Who will UConn target in recruiting this summer? | Page 6 | The Boneyard

Who will UConn target in recruiting this summer?

Ricker said:
Watched last 5 minutes of Q2 and entire 2nd half. Cloer's team gave up a 20 pt lead, (19 at half), and lost the game. He made 2 ft over that period, missed all his shots including a game tying shot with 4 seconds. Was always in the rebounding fray but I don't recall him coming down with any contested rebound. No real success defensively except drawing a late jump ball. Made a number of offensive moves but never achieved any separation to get his shot off. His guards were outplayed significantly. Obviously his and his team's play had to be much better building the lead. He moves well and looks like a player, but seems like I'm a jinx when it comes to kids playing well when I'm watching. Diane & Mingo are championship chasing worthy. Everybody else is hiding it from me.
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His only elite skill is shooting. But you see how lethal he can be at the start of the game. It’s hard to stop a 6’8 guy with a shot like that when he’s hot.

He shows some ability to handle the ball, but he settles for tough middies instead of using his size to muscle his way to the hoop. I’m afraid his slow feet will limit his on ball potential like it did for Karaban. Maybe after working with our staff, they would help him cut out those low percentage shots?

He reminds me of Darius Adams in the sense that he’s over ranked and would probably make for a good multi year development piece. Ultimately it’s hard to find shooters with his size, so you take him every time.
 
Some interesting content from Fink (early in pod) on the 2026 class. Apparently very weak and smart coaches are avoiding top 10 types for kids who will not be OAD as they see little value. Said those coaches are targeting 30-40 types. The low quality of this class will also lead to better retention as anyone thinking about leaving this year may hold out for the weak following draft.

 
RuffRuff said:
Some interesting content from Fink (early in pod) on the 2026 class. Apparently very weak and smart coaches are avoiding top 10 types for kids who will not be OAD as they see little value. Said those coaches are targeting 30-40 types. The low quality of this class will also lead to better retention as anyone thinking about leaving this year may hold out for the weak following draft.

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He wrote an article about this also. But it's subscription so at least we can listen.

 
RuffRuff said:
Some interesting content from Fink (early in pod) on the 2026 class. Apparently very weak and smart coaches are avoiding top 10 types for kids who will not be OAD as they see little value. Said those coaches are targeting 30-40 types. The low quality of this class will also lead to better retention as anyone thinking about leaving this year may hold out for the weak following draft.

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I would not be shocked at all if the coach he was referring to is Hurley. I would probably bet money it was. Cloer (24/32), Junior County (27/48), and Toure (29/24) all fit that description and seem high up on our priority lists. Howard, too, but I bet he rises up more, same with Diane.
 
auror said:
I would not be shocked at all if the coach he was referring to is Hurley. I would probably bet money it was. Cloer (24/32), Junior County (27/48), and Toure (29/24) all fit that description and seem high up on our priority lists. Howard, too, but I bet he rises up more, same with Diane.
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Both Norlander and Fink are CT dudes so I’m sure they have some rap with Dan Hurley.
 
The 2026 kids probably think differently, but I've read in some pieces that the class is so weak there is only 1 likely one and done in the 2026 class. That suggests this particular year you can target some high ranked kids and get them for more than 1 year. It also means that most kids are going to find it difficult to impact top programs. Nearly all seem to have a shortcoming. Cloer needs to be set up because he doesn't work well to get his own shot. Howard, Toure, Samuels thrive on shot volume, can go cold, and often force plays that aren't efficient, but each has the raw talent. If we pursue Junior County aggressively I'll have to watch more of him because I just haven't seen the appeal yet. Cloer can be a multi year piece but Mingo & Diane are the only 2 that IMO for sure move the needle for next year as impact players. Tough recruiting picture for them. So many international players coming these days with experience. Maybe there are names we are looking at. [FWIW: Oregon just picked up a 6'11 250 lb Nigerian center with experience in a Turkish league to be a deep depth piece. Big, athletic, developmental, and expecting significant bench time with spot minutes. Exactly the type of pick up I wish we would grab, even at this late stage.]
 
There are way too many variables to consider who to target for 2026 recruiting - who tests the NBA or transfers is only know after the season.

