Breaking down UConn roster
Transfers, up-and-comers surround player of the year candidate Sanogo
Despite the baseball team’s success and the arrival of enthusiastic football coach Jim Mora, UConn is still very much a basketball school. And now that almost all of the UConn men’s basketball team has arrived on campus for summer sessions, we decided to break down the Huskies’ current roster.
Yes, another player or two will likely join by the time summer is over. But the core of the team is set, with any future additions, either via the transfer portal, international players or 2022 or re-classified 2023 recruits, unlikely to be big contributors next season.
Here’s a look, by the (uniform) numbers, at what we can expect from the 2022-23 Huskies:
2: Tristen Newton: UConn was in desperate need of a point guard, particularly a big one who can score, and the Huskies got one in Newton — widely viewed as one of the top transfer portal acquisitions this spring. The 6-foot-5 rising senior averaged 17.7 points per game last season at ECU, and though may UConn fans continue to sneer at the American Athletic Conference, Newton earned Second Team all-AAC honors. He’s a great kid and a good student from a military family, and as his former ECU coach Joe Dooley noted, “he’s wired to score.” In fact, he burned UConn for 25 points three seasons ago. Newton is a career 31.6-percent 3-point shooter who shot 33.3 percent from distance last season. With Hurley looking to employ a four-man out offense, that might seem to be an issue. But Newton’s shooting numbers were hindered last season when ECU suffered a couple of key injuries and teams could really key on him. With the Huskies, Newton believes, “I’ll have more opportunities to get open looks. I feel like my shooting will go up.”
4: Nahiem Alleyne: Another portal pick-up, Alleyne really helps fill the need of a long-distance shooting threat. The 6-4 rising senior shot 37.3 percent from 3 last season and is a 38.7-percent career shooter from beyond the arc after three seasons at Virginia Tech. He shot 40.8-percent from 3 as a sophomore. He’s also a dynamic athlete, and perfectly fits the bill of what Hurley was looking for in the transfer portal: A guard who can shoot, score and (potentially) start right away.
5: Hassan Diarra: Once Hurley nabbed Newton and Alleyne from the portal, the next realistic target was a guard who was good enough
to play important minutes, but willing to play more of a back-up role, at least for this season. Diarra, a 6-2 guard, was a perfect option. The rising junior averaged 6.1 points per game, primarily off the bench, the past two seasons at Texas A&M. He certainly showed the clutch gene, hitting three 3-pointers that either tied or won a game in the final 10 seconds for the Aggies last season. “I work hard every day,” Diarra told Hearst Connecticut Media, “and it showed in the biggest moments.” The younger brother of Mamadou Diarra, the former Husky whose playing career was derailed by injuries and who’s been a student/graduate assistant the past four years, Hassan is out to make a name for himself at UConn. He’ll likely start this season as Newton’s back-up at point.
11: Alex Karaban :A “position-less” player, per Hurley, who could help out the Huskies big-time as a redshirt freshman thanks to one key attribute: “His shooting,” Hurley said, “is at another level.” The 6-8 Karaban spent the second semester with the team as an early enrollee, though he didn’t play. That should help him at the defensive end of the floor, where Hurley doesn’t need him to be a Big East Defensive Player of the Year candidate, but simply a solid defender if he shoots the way he’s expected. Hurley is hoping Karaban develops a bit of a mid-post game this summer, since teams will switch a lot on ball screens with him because of his shooting prowess.
13: Richie Springs: What can we say? The kid’s played barely more then the equivalent of a single game — 41 minutes — during his three seasons in Storrs. Yes, one season he sat out as an academic redshirt, but the 6-9 forward has yet to play a significant college minute. Could that change this season? The departures of Isaiah Whaley and Akok Akok certainly opens up available minutes, and as Hurley points out, Springs is still “only” 20 years old. Still, with the return of Sanogo, the additions of Clingan and Karaban and the potential emergence of Johnson, it’s hard to see him playing much.
21: Adama Sanogo: When Marquette’s Justin Lewis elected to keep his name in the 2022 NBA draft, Sanogo immediately became the front-runner for 2023 Big East Player of the Year. He already may have been, anyway. One of five finalists for the Jabbar Award for nation’s top center, Sanogo will be in line for that one, as well — though two other top-five finalists, Gonzaga’s Drew Timme and reigning winner Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky are also back. Sure, Sanogo could improve a bit on passing out of the low post, and maybe stepping out to hit 15-footers to help his NBA stock. But the quiet, unassuming (he didn’t even want monetary help for the damage caused to his parents’ home in Africa), 6-9 center is the surest thing the Huskies can bet on next season. He’s a stud.
24: Jordan Hawkins: A lot is expected from the 6-5 rising sophomore this season. It seems Hurley & Co. are banking on Hawkins, who some have compared to Ray Allen (or James Bouknight), as being a double-digit scorer and major 3-point threat. The NBA mock drafts seem to be banking on the same thing (NBADraft.net has him as the 20th overall pick in 2023). Hawkins showed flashes at times last season while shooting 33.3 percent from 3. Other times, he looked like a freshman. His shooting form is true and his athleticism is terrific. It’s a big jump going from 5.8 points per game to, say, 14. If Hawkins can do that, UConn is in business.
32: Donovan Clingan: He has finally arrived! Although the 7-foot Bristol Central product has already
seemingly been around the program for years, Clingan officially moved onto campus over the weekend. It will be truly intriguing to see what the big fella can provide for the Huskies as a freshman. The jump from the Central Connecticut Conference to the Big East is a huge one, but Clingan has proven himself against the top competition in the country in AAU tournaments. The Huskies could use at least 10-12 minutes off the bench from Clingan, primarily as Sanogo’s backup. He’s a skilled passer with excellent footwork and a repertoire of low-post moves. He dropped 15 pounds of “baby fat” in the first few weeks after his high school season ended, and he can step back and knock down a 3-pointer. His endurance will be tested, and he needs to improve defensively — switching off screens, etc. And he knows it. As Hurley told him: “You come with the offense, and I’ll work on the defense.”
35: Samson Johnson:
By now, we know of his “wall potential.” We didn’t get to see that last season as a freshman, as a backlog of experienced forwards kept Johnson from getting anything but scant meanginful minutes. That’s why the 6-10 “pterodactyl” has remained on campus since the end of school, working on his strength and shooting. If Johnson can show some long-distance range, he could battle Karaban for minutes at the four. Either way, he’s primed to see more playing time this season. “It’s well-documented what I think of his talent,” Hurley recently told Hearst Connecticut Media. “So, everyone’s going to get a chance to see him next year.”
44: Andre Jackson:
Along with Hawkins, Jackson is the UConn player most needed to bust out and be a double-digit scorer and a true star. He already appears to have embraced the role of team leader. In Hurley’s new offensive set, Jackson must improve on his 3-point shooting — even if his 36.1-percent actually ranked third on the Huskies last winter. He can do everything else: deft passing, long and rangy defense and some of the freakiest athleticism ever seen in Storrs. A big junior year from Jackson not only makes UConn so much better, but should push him into the 2023 NBA Draft conversation, as well.