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BB Recruiting UConn Basketball Transfer Portal Big Board

Elsewhere in the BE....McDermott and Creighton not having a great month....

 
I am starting to get annoyed by the portal transfers that are all about NIL $. There doesn't seem to be a level playing field out there. In transferring from Syracuse to West Virginia, Jesse Edwards he stated he didn't transfer for NIL reasons primarily, but then he bashed Syracuse for not seemingly caring at all about NIL. It is looking increasingly like a "Show Me The Money" landscape out there.
 
Here is an article from the NY Post on the Nahiem Alleyne transfer filled with quotes from Alleyne and an unidentified coach who is "familiar with Alleyne", which I suspect might be Hurley:
The article also mentions that Pitino "did not get very positive" reviews on the returning St. John's players who were pushed out the door and into the transfer portal, which include Storr and Alexander.
 
No riddle here, Nick did visit Uconn this week-end and he did not commit so it's...

I am just guessing here but it could come down to Kansas vs. UConn. Kansas can promise him Gradey Dick's starting spot. UConn can't promise him anything without knowing if Newton or AJ are leaving. If Newton and AJ come back, Castle starts with them, Karaban and Clingan complete the starting 5 and Timberlake is 6th man. Unless UConn knows something and isn't saying. All of the social media teasing is annoying and reminds me of this guy.......
 
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I am just guessing here but it could come down to Kansas vs. UConn. Kansas can promise him Gradey Dick's starting spot. UConn can't promise him anything without knowing if Newton or AJ are leaving. If Newton and AJ come back, Castle starts with them, Karaban and Clingan complete the starting 5 and Timberlake is 6th man. Unless UConn knows something and isn't saying.
I hear ya..... but it's speculation insanity across the board, like the 30 pages or so ( I kid you not) from the posters on TOS who are losing their minds on this. Before a player they never heard of a couple of weeks ago and while he's not committed anywhere. It's hilarious, they're all fighting over who's gonna start, etc, etc....but they have no clue regarding the actual roster..... Especially being April with so many moving parts in CBB now with the portal. Just remember back to a year ago at this time.

PS some at Carolina think it's down to them and Uconn.... so who knows ??? ( like I said " alot of conflicting rumors " )

But Uconn will certainly need to replace two , now three guards (NA, Joey and Hawk) that can hit the 3.
So any way you cut it starters minutes will be available to who ever they bring in from the portal. Unless maybe a little used guy like the FR from Greece can get some PT if he develops...... BTW, as good as a recruit as Castle is, he hasn't shown he can hit outside yet. At least for TEAM USA last summer... ( he was 1-13 on 3pt's)... Don't know his prep stats.

But I guess right now DH has 3 "recruits" for next years team, that all us fans are still unsure of....Nick, AJ and Tristen.... so the drama/ "social media teasing" continues....:rolleyes:
 
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I think I read that Castle hit 40% on 3s in high school. But regardless I don't trust freshman on shooting the 3. They aren't used to the speed of close outs in college and brick their shots until they adjust.

Regarding the rumor of it being down to UNC or UConn, UNC picked up a transfer with a similar profile to Timberlake last week. But they do need lots of help as they shot 30% as a team from 3 last year, which is why they didn't make the NCAA tourney and embarrassingly turned down an NIT bid:
 
If nothing else the transfer portal is stimulating massive posting and speculation on social media across the nation. I think in some ways it's good for promoting off-season interest in the sport. It's also challenging I am sure for the coaches as it's a whole new wrinkle in recruiting.
 
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Oh and another scholly slot opened up this afternoon.....I'm kinda suprised they didn't redshirt this kid since he was only 17 years old when he got to campus. It doesn't hurt Uconn but I think it cost him a year (eligibilty wise) while getting little PT in 11 games.


 
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"The Huskies are still waiting on whether Andre Jackson Jr. intends to turn pro. Same with senior point guard Tristen Newton. Other players (Roumoglou, Hassan Diarra, Richie Springs) also have decisions to make, though it appears unlikely that Springs will return."
 
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"The Huskies are still waiting on whether Andre Jackson Jr. intends to turn pro. Same with senior point guard Tristen Newton. Other players (Roumoglou, Hassan Diarra, Richie Springs) also have decisions to make, though it appears unlikely that Springs will return."
Richie " we hardly got to know you" makes it official......( might be better than he got to show) ....Best of luck !

 
And another scholarship has opened:
The problem with this kid and Romouglou is they have the bodies of boys. I was watching one of them shoot FTs and all I could think was this kid needs to get bigger and stronger if he wants to get some minutes. I don't know how dedicated some of these kids are. Especially the ones coming from Europe where they are main man players and thinking their main man status will translate in high D-1 ball in the US right away.
 
And another scholarship has opened:
I guess you didn't catch what I posted earlier up in this thread along with Yarin's twitter farewell since him entering the portal was Monday's news. Or as the NHR's Borges said in his article, that he was brought in mainly on a 1 year deal as a development/practice player, which helped both Uconn ( an extra body) and him ( practicing vs. NBA talent). Seeing that they had a scholly open late last summer when he signed as a 17 year old. (who obviously is underdeveloped at that age)

He was originally commited to Denver but I'm sure spending the year with Uconn on a championship run was a great decision.
 
