Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings | The Boneyard

Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings

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HooperScooper

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A couple articles on McNeeley today. First one is a Mike Anthony special, very long. I swear he gets paid by the word. :)

“In practice, I get pretty fired up and I yell a lot and I get into it,” said McNeeley, a 6-foot-7 wing player out of Richardson, Texas and Montverde Prep in Florida. “It’s not something I try to do. I think it just comes naturally. When I start getting going, I just see red and it just comes out.”

www.nhregister.com

Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings to the UConn men's basketball team

Liam McNeeley, a top-15 national recruit, will replace some of what UConn lost in the departures of Cam Spencer and Stephon Castle.
www.nhregister.com www.nhregister.com

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Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings to the UConn men's basketball team​

 
“I can see myself being similar to a couple of the guys,” McNeeley said. “Cam Spencer, definitely, his shooting and his intensity. I feel like I can be versatile like Steph Castle, he was a good freshman who did what the coach asked, and that’s what I’m trying to do, too. I have a lot of confidence in myself, but I also have the coaches to put me in the right position to help the team.”

www.courant.com

Dom Amore’s Sunday Read: UConn basketball fans are going to love this guy; Yankees coach opens up about loss of close friend and more

In Liam McNeeley, UConn seems to have found the perfectly-wired Dan Hurley Husky, in the Cam Spencer mold; Cheshire’s Brad Ausmus reflects on Billy Bean, why could UConn football make a state…
www.courant.com www.courant.com

Alternate access:
UConn basketball fans are going to love this guy
 
HooperScooper said:
A couple articles on McNeeley today. First one is a Mike Anthony special, very long. I swear he gets paid by the word. :)

“In practice, I get pretty fired up and I yell a lot and I get into it,” said McNeeley, a 6-foot-7 wing player out of Richardson, Texas and Montverde Prep in Florida. “It’s not something I try to do. I think it just comes naturally. When I start getting going, I just see red and it just comes out.”

www.nhregister.com

Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings to the UConn men's basketball team

Liam McNeeley, a top-15 national recruit, will replace some of what UConn lost in the departures of Cam Spencer and Stephon Castle.
www.nhregister.com www.nhregister.com

Alternate access:

Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings to the UConn men's basketball team​

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Really excellent article
 
REB1094 said:
If he wants to bring the intensity and shooting of Cam Spencer, and the versatility of Steph Castle, I’m buying stock immediately!
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I saw that clip where he was excited about long, hard practices. I believe him.
 
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HooperScooper said:
A couple articles on McNeeley today. First one is a Mike Anthony special, very long. I swear he gets paid by the word. :)

“In practice, I get pretty fired up and I yell a lot and I get into it,” said McNeeley, a 6-foot-7 wing player out of Richardson, Texas and Montverde Prep in Florida. “It’s not something I try to do. I think it just comes naturally. When I start getting going, I just see red and it just comes out.”

www.nhregister.com

Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings to the UConn men's basketball team

Liam McNeeley, a top-15 national recruit, will replace some of what UConn lost in the departures of Cam Spencer and Stephon Castle.
www.nhregister.com www.nhregister.com

Alternate access:

Why Dan Hurley loves the 'edge' freshman Liam McNeeley brings to the UConn men's basketball team​

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“Big East is definitely like bully ball. It’s very tough basketball. I’ve definitely been pushed around but I’ve also pushed some other guys around in practice. … Being pushed, that’s really why I came here — to come to a place where I’m going to be pushed to the max, and then some, to continue to get better and help a great program.”

Thanks and great reading. This kids knows how to give an interview, too.
 
He'll take a while to settle in and have some ups and downs as most freshmen do especially at the onset of the BE season BUT we'll be singing his praises by late March.
 
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Have a really good feeling about LM. I get this sense he was over shadowed by Flagg at Montverde and has a little chip.

Between his size, smarts and shooting touch, he feels like someone that is going to be one of the key contributors to making a run. The smarts in the Hurley offense is what make me think he’ll get up to speed quickly. There is a minumim level of hoops IQ you need to flourish in this system, between the multiple picks, DHOs and quick option reads it presents. If you’re dialed in and have the mental twitch, world is your oyster. If you’re a beat slow, it can be confusing as timing is important. Last year we had 5 guys that had it down, along with our 6 man.

