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Uconn @ Providence - Wed Jan 4

the Blades

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Jan 20, 2003
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8:30 pm....TV-FS1
Don't look now but Providence has won 7 in a row and are at the top of the BE standings.
So another tough road test but the Friars are a very different match-up than Xavier. With Cooley starting a much smaller line-up. It'll be interesting to see how DH plays it because of this. And if he freezes Clingan out of this game too, despite the effectiveness he had last game in his 7 minutes total.

CLICK IMAGE-
7-Providence-2022-23-12-3.jpg
 
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Well...Karaban another BE award (more for the Nova game), to bad we didn't get to see if Uconn's 7' 2" problem could have stopped Nunge from getting his, SMH!

 
Despite not having a big team, their rebounding stats are pretty good. Kind of average shooting the 3, but that's not where UConn got hurt at Xavier (as I had been worried about). Xavier hurt UConn inside. I think UConn really needs to crash the O-boards in this game. Should be a good game.
 
Was looking at Providence's 3 losses- at home by 10 to Miami, and then on the road by 3 to St. Louis and 13 to TCU. The only one of those games in which PC was notably outrebounded was the home loss to Miami. TCU beat PC with very good shooting but it was close on the boards. I don't know if playing a big lineup against PC insures winning the battle of the boards.

They have the look of a top 25 team and an NCAA tourney team although their NET ranking isn't great.
 
Another case of out ref 'ed and outcoached. 35 to 19' FT's( after the 28-9 FT home job for Xavier), and refs wouldn't call a thing on Providence until the game got out of control.... Jackson's turning into another case of DH love like with Alterique Gilbert.... a reckless, out of control trainwreck on offense, but DH thinks he's a leader....SMH stop encouraging him to shoot you out of the game (1-7 on FG's) . His D and reb's, great, leave it at that...Team looked good as a front runner, but when things get tough, who's gonna lead.... ???...Joey going cold doesn't help either.

 
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True.. they bumped & hacked the shit out of Uconn all over the court, until Uconn fought back, but then magically it was a foul.


 
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Clingan 4-4 FGs, 12 pts, 11 reb, 4 blocks, could've done the same thing vs. Xavier, but you actually have to take him off the bench.
 
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Agree with everything, Blades.

Joey C is 0-the last month it seems. We don’t have a goto guy when things break down. it’s not Hawkins or Sanogo. It may have to be Newton.

And FT’s were 28-9 at one point in this game. They made it look a little better late when the game ballooned to double figures. I disagreed with Donny Marshall. We attached the rim,but weren’t rewarded like they were.

We also aren’t getting the majority of 50/50 balls that we did early in the year.
 
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It may have to be Newton.
I disagreed with Donny Marshall. We attached the rim,but weren’t rewarded like they were.
We also aren’t getting the majority of 50/50 balls that we did early in the year.
YEP...3 other good points, Newton seems hesitant to even try to score, like at ECU. Seems he could've scored on the 5-10 Bynum anytime he wanted to early, but scoring/being selfish is an afterthought. ( And he was getting hacked w/ no call when he did go to the rim)... Jackson sure as hell can't do anything off the dribble to the hoop, unless it's a wide open dunk, his only score.... and then AJ's busted looking 3 point clankers, SMH, to guarentee the loss once again like vs. Xavier, lead his team to another double digit deficit and guarantee no come back when it's close.

I've been shutting off the volume listening to Donny, the apologists trying to show he's not a Uconn homer. He's been that way as a play by play guy for years. It's the reason the Celtics got rid of him. He plays the trying to be the Mr. Objective angle way to much, as he ends up being the opposite. Can't listen to his candy ass act, which was a reverse of the way he played.

Hawkins refusing to go hard after a ball right in front of him only to have Providence hustle it away, was one specific play that was the tip of the iceburg of that trend and I was thinking the same.

So you add all this together with a BS whistle from BE refs, that goes back to the Georgetown game ( I re watched it 3-4 times, easily 12-14 calls they screwed Uconn on in that game) and the players don't know what's a foul or not a foul, while they get hacked themselves.

