We were so optimistic

[UConn_Top_Dog]

Reading this post in the uconn blog and thought it was interesting. We thought for sure we would dominate. Purvis stated he wanted to be the leader and we have all seen how that has worked out so far this season. Idk if KO having Purv coming off the bench has created any tension or ego problems among the team. I feel for the kid, but I think he is putting too much pressure on himself. My suggestion is he gets off social media and focuses on what he needs to do.

http://www.theuconnblog.com/2015/7/...all-its-personal-now-for-rodney-purvis-and-it

 

[TasteofUConn]

Maybe we should make this the Why-I-Was-Wrong thread, in terms of indicating why the team has done worse than predicted.

Sterling Gibbs - I was wrong because I thought he would be a killer 3 point shooter and have some point guard skills. He hasn't shown the killer skills from 3, and he is a 2, not a 1.

Shonn Miller - I was correct about him (with everybody else). The one guy who brought what we thought he was bringing.

Brimah - I was wrong because I thought he would improve in all facets of the game. He is somewhat better than last year, but his learning curve has been fairly flat, highlighted by his inability to go up straight when he tries the half hook in the blocks - he's usually falling away from the hoop.

Purvis - I was right about him, and so his play does not factor into why I was wrong about the team. He gives exactly what I thought he'd give.

Facey - I was wrong for the same reasons I was wrong about Brimah. Guy seems like a clone of his last year's self.

Jalen Adams - I was wrong in that I thought this cat would get more run. I was wrong in a happy direction about his skills - he's better than I thought he would be.

DHam - I was wrong in that he didn't improve nearly as much as I thought he would, and, if possible, his defense seems worse. I think having Gibbs at PG definitely hurt DHam, as well as asking him to initiate too much offense.

Ollie - I was wrong in that I thought he just had an off year last year, with a lot going on personally and such. Does not seem to inspire the players. Does not seem passionate. Does not take responsibility for bad coaching decisions, and there have been many. Poor rotations, and so on.

I didn't expect anything from anybody else beyond what they gave last year, and so that's it. Glum, I know, but really, where was the improvement?

 

[Marat]

We were optimistic, but I'm not ready to read an obituary on the team's season yet.

Its not over until the fat lady sings ... Just when you say you can't, UConn has won the .... etc.

Let's see the next couple games and the AAC tournament games at least.

 

[djct1999]

Maybe we should make this the Why-I-Was-Wrong thread, in terms of indicating why the team has done worse than predicted.

Sterling Gibbs - I was wrong because I thought he would be a killer 3 point shooter and have some point guard skills. He hasn't shown the killer skills from 3, and he is a 2, not a 1.

Shonn Miller - I was correct about him (with everybody else). The one guy who brought what we thought he was bringing.

Brimah - I was wrong because I thought he would improve in all facets of the game. He is somewhat better than last year, but his learning curve has been fairly flat, highlighted by his inability to go up straight when he tries the half hook in the blocks - he's usually falling away from the hoop.

Purvis - I was right about him, and so his play does not factor into why I was wrong about the team. He gives exactly what I thought he'd give.

Facey - I was wrong for the same reasons I was wrong about Brimah. Guy seems like a clone of his last year's self.

Jalen Adams - I was wrong in that I thought this cat would get more run. I was wrong in a happy direction about his skills - he's better than I thought he would be.

DHam - I was wrong in that he didn't improve nearly as much as I thought he would, and, if possible, his defense seems worse. I think having Gibbs at PG definitely hurt DHam, as well as asking him to initiate too much offense.

Ollie - I was wrong in that I thought he just had an off year last year, with a lot going on personally and such. Does not seem to inspire the players. Does not seem passionate. Does not take responsibility for bad coaching decisions, and there have been many. Poor rotations, and so on.

I didn't expect anything from anybody else beyond what they gave last year, and so that's it. Glum, I know, but really, where was the improvement?

Jalen Adams is better than you thought he would be? I'd say JA had an average freshman season. I'd argue that most believed he would have had more an impact than he has. His minutes are what they should be.

 

[jibsey]

Rodney, Gibbs and DHam all have games where they disappear. If it's only one of them we get by but 2 out of 3, it's over.

 

[TasteofUConn]

Jalen Adams is better than you thought he would be? I'd say JA had an average freshman season.

The two sentences above are completely unconnected, you realize, right?

I'd argue that most believed he would have had more an impact than he has.

You realize that this was my point, right (albeit for a different reason).?

