Zach Brown EYBL Session I stats

[Russ Wood]

Guards tend to dominate the ball in AAU play, but if you have a 7-footer and he only has 17 shot attempts (and some had to be put backs) in three games, something is not right.

The stats I saw did not show personal fouls. That was a problem for Brown last year in EYBL play.

7.3 ppg (had 13 in one game)
7 rpg
3.3 bpg
Poor free throw shooting 33.3% FTs

Only one team that Nike South Beach played had a player listed taller than 6-foot-8 Brown should have had a field day.

 

[the Blades]

Hate to say it for a Uconn commit (???).... but I think it's called overrated ! ... and the kid needs alot of work.

Guards tend to dominate the ball in AAU play, but if you have a 7-footer and he only has 17 shot attempts (and some had to be put backs) in three games, something is not right.
Poor free throw shooting 33.3% FTs ( Ouch ! that 's worse than Andre Drummond... and this kid is no Andre )
Only one team that Nike South Beach played had a player listed taller than 6-foot-8 Brown should have had a field day.

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

Russ- Drummond actually shot 29.5% on FTs in his one season at UConn, and has slightly improved to mid 30s or so in the NBA. It is believed that Drummond's 29.5% FTs for the season at UConn in 2011-12 is a record low season not only at UConn, but possibly in organized basketball history. I did some research at the time and nobody who had enough FT attempts and was allowed to play every game shot that badly at the line. At 33.3% Brown is actually a bit better than Drummond was in his one season at UConn.

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

There is a lot of negative stuff being reported on Brown......but my impression was that he was a defense first player and that is what UConn wants from its centers. FT% and PPG not as important as rebounds, blocks and shot alterations.

 

[the Blades]

This kid couldn't carry Drummond's jock strap as a highschool baller who was around 40 % FT's in HS and was even going to skip college all together after another year in prep and go right to the NBA as a top 3 pick. So I'm selling on the spin or some comparison regarding his rebounding, defense and nonsense.... what does Brown have about a 10 inch vertical.
The best thing about him right now is that he looks like a 4 year player despite what his "great people" might be telling him about endorsement contracts and the NBA already, LOL!

 

[rta32]

He doesn't have to be a one and done to be a success. I'm confident that as long as he keeps off-the-court issues minimalized, he will end up being a productive player at UConn.

Hopefully KO can pair him up with someone like Richards or Gak so we can have a UConn front court more like the early 2000s than recent years.

 

[the Blades]

I don't see a one and done, not even a three and done in today's NBA with the way they like to stretch the floor, with pick and pop players and skilled bigs. Just that his "people" might. So you better be able to dominate at something like Drummond does as a double double machine( last I read he had 68 this year):


or else your just a dime a dozen 7ft'er to the NBA... But the bigger issue is what way does KO want to play ??? He seems to have a tendency to go skilled and smaller himself. But with the off court things already and outside influences that have been mentioned regarding Brown....I don't know if he'd be worth the bother if KO wants to play NBA stretch ball like he has lately. And wasn't there an age issue too... of him being to old ?

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

There is no question that Brown isn't a player in the same class as Drummond and it's questionable as to whether he is even a top 50 recruit. But he is a 7 footer and is long and is a good shot blocker and rebounder and those kinds of players, unless they are very foul prone and cannot stay on the floor, are always needed. How about that 7'6" Taco for UCF, where was he ranked? He looked like a pretty good player against UConn last year even though UConn beat UCF two games. Anyone in the league would like to have that kid.

 

[the Blades]

That Tacko Fall kid is just a freak and he has unique potential..hell... he even made a 7ft'er like Brimah look like a midget .. but he couldn't run the floor and Uconn ran him, UCF and that other hefty dude off the court, both times they played him.

If KO is all in on Brown that's all I care about. It just seems like his resume is starting to sound like Nate Miles....Basketball interest guardian...CHECK ....bounces around from school to school CHECK ...off court problems CHECK.... and what are his grades like with all that bouncing around ? ...plus I hear he was a 19 year old HS junior and he may not be eligible for HS in Miami now.
I don't know... issues could be adding up and he still seems like an older aged project ( meaning as soon as he starts to develop anything.... his advisors are going to want him to try for the league).... But like I said " KO"...... he's the man and has steered Uconn away from alot of land mine recruits so far, so if he's all in

 

[CaNOLEE]

He's more of a left handed Roy Hibbert than he is a Dre clone. Enoch has more upside imo, hopefully the battles in practice will make them both better.

