Grad Transfer Darien Williams visiting this weekend (4/15)
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This guy averaged 3.8 ppg and 2.8 rpg for a weak team ...... he is deeper on the bench than Cobb and would be behind Cobb. The fact that recruitment of such a player needs to be announced in a thread tells me UConn is now settling as a mid to lower echelon team in the AAC and that you guys accept that now. Sad....
Same thoughts KSTW....I guess that's the level KO is recruiting at now:
" As for Williams, he emerged as a valuable frontcourt piece. In the absence of Yankuba Sima, who transferred to Oklahoma State, Williams was asked to assume a larger role. Although inconsistent, he added a tough presence around the rim. Last season he averaged about 4 points, and 3 rebounds per game."
Also don't know if he's damaged goods ???.... played only 3 games his first year @ St John's and only 12 mins a game in 24 this year.
2014-2015 (City College of San Francisco) Attended the City College of San Francisco … sat out 2014-2015 season recovering from an injury.
2013-2014 (Iowa Western Community College) Lettered at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa, playing for head coach Jim Morris … averaged team-high 16.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game
" As for Williams, he emerged as a valuable frontcourt piece. In the absence of Yankuba Sima, who transferred to Oklahoma State, Williams was asked to assume a larger role. Although inconsistent, he added a tough presence around the rim. Last season he averaged about 4 points, and 3 rebounds per game."
Also don't know if he's damaged goods ???.... played only 3 games his first year @ St John's and only 12 mins a game in 24 this year.
2014-2015 (City College of San Francisco) Attended the City College of San Francisco … sat out 2014-2015 season recovering from an injury.
2013-2014 (Iowa Western Community College) Lettered at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa, playing for head coach Jim Morris … averaged team-high 16.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game
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He's a Grad Transfer and we need players its not like we will have him for 4 years adding him for depth can't hurt.
That's the point.... this is where KO's fail after fail ...master plan has brought us , scrounging around for table scraps in April...at least 2 years ago he added a super
athletic All-Ivy League guy in Shonn Miller & an All-Big East guard like Gibbs....he needs 2 guys that are starting material up front.......this just gets better and better...SMH !
Posting about a player considering UConn means we accept what, exactly?
There are plenty of good players for whom UConn is part of a long list of suitors, but we're trying to keep it to when we hear something concrete. So here we are.
Someone, somewhere has to accept a backup role... as you may have noticed that has been an issue for some recently transferring players. Williams is an immediately eligible transfer who can give solid minutes off the bench. I would venture to say that he's better than any available freshmen... not all five scholarship openings need to be filled with high-profile guys.
There are plenty of good players for whom UConn is part of a long list of suitors, but we're trying to keep it to when we hear something concrete. So here we are.
Someone, somewhere has to accept a backup role... as you may have noticed that has been an issue for some recently transferring players. Williams is an immediately eligible transfer who can give solid minutes off the bench. I would venture to say that he's better than any available freshmen... not all five scholarship openings need to be filled with high-profile guys.
http://www.rumbleinthegarden.com/st...629/st-johns-commit-darien-williams-juco-wing
Originally from California, Williams played his first JUCO season at Iowa Western Community College, averaging 16 points per game and seven rebounds, shooting 41% from outside the arc. He took 29% of his shots from beyond the arc, so he's not strictly a deep shooter; and he shot 55% inside the arc and drew foul shots at a rate of 44% (free throws taken divided by field goals taken), a solid number.
Williams collected double-digit rebounds six times in 27 games, and scored 20 or more points 10 times, with a high of 37 against State Fair Community College.
Originally from California, Williams played his first JUCO season at Iowa Western Community College, averaging 16 points per game and seven rebounds, shooting 41% from outside the arc. He took 29% of his shots from beyond the arc, so he's not strictly a deep shooter; and he shot 55% inside the arc and drew foul shots at a rate of 44% (free throws taken divided by field goals taken), a solid number.
Williams collected double-digit rebounds six times in 27 games, and scored 20 or more points 10 times, with a high of 37 against State Fair Community College.
I hear ya Aman.....Though all 3 of the 4 star star guys who left had a good chance to start..... but who put Uconn in this situation...The $3.5 mil dollar HC !!! ....so you need to bear with us who are, rationally, less than impressed with what's going on with this train wreck...it's called venting ....
But please do chime in again when we get some good news.....some day soon, before next August would be nice , LOL !...
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Saw that before you posted it, wonder what happened to the video quality ? Any word on his injury after that IW CC season ?.....see my post above ? ...he played no games in
2014-15 and 3 games total in 2 full years....wonder why ?
Aman-
The UConn roster is devoid of talent at the 4 and 5 positions. No returning experience with the transfers of Enoch and Durham. While I understand a grad transfer is the way to go, these deep bench recruits suggest that UConn will not be bringing in better players than what was lost to transfer which I still don't fully understand.
