Samson Johnson

[IllinoisHuskie]

Anyone else notice that Samson didn’t get a single minute vs Xavier?

 

[Huskybass]

I could have sworn he was in briefly. Then again, I smoke a lot of pot.

 

[AD DB Burner]

I could have sworn he was in briefly. Then again, I smoke a lot of pot.

Came in against Butler, nothing against Xavier though.

Tough ask to expect him to be able to work his way right back into the rotation after missing so much time. Hopefully they’re able to work him in more as the season progresses and he is further removed from his injury.

 

[Storrs South]

He has barely practiced. He was able to get in against Butler because they were up 30. There was no window to help him get his legs back yesterday considering the 15 pt deficit at the half.

Hopefully this team figures it out next week and plays well against DePaul and Georgetown so he gets more run.

 

[jibsey]

Something is amiss here. He was slated a starter at season beginning right? He’s healthy and cleared to play certainly could go 10 minutes, so what gives? Please don’t tell me he’s not conditioned enough to to play 10 out of 40 minutes. Must be Hurley doesn’t think he can help that much?

 

[uchusky32]

Something is amiss here. He was slated a starter at season beginning right? He’s healthy and cleared to play certainly could go 10 minutes, so what gives? Please don’t tell me he’s not conditioned enough to to play 10 out of 40 minutes. Must be Hurley doesn’t think he can help that much?

Maybe, but we're not where Hurley thought we would be based on how we started. Hurley is now worried about winning today not setting up Sampson for down the road.

 

[boiwerebad]

Something is amiss here. He was slated a starter at season beginning right? He’s healthy and cleared to play certainly could go 10 minutes, so what gives? Please don’t tell me he’s not conditioned enough to to play 10 out of 40 minutes. Must be Hurley doesn’t think he can help that much?

I don't think you understand the amount of conditioning needed to play consistent non-garbage time minutes. Considering it was a foot injury. he couldn't run or really get cardio in. Since he was out for 2 months its gonna take time for Hurley to be confident in him playing real minutes, and for his body to be ready for that cardio too. Don't think it's anything serious, just a ramp up period.

 

[HuskyFich]

Something is amiss here. He was slated a starter at season beginning right? He’s healthy and cleared to play certainly could go 10 minutes, so what gives? Please don’t tell me he’s not conditioned enough to to play 10 out of 40 minutes. Must be Hurley doesn’t think he can help that much?

Against Xavier we did not have the luxury of hoping he's good enough to give solid minutes when we're down 17.
Also, not worth putting him in during our second half runs.

I'd have rather used time out strategy to keep our players fresh, which i thought Hurley did a good job of.

 

[gsmooth]

I could have sworn he was in briefly. Then again, I smoke a lot of pot.

must have been some good strong weed because he was never in the game. . I am thinking you could've had the Northern Lightning that some of the Jamaican bangers in Hartford in NYC sell ( don't ask me how I know that ).

 

[husky429]

Something is amiss here. He was slated a starter at season beginning right? He’s healthy and cleared to play certainly could go 10 minutes, so what gives? Please don’t tell me he’s not conditioned enough to to play 10 out of 40 minutes. Must be Hurley doesn’t think he can help that much?

I wouldn't read too much into it. He hasn't practiced that much since getting back from his injury--it's a liability to put him on the court until he's developed chemistry with the team. He'll probably play 5-10 during any comfortable wins for the next few weeks.

 

[gsmooth]

Against Xavier we did not have the luxury of hoping he's good enough to give solid minutes when we're down 17.
Also, not worth putting him in during our second half runs.

I'd have rather used time out strategy to keep our players fresh, which i thought Hurley did a good job of.

this exactly.

 

[Scottobot]

Something is amiss here. He was slated a starter at season beginning right? He’s healthy and cleared to play certainly could go 10 minutes, so what gives? Please don’t tell me he’s not conditioned enough to to play 10 out of 40 minutes. Must be Hurley doesn’t think he can help that much?

The rest of the team has been practicing together all season, building chemistry, and learning team offense/ defense schemas and rotations. SJ missed all that, and doesn’t have any significant experience from last year to fall back on. It will either require a big lead, or SJ just crushing it in practice for a couple weeks for Salmson to have an opportunity to work his way back into the rotation.

 

[TRUCONN76]

If the foot is feeling good with no set backs and an almost full week to practice I expect to see him tomorrow. He would be a key piece to the team down the stretch and they should do everything possible to get him ready and in condition.