First we know we are down 6 guys right off the bat in terms of eligibility:

2025-2026

1. Demary Jr., / Smith / Millender / Diaby
2. Ball / Mullins
3. Stewart / Furphy / Ross / Ross
4. AK / Koroma
5. Reed, Jr / Reibe

2026-2027 less the 6 graduates AK, Reed Jr., Smith, Koroma, Millender, Diaby - best case if no one declares or transfers:

1 Demary, Jr
2 Solo / Mullins
3 Furphy / Ross / Ross
4 Stewart
5 Reibe

That means less need for a 3 (Samuels, Toure, Cloer)

Would love Mingo at the 1, and Diane at the 5 and unless we can get a top 10 power forward that will be a portal pickup.
 
HooperScooper said:
He wrote an article about this also. But it's subscription so at least we can listen.

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They put the article on CBSSports.com so it's free to read.

So as the college bluebloods recruit the 2026 class and make financial decisions that impact the entire roster, they have some tough calls to make. College staffs have to weigh the risk and the reward of taking the type of talent who could very possibly underperform relative to their ranking and still get drafted, versus the type who could make an instant impact in college but not have the draft outcome that their ranking normally correlates to.

www.cbssports.com

Lack of talent in 2026 class creates unique recruiting and roster-building strategy for college programs

The 2026 high school class doesn't have the high-end star power of some previous classes. With rev share and transfer portal playing such a big role, college programs could pivot strategies for this cycle.
www.cbssports.com www.cbssports.com
 
Lafayette said:
There are way too many variables to consider who to target for 2026 recruiting - who tests the NBA or transfers is only know after the season.

First we know we are down 6 guys right off the bat in terms of eligibility:

2025-2026

1. Demary Jr., / Smith / Millender / Diaby
2. Ball / Mullins
3. Stewart / Furphy / Ross / Ross
4. AK / Koroma
5. Reed, Jr / Reibe

2026-2027 less the 6 graduates AK, Reed Jr., Smith, Koroma, Millender, Diaby - best case if no one declares or transfers:

1 Demary, Jr
2 Solo / Mullins
3 Furphy / Ross / Ross
4 Stewart
5 Reibe

That means less need for a 3 (Samuels, Toure, Cloer)

Would love Mingo at the 1, and Diane at the 5 and unless we can get a top 10 power forward that will be a portal pickup.
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Toure #1 want
 
Lafayette said:
There are way too many variables to consider who to target for 2026 recruiting - who tests the NBA or transfers is only know after the season.

First we know we are down 6 guys right off the bat in terms of eligibility:

2025-2026

1. Demary Jr., / Smith / Millender / Diaby
2. Ball / Mullins
3. Stewart / Furphy / Ross / Ross
4. AK / Koroma
5. Reed, Jr / Reibe

2026-2027 less the 6 graduates AK, Reed Jr., Smith, Koroma, Millender, Diaby - best case if no one declares or transfers:

1 Demary, Jr
2 Solo / Mullins
3 Furphy / Ross / Ross
4 Stewart
5 Reibe

That means less need for a 3 (Samuels, Toure, Cloer)

Would love Mingo at the 1, and Diane at the 5 and unless we can get a top 10 power forward that will be a portal pickup.
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Cloer is viewed by the staff as a 4/Karaban replacement.

To be clear, that's 3 high level recruits that would get minutes according to your chart - which is also the number of recruits Moore suggested in his presser. Based on your own projecting for next year under ideal circumstances, it doesn't seem like there are too many variables to consider who to recruit. In fact, it would be irresponsible by the staff to take that mindset at this stage.

And while an athletic wing (Toure/Samuels/Howard) would be great to get for next year, you are right that under ideal circumstances, we already have significant depth at the 3 for 2026. But based on the last month of recruiting, the staff does not view the ideal circumstance of your chart above to be the most likely outcome after the season. There are degrees of projection they have to undertake. This board knows that and that's why we are following recruits we like/the staff likes/etc.
 
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1, 4, 5. Mingo/Cloer/Diane would be my top choice.

I would expect one of Solo and Mullins will be gone (though the odds of each independently isn't necessarily a certainty), so Toure is probably a good idea, too.

And I think getting Toure may help with Diane. They played together on the Guinea national U17 team and at the Top 100 Camp.
 
6&counting said:
Cloer is viewed by the staff as a 4/Karaban replacement.

To be clear, that's 3 high level recruits that would get minutes according to your chart - which is also the number of recruits Moore suggested in his presser. Based on your own projecting for next year under ideal circumstances, it doesn't seem like there are too many variables to consider who to recruit. In fact, it would be irresponsible by the staff to take that mindset at this stage.