This is where I’m hoping another year gets guys like Solo and Stew ramped up, as they looked a little lost at times last year.
 
boog204 said:
I said it when he committed, but I’m not sure there’s ever been a more perfect fit for us. Dude can shoot, he’s smart, and it seems he’s got spunk that is pretty rare for a frosh.
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insomuch as his recruiting ranking, if you dig on 247, McNeeley is UConn's 5th highest rated recruit ever. #2 was Castle. #6 is Kemba so that supports why he might be a starter.

That said, not everyone rises meteorically. #4 is Andrew Bynum, #7 Daniel Hamilton
 
JerseyAlum said:
insomuch as his recruiting ranking, if you dig on 247, McNeeley is UConn's 5th highest rated recruit ever. #2 was Castle. #6 is Kemba so that supports why he might be a starter.

That said, not everyone rises meteorically. #4 is Andrew Bynum, #7 Daniel Hamilton
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To be fair, Daniel Hamilton was so good. Averaged like 12 and 8 over 2 seasons and then went pro.

Probably shouldn’t have left since he went in the second round and basically just bounced around the G, but that’s another story and a different era pre-NIL money.
 
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yungdowork said:
To be fair, Daniel Hamilton was so good. Averaged like 12 and 8 over 2 seasons and then went pro.

Probably shouldn’t have left since he went in the second round and basically just bounced around the G, but that’s another story and a different era pre-NIL money.
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If Daniel Hamilton had played for Dan Hurley and co., he'd be a starter in the league right now. Give the kid the coaching to shoot better? That's an NBA starter. No question. He was SO talented. KO sucked the life out of his career.
 
HooperScooper said:
McNeeley is a freshman. I highly doubt he will be as savvy as Spencer was. Hopefully just as good a shooter though.
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Won’t be as savvy, but has 4 inches and a better athlete. And a killer stroke. Kid seems mature for his age as well. Expecting big things and an ascending pattern of development throughout the season.
 
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tennmike said:
Spencer was epic. More than McNeeley, I'm hoping Solo learned from him. What Cam had is what Solo needs.
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Two different players - Cam was/is old school baller like Larry Bird - hardnosed, lippy and can back it up
Solo is more of a playground baller where he, it seems, is always looking for his shot first. I'm sure the staff is working on that, but I think we all saw that in him late last season. He is a great athlete but does need some refinement.
 
RuffRuff said:
Won’t be as savvy, but has 4 inches and a better athlete. And a killer stroke. Kid seems mature for his age as well. Expecting big things and an ascending pattern of development throughout the season.
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He's going to learn as the season goes on. The talent is there. By the second half of BE play, I think he's going to be a force. By tournament time, as we saw from Castle, he's going to show everyone how special he is and a reason why a 3-Peat is possible.

The only thing that might impact what I noted above is if he struggles to defend and adjust to Hurley's team D. If he gets it on both ends of the floor, the sky's the limit!
 
DogMania said:
He's going to learn as the season goes on. The talent is there. By the second half of BE play, I think he's going to be a force. By tournament time, as we saw from Castle, he's going to show everyone how special he is and a reason why a 3-Peat is possible.

The only thing that might impact what I noted above is if he struggles to defend and adjust to Hurley's team D. If he gets it on both ends of the floor, the sky's the limit!
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I don't see how him picking up our defense will be a problem. He was a plus defender the past couple seasons on a high school team that's run like a college team. It was also arguably the best high school team ever, or at least one of them.
 
husky429 said:
If Daniel Hamilton had played for Dan Hurley and co., he'd be a starter in the league right now. Give the kid the coaching to shoot better? That's an NBA starter. No question. He was SO talented. KO sucked the life out of his career.
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I was not judging them by "whys" only their UConn total product.

McNeeley is going to get much better than his current ranking. His BK IQ is supposedly high but then he gets tutored by Karaban and will be a very heads-up player in our offensive flow. He also is our best 3pt shooter % coming in so in those two ways very Spencer like but taller. There's a lot to Cam's game that did not hit the box score though so I'm only comparing on the attributes we can compare: 3pt shooting, BK IQ., height.
 
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