Tolksdorf and bench depth

[superjohn]

In past seasons we always had a couple of guys at the end of the bench who looked out of place if they were ever put in and you never wanted to see them in the game unless it was garbage time, it sounds harsh but these guys are scrubs. This year we don't have any scrubs, Leon looks to probably be the last guy off the bench and he is a good player, don't remember too many seasons where we had 12 guys who could all play. Another thing on Tolksdorf, is anyone else extremely confident he will make his threes when open, guy seems to be a dead eye shooter.

 

[aceboon]

biggest issue with Leon is probably his D, seems too slow to guard quicker guys off the bounce and might not be able to bang with bigger guys without fouling. I have no doubt if you stick him out on the 3 point line that he would knock down 3s, he came in ice cold off the bench against Nova last year and drained 2 pretty quickly. He does have a great looking jumper.

 

[boog204]

Can we really call Leon a "good" player? He can shoot, we know that. But we don't really know anything else about him. I'm thinking he will play very sparingly again this year as there's not really any minutes for him between Omar, DD, Giffey, and Kromah.

 

[superjohn]

Can we really call Leon a "good" player? He can shoot, we know that. But we don't really know anything else about him. I'm thinking he will play very sparingly again this year as there's not really any minutes for him between Omar, DD, Giffey, and Kromah.

My point is in past seasons we've had guys at the end of the bench who couldn't do anything, you were impressed if they could catch the ball dribble twice without turning it over. Leon doesn't look out of place on the court and he clearly has one skill, he can shoot.

 

[HuskyBballFan]

What's nice about this group is that every single guy on the team (with Leon being the only possible exception) is either going to play a ton this year, or almost certainly will have a much bigger role next year. It's the guys who fall into neither category that usually transfer and mess up APR.

 

[Huskyforlife]

lots of good college players only shoot. pretty sure UL had a guy last year were all he did was shoot 3s

 

[UCONNfan1]

Leon's a sophomore, correct? I'd expect to see a solid jump in skill level from him this year, or I should say I hope to see that. I think the kid's got potential...

 

[sledog]

'Microwave' has returned!

 

[huskyharry]

At a minimum, he could be a useful weapon for situational substitution such as out-of-bounds plays set up to get him a corner 3.
However, he demonstrated a lot more capability while playing for Germany this summer on the 19& under team, so I think he will be more of a contributor over time.
I'm not sure that he deserved that travel call...he doesn't play with a ton of confidence yet and after seeing the play twice IMO the official made an anticipatory call.

 

[joober jones]

He really, really reminds me of Ruslan Inyatkin. That's not meant to be a detraction - Inyatkin was a serviceable player by his jr year and if not for injuries, would have seen significant minutes in the 95-96 season.

 

[BoatShow]

Dude definitely has a lights out stroke from 3 (I mean he's a 6'8'' dude from Germany what else is he gonna do?) He also has decent size and could provide some spells for DD and AB/TO without missing too much. He'll be very valuable could and step into the role NG has filled in recent years as his role should expand.

 

[Stinger92860]

He really, really reminds me of Ruslan Inyatkin. That's not meant to be a detraction - Inyatkin was a serviceable player by his jr year and if not for injuries, would have seen significant minutes in the 95-96 season.

2 completely different players, perimeter vs low post. I agree with OP that with Leon as the number 12 player you have someone with height who can shoot the three. When he plays its because its garbage time or you need a 4/5th player to shoot over the zone in a critical spot. He will never be the first option, but buzz, boat, dd and Omar will revive a lot of attention which could leave someone else open. Again, only if we have guys down with fouls and we need a three, otherwise he will not get much time.

 

[mauconnfan]

Can we really call Leon a "good" player? He can shoot, we know that. But we don't really know anything else about him. I'm thinking he will play very sparingly again this year as there's not really any minutes for him between Omar, DD, Giffey, and Kromah.

Yes I believe we can...now? Maybe this year, next year but he will be a "good" player and maybe already is. His minutes will not kill us I don't believe at all when called upon. He can rebound a little, he has good skills and the only thing holding him back from what I see (and aceboon said) is his quickness. If he could guard he would play, you can see the intelligence in his game too which is a plus. He is "good".......could play in a lot od Divy 1 schools

 

[joober jones]

2 completely different players, perimeter vs low post. I agree with OP that with Leon as the number 12 player you have someone with height who can shoot the three. When he plays its because its garbage time or you need a 4/5th player to shoot over the zone in a critical spot. He will never be the first option, but buzz, boat, dd and Omar will revive a lot of attention which could leave someone else open. Again, only if we have guys down with fouls and we need a three, otherwise he will not get much time.

Inyatkin was bulkier, but he also had a bit of long-distance range as part of his game.

 

[Danzz]

The coaches see these kids in practice everyday and there is a reason the players get the minutes they get. As others said he lacks quickness and that is a real liability if he has to guard a 2 or 3. If he can develop better anticipation and beat opponents to a spot then he'll get more minutes. He could eventually become a weapon off the bench but he is going to have improve.