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Uconn Hoops - 2023-24 ( with roster update)

the Blades

the Blades

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Here's how it looks....... ( 12 schollies filled - 1 open) :

2023-24
GUARDS
Tristen Newton.............6-5/195.....PG.......GR......El Paso, TX
Cam Spencer..................6-4/205.....SG.......GR.....Davidsonville, MD
Hassan Diarra...................6-2/190......PG ......,SR.......Queens, NY
Stephon Castle..............6-6/215......CG.......FR......Covington, GA
Solomon Ball....................6-3/185.......CG.........FR......Leesburg, VA

WINGS:
Apostolos Roumoglou....6-8/215.....G-F........SO......Xanthi, Greece
Jaylin Stewart...................6-7/205........F.........FR......Seattle, WA
Jayden Ross......................6-7/195.......G-F.......FR......Bristow, VA

FORWARDS
Alex Karaban.................6-8/220......F.....SO......Northborough, MA
Samson Johnson..............6-10/225......F/C....JR.....Lome, Togo

CENTERS
Donovan Clingan............7-2/280......C......SO......Bristol, CT
Youssouf Singare..............6-10/220......C.......FR......Bamako, Mali

FRESHMAN profiles-
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UConnReport

The definitive source for all Connecticut news.
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DH gives a shout out ! - looking to these 3 to be in the mix for PT (or alot more in some cases) next year.
Was interesting that Samson and Hassan (with AJ and then Hawk out) were starters, early in 2022-23.


 
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Diarra's shooting was terrible, and as the season wore on his driving game seemed less and less effective and his drives were getting easily defended. He has a lot to work on as far as his offensive game. On the positive side, he is experienced in the system and can defend smaller and quicker guards when needed to.

With Johnson I am not sure he was ever healthy or ready to go last year. But he has had 2 years in the program and could be a big surprise backing up Clingan and Karaban at the 5 and the 4. He definitely has the athleticism to be a factor.
 
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Here is a good article from ESPN on the "major rebuild" UConn faces for next year's roster:
www.espn.com

Hurley: UConn rebuild 'what elite programs face'

UConn coach Dan Hurley is facing a major rebuild of his team as seven players have announced plans to either leave the program or test their options since winning the national title April 3.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
Hurley says keep the faith, so we should. Obviously, if AJ and Newton come back, it's not so major of a rebuild as UConn will have 4 of their top 6 guys from a championship team back, supported by a very good 5 man freshman class and experienced bench players in Johnson and Diarra.
 
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KhalidShockedTheWorld said:
Here is a good article from ESPN on the "major rebuild" UConn faces for next year's roster:
www.espn.com

Hurley: UConn rebuild 'what elite programs face'

UConn coach Dan Hurley is facing a major rebuild of his team as seven players have announced plans to either leave the program or test their options since winning the national title April 3.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
Hurley says keep the faith, so we should.
Click to expand...
Funny quote by Dan in the article....

I'm definitely not one of those fans who loses my mind in the off season. I can't say the same in game..... When I see something like Andre keep chuckin' up bricks and going 0-7, while the coach doesn't kick him in the butt or do anything as his team goes down 11-0 vs. Xavier. If players read some of that vitriol in social media and it changes the way they play, like when they moved AJ to the dunkers spot and more in the screen game, then I'm glad I post such over the top outrage. As a matter of fact I'm happy I can be of assistance. LOL !

But regarding the off season it's all about winning games, so until they throw the ball up in the fall...
I'm sure you got this DH !! ...."Everyone is just going to have to occasionally look up at the [championship] banner or the trophy any time that they start to lose patience and lose their minds,"
 
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I was also amused by some of Coach's comments in that article, which is one reason I posted it. I think he has become a bit of a media darling since winning the championship. In addition to obviously being a good coach, I think the national media now sees Hurley as not only intense, but quotable, witty and funny. And compared to the gruff demeanors of guys like Tom Izzo, Bill Self, and Mark Few, who don't give you sound bite quotes and don't really say a whole lot, he is very charming and personable. I think someone posted his podcast with Mike Francesa in another thread and I thought he handled Francesa very well. Francesa can be aggressive and bombastic in his interviews, and although that interview was comparatively docile and deferential to ones I heard him do with the NYC baseball managers and football coaches back in the day, there were a few points where he was asking rapid fire staccato style follow up questions. Hurley handled it very well. Francesa can be very abrasive. I remember in the past he got boycotted by the NY Giants for a while because of the very aggressive/hostile manner in which he was interviewing the NY Giants head coach at the time.
 
