is filled. those are my pointless projections for today
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Agreed..Depends on whether last scholly is a game changer or long range guy
 
bendm said:
i got high hopes for springs but he's still just a redshirt freshmen and i dont see the point of giving your eleventh man ~8 mpg.
i'd rather give whaley, carlton, akok, martin, and polley another 1 or 2 mins each.
going ten deep is plenty imo
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The only reason I'd disagree on Springs is by the time Akok is back he's going to have a 10+ games playing and he seems like the type of glue guy who will always get minutes
 
navery12 said:
The only reason I'd disagree on Springs is by the time Akok is back he's going to have a 10+ games playing and he seems like the type of glue guy who will always get minutes
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Hope you're right on Akok.. Seems to have a sense of urgency to move on to the next Level.. Springs isn't a bad guy to have on the bench or in practice.. Dan Hurley calls him a Hoover on Rebounding..
 
bendm said:
my projections will change well before that once the last scholly is filled. those are my pointless projections for today

edit-for instance, if we get sanogo springs is even less likely to get meaningful PT.
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Predict Springs will be a valuable player in 2021.. 2020 value will be dictated by last roster spot palyer..
 
Other than Bouk getting 34 minutes a game, this team will not be about who the 5 starters are.

This team will be 10-12 deep and come at their opponents in waves. It will not be about 5 starters getting 30 plus minutes each.

This I know,,,Cole may start some games, all games, or no games. Doesn’t matter. What he will do is play 15-25 minutes a game depending on the opponent and his own performance. Ditto for all players other than Bouknight.

If another player transcends to Bouks level, that player will become the second “starter”. Until then, Bouk is the only starter.
 
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lonsharkin51 said:
Is it just me, or does anyone else find it odd that last season's starting point guard, who helped guide the team to a five-game winning streak to end the season, is assumed by absolutely no one to be a starter this year? Why so little love for Gaffney?
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I've been screaming this. People talking like it's Cole's job to lose. No way IMO.
 
XLCenterFan said:
I've been screaming this. People talking like it's Cole's job to lose. No way IMO.
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We ignoring the fact that Hurley allegedly said Cole will run the point and that the moment might be too big for Gaffney? Bright future for Gaffney but Cole is the main PG this year.
 
JimHurley said:
We ignoring the fact that Hurley allegedly said Cole will run the point and that the moment might be too big for Gaffney? Bright future for Gaffney but Cole is the main PG this year.
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There’s no way Hurley actually said that “the moment might be too big” about the true freshman that took over as our starting PG down the stretch when we turned it around. Hurley loves Gaffney. That’s partially why I was very skeptical of that thread. How could any player have confidence in themselves if their coach was saying such things? I call BS.
 
lange10 said:
There’s no way Hurley actually said that “the moment might be too big” about the true freshman that took over as our starting PG down the stretch when we turned it around. Hurley loves Gaffney. That’s partially why I was very skeptical of that thread. How could any player have confidence in themselves if their coach was saying such things? I call BS.
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Missed that in a thread, but I don’t think any head coach says that candidly to a group of people sitting in on a Zoom session. Also, that statement contradicts everything we’ve heard from Hurley about Gaffney sine the season ended.
 
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IMO it's Gaffney's job to lose and Cole's going to have to earn his minutes. I don't care what Hurley may have said - we all know what we saw from Gaffney down the stretch. Kid can play and run point. What a practice battle that will be - they will be tested before the season starts. I attended the open practice last season and was not impressed with Cole. I've watched some film, and that looks a little better (albeit with much lower competition). He could have been just deferring to guys who were going to play, and may have been less interested overall. It will be and should be a battle for PG.
 
YearoftheHusky said:
theathletic.com

Way-too-early preseason Big East rankings for 2020-21

Villanova — surprise! — is the favorite in a conference loaded with uncertainties.
theathletic.com theathletic.com


4. Connecticut Huskies
Possible starters: R.J. Cole, James Bouknight, Andre Jackson, Akok Akok, Josh Carlton
Reserves: Isaiah Whaley, Brendan Adams, Jalen Gaffney, Tyler Polley, Javonte Brown-Ferguson, Richard Springs

Welcome back, UConn fans. You’re safe now. You’re home.

