Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Sticks Clicks in Classroom

It was about this time last year when Jim Calhoun announced that Stanley Robinson would sit out the first semester of the upcoming season for personal reasons.

What a difference a year makes.

Robinson was apparently as impressive in the classroom as he was in the court this past winter. According to Calhoun, Robinson may boast the highest cumulative GPA on the team right now. Whether or not "Sticks" remains the Huskies' best student, Calhoun believes there's a good chance he could be the team's best player next season.

Elsewhere in UConn Territory:

***Will Ater Majok ever wear a UConn uniform? Don't ask me … or the UConn coaching staff. They're as miffed about Majok's future as you or me. Calhoun believes Majok will pull his name out of the NBA draft by the June 15 deadline, but apparently Majok may be mulling over some European offers. That would be a big mistake, as far as Calhoun is concerned.

***Jeff Adrien was measured at 6-foot-6 ½ for his NBA draft measurements, but with a 7-2 wingspan that was among the biggest of any other player. In fact, his height and wingspan were the exact same as Pitt's DeJuan Blair – only Blair checked in at 277 pounds, Adrien at 236.

***Adrien has opened some teams' eyes recently, getting invited back for second visits by Portland, Minnesota and Oklahoma City. While NBAdraftexpress.com doesn't foresee him getting selected, the UConn staff is holding out hope he does. The Celtics? We're hearing that because they already have so many young players (Gabe Pruitt, Bill Walker, J.R. Giddens) languishing on the bench, they might go for a more experienced foreign player, or trade away their pick.

***A.J. Price appears to be projected for the early-to-mid-second round. First round is still a possibility. The Memphis Grizzlies have inquired quite a bit about Hasheem Thabeet, making it appear they could very well take him with the No. 2 overall pick.

***Craig Austrie might try to get into an NBA camp as a free agent, though Calhoun believes it's probably a mistake. A better option, Calhoun believes, is Europe. Austrie is getting married next summer.

***Jerome Dyson is about "90 percent" recovered from his torn lateral meniscus injury in his right knee suffered last February. Dyson is making cuts, taking shooting drills – essentially everything but playing right now. He could start playing within the next week.

Labels: ,

Sunday, June 07, 2009

Livin' On Tulsa Time

Here's what we know about Scottie Haralson's transfer from UConn to the University of Tulsa:

Haralson apparently asked for a release from his scholarship a while ago but kept it under wraps as he finished up his schoolwork at UConn. He went home to Jackson, Miss. last week and enrolled in a summer course at nearby Hinds Community College, then visited Tulsa on Friday.

He'll be one of two newcomers at Tulsa in 2010-11, along with D.J. Magley, a post player who played the last two seasons at Western Kentucky.

Haralson's departure opens up a scholarship for the Huskies. While the spring signing period has passed, UConn will continue to look for players – most likely a big man – over the summer. Coach Jim Calhoun likes to use his full compliment of 13 scholarships, so there's a good chance Haralson's gets filled.

(If you're thinking of 7-footer Fab Melo out of Sagemont School in Weston, Fla., think again -- he's Class of 2010).

The Huskies did, however, get an unofficial visit over the weekend from Kyrie Irving, a Class of 2010 combo guard out of St. Patrick's High in Elizabeth, N.J. Irving, 6-foot-1, has been ranked the No. 2 point guard in his class by scout.com. His high school coach, Kevin Boyle, once said that Irving "might be the best guard ever to come out of Jersey." Irving is said to be a big-game player who can score and pass equally well.

UConn is hoping to line up another few visits between now and July 6, when the summer recruiting period starts and players start darting off with their AAU teams, etc.

Haralson Transfers to Tulsa

Scottie Haralson apparently enjoyed his visit to the University of Tulsa this weekend. He has signed scholarship papers to join the Golden Hurricanes program.

Haralson averaged just 1.4 points and 4.1 minutes of playing time this past season as a freshman at UConn. Billed as a 3-point shooter, he hit just 26.9 percent from beyond the arc.

Haralson, who is back home in Jackson, Miss. taking a summer course at nearby Hinds Community College, is expected to join the Tulsa program at the end of the month.

Haralson's departure frees up a scholarship for the Huskies that could presumably be used on another big man.

More to come ...