And while an athletic wing (Toure/Samuels/Howard) would be great to get for next year, you are right that under ideal circumstances, we already have significant depth at the 3 for 2026. But based on the last month of recruiting, the staff does not view the ideal circumstance of your chart above to be the most likely outcome after the season. There are degrees of projection they have to undertake. This board knows that and that's why we are following recruits we like/the staff likes/etc. 6'
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Cloer is 6'7" about 185 lbs and seems every other team recruiting him sees him as a wing and some as a shooting guard. Sort of like Mullins I would guess by positioning and height.

IDK if our staff see him, not Stewart who has more weight on him, as a 4, but to each their own.

Looking into 2026-2027 we know we are -6 at the end of this season for sure, and likely another 2-3 depending on how the season goes, but we won't know until right around when the portal opens again in 2026. So the portal has become a good backstop to bridge early recruiting with late season knowledge of who is deciding where to go.

But to be sure, at best roster wise, we need someone to replace Malachi Smith, and someone to replace Tarris Reed, Jr. and someone to replace Alex Karaban so Mingo, Diane, and the strongest best post player of Cloer, Toure, Samuels.
 
Would love the high upside big, to develop him behind Reibe. And give me a really nice wing with handle that we can stuff in. From there, I'm good. PG is going to be a portal position for this program. I really don't know if it makes sense to take more than 2 from this class, maybe 3 if we can get Cloer.
 
Lafayette said:
Cloer is 6'7" about 185 lbs and seems every other team recruiting him sees him as a wing and some as a shooting guard. Sort of like Mullins I would guess by positioning and height.

IDK if our staff see him, not Stewart who has more weight on him, as a 4, but to each their own.

Looking into 2026-2027 we know we are -6 at the end of this season for sure, and likely another 2-3 depending on how the season goes, but we won't know until right around when the portal opens again in 2026. So the portal has become a good backstop to bridge early recruiting with late season knowledge of who is deciding where to go.

But to be sure, at best roster wise, we need someone to replace Malachi Smith, and someone to replace Tarris Reed, Jr. and someone to replace Alex Karaban so Mingo, Diane, and the strongest best post player of Cloer, Toure, Samuels.
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Mullins is around 6’4. And Cloer is too slow to play guard.
 
HooperScooper said:
UConn doesn't make the cut for Kinney. Figured as much.

www.on3.com

5-star PG Tay Kinney down to 12 schools

Tay Kinney is down to Arkansas, Auburn, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Miami, Oregon, Purdue, Tennessee, Texas, and Xavier.
www.on3.com www.on3.com
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Or for Rippey. Not surprised at that one either.

www.zagsblog.com

Five-star guard Deron Rippey Jr. cuts list to 12 | Zagsblog

By SAM LANCE & ADAM ZAGORIA Deron […]
www.zagsblog.com

So is it Mingo or the portal for a point guard by design? Or is County in play also? Seems the staff has a very limited list of recruits they're focused on.
 
superjohn said:
Mullins and Furphy are both listed at 6'5 on the UConn roster. The weird thing is Demary is listed at 6'3 on the UConn roster and he was listed at 6'5 in high school and at Georgia.
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Seems right. Mullins may just have better posture.

I haven't seen Demary up close. In highlights he definitely looked taller than Solo to me
 
superjohn said:
Mullins and Furphy are both listed at 6'5 on the UConn roster. The weird thing is Demary is listed at 6'3 on the UConn roster and he was listed at 6'5 in high school and at Georgia.
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Not that I trust the recruiting services on heights but Demary was also listed at 6-5 as a recruit (https://247sports.com/player/silas-demary-jr-46127714/). Strange that he's listed as 6-3 by UConn.
 
He's actually listed at 6'4 as a high school recruit on 247:
https://247sports.com/player/silas-demary-jr-46127714/high-school-283952/
HooperScooper said:
Not that I trust the recruiting services on heights but Demary was also listed at 6-5 as a recruit (https://247sports.com/player/silas-demary-jr-46127714/). Strange that he's listed as 6-3 by UConn.
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And honestly the current height/weight numbers on the roster on UConn's page are not final. They've been adjusting them all summer almost randomly. Mullins & Furphy's heights have changed multiple times and the returning guys have the same weight as last year even though Hurley has said it's different for a couple of them. I wouldn't read too much into the accuracy there until their new photos are up.
 
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