What do y’all want to see in development of players

[KodiacKemba]

Okay I get it they’re his players, you live and die with the talent you have. Do I see effort yes, do I see consistency No.. So people will say that’s on him, we should fire him, he’s not developing them or bring in another coach.. The good olde days when top players stayed for 3-4 years are gone and it’s up to the coach to replenish those departed.. now the development issues I have a tough time blaming the coach, reasons being you’re brought in to win games and most importantly win championships which a title constitutes that ..

You want Ollie to do everything but we all know he simply Can’t . He has a staff to take the burden off of him, maybe they’re not fulfilling their purpose. Ollie has obligations within his contract to mingle with alumni and board of trustees and on top of that y’all want him to win first but when he’s not y’all are furious with the lack of development

Now it’s hard to get the top players y’all want to see in a uconn Jersey but a recruit only sees what is in front of them, they see the empty arenas, lack of support & bad play. Would you want to be apart of this fiasco.. probably not!! But the players have to be accountable to develop on their own, get in the gym and work work work, ball handling, shooting, which I believe they do, somehow it’s just not translating on the court when it matters the most.!

Let’s look at his recruits 2013 facey n Brimah pretty good in my opinion Brimah was a game changer
2014 was a wash with Hamilton which left early and lubin and cassell jr transferred
2015 Adams still playing well and Enoch transferred
2016 8th nationally CV, Vance, Durham , AG, Mamadou 2 transferred AG out indefinitely 2 years in a row and CV n Mama are still working
2017 Polley , Carlton, Whaley

Now all these players who are uconn are young except for Adams how does one develop players when he has to keep starting over every season , you simply can’t all you can do is play them and live with the results. Ollie needs to have his players for four years to see growth cuz he’s a guard not a big man coach others around him has to pull their weight ..!

 

[MexicoHusky]

My standards are low these days. Id like to see nobody transfer.

 

[tentoes4rings]

This would be a huge list so I’ll just throw out a short list. I’d like to see guards make less turnovers and increase their shooting percentages and shot selection each year. I’d like to see bigs get stronger each year, rebound better and not commit as many fouls as the previous year. I’d like to see more toughness, pride, a concept of teamwork and an ability to close out games instead of falling apart late in every remotely close game. Can we start there?

 

[boog204]

Part of the problem is that he DOES have to start over each season. Counting MAL, he's had 5 players leave the program in the last four years. Three of those players doubted that they would get any better here. In regards to who has gotten better? Tough to quantify. Omar was the first guy to be here for four years running. He peaked as a freshmen and then got worse and worse. Injuries, obviously, a huge reason for that. Facey was a bit player on a championship team, a starter (and pretty good) for the beginning of his sophomore year, and then did nothing until his Senior year. I thought Facey would be a lot better than what he was. Brimah's development stalled out rather quick. I vividly remember a thread here where we were debating whether or not he'd be a lottery pick or "just" a 1st rounder. He never got better. Hamilton was KOs biggest recruit and he was good here; yet flawed in so many ways. He did not become the star many of us thought he would. Jalen, whether due to his own fault or KOs, has been a big disappointment in reference to how talented he is. I have zero doubt that had he gone to Kansas he would be on some All-America lists. While Jalen made a jump from Freshmen year to Soph, I'd argue he's regressed this year.

Long story short, it is not clearly evident that KO is making these players or team any better. We have stalled as a team. The same problems from four years ago seem to still be evident. We could argue that that is due to a lack of coaching or a problem with recruiting, but either way, they cannot be glossed over. Furthermore, I'm tired of reading about how the three transfers from last year were somehow bad fits or bad players. The one who accomplished the most, Vance, would be a key cog on this team. The other two, who were ridiculed over their play, transferred up; not down. Louisville and ND took them with open arms despite them not having accomplished much. That tells me all I need to know.

 

[Palatine]

Improvement of any kind would be a bonus.

 

[Husk1881]

Not traveling. Not forcing bad passes. Making free throws. You know the little things that uconn can't seem to figure out under it's current leadership.

 

[ktuck911]

our bigs have got to/MUST get involved, stay involved throughout the game... Our core perimeter players who we rely on for scoring MUST understand that our bigs can score a few points too... Look for them sometimes... With the game still in striking distance in the 2nd half, how many times have we seen our frontcourt become spectators in the half court set? Not even fight for position for an offensive board, put back opportunity? Wayyyy too many times.. STOP settling for a perimeter guy to either make a one on one move to the basket or settle for a guarded perimeter shot, then NOT be in a position to rebound... That's losing games for us... It's gotta/MUST stop...

