I’ll go there

[ucinnc]

It took me a while to come around to the fact that this team is better than last year, but I got there - probably sometime in February. I can’t imagine many people disagree at this point. I’ll go a step further now. I know it’s blasphemy around here to say any team is better than 2004, but IF we win it this year, I’m on board with this being our best team ever.

So, who’s with me?

 

[61cygni]

The next title is always the sweetest

 

[auror]

Doomed.

 

[businesslawyer]

It took me a while to come around to the fact that this team is better than last year, but I got there - probably sometime in February. I can’t imagine many people disagree at this point. I’ll go a step further now. I know it’s blasphemy around here to say any team is better than 2004, but IF we win it this year, I’m on board with this being our best team ever.

So, who’s with me?

We're eight wins away from comparing this year's team to '99 or '04. But, if the season ends undefeated from here, that certainly becomes a discussion that we can and will have.

 

[superjohn]

I've been saying it since January but a lot of work to do.

 

[gsmooth]

It took me a while to come around to the fact that this team is better than last year, but I got there - probably sometime in February. I can’t imagine many people disagree at this point. I’ll go a step further now. I know it’s blasphemy around here to say any team is better than 2004, but IF we win it this year, I’m on board with this being our best team ever.

So, who’s with me?

Not ready for this conversation yet. Let's see this team win at all then we can have this conversation

 

[cohenzone]

We will see. They certainly have the look but of course a long row to hoe . For my money the 99 team was as mentally tough as any team ever.

 

[bluestreak]

We have to beat St Johns at MSG tomorrow. That should be top of the teams mind. But I'll admit that the staff has been pretty good at the prep work.
I'll be stressed.

 

[uconnfan68]

It took me a while to come around to the fact that this team is better than last year, but I got there - probably sometime in February. I can’t imagine many people disagree at this point. I’ll go a step further now. I know it’s blasphemy around here to say any team is better than 2004, but IF we win it this year, I’m on board with this being our best team ever.

So, who’s with me?

We need the best versions of everyone to go there. Some of today’s first half was pretty ugly.

 

[Lefty2one]

Tough call. As a whole I feel the talent level in college basketball was much higher in 2004. We had six future 1st rounders on that team including four lottery picks and the #2 and #3 overall picks.

The current team is such a machine and has a cohesiveness unlike anything we've ever seen at UConn. Still, this team still has to win it all for this to be a conversation.

 

[Hoophound]

So much more than talent and coaching goes into winning a natty. Things have to break your way. Unless of course, you win every game by 15+ points or whatever, like we did last year.

Houston, Arizona, Purdue, Kansas and the current version of UNC can all give us trouble. I really don’t like all the leg jumping the media is doing on us this season. I’d much prefer that we be less of a favorite.

 

[gsmooth]

So much more than talent and coaching goes into winning a natty. Things have to break your way. Unless of course, you win every game by 15+ points or whatever, like we did last year.

Houston, Arizona, Purdue, Kansas and the current version of UNC can all give us trouble. I really don’t like all the leg jumping the media is doing on us this season. I’d much prefer that we be less of a favorite.

As Hurley would say to the team about the media adulation; don't drink the poison.

 

[GameTime]

This, as I have said on another thread:
But seriously, our conditioning, our athleticism, our BB IQ, our junk yard dog mentality, our offensive unselfishness, our team defense, our coaching staff being on point and making all the right adjustments. What is our weakness that could be exploited?

 

[Huskyforlife]

It shouldn’t be insulting to say you’d take last years team, which is where I’m at still. But I do think this is the best team this year.

 

[Tenspro2002]

This team, so far, is the most dominant we've had.

Yes, 1999 lost only 2 games and we've lost 3. I don't recall that team being able to take opponents to the woodshed like this on a regular basis.

2004 lost 6 games.

 

[my2cents]

Just a quote from my wife on our wedding night, "premature".

 

[auror]

This team, so far, is the most dominant we've had.

Yes, 1999 lost only 2 games and we've lost 3. I don't recall that team being able to take opponents to the woodshed like this on a regular basis.

2004 lost 6 games.

At this point in the season '99 had won 12 games by 20 points. We're at 15 this season.

