Whaley
- Thread starter superjohn
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Whaley is starting to earn himself a gig after UCONN overseas
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The only thing dirtier would have been if he jumped over Evan Mobley in the process of the put back. Disappointed Bouk didn't get the alley oop later on in a critical part of the game. A win is a win!!
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HuskyWarrior611
Mid range white knight
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Whaley does so many things for us. Has some post game, finishes well, can face up and shoot, pass, block shots, play perimeter defense, rebound, shoot what doesn't he do? So proud and happy to have him on this team. After tonight he can go up against almost any big in America. Him and Akok can be a lethal defensive big duo later in the year.
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It's funny I have always liked him since I first saw him. Couldn't understand why he couldn't get more pt. I think he has improved but I don't think he wasy as raw as we think at first, just wasn't getting the chance. Last year we had no choice and he shined.
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#23 for USC smacked whaley on the forehead on that play going for a block, it should have been an and-1
Great mentor to AS/RS/JB.. NBA scouts are coming to watch other players we play against.. And Bouk.. Pretty sure they're also taking notes on IW.. He plays bigger than his size.. Can't imagine many Bigs in the BE better than Mobley.. IW held his own..
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In the post-game, Seth Greenberg said Whaley is the most improved college basketball player over the last two years.
Even though he's prone to hyperbole, I felt incredibly proud for Whaley and for our program when he said that.
RichZ
Fort the ead!
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There were little flashes of the high energy player right near the end of his freshman year. Some of us were excited and couldn't wait to see his continued development the next season. But something didn't work between he and DH, and he found the seat directly next to the walk-ons on the bench for his sophomore season. Junior year started off the same way. It wasn't until injuries force DH's hand the middle of last season that Whaley got enough court time without the threat of the quick hook hanging over him, that we saw those flashes again. And those momentary flashes turned out to be a preview of consistent effort and talent. Kudos to Zay for hanging in, and for being ready to grab the spotlight and own it when his time came.
RayIsTheGOAT
Sticks, to the rafters
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Enormous Whaley fan.
From a purely basketball standpoint, he’s been through hell and back with this program.
Being poorly coached, not getting PT, transfer rumors, etc. I remember a comment from a scout his freshman year with something along the lines of “If Whaley is the type of prospect Ollie is getting, that program is in deeper trouble than I thought”.
He never complained or made himself a center of attention. He just worked and worked. And worked. And stuck with the university. And it’s all paying off now being the heart and high end player of a very good team.
Kudos to him. That sort of thing is kind of what college basketball is all about. He has a very bright future and deserves every bit of it.
From a purely basketball standpoint, he’s been through hell and back with this program.
Being poorly coached, not getting PT, transfer rumors, etc. I remember a comment from a scout his freshman year with something along the lines of “If Whaley is the type of prospect Ollie is getting, that program is in deeper trouble than I thought”.
He never complained or made himself a center of attention. He just worked and worked. And worked. And stuck with the university. And it’s all paying off now being the heart and high end player of a very good team.
Kudos to him. That sort of thing is kind of what college basketball is all about. He has a very bright future and deserves every bit of it.
Hans Sprungfeld
Undecided
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Yep, a big fan...
There was a justifiably complaint-filled thread mid-season last year about the team's low BB IQ, and the inability to hang on and/or close out games. It focused on wondering who was the team's leader/smartest player, or something close to that. There weren't really any good nominees, and that was a scary and sobering collective recognition.
I lacked to courage to offer Whaley except for in-game txts to my sister and an hedged half-suggestion that focused on his engagement, encouragement of teammates, and lack of dumb mistakes. This was a few games before his performance slowly than dramatically improved, and closed the season 'reliably.'
I wondered before this season if it would 'stick.' So far, the answer seems to be a solid yes. I've never seen anything like it in many decades of watching Husky basketball.
As a freshman, he shot terribly. As a sophomore, he seemingly deserved to be buried on the bench, and I was surprised he returned for his Junior year. But more than anything else, I recall a quote from him in one of the very first articles posted after the announcement that he was coming to UConn. He was completely enthused about coming to play for "a program like UConn," and he used language that suggested that he was completely unaware that things had dropped off so far, as though he had no idea that if the UConn that had suffered mass defections and such were any good, he would never have been considered for recruitment.
And here we are: UConn is in clear movement toward again being the program his (then) delusional-sounding comment was describing AND he is a meaningful part of why this is so.
May he continue to play well and grow and inspire.
There was a justifiably complaint-filled thread mid-season last year about the team's low BB IQ, and the inability to hang on and/or close out games. It focused on wondering who was the team's leader/smartest player, or something close to that. There weren't really any good nominees, and that was a scary and sobering collective recognition.
I lacked to courage to offer Whaley except for in-game txts to my sister and an hedged half-suggestion that focused on his engagement, encouragement of teammates, and lack of dumb mistakes. This was a few games before his performance slowly than dramatically improved, and closed the season 'reliably.'
I wondered before this season if it would 'stick.' So far, the answer seems to be a solid yes. I've never seen anything like it in many decades of watching Husky basketball.
As a freshman, he shot terribly. As a sophomore, he seemingly deserved to be buried on the bench, and I was surprised he returned for his Junior year. But more than anything else, I recall a quote from him in one of the very first articles posted after the announcement that he was coming to UConn. He was completely enthused about coming to play for "a program like UConn," and he used language that suggested that he was completely unaware that things had dropped off so far, as though he had no idea that if the UConn that had suffered mass defections and such were any good, he would never have been considered for recruitment.
And here we are: UConn is in clear movement toward again being the program his (then) delusional-sounding comment was describing AND he is a meaningful part of why this is so.
May he continue to play well and grow and inspire.
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love whalley on defense . He can hedge and recover as well as anyone I can remember . He is vital to our defense and creating turnovers
RichZ
Fort the ead!
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In the first 16 games of the 1920 season, Whaley averaged 12 lackluster minutes/gm
After Polley went down, the last 14 games of last season, which included 1 clunker, he averaged 9.8 pt /7.6 rb /2.2 blk in 26 minutes/gm
He became a starter for the last six games.
So far this year, 10.7 pt /7.3 rb /3.3 blk
Over the last two seasons, we are 8 and 1 with Zay in the starting lineup.
Looking at game logs for this info, I learned that Polley's breakout 19/11 game last year followed the worst 4 game stretch of the season for him, in which he averaged 4 points and less than 3 boards. Kinda lost sight of that in the excitement over his last game.
After Polley went down, the last 14 games of last season, which included 1 clunker, he averaged 9.8 pt /7.6 rb /2.2 blk in 26 minutes/gm
He became a starter for the last six games.
So far this year, 10.7 pt /7.3 rb /3.3 blk
Over the last two seasons, we are 8 and 1 with Zay in the starting lineup.
Looking at game logs for this info, I learned that Polley's breakout 19/11 game last year followed the worst 4 game stretch of the season for him, in which he averaged 4 points and less than 3 boards. Kinda lost sight of that in the excitement over his last game.
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