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If you guys are looking for who the next Joey C might be, he just came into the portal: CJ Frederick of Kentucky. He is a souped up high level version of Joey C. It appears he is looking for a starting job, though. He came to Kentucky from Iowa, where he shot 46-47% on 3s his first two years, starting all 52 games. Last year at Kentucky he was hurt and slumped to 31%, playing less minutes, yet is still a close to 42% career 3 point shooter:
Would he settle for coming off the bench at UConn? It depends on whether both Newton and AJ come back. If one leaves, a starting job could open up. Perhaps he could be sold on being a 6th man on a national championship contender?
 
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I think I read that Castle hit 40% on 3s in high school. But regardless I don't trust freshman on shooting the 3. They aren't used to the speed of close outs in college and brick their shots until they adjust.
Seeing that the roster seems to be set, 3pt shooting is a need and no new names are in Uconn's Transfer Portal Big Board, I did a little research on this number. And found this fairly recent article from SI:

"Currently shooting 30.8% from 3 point range in his senior season
according to Cerebro Sports’ database, he is attempting 11.6 shots from beyond the arc per 36 minutes. Not only the sheer volume, but the level of difficulty of his attempts bode well for his projection as a shooter at the next level."

Full read:

SI- Stephon Castle is on the Rise

 
I do not think UConn necessarily needs to add anyone via the Portal, especially if AJ and Tristen return, but an intriguing person entered the portal yesterday. Seth Towns of Ohio State, who will be playing his 8th season of college basketball next year (mainly due to injuries/redshirts) and will turn 26 during the season, incredibly still has 2 seasons left of college eligibility. He is a 6'8" former Ivy League Player of the Year in 2017-2018 when he shot a blistering 44% on 3s:
This is a kid who might be a stretch 4 or a 3 and could be ideal roster filler if AJ decides to gamble and stay in the NBA Draft.
 
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Caleb Love is now back in the portal after Michigan apparently questioned the validity of some of the credits he earned at UNC, and is rated as the top available player in the portal:
Although he is talented, as I mentioned elsewhere he is a very low basketball IQ guy whom I would not touch with a 10 foot pole unless there was a glaring hole in my team's backcourt. To me he is a Rodney Purvis type of player: better athlete than Rodney, but he does not make smart plays or good judgments. Apart from his awful 29% 3 point shooting last season (which is not an aberration as he shot 26% his freshman year), he is committing almost as many TOs as he is getting assists. I think the Portal scouts are wrong on this kid, but we will see how he does with a different system and coaching staff.
 
I'd pass on Love, seems like a non-fit culture wise for DH. But Zags now reports on a last minute portal entry. A 6-4/205....SG, who spent 1 year at Rutgers and is mentioned on:

" list includes defending national champion UConn, former Big East powerhouse Georgetown, blue bloods Kentucky and Indiana, and NIL-equipped programs like Miami and Texas." He came to the B1G after spending 3 years in the Patriot league. Was the leading scorer (tied- 13.2pts) for Rutgers and has good numbers as a high end shooter at 43.4% on 3pts and 89.4% FT's.....a major Uconn need.


 
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His 3 point point shooting portfolio is very impressive. In 4 college seasons, he has shot well over 40% 3 years out of the 4, is career 40.5% and is coming off a 43.4% 3 point shooting season for Rutgers. He could be a seamless Joey C replacement or more if both Newton and AJ do not return, as seems possible. He also gets 3 assists a game. I thought passing was an underrated part of Joey C's game, but looks like this kid could be a promoter of ball movement as well as a spot up shooter. The 89.4% FT shooting is even better than Joey C who was 88%.
 
Andre replacement ? New grad transfer from DH's former A-10...was a CT prep-not an elite shooter,
( career 33% - 3pt/ 78% -FT), but better than AJ and a big scorer as a 6-7/ 215lb wing.

edit false alarm---
 
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Shooters are needed. Also remember that AJ is not officially gone but if the Pacers promised to take him at 26/29 if available he may be.
 
But Zags now reports on a last minute portal entry. A 6-4/205....SG, Was the leading scorer (tied- 13.2pts) for Rutgers and has good numbers as a high end shooter at 43.4% on 3pts and 89.4% FT's.....a major Uconn need.
Might be tough to beat the NIL money, especially after Miami reportedly paid Pack 800K for his transer from K-State.

 
Spencer has a real good chance to start if AJ and Newton are both gone (which we will know by end of day tomorrow), and even if just Newton returns he could slot in next to Newton and Castle. But NIL money could be better at all 3 other schools.
 
UConn still needs a shooter and Spencer could cleanly fill the role although I see him as more of a replacement for Hawkins than Joey C. Roumouglu will MAYBE be the Joey C guy off the bench hopefully.
 
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Oh and another scholly slot opened up this afternoon.....I'm kinda suprised they didn't redshirt this kid since he was only 17 years old when he got to campus.
Found a home with a new team in the OVC....( maybe he can find Sidney Wilson for us, LOL!)

 
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