Why Hassan Diarra never considered leaving UConn

[HooperScooper]

Mike Anthony article (i.e. long).

“Honestly, it didn’t cross my mind one bit,” Diarra said Tuesday, after UConn’s first full practice. “After the season, meeting with the coaches, everything was clear cut. There’s opportunity here. This is a winning program and I love being a part of it.”

Why Hassan Diarra never considered leaving UConn men's basketball program: 'There's opportunity here'

UConn senior guard Hassan Diarra said he never considered transferring from UConn despite...

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Why Hassan Diarra never considered leaving UConn men's basketball program: 'There's opportunity here'​

 

[caw]

Got to like the kid.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Hope his offense comes into form and he can break out this year. He was huge on defense (best steal rate per minute on the whole team) and had a similar assist rate per minute to Newton/AJ but couldn’t contribute much in the way of scoring. I think we haven’t been talking about him enough as one of the biggest X factors on the team along with SJ. If he can step up and be a fourth respectable 3-point shooter (basically be Allyene) that would be huge.

 

[storrsroars]

Hope his offense comes into form and he can break out this year. He was huge on defense (best steal rate per minute on the whole team) and had a similar assist rate per minute to Newton/AJ but couldn’t contribute much in the way of scoring. I think we haven’t been talking about him enough as one of the biggest X factors on the team along with SJ. If he can step up and be a fourth respectable 3-point shooter (basically be Allyene) that would be huge.

Kid was just a ball of energy. Which mostly worked on the defensive side, but was often wild on offense. He's a talent Hurley can work with to make better decisions when he has the ball. Love that so many of our kids put team first.

 

[Rocktheworld]

Kid was just a ball of energy. Which mostly worked on the defensive side, but was often wild on offense. He's a talent Hurley can work with to make better decisions when he has the ball. Love that so many of our kids put team first.

Yeah I was gonna say he also had a decent turnover rate lol he was definitely one that got lost on his drives with nothing to do with the ball. I agree on Hurley getting him to fit in with the offense better, especially now with another whole off season. He was brand new to the program last year.

 

[QuickDraw]

Got to like the kid.

He sounds like a young man that has figured out what really matters & is embracing it.

 

[XLCenterFan]

He brings that D off the bench. As a former PG in my day, there’s nothing worse than when you realize the other teams backup PG is full of energy and can’t wait to lock you up. That’s his role. Depth and crazy defensive energy. Also can’t hurt that he has so much family in CT. Plus there’s the natty.

 

[REB1094]

He brought a lot of toughness and energy off the bench defensively. He was a major part we were able to win at home vs Creighton and Seton Hall. His defense and energy were really important to kick off our game winning runs, even if his box score would imply a bad game

Really appreciate Hassan’s role and leadership on the team!

 

[Palatine]

He is one of the best defenders on a team that values defense. If he can distribute the ball and keep the TOs low, he will see the floor.

 

[AZHuskiePop]

Hope his offense comes into form and he can break out this year. He was huge on defense (best steal rate per minute on the whole team) and had a similar assist rate per minute to Newton/AJ but couldn’t contribute much in the way of scoring. I think we haven’t been talking about him enough as one of the biggest X factors on the team along with SJ. If he can step up and be a fourth respectable 3-point shooter (basically be Allyene) that would be huge.

Having him with a green second unit is huge or having someone who you can depend to get your primary PG off the ball helps .
I always thought a huge mistake KO made was not getting TSam to stay. . Yes he wasn’t a great Player but good enough , another PG on the 2016-17 team and JA isn’t playing 38 minutes on the ball. So guys who can run a team are huge benefit even if they’re not superstars. You want your stars as rested as possible . Even the great Kemba Walker gave the team to freshman Bazz on occasion.who wasn’t exactly ready for prime time but was a solid guy . The guy is going to be a big part of any success we have because it will be his team for 10 + important minutes. Those minutes can change a good year to a great year .

 

[WrenchFan69]

I like Hassan a lot. During our January struggles last year, it seemed like he was the only one taking the ball to the rim successfully. Plus the bulldog defense. If he can shoot it a little better and handle ball pressure, he's going to see a good deal of time I think

 

[Waquoit]

Hassan and UConn are a perfect fit at this point in time. I'm thinking there might be games where he doesn't see much time. But instead of rocking the boat, he'll be ready to win when he does get the run. I'm thinking back to Lyman DePriest. He came off the bench to win a game after not seeing much recent action. "I knew Coach would get back to me" he said afterward.

 

[willie99]

I'm happy to have him. He's getting 15-20 minutes per night

 

[TheHorde]

I hope the young man has been in the gym working on his free throws and three point shooting. If he can shoot 70-72% from the line and 32-33% from three, he could provide a bigger than expected boost on the offensive end. I think those figures are doable.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

Happy he came back for another year. His defense is top notch. Having guys like Castle and Ball go against him everyday is going to do nothing but make those guys better.

