Cam Spencer and Thoughts on the Portal

[Tenspro2002]

There's a negative connotation to the portal in this new era, about guys changing schools at the drop of a hat, going somewhere for a year before moving on, "mercenaries."

But after seeing Cam Spencer last night, and really over the entire last month, it's hard not to feel like this guy embodies UConn toughness and embraces being here and wearing our uniform, not merely finding "a change of scenery" or "a new opportunity."

The portal means different things for different players, different programs and shouldn't be poo-poo'd.

 

[dingaling]

It's gives guys the oppurtunity to work hard and move up to better programs. The portal embodies the american spirit. Guys that work hard can be rewarded. Coaches and programs that fall short can be negatively impacted. It holds everyone a little more accountable.

 

[OceanDoggie]

So far Cam Spencer is the perfect complement to Newton. '

It worked out for Uconn. We could be sitting here with another loss and Justin Timberlake backing up Solo Ball.

I think the only thing the staff could have done better was perhaps beat out 'Nova for Tyler Burton.

 

[storrsroars]

I'll just C&P what I posted in the post-game thread...

UNC Post Game Thread

Loved Solo’s game tonight. His first 2 shots were attacking the rim and that led to him having a lot more confidence shooting those 3s after starting out that way. He looked like a much more confident player out there who was looking to attack and be a threat. Hope he keeps that kind of play...

the-boneyard.com

 

[husky429]

Portal is as much a part of recruiting as HS now, whether we like it or not. We will be HEAVY on the portal this off-season.

 

[tuvent08]

I'm fine with the portal, but it places a ton of responsibility on good scouting. It's often really hard to project whether someone who is productive at one level is going to be comparably productive at a much higher one (i.e., which is a common model in the portal). It requires some really good scouting and judgment to determine that a guy who was recently in the Patriot League has the stuff to start at the two position for a national championship caliber team.

And let's be honest -- if Timberlake chooses us over Kansas (as we all wanted at the time, myself included) we're having a very different conversation. It's just really hard, and luck happens.

 

[navery12]

I'm fine with the portal, but it places a ton of responsibility on good scouting. It's often really hard to project whether someone who is productive at one level is going to be comparably productive at a much higher one (i.e., which is a common model in the portal). It requires some really good scouting and judgment to determine that a guy who was recently in the Patriot League has the stuff to start at the two position for a national championship caliber team.

And let's be honest -- if Timberlake chooses us over Kansas (as we all wanted at the time, myself included) we're having a very different conversation. It's just really hard, and luck happens.

It's just different scouting, because it's certainly not harder to decide if a guy will translate from the Patriot League to the Big East than it is to decide on a random HS basketball league to the Big East

 

[aburks41]

Is there any school in the country who has a portal dichotomy like UConn? For basketball, we are major beneficiaries of the portal. For football, we'll never be able to hold on to talented players for longer than a year.

 

[GlastonTim]

Gotta think Timberlake regrets his decision on picking Kansas. But I really feel had he come here he’d be killing it on this team, certainly not as well as Cam is. Wouldn’t have gone after him if he wasn’t a good fit. Love that our coaches choose players that fit our mold. Not worried with just 2 recruits coming in next year. It’s all about the fit. Think there are players out there that already want to transfer here

 

[tuvent08]

It's just different scouting, because it's certainly not harder to decide if a guy will translate from the Patriot League to the Big East than it is to decide on a random HS basketball league to the Big East

I think that's largely true, but the window is shorter and you're generally looking for instant impact. You're generally okay investing in a Singare out of HS where you wouldn't in the portal because many of these guys are 28 years old and instant impact players.

 

[HuskyHawk]

There's a negative connotation to the portal in this new era, about guys changing schools at the drop of a hat, going somewhere for a year before moving on, "mercenaries."

But after seeing Cam Spencer last night, and really over the entire last month, it's hard not to feel like this guy embodies UConn toughness and embraces being here and wearing our uniform, not merely finding "a change of scenery" or "a new opportunity."

The portal means different things for different players, different programs and shouldn't be poo-poo'd.

It's a mixed bag. For every kid who really fits at his new school and feels like he always belonged there, there is another who is purely mercenary and is seeking money or something else.

Now that we are back to one transfer, no Covid years, hopefully the portal will calm down and kids will make smarter decisions on where they go. It's great as a tool for a player to get to a better situation, for playing time, socially or for fit with a program and coaches. It sucks as a tool to let coaches rob schools of kids they developed by paying more.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Gotta think Timberlake regrets his decision on picking Kansas. But I really feel had he come here he’d be killing it on this team, certainly not as well as Cam is. Wouldn’t have gone after him if he wasn’t a good fit. Love that our coaches choose players that fit our mold. Not worried with just 2 recruits coming in next year. It’s all about the fit. Think there are players out there that already want to transfer here

Timberlake went 1-5 for 3 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, and 0 assists in 17 minutes against a bad Kansas City team (not the Kings). Yikes.