 

[Ozzie3178]

Well not sure we are really interested in him anymore......

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

I get excited every time I look at Enoch and his body and see him dunk, but I remember I felt the same way about Souleymane Wane. I really thought Wane would be a great player at UConn, but he was a slightly more serviceable backup center than most of the backups UConn have had. He played a key role in the first national championship win over Duke, with his defensive double teams and 4 points off the bench and taking 4 fouls. Enoch has a similar body to Wane, but looks more athletic, and just hope he can be coached up into a player. He could make a lot of strides next year.

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

Ozzie-

It wouldn't surprise me if the coaches lost interest in Zack Brown. Something doesn't seem right with this kid, as Blades noted, too many red flags..........................

 

[the Blades]

Well not sure we are really interested in him anymore......

hmmm, I had no reason to assume that Oz, but since you put it that way....all I can say is I'm not surprised

 

[UConnFamily]

Well not sure we are really interested in him anymore......

I'm somewhat relieved with that, if true. I soured on him after his PSA dismissal and think UConn would be better off pursuing someone who doesn't have the off court distractions regardless if it's brown or his camps doing

 

[Silk31]

A lot of us, myself included, wondered if Brown would ever put on a Huskies uniform after his dismissal from PSA...seemed like the coaches didn't take too well to that whole mess and their could have been a lot more to it than a little post game altercation

 

[the Blades]

He's more of a left handed Roy Hibbert than he is a Dre clone. Enoch has more upside imo, hopefully the battles in practice will make them both better.

Especially considering how young Enoch is.... seeing he will be entering school this Sept as an 18 year old college Soph, while Brown is a 19 year old HS junior

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

The whole situation with Brown raises the bigger question of character and integrity.......a lot of schools have learned painful lessons, UConn with Nate Miles, SMU with that kid who got them put on probation and then transferred out when he couldn't handle the fallout, Baylor with a number of athletes they recruited. Sometimes one kid just ain't worth the trouble, especially if he isn't really all that good of a player. The kid SMU got a postseason ban over was a top10 kid, but Brown and Miles are/were not even close to being in that ballpark. Nate Miles never played in the NBA. I don't think he played pro ball anywhere. Granted, UConn took a chance on Caron Butler and he made the most of it, and unfortunately that made Calhoun think he can be Father Flanagan to all the badass kids who play hoop. It is a new world now and not really worth the risk of taking on some of these kids. Is it worth getting a postseason ban over a kid who isn't even a top 50 player? Come on now.

 

[Dr.O1]

Well not sure we are really interested in him anymore......

Heard the staff is really into nick richards

 

[12rtackerman12]

So what is more likely Brown staying committed or decommitting?

 

[the Blades]

Especially since he was likely 2 years away when he committed... maybe he'll just end up with one of those un-commitable offers like in FB( do everything your supposed to and...) or the same type of Uconn commitment that Prince Ali and Turtle Jackson had a few years ago..

 

[Ozzie3178]

I mean just put it this way... The staff did not watch a single minute of any of his games at eybl. Even when talking to miller about him he was passive. Like oh yea he is in and out a lot. Like general weird comments.

Bu said he is still working with him mentally upstairs but not sure if that is a last chance thing or just continuing to help him out.

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

Regarding Nick Richards, 247 Sports Crystal Ball has him 100% in Kentucky's pocket so it looks like that ship has sailed:

http://247sports.com/Player/Nick-Richards-76122

 

[Dr.O1]

Regarding Nick Richards, 247 Sports Crystal Ball has him 100% in Kentucky's pocket so it looks like that ship has sailed:

http://247sports.com/Player/Nick-Richards-76122

Crystal balls are silly in most cases until a few days before a kid announces

https://www.sny.tv/college-recruiting/news/nick-richards-looking-to-cut-list-soon/172777622

Kentucky, Syracuse, UConn, those are the main schools that are high recruiting me right now, and Indiana," Richards said

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

The one advantage UConn has is if Richards is living with family in Manhasset, NY, where he goes to school, UConn is a hell of a lot closer than Kentucky and Syracuse to the place he now calls home.

 

[rta32]

The one advantage UConn has is if Richards is living with family in Manhasset, NY, where he goes to school, UConn is a hell of a lot closer than Kentucky and Syracuse to the place he now calls home.