May not be easy to fix though, since I read Jeff Goodman, the hoops writer, has mentioned he's heard it from BE refs that it's personal with DH and they're sick of his sideline act. If that's true and they made these comments, that they're going out of the way to stick it to him, it needs to be investigated and what refs are saying it.

OK go Uconn, Creighton's at home next, let's see if the onesided whistle continues against my Huskies, if it does, then we know it's a biased trend and I might get tossed myself....:mad:
 
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Here is the full report from Borges, in which he mentions Bryce Hopkins' abuse of Alex Karaban and Hurley's comment that Hopkins was the best player UConn faced this year:
The game was very disappointing to me. It seemed like UConn had nobody to cover Hopkins besides the beleaguered Karaban. Finally playing Clingan and Sanogo together didn't produce the run I expected and the outside shooting wasn't good. UConn did get beat for a lot of loose balls, and Newton didn't seem able to draw fouls or score, despite often appearing to have driving lanes. Other than Clingan, the bench gave UConn nothing. I had expected this to be a closer and more tightly contested game.

UConn still has 2 tough games ahead of them. Creighton at home Saturday, and then at Marquette next week. This is a 5 game gauntlet UConn is in the middle of right now. Even splitting the next 2 games, 4-3 in Big East play is not what anyone had hoped for.

I was curious about the FT disparity in Duke's 24 point loss at NC State last night. Duke actually shot 10 more FTs than the the home team (NC State), yet managed to lose by 24, LOL.
 
Finally playing Clingan and Sanogo together didn't produce the run I expected and the outside shooting wasn't good.
2 things that did get way better was shooting % and rim protection by far...... AJ (1-7) and Diarra ( 0-4, 1-4 FT's) should never be shooting while trying to stage a comeback. And Joey has become an enigma, with the magically allowed bumping and hand checking by the BE refs vs. Uconn, that we never saw out of conference.
 
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I can see us losing 5-6 games in the BE this year and then making a long run in both tourneys.
in fact, I think it’s final 4 or bust.

as of now, who is going to leave for the nba? Sanogo is likely, but does he make a roster? Its a coin toss. Hawkins has obvious pro talent, but his shot selection and inability to get consistent points off the bounce make him a second round pick right now, Jackson? He‘s a small Ben Simmons.

do they all come back next year? I think Hawkins and Jackson should, but with a strong tourney, you never know.
 
Canolee,

NBA Draft Net's latest mock has Hawkins going #14, AJ #33 and Sanogo #57:
Based on that Hawkins should leave and AJ and Sanogo should return. Sanogo still needs to improve in handling double and triple teams. He has issues with forcing up tough shots in traffic rather than looking for the open guy, although last night he passed to an open Karaban for a 3 when the game was still within reach. In my mind Sanogo is a good player but has shortcomings, and based on his projections he should definitely come back another year, barring a great postseason that jacks him up the board.

I think Hawkins is long term the best NBA prospect of the 3, but he too needs to work on things. His handle like you mentioned, and diversifying his game.

AJ is indeed a poor man's Ben Simmons, but is 3 inches shorter. Slightly better FT shooter then Simmons who doesn't like being fouled or having to shoot FTs.
 
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KS, I agree that Hawkins has the most pro potential. And pro coaches are ego maniacs and think they can get more out of the kid than the junior varsity college coach. But right now, hawk can’t take a 20 year old kid off the bounce consistently. How’s he going to do that against a grown man with more ability and intelligence?

im not panicking team wise. But we need to find a place to get easier buckets. Our two best players(Hawkins and Sanogo) force shots And as you said that Sanogo craps his pants against a double team. its bizarre to me that Jackson, who’s a freak athlete with a solid handle can’t get to the basket either?

3’s are going to come and go. We have to find other ways to score when they aren’t going down.
 
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That's a pretty good summary of the issues we have seen. One solution is to play Clingan more so as to alleviate the double teams on Sanogo. It didn't work so well against PC, but mainly due to the guards being terrible. Alleyne, Diarra, Newton and AJ were nonfactors against PC. Clingan, with the increased minutes, gave increased production.

