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Did Uconn do enough to this off-season?
- Thread starter OceanDoggie
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Yes.
As I said in another post, there are too many unknowns for anyone to say at this point in time.
DH even said in a recent interview that the staff didn't know whether they could go back to back until they saw how good SC was in preseason workouts and how good and relentless CS was in those workouts.
They'll begin to get some ideas about next year by July and we might get a few hints from what DH has to say at that time.
DH even said in a recent interview that the staff didn't know whether they could go back to back until they saw how good SC was in preseason workouts and how good and relentless CS was in those workouts.
They'll begin to get some ideas about next year by July and we might get a few hints from what DH has to say at that time.
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I think we did excellent. But you also don't want to do too much. Could we have gotten another guy or two in the portal? Sure. But then we would've pushed out our young guys. You can only bring in so much before retention of your current roster becomes an issue. Ultimately, we need to consider that only one of our players entered the portal -- the fact that we retained all 4 of our rising sophomores is a huge part of what makes our offseason so successful.
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This is D1 basketball you bring in the best available players. You can't worry about your players getting mad if you bring in another player. If so they need to improve more if they don't want to be replaced. I want to get another title you have to keep recruiting because other top teams are recruiting to beat you ! This is not Kiddy ball !
Yes we did. Even if AK leaves we’ll have an 8 man rotation of Mahaney, Diarra, Nowell, Ball, McNeeley, Stewart, Johnson, and Reed. The majority of teams don’t play more than 8 guys so to imply we lack depth, even without AK, is simply incorrect. AK puts us over the top though. With him, we’re top 3. Without him, still top 10.
Waquoit
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It may seems like it but this isn't the pros. You shouldn't treat the players like they are and Hurley doesn't. He didn't start chucking guys overboard when he got here, much to the chagrin of those who called it "a sign of weakness". The Hurley way builds trust and gets buy-in, that's how you go back-to-back.
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Strongly disagree with this. Trying to win with only portal guys would be nearly impossible. You need to establish a culture. And you need players who are familiar with our system and their teammates. There's a huge benefit to having guys who are going to stay on the roster 3-4 years. If you push out guys like Stewart, Ball, etc., then you're constantly trying to get new players up to speed quickly and, in my opinion, it's a losing proposition.
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Depends very strongly on whether Karaban comes back.
If he does, yes. We added the starting-caliber center we needed, a starting guard, and a starting-caliber wing. We have depth and talent at all positions.
If not, then we'll be patching over arguably the most important position in our offense and may be more of a rebuilding year (still top 15 or so, but championship contention will be very difficult), towards a 2025-26 led by Nowell, Mahaney, McNeeley, Stewart, Reed, who should all return.
If he does, yes. We added the starting-caliber center we needed, a starting guard, and a starting-caliber wing. We have depth and talent at all positions.
If not, then we'll be patching over arguably the most important position in our offense and may be more of a rebuilding year (still top 15 or so, but championship contention will be very difficult), towards a 2025-26 led by Nowell, Mahaney, McNeeley, Stewart, Reed, who should all return.
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Hurley himself has said that the portal should not be used to build an all star team. As others have said, establishing and maintaining a culture is hugely important as well, and bringing in a slate of mercenaries every off season is not a sustainable path to success. Last year’s “best” transfer portal classes did not perform well in the aggregate.
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my thoughts exactly. with AK we are a finals favorite. without AK, and without adding a backup PF, then i think our goal is the sweet 16. depending on who fills the 12th scholly if AK leaves we could be elite 8 or final 4.
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The staff seems highly invested in the improvement from year 1 to year 2 of guys like Ball and Stewart. And Hurley mentioned Ross repeatedly in his media availability. If past is prologue, I don't know why anyone would bet against them making a second year leap. The guys that came before them certainly did.
To an extent, yes. But culture is built on trust, relationships, and player development. Anyone who would have traded one year of a career 8ppg guy from Dayton over 2-3 years of Ball is crazy. You can’t just recruit over everyone on the roster. That’s what Kentucky and Duke do. We aren’t them; nor should we want to be.
The only thing the staff can do in the offseason that's visible to fans is to bring in new players. Unfortunately, the bar is set so high for a team that has the unique opportunity to compete for a third straight NC that it's hard to be fair and objective. Also, there's a fine line between bringing in what you need without being perceived as being disloyal and unfair to those on the roster who bought into the idea that their turn would come. This will impact future recruiting in either a positive, or negative way.
As recently as last year, the haul we achieved this offseason would have been condered a homerun. Instead, we're debating whether the staff did enough.
As recently as last year, the haul we achieved this offseason would have been condered a homerun. Instead, we're debating whether the staff did enough.
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I used to agree with this in such that you couldn't worry about players getting threatened by bringing in top freshmen recruits. If they ended up surpassing you even with a year or more of a head start, that's on you or unfortunately a limitation of your talent.
However, in this new transfer environment, recruiting transfers over current players is another animal and I wouldn't blame a talented sophmore or upperclassmen for feeling unappreciated and cast aside. The way Hurley tries to do it is the right kind of compromise to retain talent, culture, and continuity, while bringing in some key players to fill specific holes.
Simply "bringing in the best players" is not necessarily going to make you a better team. Ask UK fans about that.
August_West
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Yikes. You actually don’t understand what actually wins titles do you? It’s about a hell of a lot more than solely bringing in the best players. If it was about that then the last 16 titles would’ve bounced back and forth between Duke and Kentucky.
nomar
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THIS IS NOT KIDDY BALL!!!!!!!!!!!
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Not kiddy ball just because he didn't recruit over the players that helped build championship culture. Haven't Duke and Kentucky proved that the most talented lineup doesn't always win? Hurley said himself that he wants to focus on HS players that he can develop and support with portal if needed. He didn't want to run anybody off because next year there won't be nearly as many experienced players available because there are no more extra seasons due to Covid.
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One of the worst takes I’ve seen on here and that’s saying a lot. Have you not watched this team the last two years? At what point was any roster built by just brining the “best available” players? At what point has the coaching staff ever said this was part of the formula??
boba
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At the time we did not know, but the best thing to happen last year was we DIDN'T get Timberlake.
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The most important thing is bringing in the best players that fit our mindset and culture.
That doesn’t necessarily mean the best overall player or players.
That doesn’t necessarily mean the best overall player or players.
We've done very well but the off season is far from over. If AK goes, we're obviously lacking some size at the 4, but that's been covered ad nauseum. I would've liked to have seen a top 20, 2025er come on board, but I'm obviously greedy.