Whaley
- Thread starter CaNOLEE
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Why would it mean Akok isn't coming back? All it means is that UConn returns 6 guys who have starting experience in the program.
I agree that they could use some 3 point shooters. Polley's 3 point production needs to be replaced, and I don't know what they will get from the 2 incoming guards,
I agree that they could use some 3 point shooters. Polley's 3 point production needs to be replaced, and I don't know what they will get from the 2 incoming guards,
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Akok could not even play let alone start. I don't think he is worried about starting right now. He is worried about getting back to what he was freshman year, seeing if he can even play 10 minutes and going from there. He suffered a very serious injury that has one of the longest recuperation times of all basketball injuries. Once he has his legs back, then starting will be determined by who the best players are.
I think AJ is more like to start with Whaley and Sanogo, to start the season.
I think AJ is more like to start with Whaley and Sanogo, to start the season.
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True, right now, ( a healthy) Akok's in line for both Josh and TP's minutes ( if he can shoot it like he did @ Xavier in his only extended play this year) with Whaley sliding into the 5 when he's out there with Akok. But a shooting / break down off the dribble scorer ( from the portal ?) is a huge need.
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The transfer portal will be filling up with available guys in the next few weeks, hopefully they will be able to get someone who can fill that need who is a plug and play type of player that can hit the ground running. I saw that Swider transferred from Villanova to Syracuse. I didn't think Syracuse really needed a 3 point shooter based on what I saw of them in the NCAA tourney, but they just added a guy who was the best 3 point shooter on the Villanova team last year. There will be many more transfers in the next few weeks, and UConn needs to pick someone good.
The best thing about Whaley returning is the defensive versatility he gives the team. Last year there were games in which Sanogo could not be played due to small ball teams playing jump shooting 5s. Sanogo was helpless when chasing these small perimeter shooting 5s outside on the perimeter. Having Whaley around is important for those games. Whaley also showed signs of being able to stick open 3s himself, so when he is out there the opposing 5 can't leave him wide open either.
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It looks like both Diggins and Hawkins can stroke it from 3. A veteran 3 and D guy would be welcome, but these two should at the very least be part of the rotation.
We don't know if they will be effective and reliable 3 point shooters out of the gate. In any event there should be experienced, established 3 point shooters available in the transfer portal. I would prefer a Niels Giffey type. 3, D and glue.
I was shocked to read that Qudus Wahab transferred from Georgetown to Maryland in the last week. Wahab showed a lot of improvement and was a rim protecting force in the Big East tournament. He now gives Maryland the Big Man they lacked last year and Maryland is #6 and UConn #30 in the "way too early ESPN preseason poll." Gonzaga and UCLA are 1 and 2.
I was shocked to read that Qudus Wahab transferred from Georgetown to Maryland in the last week. Wahab showed a lot of improvement and was a rim protecting force in the Big East tournament. He now gives Maryland the Big Man they lacked last year and Maryland is #6 and UConn #30 in the "way too early ESPN preseason poll." Gonzaga and UCLA are 1 and 2.
If Juzang doesn’t leave early, I like UCLA going into the season.
Giffey was so good his senior year. Although, if the mustached moron played him more earlier in his career, he likely would have produced.
Giffey was so good his senior year. Although, if the mustached moron played him more earlier in his career, he likely would have produced.
Recent Borges article on TP that you guys have probably seen. I would also add that Hawkins has a sweet looking stroke from 3 and he'll seem to be a shorter (reportedly 6-6 by himself) more athletic, and similiar skinny looking version of TP when he was a FR. So the roster will take on an interesting look depending on what Tyler does.
A few things that need to happen are Gaffney taking it up another gear, which I think he has. Since he seemed to show a better will to compete than James did in the NCAA game. And if Tyler does come back he's gonna need to increase his mobility (now 2 seasons off his ACL injury ) and be a ton better working to get open for his one plus skill (3pt shooting). Plus Andre's got to figure out how to score the ball, some place, some how. But all of these guys need a big summer of improvement across the board, just to maintain a 3rd place BE level.
PS...Borges mentions "Florida’s Noah Locke" who is now off the board (Ville) as a transfer option.
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There is an interesting note about UConn exploring JUCO transfer options and some guy in the Borges twitter feed asks whether any JUCO has made any kind of impact at UConn. I can think of 2 guys who did, Johnny Selvie, who was an undersized power forward with inside scoring and rebounding ability, and a kid named Willie McCloud, who could jump to the moon and was a decent option off the bench. I can also think of a bunch of guys who were highly touted but failures, with Covington Cormier and Monquencio Hardnett at the top of that list. Basically if a guy is not All American on the JUCO level I would not be interested. As I recall, Selvie was a JUCO All American.
I guess Uconn added another shooter (not from the portal)
"I want to come back because UConn basketball is my family and I wanted the chance to play ball with my family one more time," Polley said in a release. "I feel like we moved the program forward last year and we want to take it even further next season.".......He will submit his name into the NBA Draft for the purpose of receiving feedback from the league.
"I want to come back because UConn basketball is my family and I wanted the chance to play ball with my family one more time," Polley said in a release. "I feel like we moved the program forward last year and we want to take it even further next season.".......He will submit his name into the NBA Draft for the purpose of receiving feedback from the league.
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There is no question Polley can shoot, but he had all kinds of problems getting open and was taken out of games way too easily. Although he won BE 6th Man of the Year, this award was a bit of a surprise in my judgment, as I thought he had a disappointing season overall. I expected more explosions like he had against Marquette and Butler. In those 2 games UConn was able to get into transition a lot and he got many open looks. Unfortunately when UConn got forced into a halfcourt game, like vs. Maryland, he was too easily stymied. Some posters have blamed this on the coaching staff not running enough screens to free Polley, others have said that Polley could do more in his movement without the ball. If they can figure out a way to get him open consistently, he is a lock to can 40% of his 3s or better.
If you look at Polley's shooting stats, he is coming off his worst statistical season shooting the ball, although part of that may also be him coming back from a very serious season ending injury in 2019-20, in which he was starting to play his best ball right before he got hurt:
www.espn.com
The other thing is his 2 rebound per game average, which was his weakest output and statistical worst rebounding season if you go by his rebounds per minutes played. Even though he is a 3 point specialist you would like to be able to use him as a stretch 4, but rebounding like that is not going to go a long ways towards playing him more than the 20 mpg he got last year.
Tyler Polley - UConn Huskies Forward - ESPN
View the profile of UConn Huskies Forward Tyler Polley on ESPN. Get the latest news, live stats and game highlights.
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