His minutes are what they should be.

We disagree.

 

[Joobie]

I wanna know whazzup with Phil! He STARTED NCAA games for us & now he's riding the bench & gets zero minutes. I thought in the games he played when AB was out, he did pretty well. The man is a foul magnet, but usually plays within himself & has shown flashes of talent.

 

[Chin Diesel]

I wanna know whazzup with Phil! He STARTED NCAA games for us & now he's riding the bench & gets zero minutes. I thought in the games he played when AB was out, he did pretty well. The man is a foul magnet, but usually plays within himself & has shown flashes of talent.

Let's beat the dead horse and acknowledge that Phil, Amidah and Facey are basically the same players they were when they walked in the door at Storrs. Three years of no big man development.

 

[Joobie]

Let's beat the dead horse and acknowledge that Phil, Amidah and Facey are basically the same players they were when they walked in the door at Storrs. Three years of no big man development.

Then maybe what we need is a different "big man" coach. Bigs may not be Glen Miller's forte. How 'bout Donyell Marshall?

 

[OkaForPrez]

10 toes in.

 

[Horatio]

One thing that has to be a factor is we only have one true point guard and he's a freshmen. When we're successful we usually have 2-3. Having two point guards as starters has been our formula for our last two championships . It's the only system KO has coached under successfully. We have Jalen and about 3-4 combo, two guards. It's a factor more than having a big man coach. With that said, we still shouldn't be "hoping" to get in the tourney with the talent we have.

 

[imno1]

Then maybe what we need is a different "big man" coach. Bigs may not be Glen Miller's forte. How 'bout Donyell Marshall?

At least get them to that big man camp in CA

 

[weyuo]

The sad part is this team is talented enough to fight for a Final Four berth but the chemistry is going to cut that dream short. No true point guard ala Kemba, Moore, Shabazz, El Amin is killing this team this year. Point guard by committee? Not cutting it.

 

[InKembaITrust]

A lot of times I just feel there is too many cooks in the kitchen. So much individual talent but each player needs their shots to get some momentum going. If they don't they crumble.

Our players are streaky as hell. When Purvis is on he's on. When Gibbs is on he's on. When DHam is on he's on. But how often do we see 1 of these guys have a great game and take away from the other 2? None of these guys are used to being role players. They're used to being THE GUY from where they come from. Like I said, too many cooks in the kitchen...hopefully we get some more sacrifice from players that I feel have limited roles; especially IMO from Gibbs, Purvis, and Brimah. Gotta recognize and put the team before yourself.

However, this theory, process & mindset starts with lessons from Ollie...

 

[djct1999]

The two sentences above are completely unconnected, you realize, right?

You realize that this was my point, right (albeit for a different reason).?

We disagree.

I do. I was writing quickly at work so I apologize for the confusion. Let me try again. I had much higher expectations for Jalen. To me, I see a kid who had the skill set that dominated aau that hasn't translated yet to the college game. I love how he attacks the rim and that's about it. He hasn't shown at all an ability to run a half court offense and when he tries he has a lot of unforced turnovers. His minutes are about right for what he does on the court. He has had the chance to earn more he just hasn't earned it.

 

[BUConn10]

The most disappointing thing to me has been the lack of improvement, over this year, and over the last two full seasons.

It's March for god sake, but how many times have we seen in the last couple games Purvis getting stripped in the same exact way going to the hole.

I think the biggest flaw of this group is that barring one guy, Hamilton, who himself is not a true #1 option and on a true contender would really be optimally used as an elite role player, we have a bunch of one-dimensional guys. Guys who can only really do one or two things truly well, and are greatly deficient in the other areas of their game (maybe Miller can be exempt from this as well). Purvis can only drive in a straight line or shoot open 3's, all other areas of his game are well below where they should be for a player at a caliber of program like UConn, ball handling, mid range, bball IQ, all lacking. Same with Gibbs, can shoot wide open 3s well but cannot finish a layup to save his life, can't run an offense, lacks foot speed to be elite offensively or defensively. A team full of these guys accumulate serious deficiencies and result in a team with major holes like ours.

KO can surely be a stronger leader but winning with a flawed roster like this (which he is responsible for putting together so I see that too), is near impossible. Look at 2014's team, aside from Bazz's awesome talent we were perfectly molded in all the skill sets KO's system covets (shooters everywhere, rebounding as a team, smart heady play makers).

