UConn out on Valdir Manuel

[tcf15]

Per Borges

One player UConn is no longer in on is Valdir Manuel, a big man out of Harcum Junior College in Pennsylvania. The Huskies showed some initial interest in Manuel, but it appears he is heading back to Harcum for next season.

 

[Burnsbros23]

Kid i coach just out played him at a Juco showcase in Florida

 

[Huskyfan4evr]

That sucks. I was hoping he would come. We need another big. Anyone else left or are we stuck with that we have?

 

[ToolzieFan]

That's a bit surprising and definitely disappointing. Are there any decent players who could reclassify? I'm assuming no. At this point I would take almost any grad transfer with size, even if we don't expect much from them. I think we have an excellent recruiting class, and I trust Hurley in the long-run, but playing with an open scholarship - on top of being down one and having Cole sitting out - is certainly not ideal. If I'm trying to be optimistic, I'll definitely say that I'd rather leave the spot open then bring in a mediocre freshman.

 

[Dooooooomed]

If he was only a 1 year guy, I'd be more upset.

 

[pj]

Kid i coach just out played him at a Juco showcase in Florida

Is your kid available?

 

[husky429]

Much prefer to leave the scholly open than reach for anyone who isn't a 1 year grad transfer.

We are on a ton of great talent for 2020. It is this staffs first defining class.

Roll with whaley as a back up 5. Yes, we may sacrifice a win or two vs tougher comp compared to a higher level player. But we need to be prepared to light up the big east. aac reaches aren't going to help with that

 

[BackAftaThis]

At this point getting someone acclimated with Hurley’s system would be a steep learning curve anyway. Leave the scholarship open.

 

[djct1999]

This is a real bummer.

 

[Magic32]

I like the idea of having an open scholarship at this point. You never know if a kid decides to leave scool early like Akok did. I feel like Whaley can give some solid minutes.

 

[mauconnfan]

I like the idea of having an open scholarship at this point. You never know if a kid decides to leave scool early like Akok did. I feel like Whaley can give some solid minutes.

He has to give us solid minutes now!

 

[UConnStats]

Much prefer to leave the scholly open than reach for anyone who isn't a 1 year grad transfer.

We are on a ton of great talent for 2020. It is this staffs first defining class.

Roll with whaley as a back up 5. Yes, we may sacrifice a win or two vs tougher comp compared to a higher level player. But we need to be prepared to light up the big east. aac reaches aren't going to help with that

Normally I’m against banking scholarships, but with the 2020 buzz that has been going around about UConn since the Big East news, I’ll make an exception. It should be a 4 man class now barring us adding anyone.

 

[Guapo]

It sounds like we backed off him, not the other way around.

Not sure why anyone would be upset about that.

Quality>quantity

 

[McLovin]

It sounds like we backed off him, not the other way around.

Not sure why anyone would be upset about that.

Quality>quantity

Amen - been saying for a while grabbing him to fill a spot would be a regret 2-3 years from now. Hurley can do much better with that scholarship in 2020 and beyond.

 

[McLovin]

Kid i coach just out played him at a Juco showcase in Florida

I'm assuming your kids are bigger than these...?

 

[Austin316]

Big East move will make up for this in the upcoming recruiting cycle.

 

[the Q]

Get a grad transfer over 6-8 who can do two of the following: block shots, rebound, set good non-illegal screens, shoot outside of 3 feet.

I realize the middle 2 are the most likely, and I’m totally okay with that

 

[lange10]

Normally I’m against banking scholarships, but with the 2020 buzz that has been going around about UConn since the Big East news, I’ll make an exception. It should be a 4 man class now barring us adding anyone.

4 if Gilbert leaves correct? I think right now we only have 3 open.

 

[UConnStats]

4 if Gilbert leaves correct? I think right now we only have 3 open.

Wouldn't have to be Gilbert, but I think the staff will try to sign 4 and let the pieces fall where they may next spring.

 

[Peacefrog]

Maybe he wasn’t making the grades needed in summer school to gain admission. That seemed to be the sticking point originally, right? I would have preferred to have him this year for depth but don’t think it’s the end of the world. I expect Hurley will use the spot for someone even better.

 

[Rico444]

Hopefully this happened because the staff has decided they'd rather use the scholarship on Cliff in 2020 and feel like we have a great shot at getting him.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

I don't even care if the grad transfer doesn't play much, it's just a good idea to bring in another big to battle with Carlton and Whaley in practice.

WKU's Moustapha Diagne intrigues me. The kid was the #58 recruit in the '15 class and was originally signed by 'Cuse, but then played a year in JC, then spent his first year at WKU backing up the very good frontcourt duo of Dwight Coleby (27.6 mpg)/Justin Johnson (34.6 mpg) and then his second year backing up a potential 1st rounder Charles Bassey (31.4 mpg).

The kid is 6'9 230, only played 7.4 mpg last year, but played his most minutes against teams with bigger key players. For example, against North Texas and their 6'9 235 starting center Zachary Simmons, Diagne played 15 minutes, some alongside Bassey. In a tight game against Old Dominion, Diagne played 11 minutes replacing Bassey, helping to guard ODU's 7'1 285 Elbert Robinson.

A guy like Diagne would be most valuable against weak shooting teams with strong frontcourt presence. Let's say if we are playing SMU with Chargois or Tulsa with Igbanu, a guy like Diagne would be valuable to have off the bench (in addition to Whaley) to provide Carlton a breather when he's battling these guys all night.

 

[Son of Robert]

Praying for a Cliff Omoruyi reclass or some magical 1 yr big man from somewhere on these 7 continents. I want to have the best season possible THIS YEAR!!

 

[djct1999]

Praying for a Cliff Omoruyi reclass or some magical 1 yr big man from somewhere on these 7 continents. I want to have the best season possible THIS YEAR!!

At some point, we need to start being UConn on the court again. Manuel would have had immediate impact and was worth far more to this team than an extra scholarship. This one hurts. His grades must really suck.

 

[CL82]

That sucks. I was hoping he would come. We need another big. Anyone else left or are we stuck with that we have?

Lol, stuck with what we have?