That said, my point is about more than performance, it's about culture, fit, and kids who really find a home -- even for 1 year -- rather than the portal merely being a business tool. Spencer is an example of the former.

 

[Excalibur]

We wouldn't be using Timberlake the same way Kansas is trying to. The kid can play but he's a terrible fit there.

The portal works for a lot of teams because it's easier to judge whether guys can play against college competition vs. high school, but turning over more than half of your roster every year has risks. You can go from bad to good quickly, but you can go in the other direction just as fast.

I feel like we've struck the right balance, using the portal to address gaps on a year to year basis. I would have preferred to take another big in the portal this year just to have some insurance in case of foul trouble, injuries, or if Johnson didn't develop, but that person was never going to get more than 5-8 minutes per game. You still need to sell playing time along with NIL money.

 

[Iluvsuebird]

I'm fine with the portal, but it places a ton of responsibility on good scouting. It's often really hard to project whether someone who is productive at one level is going to be comparably productive at a much higher one (i.e., which is a common model in the portal). It requires some really good scouting and judgment to determine that a guy who was recently in the Patriot League has the stuff to start at the two position for a national championship caliber team.

And let's be honest -- if Timberlake chooses us over Kansas (as we all wanted at the time, myself included) we're having a very different conversation. It's just really hard, and luck happens.

True, luck is important. But with Joey C., Alleyne, TN, and now Spencer, this staff clearly knows what they are doing in the portal.

 

[GlastonTim]

Timberlake went 1-5 for 3 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, and 0 assists in 17 minutes against a bad Kansas City team (not the Kings). Yikes.

That said, my point is about more than performance, it's about culture, fit, and kids who really find a home -- even for 1 year -- rather than the portal merely being a business tool. Spencer is an example of the former.

I know Timberlake is sucking it at Kansas but don’t think what he’s doing there translates to what he would’ve done here. Just think the development would’ve been better here. He screwed up big time, and I’m glad he did.

 

[evmore]

If you go in for a specific thing (shooting for example) you are bound to find several options, and then it's about fit, NIL, etc. But if you are going into the portal to replace your team, you are in trouble. You might have the NIL to acquire talent, but without fit there's no culture, without culture you aren't winning. I like how we are addressing needs in the portal to supplement our development players & incoming recruits.. adding to the culture. Lets hope they are able to continue this trend.

 

[JohnnyJr]

If you go in for a specific thing (shooting for example) you are bound to find several options, and then it's about fit, NIL, etc. But if you are going into the portal to replace your team, you are in trouble. You might have the NIL to acquire talent, but without fit there's no culture, without culture you aren't winning. I like how we are addressing needs in the portal to supplement our development players & incoming recruits.. adding to the culture. Lets hope they are able to continue this trend.

We’re going to be replacing a team next year if this year goes as planned

 

[navery12]

We’re going to be replacing a team next year if this year goes as planned

No we're not

 

[HuskyHawk]

I know Timberlake is sucking it at Kansas but don’t think what he’s doing there translates to what he would’ve done here. Just think the development would’ve been better here. He screwed up big time, and I’m glad he did.

They want to use him as a catch and shoot guy off screens and motion, which we would have done too. He's just been bad. Not ready to play at this level. I think now it's in his head.

 

[Doctor Hoop]

The portal is where you go to either rebuild quickly (with lots of portal transfers - see Ricky P.) or to add one or two pieces to a team that's on the verge. If you add too many to a team with 4 good starters and a couple of good bench pieces you'll have unhappy transfers.

 

[JohnnyJr]

No we're not

We’ll need a 1, 3 and a 4 if all the starters leave assuming SJ is ready to take over at the 5.

 

[tzznandrew]

We’ll need a 1, 3 and a 4 if all the starters leave assuming SJ is ready to take over at the 5.

You're making a big assumption about Karaban. He's a very good college player, but we're going to have him another year is my guess. He still needs to work on things to overcome the fact that he doesn't have elite athleticism for his size.

 

[Tyler2Rings]

We’ll need a 1, 3 and a 4 if all the starters leave assuming SJ is ready to take over at the 5.

Karaban is not a surefire draft pick yet. Would be thrilled to see that though.

Even if we lose starters that's not replacing the team as you said. We have a lot of youth on the bench that will hopefully be returning

 

[navery12]

We’ll need a 1, 3 and a 4 if all the starters leave assuming SJ is ready to take over at the 5.

Jaylin Stewart will be starting in one of those spots. So maybe 2 starters from the portal, and I'm not convinced we'd bring in a starting PG from the portal anyway

 

[Tyler2Rings]

I'm not convinced we'd bring in a starting PG from the portal anyway

Good idea not to underrate Hassan. He has showed a ton of improvement after a year in the system. Lots more time for him to make leaps