I do get that some guys have to be role players as well but UConn isn't looking for role players. There are no starters or starting caliber talent at the 4 and 5 positions yet nobody is alarmed by it and is accepting of deep bench guys being recruited behind other deep bench guys who can't really start. Unless we are talking playing at the level of USF which has a similar situation going on, and is bringing in deep bench guys to man starting spots. It's very disappointing to me.
The UConn roster is devoid of talent at the 4 and 5 positions. No returning experience with the transfers of Enoch and Durham. While I understand a grad transfer is the way to go, these deep bench recruits suggest that UConn will not be bringing in better players than what was lost to transfer which I still don't fully understand.
I do get that some guys have to be role players as well but UConn isn't looking for role players. There are no starters or starting caliber talent at the 4 and 5 positions yet nobody is alarmed by it and is accepting of deep bench guys being recruited behind other deep bench guys who can't really start. Unless we are talking playing at the level of USF which has a similar situation going on, and is bringing in deep bench guys to man starting spots. It's very disappointing to me.
That's a great question...but if you have a head coach with a pulse regarding his team.....he's supposed to have that figured out back in 2016...then KO won't
be making delusional comments like this at the end of February regarding Enoch : "He's going to be one of the best offensive players, big men, who ever played here. I'm not worried about that." ......unprepared for what he's dealing with a month and a half later when he's lost half his team and Diallo who he had no plan for either.
I'm not disputing the severity of the current roster situation, just that this player's interest in UConn does not confirm or deny that KO won't be able to fill some holes in the off-season.
It's totally fair to vent and be upset about the situation, but like I said, with five open spots they won't all be projected starters.
It's totally fair to vent and be upset about the situation, but like I said, with five open spots they won't all be projected starters.
Like I said above he's only played 27 games in his last 3 years...saw this:
From 2015: "Originally from Cal attended St. Johns Bosco. Williams, who had committed to Iowa State but decommitted recently, sat out last season after having surgery on both shoulders "
With a resume like that he should fit right in !
From 2015: "Originally from Cal attended St. Johns Bosco. Williams, who had committed to Iowa State but decommitted recently, sat out last season after having surgery on both shoulders "
With a resume like that he should fit right in !
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It probably would have been a good idea to ask that question before losing and/or running off three of the five players returning from last year's team.
We are in very good positions with a number of top 2018 recruits. I would prefer grad transfers to fill out our roster until 2018.
True, they were in good position with Diallo, how'd that work out ? ....and if this staff train wrecks another season, how's that gonna play with recruits or the fanbase.... Not saying I wouldn't take two capable grad starters like Miller and Gibbs were.... that help get this team to the NCAA's. But need to fix this now or 2018 may never get here for KO as he loses more customers who pay his salary.
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I am a huge fan of using grad transfers to fill specific needs for one year, as opposed to taking low-level projects for four years. However, I don't like the idea of replacing guys like Durham, Enoch, and Jackson with end-of-the-bench players who have shown no real up-side in their previous three years of playing college basketball (as opposed to someone like Miller). Granted, UConn needs some bodies at this point, but I would really like to see some starting-caliber players on the roster, if there are any available at this late date. I've been holding out hope that the recent shakeup was part of a master plan, instead of a team-wide disaster. However, the longer we go without seeing some capable replacements, the more I think it was option two.
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There are starting positions and 25-30 mpg available at the 4 and the 5 positions, and if he can't find capable guys who can start at an upper division 1 program (what happened to the guy at Washington who was a grad transfer and looked like a clearcut starter?) then something is wrong. Instead, all we are hearing about is end of the bench guys.
Per 40 minutes his production last year was roughly 12.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. He is two years past the shoulder surgeries and healthy now. He is 6'8" and 235 lbs and fights for rebounds/boxes out hard. The Johnnies play in the Big East which by objective measures is better than the AAC. Posters are selling him short IMHO. We desperately need to add bigs to the roster who are talented enough to contribute!
Here's some fan discussion on Williams from the ST. Johns board: Darien Williams and Malik Ellison transferring
...mixed comments but the consensus is he plays hard and is tough underneath, but he's made of glass ( I guess injury wise) or never got much burn from the staff.
Also speaking of 40 min totals, he's a fouling machine, averages 7.5 fouls per 40 minutes, which blows away Brimah about 5.1 and Enoch at 6.5 ...so at that rate he never makes a 30 minute game....but this late in the game when KO just lost three 6-8+ guys and has no front court depth....I guess it is what it is..
...mixed comments but the consensus is he plays hard and is tough underneath, but he's made of glass ( I guess injury wise) or never got much burn from the staff.
Also speaking of 40 min totals, he's a fouling machine, averages 7.5 fouls per 40 minutes, which blows away Brimah about 5.1 and Enoch at 6.5 ...so at that rate he never makes a 30 minute game....but this late in the game when KO just lost three 6-8+ guys and has no front court depth....I guess it is what it is..
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What was Okwandu's foul rate per 40? He fouled out once in 8 minutes that I can remember for sure..........
Here's the update on another guy, KO and his body snatchers were sniffin' around the last couple of months:
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