UCONN MEN’S BASKETBALL A ‘marked man’
UConn’s Bouknight won’t be sneaking up on teams anymore
James Bouknight began his career at UConn last fall as a talented, if somewhat under-the-radar recruit.
He’ll enter the 2020-21 season — if and when it begins — as a marked man.
And he’s good with that.
“I don’t think it’s gonna change the way I play my game,” Bouknight promised during a Zoom call with reporters on Wednesday afternoon. “I’m just gonna accept the challenge.”
It’s a challenge presented to him by coach Dan Hurley, and one that comes as a result of a fantastic freshman campaign that kept getting better as the season progressed. The 6-foot-5 guard averaged 17.3 points over the last 10 games of the season, displayed athleticism and skill not seen in these parts in a while and put himself in the conversation as a possible NBA draft pick.
Bouknight quickly doused any thoughts of entering the draft, sticking with his plan of staying in school for two years. He certainly won’t be sneaking up on anyone this season, even as UConn moves into the new environs of the Big East Conference.
“He’s a marked man, he’s under the microscope,” Hurley said recently. “That’s a different type of mentality and mindset. The edge that you’ve got to be able to bring with you every day on the practice floor, game night, where you thrive when people come after you and are trying to make a reputation off him now.”
Hurley has stressed that to Bouknight throughout an offseason workout regimen that began shortly after the season ended, on a near-empty UConn campus, and has continued throughout this summer. He’s specifically focused on improving his 3-point shooting and ballhandling, as well as things off the court.
“Hurley keeps stressing to me that I’m gonna be a target,” Bouknight noted. “So, I’m just pushing
myself to play at 110%, any drill, any workout, even attacking my school and my mind. Hurley has stressed a lot about learning more and being a smarter individual.”
Bouknight has always had a good head on his shoulders and a strong support system behind him. He’s obviously not perfect — witness his on-campus arrest last September, shortly after classes began, that resulted in a three-game suspension to begin his collegiate career. But he handled that situation as well as he could, then proceeded to handle his freshman season better than could be expected, considering the pressures that come with being a rising star.
“What bodes well for James,” Hurley said, “is that a lot of freshmen, if they were having the same success James was having the last third of the season, they would have got caught up in it, lost their mind, stayed in the draft process or entered the draft process when they had no business entering it. Or waiting until the last second in the draft process, when they had no chance of getting drafted to begin with. I think the way James handled the end of the season, knowing that he needed to come back to mature and develop, knowing that he wasn’t ready for the NBA level and not hesitating or dragging his feet ... any time guys handle their business like that in decision-making, it shows some self-awareness and maturity.”
Bouknight wants to continue that progression this season.
“Just acting like a professional, being an example for people,” the Brooklyn, N.Y. product said. “When someone looks at me, trying to model themselves after me — getting in the gym, pushing people to work hard. On the court, just going my hardest.”
Bouknight said it wasn’t even a hard decision to return to school. One of the reasons he cited was the chance to play alongside R.J. Cole, the redshirt sophomore point guard who sat out last season after transferring from Howard University.
“R.J. is a very shifty guard that can score the ball,” Bouknight reported. “I was on his team a lot last year in practice. He’s a high-IQ player, superstrong, fast, plays defense. He can score.”
Cole’s feelings were reciprocal. “He’s a very special talent,” Cole said of Bouknight. “Just watching him and knowing what he likes to do, where he likes to shoot from, where he wants the ball. That’s the easy part. Mixing my game with his, not overshadow anybody, just fit in perfectly, I think me and him will be perfectly fine together.”
Bouknight is looking to be more of a vocal leader this season.
“Last year, it was kind of a learning experience for me, learning from (Christian Vital), learning from (Alterique Gilbert) and the older guys. Last year, I was trying to lead with my game, with my play. This year, I’m trying to be more of a vocal leader, talking to guys when they’re making mistakes, helping the new guys get into a rhythm, things like that.”
Again, that depends on if there is a “this year.” UConn players, many of whom have been on campus for nearly two months, are confident there will be one.
“We want the season to start soon, but we’re at the point where whenever it starts, is when it starts,” said sophomore guard Jalen Gaffney. “We just want to have a season in general. If we don’t have a season, that would be devastating.”
Either way, by this time next year, James Bouknight will almost certainly no longer be at UConn. He could even be an NBA lottery pick.
He’s not worrying about any of that right now, he insisted. He’s just ready to begin this season, whenever that may be, as a marked man.
RIM RATTLINGS
⏩ The Big East announced on Wednesday that its 11 member schools will wear Black Lives Matter (BLM) patches on their men’s and women’s basketball uniforms this season.
“It’s a platform for us,” said Cole, “another way for us to spread awareness throughout all of college basketball that we’re standing with one another.”
“I think it’s great,” added Jalen Gaffney. “We’ve had Zoom meetings on Black Lives Matter. I think we’re grateful that the Big East is making that move. Kimani (Young) is one of the assistant coaches who wanted to do that.”
The league also announced its support for the efforts of Coaches for Action (CFA), a coalition of 21 ethnic minority Big East men’s basketball assistant coaches formed to help raise awareness in the fight against racism. Young and fellow UConn assistant Kenya Hunter are both involved with that coalition.
⏩ Freshman Javonte Brown-Ferguson has dropped the latter part of his hyphenated last name and would now like to be referred to as Javonte Brown.