 

[auror]

He wouldn't have been eligible if he transferred unless he graduated in 3 years (unlikely with a transfer thrown in there).

Happy to have him back. We need his program continuity and experience with all the freshmen.

 

[caw]

I hope the young man has been in the gym working on his free throws and three point shooting. If he can shoot 70-72% from the line and 32-33% from three, he could provide a bigger than expected boost on the offensive end. I think those figures are doable.

Would love 32% which seems doable. He shot much better at TA&M his first two seasons at 30 and 32% on 2.6 attempts a game. He was at 18% on 1 attempt a game last year.

He was 7 of 37 last year from three. Which is a poor sample size.

 

[Tenspro2002]

He, along with Newton, has a big role in mentoring the young guards.

His defense is unimpeachable and just has to not be a net negative on offense.

 

[UofCT]

I'm happy to have him. He's getting 15-20 minutes per night

That seems like a ton of minutes. I'm envisioning more of a D Bev type role but would be happy to be wrong.

 

[cordeodato]

I am sure Hassan is a fine young man. Having said that I thought he had a very poor tournament last year.
In fact in the later stages I think Hurley shortened his minutes. He did not handle or distribute well at all.
To me he is a nondescript player. I very rarely criticize players, they are just kids, but I find his play to be meh

 

[HooperScooper]

I am sure Hassan is a fine young man. Having said that I thought he had a very poor tournament last year.
In fact in the later stages I think Hurley shortened his minutes. He did not handle or distribute well at all.
To me he is a nondescript player. I very rarely criticize players, they are just kids, but I find his play to be meh

He didn't play much at all in the NCAA Tournament. He had no impact, either positive or negative, during the NCAA Tournament because Hurley relegated him to mostly (if not all) garbage minutes. The bench was shortened, as it should be during the tournament, and Diarra was a casualty of that. Hopefully he'll tighten up his game some and be a more reliable option off the bench at the end of this coming season.

 

[WrenchFan69]

I am sure Hassan is a fine young man. Having said that I thought he had a very poor tournament last year.
In fact in the later stages I think Hurley shortened his minutes. He did not handle or distribute well at all.
To me he is a nondescript player. I very rarely criticize players, they are just kids, but I find his play to be meh

Iona, Arkansas, and Gonzaga come to mind as games he did exactly what we asked him to do very well - great individual and team defense, control possessions under pressure, and move the ball effectively on offense. We didn't need him to shoot so long as we moved the ball and put our better scorers in good positions. We actually increased the lead from 8 to 17 with him running point in the first half against Arkansas.

 

[McLovin]

Does anyone else feel like this is a bizarre headline for the article?

The kid is back in the northeast, just won a national title and his brother is on the staff. It’s weird that this title implies he should have left? Anything is possible in the age of the portal, but as a back up PG, I doubt he had other schools throwing NIL bags at him like Samson probably did). Plus he is well liked by the fans and has good NIL opportunities here.

Anyways, glad he is back. He is a huge asset to have on the team on and off the court.

 

[REB1094]

Does anyone else feel like this is a bizarre headline for the article?

The kid is back in the northeast, just won a national title and his brother is on the staff. It’s weird that this title implies he should have left? Anything is possible in the age of the portal, but as a back up PG, I doubt he had other schools throwing NIL bags at him like Samson probably did). Plus he is well liked by the fans and has good NIL opportunities here.

Anyways, glad he is back. He is a huge asset to have on the team on and off the court.

There was a quote from Hurley in the article talking about how Diarra (and Samson) are two of the most important players this year since a lot of our depth is freshmen, and quotes from Diarra talking about how much opportunity he has and what he's worked on over the summer to help the team. Those both are very debatable points, but on paper having a veteran bulldog leader like Diarra is very valuable for an otherwise very young team

He could have definitely transferred down for more playing time. His box score production was not good, but he had 2 years at an SEC school and won a championship last year. He could probably start or get starter-level minutes at a lower school under a coach that sees the value in him that Hurley saw when he was recruited here

 

[Palatine]

Does anyone else feel like this is a bizarre headline for the article?

The kid is back in the northeast, just won a national title and his brother is on the staff. It’s weird that this title implies he should have left? Anything is possible in the age of the portal, but as a back up PG, I doubt he had other schools throwing NIL bags at him like Samson probably did). Plus he is well liked by the fans and has good NIL opportunities here.

Anyways, glad he is back. He is a huge asset to have on the team on and off the court.

In the portal era almost every kid considers his options every year especially those who would like more playing time.