With Creighton looming tomorrow, I would go with the same personnel groupings. Creighton isn't as good as PC defensively.
 
Jackson? He‘s a small Ben Simmons......its bizarre to me that Jackson, who’s a freak athlete with a solid handle can’t get to the basket either? ( +1 )
I'd pray we could swap out Andre for a small Ben. Simmons at least knows how to score the ball and was a 20 point scorer in his 1 year at LSU. And scores in the NBA (when he played), except from his weak FT #'s. Andre is no more than an athletic push guard in a small forwards body. Hurley should limit his game to that and a role that's no more than Dennis Rodman.

I have no idea how he'll every play in the NBA when he has no body control going to the basket unless it's on a wide open dunk. It's like as soon as someone gets in front of him/ or to take a charge (this ain't HS anymore AJ) he self implodes with the ball, like some kid we've all played youth hoops with, who doesn't even know how to shoot off the right foot. And not to mention his busted lookin' shot (28.9 % from 3 but he keeps jackin' them up, SMH) and no jumper off the dribble. So what's his role in the NBA with that (lack of ) skill set ?

I've said it way to much but less is more from AJ... team seemed to play alot better when he's limited, like out in Portland when he came off the bench. (was only 5-19 there too). But Hurley anointed him as the leader....so to be continued...
 
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Blades,

Although I agree with much of what you say, NBA Draft Net has AJ at #33. In the NBA there is a significant value to athletic 6'7" defenders and he can probably cover 1, 2, and 3 at the NBA level. I think his handle and possibly his passing ability has some NBA types seeing him as a Jason Kidd type point guard, who can defend. I am speculating of course, but Kidd was a terrible shooter until the very end of his career when he made himself a 40% 3 point shooter. Kidd of course was a better player than AJ, but AJ may be seen as bigger and more athletic version of Kidd without the same level of skills.

Should AJ and Sanogo come back for their senior years? Yes. Should Hawkins? Probably but if an agent tells him he is mid 1st round, he has to grab the cash and say "development be damned."

Bouknight wasn't ready and needed development and look where he is. Got paid, but now under his second NBA coach it's DNP after DNP:
On this topic I must reiterate that John Grisham's novel "Sooley" is a must read as it talks a lot about the draft process and the role agents play in communicating to players where they will be picked, and the money in their projected selection slot. Great job by Grisham with that book which I enjoyed immensely. His friend Tony Bennett (Virginia coach) was an acknowledged source of info for the book who was thanked at the end in the acknowledgments.
 
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Canolee,

NBA Draft Net's latest mock has Hawkins going #14, AJ #33 and Sanogo #57:
Based on that Hawkins should leave and AJ and Sanogo should return. Sanogo still needs to improve in handling double and triple teams. He has issues with forcing up tough shots in traffic rather than looking for the open guy, although last night he passed to an open Karaban for a 3 when the game was still within reach. In my mind Sanogo is a good player but has shortcomings, and based on his projections he should definitely come back another year, barring a great postseason that jacks him up the board.

I think Hawkins is long term the best NBA prospect of the 3, but he too needs to work on things. His handle like you mentioned, and diversifying his game.

AJ is indeed a poor man's Ben Simmons, but is 3 inches shorter. Slightly better FT shooter then Simmons who doesn't like being fouled or having to shoot FTs.
The mock draft board/resource you reference is not close to reality. The only player with a chance to get drafted is Hawkins and his stock is slipping. Andre does not shoot at a high percentage, especially contested and under pressure....that does not translate to today's NBA.

Let's hope for improvement across the board and more wins.
 
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Here is a mock that came out from BR which has Hawkins going #27, AJ #47 and Sanogo not on the board:
(problem with link)
I think the issue the scouts have with Sanogo is he is a 6'9" guy who has problems with guys who have size in college. Simply put he is seen as undersized for what he projects to be in the NBA.

The same writer of the BR mock draft (Jonathan Wasserman) writes for NBA.com and has also posted this analysis saying Hawkins is an undervalued prospect and his reasons why:
His scouting report on Hawkins seems completely on point to me.
 
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