Brendan Adams seems to really want to play for Dan Hurley. Adams ended his weekend visit to UConn by committing to become Hurley’s first recruit since his hiring last month. Landing a Rhode Island de-commit ranked outside the top-150 — especially one Hurley had already landed while at URI — may not be an earth-shaking moment for UConn men’s basketball, but it provides a confidence boost to fans who watched the entire 2018 glass — most notably much-coveted point guard James Akinjo — de-commit following the dismissal of former head coach Kevin Ollie.
Blessed ‼ pic.twitter.com/Sve25hIEF9
— Chaser Forever 🌎 (@_BATrey) April 15, 2018
On the court, Adams’ impact is clear. Even if Jalen Adams returns, the recent slew of de-commits left the roster with only three guards, one of whom (Alterique Gilbert) appears to be built primarily out of soggy paper towels. Brendan provides some needed depth, as he is capable of handling the ball, but his height (6’4”) and shooting ability make him seem closer to a replacement for Emmitt Matthews than Akinjo.
As for replacing Akinjo, Hurley still has a few options. The Huskies remain in the hunt for Nebraska de-commit Xavier Johnson, whose quickness would be a great complement to the skills brought by Brendan Adams. UConn is believed to have a strong in with Johnson who was recruited to Nebraska, in part, by new UConn assistant Kenya Hunter.
Adams was joined on his visit this weekend by Duquense grad transfer Tarin Smith. Smith was a rotation guard for Duquense last year and a quality scorer with middling efficiency. If he’s the fourth or fifth guard, that’s outstanding. But it’s hard not to think of Antwoine Anderson when looking at Smith’s numbers at Duquense, and if he’s getting starter’s minutes at UConn next year, it probably means another rough season for the Huskies.
Also visiting campus with Adams and Smith was St. John’s grad transfer Kassoum Yakwe, a 6’7” forward from Mali. Yakwe is an interesting case, as he looked like a very promising player as a freshman, showing a knack for rim protection. His numbers have decline each of the past two years, however, and he played just under 12 minutes per game as a junior. UConn certainly doesn’t have an embarrassment of riches in its frontcourt, but it’s difficult to imagine that the staff sees Yakwe as an impact player.
Unfortunately for UConn fans, the hopes that 12th-ranked 2019 guard Jalen Lecque might reclassify to 2018 and come to UConn next year appear far-fetched, as Lecque is being linked much more heavily with programs like North Carolina and Kentucky.
