Yakwe Commits

[UconnU]

Pretty good synopsis of his game and where he can improve to be effective his one year here

Kassoum Yakwe transfers to UConn for final season

Helps that we now have a solid big coach who can develop talent with coach Hunter.

 

[Vancat]

We have (or are getting) the meat!

Yeah that tuna thing didn't work out so well.

 

[MadDogRevival]

I turn 80 in the fall, and I fear I will be watching it all from the nosebleed seats.

Good thinking - at 80, "nosebleed seats," like the flu, can lead to serious medical complications. Lol. Just kidding. Hang in there! We need you.

 

[MadDogRevival]

Yeah that tuna thing didn't work out so well.

We were landing the tuna in the boat, problem was, it was mostly undersized and should have been thrown back.

 

[CL82]

I wouldn't assume any spots are safe in the frontcourt. We have six bigs to hopefully form a competent 4 man rotation. But we have no idea how Hurley views the individuals, and neither Carlton and Diarra were so far superior to the options that they or you sould assume they are locks.

In the Katz podcast Hurley singled out three key players who he felt could have a big impact, Jalen, Carlton and Gilbert. Not much of a tea leaf, I'll grant you, but it does suggest that Carlton may be a step ahead of the other front court players in Hurley's eyes.

 

[Rico444]

In the Katz podcast Hurley singled out three key players who he felt could have a big impact, Jalen, Carlton and Gilbert. Not much of a tea leaf, I'll grant you, but it does suggest that Carlton may be a step ahead of the other front court players in Hurley's eyes.

He said the same thing in the Rothstein interview.

 

[Whtdmd]

Also, @Whtdmd is a self proclaimed St. John's fan - maybe he can give us the rundown on him.

Lets just say him and Darien Williams are about the same player in terms of development 2 yrs ago. Darien avg like 3.8 ppg at SJ and picked Nevada over UCONN. Musselman will be a great coach to develop that stiff. He avg 2 pts before being dismissed from the Nevada team in January. Don't expect much from Yakwe except for help side defense. His offense is terrible. One of the reasons he got no time is that he is terrible at the pick n Roll. St John's team last yr is similar to the UConn team in 2018-19 under Hurley. I like Whaley alot more

 

[UCFan1513]

We have any St Johns BBall experts on this board? I'm wondering why the dropoff from his freshman year? Hopefully it's a coaching thing and Hurley can get the best out of him

@Whtdmd

 

[MadDogRevival]

We are still recruiting for fall.....

I don't know why, but I completely trust you.

 

[UCFan1513]

I think Yakwe is much more talented that DO

Comparing them to AA and DO is fair enough based on stats. But both Tarin Smith and Yakwe were vastly higher regarded coming out of high school. Not that rankings are everything, but I believe Smith was a 3 star and Yukwe was a 4 star, while both AA and DO were unranked 2 stars. I think this may indicate something more for their potential

 

[MadDogRevival]

He averaged double digits in scoring his last year at Fordham and made a few game winning shots against some good A10 schools. . . . He was one of the worst players (who played significant minutes) to wear a UConn uniform . . .

Sadly, you're correct. He might be an example of where a guy actually got worse under Ollie. Yeesh.

 

[JustbrewitMan]

I'm sorry, but I look at the resumes of Smith and Yakwe and I see next year's Anderson and next year's Onourah. The resemblance, even physically, is uncanny. In the case of Yakwe and Onuorah, there's even the mystery of why these guys all but disappeared after their freshman year. We all have high hopes for Dan Hurley, but so far it has resulted only in a trade of Akinjo, Matthews and Kisunas for Adams, Smith and Yakwe. Yikes! As I said before, an awful lot of blind trust is being asked for here.

Did you watch the video that Storrsouth posted?

If you're seeing DO in that, it may be time to get your eyes checked.

Kid is mobile, quick, has moves with offensive purpose around the hoop, did a beautiful pick & roll with strong finish, and showed a nice touch on his non-dunk shots.

I think he's a nice get!

 

[Tenspro2002]

I'm sorry, but I look at the resumes of Smith and Yakwe and I see next year's Anderson and next year's Onourah. The resemblance, even physically, is uncanny. In the case of Yakwe and Onuorah, there's even the mystery of why these guys all but disappeared after their freshman year. We all have high hopes for Dan Hurley, but so far it has resulted only in a trade of Akinjo, Matthews and Kisunas for Adams, Smith and Yakwe. Yikes! As I said before, an awful lot of blind trust is being asked for here.

The difference is that Smith and Yakwe only tie up a scholarship for 1 year. I'd much rather have the 2 open spots for 2019 than have them tied up with Matthews and Kisunas.

 

[Rocktheworld]

I don’t like it

Name is way too close to Yawkey

 

[tzznandrew]

I think Yakwe is much more talented that DO

Wasn't he a Top 100 recruit?

 

[Lefty2one]

This kid looks like Bill Russell compared to DO.

I think his game compliments Carlton's nicely.

 

[TopDogs]

Wasn't he a Top 100 recruit?

247 has him as a 4-star recruit out of high school ranked 87 nationally, 108 composite ranking.

 

[UConnDan97]

Welcome to the Dog Pound, Kassoum!!!

 

[freescooter]

Politely disagree here. Based on what Yakwe did the last two seasons, I can't imagine Hurley bringing him on board for one season UNLESS he felt he could extract something more from Yakwe than he delivered at SJU! Otherwise, why not let the present guys develop further for one more season? I believe in Hurley's eyes, Yakwe brings something to the court that we just don't have on our current roster. This is a good and very inexpensive (1 yr scholly) "gamble".

I don’t entirely disagree with this. He Brings us something we need and best case he improves with a new coach a a change of scenery, but it’s a short term investment to fill what is clearly the weakest element in the team.

 

[gtcam]

Yakwe came to St John's with a big rep and under the impression that in 2-3 years the kid was going to be pro bound
He started slow, gained some speed with a few good performances then fell apart. Some say it was because the Johnnies brought in more mobile scorers who demanded more time, some say it was Yakwe's attitude and work ethic. Who knows but to the kid's benefit we hear a lot of that crap coming out of St Johns lately.
I feel he is a good pick-up for one reason - he will help DH buy some time in working with the rest of the bigs and he can be serviceable against some of the bigger opponents with his reach, etc.
He is by no means going to be a 15/10 guy but if he comes in ready to battle he will help
This is not a case where UConn beat anybody of note out for this guy - DH can offer some quality PT and the best thing is that Yakwe is a one year lease.

 

[UConnStats]

Yakwe was actually second on SJU in +/- on a per minute basis.

Definitely some small sample size noise present, but compare it to our end of bench bigs (Williams, DO, Cobb) who were the worst on the team in this category this season.

 

[intlzncster]

St John's team last yr is similar to the UConn team in 2018-19 under Hurley.

It is? How so?

 

[Tex-Lager93]

Seems like a solid rim defender - more athletic but less capable than Carlton of the offensive side. I can't wait to see Whaley and Yakwe flying around and blocking shots.

 

[Matt1010]

Yakwe was actually second on SJU in +/- on a per minute basis.

Definitely some small sample size noise present, but compare it to our end of bench bigs (Williams, DO, Cobb) who were the worst on the team in this category this season.

I'm seeing his Box Plus/Minus at .3 per 100 possessions which is 7th best on the team from last year. Where are you getting that number from?