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Still waiting on Jaylin Stewart's arrival tweet, but in the mean time good job by the Uconn Report on his scouting report and highlights.
connecticut.rivals.com

UConnReport - UConn Hoops Freshmen Intros -- Four-Star F Jaylin Stewart

How will Stewart fit in as a Husky?
connecticut.rivals.com connecticut.rivals.com

If the roster stayed as is I would not be surprised if he could become the 5th starter. He seems to have the most ability right now as a 3 level scorer of all the frosh. At 6-7/215 and surprising athlete, I saw he moved up to #51 in 2023's on the 24/7 sports. Can he handle the D at the college level is an unknown ? But with Castle and him, it would give the Huskies an even bigger starting line-up than last year ....6-5/ 6-7/ 6-7/ 6-8/ 7-2.
 
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The defense has me concerned (mildly) because of lots of new players and Karaban and Newton not being particularly good one on one defenders. My hope is that Clingan will be such a lane-clogging, shot blocking force (which he showed many signs of being last year) that defensive mistakes will be covered up, like they were in past years by the likes of Brimah, Oriakhi/Okwandu, Thabeet, Okafor and even Voskuhl, who was very effective at positional defense to close the lane. Hopefully, as well, Samson Johnson and perhaps Singare will prove to be effective interior defenders, if nothing else.
 
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"That's what Hurley tabs the five returning players from last year's championship group: Tristen Newton, Alex Karaban, Donovan Clingan, Samson Johnson and Hassan Diarra."....It should also be noted that Apostolos Roumoglou, who essentially played walk-on minutes last season, is a sixth returnee whom Hurley has said the staff believes in."
 
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I think this is now the strongest team that UConn has returned after any of their 5 title winning teams to defend the title won the prior year. The only other team in the discussion is the strange, and ultimately very disappointing 2011-2012 squad with Drummond and Oriakhi (Calhoun's very last team before he retired from UConn). There was a lot of excitement about the 2011-2012 team, which started Drummond, Oriakhi, Lamb, Napier and Boatright. Most of the excitement centered on the Drummond and Oriakhi "500 pounds of prime beef" tandem in the frontcourt, which UConn never had before or since. But they suffered from chemistry issues and flamed out with a blowout loss to Iowa State in the NCAA tourney. Drummond and Oriakhi seemed to get in each other's way, and in the backcourt Shabazz, who was then a sophomore and first year starter, was not yet the player he would ultimately be his senior year. I remember him really struggle that year with his decision making and often dribbling around the perimeter too much as the shot clock wore down.

I think the current team is constructed better and is deeper, but we will see if they emerge as what I suspect will be the UConn team which has the best chance to repeat as national champions.
 
KhalidShockedTheWorld said:
I think this is now the strongest team that UConn has returned after any of their 5 title winning teams to defend the title won the prior year. The only other team in the discussion is the strange, and ultimately very disappointing 2011-2012 squad with Drummond and Oriakhi (Calhoun's very last team before he retired from UConn). There was a lot of excitement about the 2011-2012 team, which started Drummond, Oriakhi, Lamb, Napier and Boatright. Most of the excitement centered on the Drummond and Oriakhi "500 pounds of prime beef" tandem in the frontcourt, which UConn never had before or since. But they suffered from chemistry issues and flamed out with a blowout loss to Iowa State in the NCAA tourney. Drummond and Oriakhi seemed to get in each other's way, and in the backcourt Shabazz, who was then a sophomore and first year starter, was not yet the player he would ultimately be his senior year. I remember him really struggle that year with his decision making and often dribbling around the perimeter too much as the shot clock wore down.

I think the current team is constructed better and is deeper, but we will see if they emerge as what I suspect will be the UConn team which has the best chance to repeat as national champions.
Click to expand...
The only thing I don't see is a real athletic lock down D wing player. But Diarra and Solo would seem to have some of that D capability to step up, though from a smaller size. They should have better rim protection though, with Clingan's PT doubled and more from Samson too, in 2 spots, if he steps up.