 

[pj]

What I want to see: (1) intense effort on both ends of the floor, consistently, for 40 minutes against good and bad opponents; (2) knowledge of the team's system on both offense and defense -- every playing getting to the right place at the right time, helping appropriately, not helping when not appropriate; (3) steady reductions in the personal foul rate; (4) reductions in turnovers; (5) rebounding -- winning the rebounding margin consistently; (6) better shot selection as players learn the difference between good and bad shots and acquire the discipline to only take good shots; (7) improved strength and physical conditioning. Don't get pushed around, win the last 4 minutes.

A better assist rate, shooting percentage, and such would be nice but those may need to wait for next year's roster. We only have one distributor (Adams) and three scorers (Adams, Larrier, Vital), none of them without flaws in their game, which makes this team pretty easy to defend.

 

[len0322]

Stability down low. Would like to see at least one guy find his confidence and be counted on for a productive 25 minutes a night from either the 4 or 5 position. Several have flashed, hoping one can become that guy.

 

[joober jones]

Development

 

[Jaker]

I would like to see someone make an open jumper once iun awhile.

 

[UCweCONN]

First round draft picks every year and the occasional lottery pick. Those days seem like decades ago.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

The biggest need this team has now is another outside shooter.
That gives JA another option. It doesn’t sound like much but giant Oak trees grow frown tiny acorns.
That may also help free a big for a little more offense.
Since Gilbert went down the team defense has to step up quickly.
When it takes the night off we get blown out. It’s hard getting kids to play that type D especially after they played hard and lost.
That’s why Ark,Auburn were essentially debacles it was more or less predicrtable .
We played hard against MSU and AZ and lost
We played hard against WSU and lost in our last game a some point the kids have to be rewarded.
getting the team ready for Tulsa will be a test
If he can get them to play hard two in a row I still have hope
The D has to keep us in games until we find the missing offensive players.

 

[Stainmaster]

First round draft picks every year and the occasional lottery pick. Those days seem like decades ago.

And there they will most likely stay...

 

[Stinger92860]

I'd like the team to figure things out. These quotes by Jalen have me scratching my head.

Struggling UConn men trying to block out the noise and negativity

Adams believes the team can take something from those two games, even though they were losses.

“I think we’re just kind of figuring things out,” he said. “We put up a good fight against Wichita State. We’re looking to get to .500 in conference play. We just need to bring that same fight when we play against Tulsa. Hopefully, things will work out in our favor.”

Indeed, while UConn have played ranked teams fairly tough, it has struggled to beat low-majors like Columbia, Monmouth and Coppin State.

“I’ve kinda noticed that trend,” Adams added. “It’s something that we definitely need to break. We need to play every team with the same energy and passion to win.”

 

[Ewekon]

Development

 

[mauconnfan]

I'd like the team to figure things out. These quotes by Jalen have me scratching my head.

Struggling UConn men trying to block out the noise and negativity

Adams believes the team can take something from those two games, even though they were losses.

“I think we’re just kind of figuring things out,” he said. “We put up a good fight against Wichita State. We’re looking to get to .500 in conference play. We just need to bring that same fight when we play against Tulsa. Hopefully, things will work out in our favor.”

Indeed, while UConn have played ranked teams fairly tough, it has struggled to beat low-majors like Columbia, Monmouth and Coppin State.

“I’ve kinda noticed that trend,” Adams added. “It’s something that we definitely need to break. We need to play every team with the same energy and passion to win.”

That last quote is so loud. Let's see tonight if they have the passion they had in the first half of the WSU game as well as most of the 2nd. They don't win this one if they don't not sure they realize that, I think they believe they are pretty damn good still.

 

[Kenny11]

I want guys to become better at basic basketball moves. For example, if Larrier has an open lane, he should be able to take it to the hoop without losing the ball. With his length he doesn't even need to have a great handle since it only takes one dribble to get there. Adams is a very good finisher but as a junior he should be able to use his left hand by now. I think I have only seen one left handed finish from him in his entire career against oklahoma state at the beginning of his sophomore season. Vital seems to have improved on making layups which is nice.

I want guys to play smarter defense. Become better at identifying shooters, not overhelping or randomly doubling with no purpose.

I want guys to improve their outside shooting. For example, last year Jalen shot 35% from three and this year he is shooting 31%. Last year Vital shot 36% from three and this year he is shooting 29%

I want to see strong athletes. This is mostly a recruiting thing as speed and explosiveness can be worked on but for the most part you are what you are.., but guys should be able to make noticeable improvements in their strength and bodies at the very least.

 

[KodiacKemba]

I want guys to become better at basic basketball moves.