Ultimately I hope KO sees this season as an opportunity to improve. The good sign is that he used last season as a learning point and he definitely tried to fix things. He recognized that his roster was lacking major talent and he went out and got it. At the time we all thought it was the perfect fit with Gibbs and Miller but time has shown that to be wrong. I hope he does that again this offseason but to another gear. People act like Ollie after last offseason is now the greatest recruiter in the game. That's false, he has great depth in this class but I know KO can do better, he has the potential to bring in multiple true 5 star players per year.

And to all those who think HS ratings are a farce or are rolling there eyes that we need more talent, the difference between a 5 star and 3/4 stars we have now is that they can usually do all the things this team desperately needs, athleticism, CREATING YOUR OWN SHOT, and most importantly FINISHING SHOTS. That's what makes them stand out and separates them from the hundreds of other high school kids in their class, and makes them early targets for the NBA.

 

[gtcam]

I'm not a glass half empty or a KO basher as TasteofCT - that shtick to me is tiresome and singing the blues day in a day out about a coach and particular players is , to me a waste of time and energy. I could tear his opinions in his post to pieces but decided I'm not wasting my time. As a great friend and fellow yarder who brought this post to my attention said - it must be great to hear about KOs flaws from someone who knows him so well and continues to sing the same song.
I remember driving to NYC in 2011 for the 20th plus year in a row to the BET and saying to my buddy - I'm going to die if UConn lays an egg the first game. He said - you say this every year (because I've seen it too many times). He agreed that the team under performed thru much of the year but reminded me that with one loss- not only do we spend lots of money to watch all the other teams but the team goes home and plays NIT. He said if the players give a crap, they will win and keep winning. And he was right - those 5 wins in 5 days were magic. From that Saturday night on I have looked at UConn basketball in a different light.
This team will unlikely replicate a run like this BUT they may just surprise some people.
Am I happy with the results this year? Hell no
But I also didn't think this team was a top 10 team - too many new parts and too little time playing together
I also thought a on court leader would have developed would have evolved but nobody on this team has come forth or exhibits the quality thus far - but maybe we'll be surprised starting tomorrow night - let's see.
It is UConn you know - 4 in 15 years????

 

[UChusky916]

Sterling Gibbs - I was wrong because I thought he would be a killer 3 point shooter and have some point guard skills. He hasn't shown the killer skills from 3, and he is a 2, not a 1.

Jalen Adams - I was wrong in that I thought this cat would get more run.

Agreed and Agreed.

One thing that has to be a factor is we only have one true point guard and he's a freshman.

This, in my mind, is the crux of the issue with this team. Our offense has historically been predicated on PG play/leadership. The simple fact is we have Gibbs playing PG and he is not a true PG. Our only TRUE PG is a freshman and he's simply not getting the minutes we need him to be getting for this team to be successful. It took Jalen a little longer than I thought to figure things out at this level, and once he did, he struggled with taking ownership of the leadership role (hence his addition to and removal from the starting line up twice now).

I can't say I blame Jalen for his inability to seize the lead PG role as a freshman. After all, it took Shabazz 2 years of playing PG for this team before he learned how to be a leader. Many will remember how disjointed the team was Shabazz's sophomore year as he was trying to take over this team. Kemba had similar struggles his sophomore year, unwilling to take on a true leadership role with other senior leaders like Dyson on the team. I think Jalen is still learning how to be a leader, and it's tough as a freshman, especially with so many other seniors on the team. But, in reality, he's the guy we need running the point for this team, because he is the only true PG.

Gibbs is not an alpha dog or true PG. He's a great player and gets ripped way more than he should on this board, but he's not a PG and he's not a leader.

Other than the PG/leadership void, I thought that the team would start to figure things out from a chemistry standpoint at this stage, but the mind-boggling offensive cold-spells are still happening. In my mind, this is partially due to KO's coaching (specifically by making some unfathomably poor line up decisions) and also partially due to Amida's injury and Jalen figuring things out too late.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that Jalen can step up and the team can gel offensively to avoid the offensive dry-spells and make a run in March. However, I must say I'm a lot more discouraged with the team after the Houston loss, simply due to how the team performed defensively.

 

[TasteofUConn]

To me, I see a kid who had the skill set that dominated aau that hasn't translated yet to the college game. I love how he attacks the rim and that's about it.

Well, thank you for the clarification, and I respectfully disagree. I think Jalen should have been made the 1 guard on day 1 and given 30 minutes a game. Sure, there would have been many errors, but when we were playing Mighty Central Connecticut and the other ridiculous cupcakes on our schedule, it would have been a great time to cut his teeth.
I think the guy has NBA speed and talent. I think Gibbs is a play in Europe talent level player. Should have gone with the talent sooner.