 

[jibsey]

The rest of the team has been practicing together all season, building chemistry, and learning team offense/ defense schemas and rotations. SJ missed all that, and doesn’t have any significant experience from last year to fall back on. It will either require a big lead, or SJ just crushing it in practice for a couple weeks for Salmson to have an opportunity to work his way back into the rotation.

The chemistry of losing 5 out of the last 6? Blank that chemistry. I see everyone’s point on this yet we have an 18 or 19 year old athlete with little body fat who has played basketball for 10-12 years. I just don’t buy that he can’t play 3 minutes for 3 different stretches in the game. Hurley might say it’s conditioning but my guess is that he doesn’t make the team on the floor much better which is strange because he was starting. We’ll see what he brings to Hurley in practice and I hope it’s enough to get him productive floor time.

 

[Jaydumo20]

@jibsey I think your logic is pretty sound. If he was able to actually help the team, and he is cleared to play, he would've gotten minutes. I can't imagine a scenario where Hurley thinks this guy can really give us a lift but chooses to sit him.

 

[UCfor3]

They said he only had like 5 or 6 practices before the Xavier game. Coming off an injury that sidelined him for almost 2 and a half months, he most likely wasn't ready from not only a conditioning standpoint but also an offensive chemistry and defense communication standpoint. Learning on the job and blending back in on both sides of the ball is a tough task against an efficient and experienced team like Xavier.

 

[Colin G]

I think we’ll have more to talk about if we have 2 more DNPs

 

[ucp990411]

How about maybe Fremantle was not a good match up for him?

 

[August_West]

I got a kick out of this board thinking he was the answer for last month, and kept my mouth shut. I will continue that. Other than saying: Why don't people think this stuff through?

 

[AZHuskiePop]

I don't think you understand the amount of conditioning needed to play consistent non-garbage time minutes. Considering it was a foot injury. he couldn't run or really get cardio in. Since he was out for 2 months it’s gonna take time for Hurley to be confident in him playing real minutes, and for his body to be ready for that cardio too. Don't think it's anything serious, just a ramp up period.

The Butler game was on Jan 22 and Hurley just didn’t throw him in cold
He had to be in full practice mode for 7-14 days . The kid is 20 years old and I’m sure he was doing cardio even if only his upper body during his recovery.

So minimally he has had 14-15 days to get into good enough condition to contribute more than garbage minutes, Remember Hurley predicted a plaque on the wall for him . If he is half the player he suppose to be then he minimally solves a match problem. If not he just another fail .

 

[jibsey]

I got a kick out of this board thinking he was the answer for last month, and kept my mouth shut. I will continue that. Other than saying: Why don't people think this stuff through?

Elaine: He’s an enigma; a mystery wrapped in a riddle.
Jerry: He’s a mystery wrapped in a Twinkie

The Big Salad S6 Ep. 2

 

[Ricker]

Something is amiss here. He was slated a starter at season beginning right? He’s healthy and cleared to play certainly could go 10 minutes, so what gives? Please don’t tell me he’s not conditioned enough to to play 10 out of 40 minutes. Must be Hurley doesn’t think he can help that much?

We don't know if he was slated a starter because Karaban was just being cleared to play from spraining both ankles. He may have started solely because Karaban was on the mend and questionable to play starter minutes. It was never stated he had won that position.

 

[McLovin]

@jibsey I think your logic is pretty sound. If he was able to actually help the team, and he is cleared to play, he would've gotten minutes. I can't imagine a scenario where Hurley thinks this guy can really give us a lift but chooses to sit him.

Corey Floyd Jr has entered the chat

But in all seriousness, my guess is that there just wasn't a good time to "try out" Johnson in the Xavier game. Guy has played like 20 minutes of college basketball across 2 seasons, that's not the scenario to just toss him in and hope he has it. My guess is if we handle business vs DePaul and Georgetown this week he will get some run to see how he fits with different lineups / guys.

 

[dannyHAM]

We don't know if he was slated a starter because Karaban was just being cleared to play from spraining both ankles. He may have started solely because Karaban was on the mend and questionable to play starter minutes. It was never stated he had won that position.

Im almost 100% sure that theres an interview of Hurley saying AK won the position.... and that Samson was "starting" because AK hurt his ankle. I do also know that Samson "impressed" in the closed scrimmages when AK was out.

 

[McLovin]

I got a kick out of this board thinking he was the answer for last month, and kept my mouth shut. I will continue that. Other than saying: Why don't people think this stuff through?

It's what happens when people only listen to the Hurley sound bites and don't use their eyes...