"Samson, I think, is a guy that is going to be able to play both frontcourt (positions)," Hurley said. "We feel like at the five, he's got a chance there to be a nice complement to Donovan, more of a face-up, rim-runner player. And he'll also get minutes at the four. I think Sam's got a lot of positional versatility, but I do like him at the five."
 
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the Blades said:
The only thing I don't see is a real athletic lock down D wing player.
Click to expand...
I would agree. Samson Johnson struggled to defend 5s his freshman season, but he might emerge as a larger defender of wing players, or perhaps one of the freshman will. The other hope is that Clingan is such an interior force that the perimeter defenders can gamble a bit more and play tighter on shooters knowing Clingan will cover up on any mistakes if someone drives to the hole.
 
UConn Now #7 Post-Spencer Signing in Rothstein 45 updated through today:

ROTHSTEIN 45: 2023-24 PRESEASON EDITION | FanDuel Research

*THIS IS ALL SUBJECT TO CHANGE DAILY. It’s never too early to start looking ahead to next season! Below please find a breakdown of the Preseason Edition of the ROTHSTEIN 45 for the 2023-24 season
www.fanduel.com www.fanduel.com
Only problem with Rothstein's writeup is he seems to have forgotten that Apostolos Roumoglou is still on the team and could be a piece off the bench.
 
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Tristen Newton role next year discussed:
www.courant.com

How will Tristen Newton’s role evolve for the 2023-24 UConn men’s basketball season?

The point guard label may not be the most accurate for UConn’s Tristen Newton as the 2023 national champion rejoins roster with shiny new pieces.
www.courant.com www.courant.com
Newton, in his own refreshingly critical self-assessment, noted he was not in the best shape last year. Hopefully he will be in better shape and cut down on TOs. I really did feel like his shooting did improve towards the end of the season, and what he may be talking about was that he was not in great shape at the beginning of the season. Towards the end of the season he played better and shot better (especially showing length on his 3s), but his TOs were a problem as the primary ballhandler.
 
I’m not so sure that Donovan will be able to replace Sanogo‘s offense. . I think he is a 3 year player.

i am confident that Samson develops into a nice offensive contributor off of the bench. And even someone with an nba future.
 
I don't believe Clingan will replicate Sanogo's offense- but he doesn't need to. I see all 5 starters averaging in the 8-12 ppg range. I don't think there is a clear cut main man scorer, although speculation is that Newton and Karaban will be the leading scorers. Clingan will be good for 9-10 ppg just on lobs and dunks. I suspect Spencer will be 10 ppg or so. We haven't seen what Castle will bring but I am guessing maybe 8-9 ppg. UConn will need 20-25 points per game from the bench. Johnson could be a key backing up the 4 and 5. One of the other freshman, at least, will need to give some scoring off the bench. Perhaps Roumoglu will be the Joey C 6 points per game off the bench almost all on 3s.
 
"The rich get richer. After winning a National Championship, it’s inevitable you’ll lose a few key pieces. But the Huskies counter with a loaded incoming class, and one that’s squarely among the best nationally."

 
That's an interesting and detailed analysis by Feldman. He mentions that his biggest question mark with Castle is his shooting, but UConn clearly will not need him to be productive from beyond the arc. The comment on his athletic versatility on D I think bode well as far as possibly helping to replace what AJ brought to the team defensively.

I liked his comment on Solo Ball's "nuclear pull up jumper." Ironically the best pull up jump shooter in UConn history just had her retirement ceremony last night and her speech reportedly lasted for 1.5 hours. Would love to see her brought in to look at Ball's pull up stroke and compare notes:
www.espn.com

Storm retire Bird's jersey in emotional ceremony

The Seattle Storm retired Sue Bird's No. 10 jersey in an emotional ceremony that spanned approximately three hours Sunday at Climate Pledge Arena.
www.espn.com www.espn.com
 
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Sanogo frustrated when he missed a shot from inside a foot. But he was automatic offense more times than not.

and Hawkins movement/catch and shoot is irreplaceable. Not to mention the intangibles and athleticism that Ajax brought,

I love the Spencer signing, but our ceiling might be a sweet 16 this year.

then keep Castle and Clingan and compete for 6 in 24/25.
 