Also Kentucky has a good shot at Obiagu, and both Ikey and Richards are true centers, so they would be competing for minutes.

 

[the Blades]

So this chapter is closed:
Center Zach Brown And UConn Officially Cut Ties

 

[Russ Wood]

According to multiple sources, unfortunately for Zach, very few positive things happened after his guardian transferred him from Miami Beach High School to Miami High School.

That's not an indictment of MHS per se, more about poor decisions by one adult.

I am actually very concerned about Zach.

I also have to give Coach Ollie a lot of credit for hanging in there with the young man for so long. Several big programs started backing off him around April 2015, and not because of poor play.

 

[CaNOLEE]

Too bad for the kid. His guardian should do something more honorable like chase ambulances. He's a young man with a difficult past, not a stock.

 

[the Blades]

That Tacko Fall kid is just a freak and he has unique potential..hell... he even made a 7ft'er like Brimah look like a midget .. but he couldn't run the floor and Uconn ran him, UCF and that other hefty dude off the court, both times they played him.

If KO is all in on Brown that's all I care about. It just seems like his resume is starting to sound like Nate Miles....Basketball interest guardian...CHECK ....bounces around from school to school CHECK ...off court problems CHECK.... and what are his grades like with all that bouncing around ? ...plus I hear he was a 19 year old HS junior and he may not be eligible for HS in Miami now.
I don't know... issues could be adding up and he still seems like an older aged project ( meaning as soon as he starts to develop anything.... his advisors are going to want him to try for the league).... But like I said " KO"...... he's the man and has steered Uconn away from alot of land mine recruits so far, so if he's all in

Remember this thread from almost a year ago ? ...... so I would think it's safe to assume, like Miles, Zach Brown will never play a minute of D-1 basketball......
it never ends with this kid, what a drag: EXCLUSIVE: 7' 1" former stud hoops recruit behind bars again

 

[Russ Wood]

It is truly a sad story. I saw the kid play in November. He was out of shape and slow but his coach felt that he'd be in good shape by the time he left for St. John's.

His one time guardian, Michael Lipman reportedly severed ties with the kid after his Memorial Day arrest in 2016. Brown then reunited with his brother and mother. Once that happened everyone in South Florida pretty much knew how the Zach Brown story would end.

 

[KhalidShockedTheWorld]

Kind of feel bad for Lipman after all he did to get that kid walking in a straight line to get a college scholarship. You can bring a horse to water but can't make him drink is what we see here. It's too bad because the blowup of Brown's recruitment has really hurt UConn which is now without any proven rim protector for next season and that is a big problem. Which needs to be solved.

 

[Russ Wood]

I do not feel bad for Lipman at all. In fact, if I ever talk to him again it will be too soon. I know more about this situation than I can post in an open forum. Just t-r-u-s-t me, plenty of folks in South Florida, who know how the Zach Brown story went sideways, want nothing to do with Lipman either.

 

[the Blades]

I do not feel bad for Lipman at all. In fact, if I ever talk to him again it will be too soon. I know more about this situation than I can post in an open forum. Just t-r-u-s-t me, plenty of folks in South Florida, who know how the Zach Brown story went sideways, want nothing to do with Lipman either.

Thanks for mentioning that...... after watching a video a few years back about the kid and hearing Lipman talk and his saleman BS, I never got a warm fuzzy feeling about Lipman or his tactics. He kinda seemed self serving....Converting the kid to Judaism against the families wishes ??? (not that he had a good situation with them) Well of course the kids gonna go along with anything the guy said because he's starving on the street for a meal. All I heard in that video from Lipman was about the NBA, marketing opportunists, blah blah, blah, which I'm sure he was hoping to cash in on. Were it seemed like the kid needed someone to help him stay grounded and work hard ever day with what was in front of him and obviously that went terribly wrong.

 

[Russ Wood]

I will say this, and I would say it to Lipman if he was in front of me, the only adult I ever met who gave me the impression that he truly cared about Zach Brown the person is Jacob Shaw.

Shaw is the Head Coach at Miami Beach HS. I truly believe that he would have been there for Brown even if the kid couldn't play basketball. Brown really seemed to trust Shaw. Shaw is devastated about what has happened to this kid.

The arrests and fights etc all happened after Lipman made Zach transfer from Miami Beach HS. I don't know anyone in South Florida who thinks that is a coincidence.