 

[UChusky916]

Well, thank you for the clarification, and I respectfully disagree. I think Jalen should have been made the 1 guard on day 1 and given 30 minutes a game. Sure, there would have been many errors, but when we were playing Mighty Central Connecticut and the other ridiculous cupcakes on our schedule, it would have been a great time to cut his teeth.
I think the guy has NBA speed and talent. I think Gibbs is a play in Europe talent level player. Should have gone with the talent sooner.

See my post above. I agree entirely, and could even extend those thoughts to Enoch as well.

 

[TasteofUConn]

. . . a KO basher as TasteofCT . . . I could tear his opinions in his post to pieces but . . .

I'm a KO "basher"?
The only points I made about KO were these:
1. Does not seem to inspire the players.
2. Does not seem passionate.
3. Does not take responsibility for bad coaching decisions, and there have been many.
4. Poor rotations, and so on.

Does anybody disagree with any of these?
1. Do our players appear inspired?
2. Has KO not spent many games planted on the bench with the what-the-heck look on his face while the ship is going down?
3. Has he ever said at a press conference that it's partly his fault the team isn't doing well?
4. Surely you agree that the rotations have been bizarro world bad at times.

Anybody who isn't - at least internally - questioning whether Ollie can make this happen after what we've seen this year is a dyed in the wool homer with blinders on. That's not bashing. That's a fair assessment of what has been the poorest coaching season in UConn basketball in the 30 years I have been watching it (2nd worst was Drummond's year), and I thought he did great his first two years, by the way.

 

[Kitaman]

My optimism was that I thought by the end of January all of the kinks would be worked out, the chemistry settled, and a leader would emerge.

My biggest surprises are that I had no idea that Purvis would be coming off the bench, that we would still be tinkering with starting lineups, that we would not have a leader or alpha dog emerge, that we would be close to bubble status, and that we wouldn't be able to beat the middle of the pack teams.

As good I thought we can be, the product on the floor does not look like a UConn product (except for the jerseys) and sadly its the end of the season.

 

[patrick]

10 toes in.

I'm taking the stairs for the next month! !

 

[AZHuskiePop]

How many programs are their were 20 win seasons are cause for an Obit.?
We are so spoiled.

 

[jdb50]

We keep thinking we've turned the corner and then we take two steps back. The blown lead at Temple and then doing our best work in the dark. Next we blow a potential halftime lead against Houston at home, come back to regain the lead and then blow it again. Chronic slow starts to the second half. Everyone losing their shooting touch at the same time late. Not sure this team can be fixed as things keep recurring. Maybe they will get sick of walking through the handshake line after losing. That's my best hope. That the team will get hungry and fight all out for a spot in the Big Dance.

 

[Towney007]

It's just a frustrating season.

One play turns Temple around. One play turns the first Cincy loss around. They show up for three more minutes vs Gonzaga and they bounce their skulls off the floor and win. And then all of a sudden we're not even having this conversation. It's all coulda, woulda, shoulda - but it's just been that kind of season. I think the team lacks chemistry - that much is obvious. But it IS an elite defensive team. And their losses haven't been awful, they've just been close - so in a way, they're kind of snake bitten. I'd also agree that the overall talent level on this team just isn't that high compared to the past. We've got about 4-5 guys who are just dudes who might do a thing or two well, but that's it. That or they just haven't developed.

The biggest piece missing is a good point guard. It'd be nicer to have someone who can really bang down low as well. I think next year with some more playing time - Enoch is going to be a god send to help Brimah down low and add in some size. I think Gilbert will be a huge addition to play off of Adams/Purvis/Hamilton... just inserting an actual PG and using a more polished Enoch will make a huge difference.

The other thing is there was just A LOT of overlap on this ballclub. Gibbs, Purvis, Hamilton all those guys are scorers. Even Miller to an extent. It's hard to focus on one guy and make them the focal point. It's hard when you've been that focal point to move into a different role. So it's just been the kind of thing that hasn't figured itself out.

I'm not going to kill Ollie - even though this is def. a disappointing season. There's a lot of little things that have just kind of snowballed to create one *kind of* bigger mess. And in spite of it all we could still make the tournament and make a run haha. It seems every time we figure out the answer, they change the question. Just kinda gotta throw your hands up and roll with it.