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No way would I raise the white flag on a UConn championship in 2024. It says here that this UConn team has the best chance to repeat since the ill fated 2011-2012 team with Drummond, which arguably had more talent, but no chemistry or leadership. If the guys make the same improvements that Hawkins, Sanogo and AJ did last season, they have the potential. I also think between Spencer and Newton, UConn will have solid leaders. I think Clingan is going to be a defensive force in the middle and the UConn shot blocking is going to be better this year, and the best it's been in a while potentially with Clingan, Johnson and Singare patrolling the paint. We do not yet know what we will get from the freshman, but if 3 of the 5 are immediate contributors, watch out. I think that Castle, Ball and one of Ross or Stewart will be immediate contributors..

People were saying UConn was a Sweet 16 team last year, max, and that proved to be BS. Just like it was in 2014 and 2011, when UConn was nowhere to be seen in the preseason top 15. Plus we have a great coach and motivator on the sideline, who has the taste of winning in his mouth and it's like a shark tasting blood for the first time. He knows he can win another in 2024, and probably 2025, and maybe the next year as well. We re about to go on a great ride with Hurley.
 
By the way, I intend to attend more UConn games next year than at any time since I had season tickets 1990-2007. I was one of the fans in the stands when Gampel Pavilion opened in 1990, and I still remember that game because it was a revenge game against St. John's. St. John, just as they did this past season, gave UConn its worst loss of the 1989-90 season, a 32 point beatdown at Alumni Hall in December. The return game at Gampel ended up being a 14 point UConn win. One thing I remember about that game is Dan Cyrulik played pretty well, and Scott Burrell had at least one highlight dunk. Between the December beatdown at SJU and the Gampel opener, the team had begun to gel, especially on defense. It was after the win over St. John's to open Gampel that I knew they were for real. Hard to believe that was well over 33 years ago, and I was still in my 20s.

Anyway, I am very excited about the potential of next year's team to be great. Why? The great teams are unselfish, and look at who UConn has in the starting lineup. It's all high assist, unselfish players- including Clingan at center. There are no Johnnie Selvie half assist a game guys. They all can dish, and 3 of them are legit 3 point shooters. Add to that the shotblocking on D, the rebounding they are likely to have with Clingan and the big guards crashing the boards, and it is hard to not like what the team can be. They are going to have high assist totals, I am certain of that, and in basketball, teams that have high assist totals shoot well and win.
 
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If you guys want to roll the dice on a UConn team to repeat, next year's team is the team to roll it on. I am going to cite no less an authority than Mick Jagger and his buddy Keith Richards-roll the dice on UConn baby!!!!!:

You got to roll me and call me the tumblin' dice (Call me the tumblin')
Got to roll me (ya yes), got to roll me, got to roll me (Oh yeah)
Got to roll me
Got to roll me (yeah)
Got to roll me (Keep on rolling)
Got to roll me (Keep on rolling)
Got to roll me (Keep on rolling)
Got to roll me
 
KhalidShockedTheWorld said:
By the way, I intend to attend more UConn games next year than at any time since I had season tickets 1990-2007. I was one of the fans in the stands when Gampel Pavilion opened in 1990,
Click to expand...
Welcome back, I had them just like you, since the place opened & I just renewed last week to continue on. I remember that opening night too ( Dream season), had the same tix for almost 30 years, now I'm even closer to the Uconn bench, 5-6 rows away.

We had seasons even before that too with my pops since the 80's in Hartford. Time flies, I remember the KO years when he cleaned out complete rows of fans I saw for years at games. But who can blame them, alot fans probably passed away too. So it's nice to have a team that fits the fans dedication, who stuck it out, it hadn't been easy, until Dan turned it around.
 
the Blades said:
Welcome back, it's nice to have a team that fits the fans dedication, who stuck it out, it hadn't been easy, until Dan turned it around.
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I never left- I just have not been as present at home games as I was in past years. I did see UConn play at Madison Square Garden many times as well in the 1990s and early 2000s, and I was at the inaugural Battle of Atlantis in 2011. It's just been difficult in recent years for various personal reasons.

Last year I made it to one home game (a huge win vs. LIU at Gampel), but I ended up getting Covid-19 the first and only time from attending that game on 12/1/22. Was my fault for not wearing a mask (even though I had brought one), but i was hit particularly hard, and was out of work for most of December, missing my firm's holiday party, which was a huge disappointment. I also gave Covid-19 to my 85 year old father, but he is in good shape, and survived it. Covid 19 actually hit me harder than it did him. Anyway, that spooked me out of attending games the rest of the season, if I can be honest. However, I think we are now past that and even so, I do have the power to mask up if I still have some concerns.