 

[RedStickHusky]

At this point all you can discuss is trajectory, but that's kind of like talking about a no-hitter in progress. The 99 team crowned it's run by beating Eldon Brand... I suppose Zach Edey compares.

 

[Gurleyman]

The 1999 team did have a tendency to let teams hang around. They weren’t terribly explosive offensively - Voskuhl and Moore werent scorers. And Freeman was a lunch pail guy who got some points but the offense didn’t run through him.

What that team did have was clamps on d in crunch time. They locked it down. The only game they lost that season (to Miami) came when we were down 9 and completely shut them down to tie it, then forced an airball late in the shot clock. The airball found Tim James who laid it in, KEA slipped at the other end and we lost by 2.

Although Miami also had a wide open three at the buzzer to beat us at home and Salmons missed. We botched our inbounds defense and left him wide open.

I think we were 10-0 that season when trailing at the half. Which is good - but we did face a lot of second half deficits.

 

[uh-no]

It took me a while to come around to the fact that this team is better than last year, but I got there - probably sometime in February. I can’t imagine many people disagree at this point. I’ll go a step further now. I know it’s blasphemy around here to say any team is better than 2004, but IF we win it this year, I’m on board with this being our best team ever.

So, who’s with me?

we have a bigger single weakness in clingan foul trouble.

 

[prankster]

Tough call. As a whole I feel the talent level in college basketball was much higher in 2004. We had six future 1st rounders on that team including four lottery picks and the #2 and #3 overall picks.

The current team is such a machine and has a cohesiveness unlike anything we've ever seen at UConn. Still, this team still has to win it all for this to be a conversation.

One thing that stands out to me...

The cohesiveness we see among the starters extends to the bench. Johnson comes in seamlessly. Diarra may as well be a starter. Stewart plays extremely well within the system...

All the way down to the third string.

All play with focus. All play unselfishly. All are bought into the system.

We definitely present a tough out1

 

[Deepster]

The 1999 team did have a tendency to let teams hang around. They weren’t terribly explosive offensively - Voskuhl and Moore werent scorers. And Freeman was a lunch pail guy who got some points but the offense didn’t run through him.

What that team did have was clamps on d in crunch time. They locked it down. The only game they lost that season (to Miami) came when we were down 9 and completely shut them down to tie it, then forced an airball late in the shot clock. The airball found Tim James who laid it in, KEA slipped at the other end and we lost by 2.

Although Miami also had a wide open three at the buzzer to beat us at home and Salmons missed. We botched our inbounds defense and left him wide open.

I think we were 10-0 that season when trailing at the half. Which is good - but we did face a lot of second half deficits.

Great point. Freeman created zero on offense. Also Souley and Saunders provided little punch off the bench. Mouring was streaky. Maaaaybe Rash Jones in spots. But that offense was Rip, El Amin and patchwork the rest.

 

[jibsey]

Sanogo was a kind of a big deal as Ron Burgundy would say. I don’t know who is better, love this team, we’ll find out soon, but we are not invincible. Let’s stay humble.

 

[gsmooth]

The 1999 team did have a tendency to let teams hang around. They weren’t terribly explosive offensively - Voskuhl and Moore werent scorers. And Freeman was a lunch pail guy who got some points but the offense didn’t run through him.

What that team did have was clamps on d in crunch time. They locked it down. The only game they lost that season (to Miami) came when we were down 9 and completely shut them down to tie it, then forced an airball late in the shot clock. The airball found Tim James who laid it in, KEA slipped at the other end and we lost by 2.

Although Miami also had a wide open three at the buzzer to beat us at home and Salmons missed. We botched our inbounds defense and left him wide open.

I think we were 10-0 that season when trailing at the half. Which is good - but we did face a lot of second half deficits.

And that 1999 team was undefeated away from home, too.

 

[superjohn]

Tough call. As a whole I feel the talent level in college basketball was much higher in 2004. We had six future 1st rounders on that team including four lottery picks and the #2 and #3 overall picks.

The current team is such a machine and has a cohesiveness unlike anything we've ever seen at UConn. Still, this team still has to win it all for this to be a conversation.

Marcus Williams wasn't on that team second semester. Three of the five starters were NBA players. We may have the same amount of NBA players on this team and they may even have a bigger impact in the NBA than those guys did.