After a long, harsh winter in what they clearly came to consider the basketball wilderness — better known as the American Athletic Conference — the Huskies and their fans have, at long last, returned to the familiar environs of the Big East. The post-schism league looks a little different these days, sure, but it will undoubtedly remind Huskies die-hards of the good old days. (Your now-and-forever reminder that UConn won a national title in its first season in the American, which was its second under coach Kevin Ollie, when it was a No. 7 seed … and has made the NCAA Tournament just once since. What a bizarre seven years.)

Would Connecticut fans be happy just to see their program back in the Big East? Probably! Will they have to settle for that? Probably not. There are real reasons to like where this team is headed, regardless of league, in Dan Hurley’s third season, after a second that showcased undeniable progress. James Bouknight has a chance to be the Big East player of the year; he’s that good, and has that much more room to improve (specifically shooting from the perimeter, where he attempted just 72 3s a season ago). Akok Akok’s recovery from injury appears (from afar, on Twitter) to be continuing apace. Jalen Gaffney could be UConn’s breakout player. Together, the three rising sophomores went through the classic step-forward, step-back cycle you often see from young groups thrown into the fire. They improved massively down the stretch. They got tough.

By the end of the season, UConn was one of the American’s toughest outs. Combining that Hurley-influenced grind with technical basketball improvement could presage a Big East return befitting UConn’s tradition. Being back will be nice, but the Huskies are coming to compete.
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In some ways I think Isiah Whaley is our most important player who— without doubt has earned 27-30 min as a starter.
No way Akok is ready for season abd it’s possible both he and Polley might end up as role players
 
Scrappy3 said:
In some ways I think Isiah Whaley is our most important player who— without doubt has earned 27-30 min as a starter.
No way Akok is ready for season abd it’s possible both he and Polley might end up as role players
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I think people are really underselling what Polley can bring to the table. ACL is much easier to come back from than an Achilles tear. He’ll be much of the same player that has started every game in the last two seasons (sans ‘18 senior night) at the 4 for us.
 
Dan Hurley is in a good spot.. As we all know.. RJ has performed well already against BE and Big 12 schools while at Howard.. JG has performed well vs AAC schools.. Either way.. We're in good shape.. Probably why Dan Hurley is not encouraging Fatts R to take a closer look at us..
 
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Huskyforlife said:
Just asking, am I the only one that thought that thread was a troll/lie?
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Why whatever do you mean? Don’t coaches regularly- to a random group of strangers- say a sophomore isn’t ready to contribute (he has used that phrase about the moment being too big for Gaffney to describe his early freshman year), state which of his assistants is the best recruiter (fight, fight! he has said that they all are good enough to be head coaches, again or for the first time), and comment on an eligibility that has neither been submitted or confirmed?
 
lange10 said:
There’s no way Hurley actually said that “the moment might be too big” about the true freshman that took over as our starting PG down the stretch when we turned it around. Hurley loves Gaffney. That’s partially why I was very skeptical of that thread. How could any player have confidence in themselves if their coach was saying such things? I call BS.
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Fair. I hope that thread wasn’t fake that’s for sure.

XLCenterFan said:
IMO it's Gaffney's job to lose and Cole's going to have to earn his minutes. I don't care what Hurley may have said - we all know what we saw from Gaffney down the stretch. Kid can play and run point. What a practice battle that will be - they will be tested before the season starts. I attended the open practice last season and was not impressed with Cole. I've watched some film, and that looks a little better (albeit with much lower competition). He could have been just deferring to guys who were going to play, and may have been less interested overall. It will be and should be a battle for PG.
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No way. I love Gaffney and think he’ll be great but Cole is the starting PG. Why would he refuse to apply for a waiver and sit out a year to come off the bench? He’s the guy that’s going to run the offense. Him and Bouk will be the highest scoring duo in the Big East.
 
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