My father, a 1959 UConn graduate, has expressed an interest in attending games next year. I don't know how many more years I will have with him, so I want to make them count. He is not a huge hoops fan, but he always loves going up to UConn. My father has an emotional connection to UConn that I cannot explain. He will tell you, with a straight face, that all of his success in life, and he was very successful in business, was traceable to UConn. I don't really believe that, and believe he would have been successful no matter where he went to school because of his work ethic and mind, but there is no telling him that. He even gets emotional talking about it. I don't have that same level of emotional connection that he does to UConn, but I am glad that he still wants to go to games even at his age. Meanwhile, my buddy who I had season tickets with from 1990-2007, who is my age, no longer attends any UConn games, unfortunately due to physical issues. I asked him to go to the game at which I caught Covid, because I had an extra ticket, but he told me he just can't do the travel any more. It's really too bad, but he does still follow the team, and I am certain he gives a lot of money to UConn as well. He is a fellow graduate -1985.
 
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KhalidShockedTheWorld said:
I never left- I just have not been as present at home games as I was in past years. I did see UConn play at Madison Square Garden many times as well in the 1990s and early 2000s, and I was at the inaugural Battle of Atlantis in 2011. It's just been difficult in recent years for various personal reasons.


My father, a 1959 UConn graduate, has expressed an interest in attending games next year. I don't know how many more years I will have with him, so I want to make them count. He is not a huge hoops fan, but he always loves going up to UConn. My father has an emotional connection to UConn that I cannot explain. He will tell you, with a straight face, that all of his success in life, and he was very successful in business, was traceable to UConn. I don't really believe that, and believe he would have been successful no matter where he went to school because of his work ethic and mind, but there is no telling him that. He even gets emotional talking about it. I don't have that same level of emotional connection that he does to UConn, but I am glad that he still wants to go to games even at his age. Meanwhile, my buddy who I had season tickets with from 1990-2007, who is my age, no longer attends any UConn games, unfortunately due to physical issues. I asked him to go to the game at which I caught Covid, because I had an extra ticket, but he told me he just can't do the travel any more. It's really too bad, but he does still follow the team, and I am certain he gives a lot of money to UConn as well. He is a fellow graduate -1985.
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I hear ya...on all the different stuff in life that ties into Uconn fandom. Funny thing is before Hurley even my 2 nephews who were on campus until they graduated (2020 and 2021) didn't want to go to BB games. One is teaching and doing his PHD @ U of AZ now and was Prez of the math club at Uconn, so he wasn't a big sports guy anyway. The other as I mentioned B4 was a walk-on for Geno's practice team and was good friends with Jalen Adams and that crew...But neither cared to see the teams with KO.....and none of my other buddies did much either. They acted like they were doing me a favor to go free of charge.

Now I have friends coming out of the woodwork..inviting THEIR SELVES to games even before I ask. Everyone loves to front run, LOL....
 
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OK back to getting the train on the rails and this years team....decent highlight package...and Uconn will now have 2 end of the shot clock guys, who can take their man off the dribble.

 
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That's what I am talking about on the 2023-24 UConn team. Castle sure looks like he can shoot on that tape. Buy low now and sell high later, fellas, as far as this team goes. My prediction that this UConn team has the best chance to repeat of any of the 5 UConn championship defenders stands, and here is the historical analysis. All UConn needs to do is make the Sweet 16 to record the most successful title defense season, and if you guys think this is not a Sweet 16 team at least, your nuts:

1999-2000 UConn Men:
Record: 25-10 (10-6, 4th in Big East MBB), Rank: 20th in the Final AP Poll, lost NCAA 2nd round to Tennessee 65-51 after Khalid El Amin left game with wrist injury

2004-2005 UConn Men:
Record: 23-8 (13-3, 2nd in Big East MBB) Rank: 13th in the Final AP Poll, lost NCAA 2nd round to NC State 65-62

2011-2012 UConn Men:
Record: 20-14 (8-10, 9th in Big East MBB) Rank: Unranked lost NCAA 1st round to Iowa State 77-64

2014-2015 UConn Men:
Record: 20-15 (10-8, 5th in AAC MBB) Rank: Unranked lost NIT 1st round to Arizona State, 68-61

2023-2024 UConn Men:
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
 
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