Yes I agree too many times they catch it and don’t know what to do with the ball which leads to a TO or offensive foul... we get four offensive fouls by the 12 min mark first half which adds to them shooting free throws early.. and I hate when our bigs try to go baseline instead of a power dribble to the center of the basket

I want guys to play smarter defense. Become better at identifying shooters, not overhelping or randomly doubling with no purpose.

Yea we need to let our bigs defend the post especially when they’re playing good and have their man guarded well.. example I wish I could show it but against Wichita st Jalen was in the lane, had his back towards shamet , our big was in perfect position to attest the shot , but he saw Adams clamp down on him and made the simple pass which lead to wide open 3 which I believe got shamet going hitting like 86% on 3’s smh

 

[HooperScooper]

“I think we’re just kind of figuring things out,” he said. “We put up a good fight against Wichita State. We’re looking to get to .500 in conference play. We just need to bring that same fight when we play against Tulsa. Hopefully, things will work out in our favor.”

He's just following his coach's lead.

“Hopefully, we come out with the passion and pride that UConn fans know that we have and want to see,” said coach Kevin Ollie.

 

[Husky68]

Part of the problem is that he DOES have to start over each season. Counting MAL, he's had 5 players leave the program in the last four years. Three of those players doubted that they would get any better here. In regards to who has gotten better? Tough to quantify. Omar was the first guy to be here for four years running. He peaked as a freshmen and then got worse and worse. Injuries, obviously, a huge reason for that. Facey was a bit player on a championship team, a starter (and pretty good) for the beginning of his sophomore year, and then did nothing until his Senior year. I thought Facey would be a lot better than what he was. Brimah's development stalled out rather quick. I vividly remember a thread here where we were debating whether or not he'd be a lottery pick or "just" a 1st rounder. He never got better. Hamilton was KOs biggest recruit and he was good here; yet flawed in so many ways. He did not become the star many of us thought he would. Jalen, whether due to his own fault or KOs, has been a big disappointment in reference to how talented he is. I have zero doubt that had he gone to Kansas he would be on some All-America lists. While Jalen made a jump from Freshmen year to Soph, I'd argue he's regressed this year.

Long story short, it is not clearly evident that KO is making these players or team any better. We have stalled as a team. The same problems from four years ago seem to still be evident. We could argue that that is due to a lack of coaching or a problem with recruiting, but either way, they cannot be glossed over. Furthermore, I'm tired of reading about how the three transfers from last year were somehow bad fits or bad players. The one who accomplished the most, Vance, would be a key cog on this team. The other two, who were ridiculed over their play, transferred up; not down. Louisville and ND took them with open arms despite them not having accomplished much. That tells me all I need to know.

I hear what you are saying up to a point. Hamilton has been getting best coaching possible for last couple years, has big $$$'s available if successful, yet has not shown NBA guys he is capable of being last man on a team's bench. Facey and Brimah are now out in the real world where improving their basketball skills is their 24/7 job. Unless the "bad coaching by Ollie" is a lifetime effect, these guys should show something more than they have done to date as their coaching improves.
Guess kids who went to LSU and Washington the last 2 years were lucky they picked such good coaches (even though one was fired) so they in one year of college they developed into such high picks
Andre Drummond came into UConn with no basketball skills and left with none (other than freakish physical size/mobility). How much complaint was there for the lack of development of Alex and his buddy and Roscoe before they left.
Calamari gets credit for developing "the Brow", what about what he did with the twins for 2 years (don't remember, were they lottery picks and in last year's NBA all star game). I'm sure Kyrie wouldn't be what he is without ratface coaching him up for a year.
Bad recruiting and player retention on Ollie, any lack of effort on team is on Ollie, lack of effective team offensive/defensive scheme (based on players available) on Ollie. Individual player improvement in skills and physical abilities is mostly on the players (this also comes down to recruiting right guys).

 

[August_West]

Development

pretty much.

who gets better? I guess Im already seeing a little bit from Terry. I would like to see him be smarter with ball. and play 1st halfs too

Id like to see Vital not be a Chucker.

Id like to see Jalen drain the 17 foot jumpers at a much higher percentage.

the rest? I dont expect much. Limit dumb mistakes (travels, turnovers, defensive lapses) and Im happy there.

 

[KodiacKemba]

I saw a lot of development this game we limit turnovers, we shot it better , we played tough on defense with the 6 blocks 6 steals but we can’t allow teams to get open looks from 3

 

[JellyBean]

I would like to see players develop their footwork. Work on pivots and jump stops. Also ball fakes and shot fakes. And the shooting. Break out the Shoot a way and have players make 500-1,000 shots a day.