UConn is currently in an interesting bind. On the one hand, it’s somewhat unfair — maybe unrealistic — to expect a freshman to step up and fill a team’s needs. On the other hand, the Huskies really need Jalen Adams to do just that.
Patience is a virtue when dealing with freshmen. Often times you’ll catch glimpses of promise amongst an array of growing pains. Even for the best players, it takes time for the ratio of the two to reverse, and some skills develop slower than others. Decision-making, for instance, is a learned skill and often doesn’t come until later in a player’s career.
Since the 2009-10 season, UConn has had eight freshmen average more than 20 minutes per game — Adams is on pace to become the ninth. Here’s the full list:
Alex Oriakhi, Roscoe Smith, Shabazz Napier, Jeremy Lamb, Andre Drummond, Ryan Boatright, Omar Calhoun, Daniel Hamilton, Jalen Adams.
Each of those players endured struggles in their freshman seasons, often simply by trying to live up to their own preseason expectations.
Adams is in the middle of that struggle. Through his first 13 games, Adams is averaging 5.7 points and 2.3 assists, shooting 39.5 percent from the floor and 21.1 percent from three in just under 21 minutes per game.
His assist-to-turnover ratio is 1.43 and his true shooting percentage is 45.03. Here’s a comparative look at the first 13 career games of Adams and some other notable freshmen.
First 13 Career Games (click column header to sort)
| FROSH. | MPG | PPG | FG% | 3P% | TS% | A/TO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton | 31.23 | 10.62 | 42.31% | 34.15% | 48.47% | 1.10 |
| Napier | 24.38 | 9.23 | 36.84% | 36.73% | 52.20% | 1.54 |
| Boatright | 26.85 | 9.77 | 48.42% | 33.33% | 56.41% | 1.84 |
| Adams | 20.85 | 5.69 | 39.47% | 21.05% | 45.03% | 1.43 |
| Calhoun | 30.62 | 10.77 | 44.21% | 31.37% | 58.25% | 0.63 |
Ideally, those numbers wouldn’t matter much. It was expected with the arrival of Sterling Gibbs that Adams would be able to take an apprentice role, observing Gibbs and providing backup when necessary. The offense, as originally constructed, seemed solid enough that any contribution provided by Adams would be an added bonus. They could ease him into the rotation without expecting him to do too much.
That equation has now changed. Daniel Hamilton has assumed the lion’s share of the point guard responsibilities. Rodney Purvis has emerged as a solid scoring option (currently the team’s leading scorer), but Gibbs has struggled with consistency. His field goal percentage is a touch over 40 percent and his three-point shot (his greatest strength) has run hot and cold.
Unable to depend on solid contributions out of the traditional point guard spot, coach Kevin Ollie has frequently turned to Adams in times of need. So far, Adams has struggled to fill that need.
For this season, the most pressing need for the Huskies is to get Gibbs back on track — essentially recreating the Gibbs that dominated at Seton Hall last season. Secondarily, however, it is imperative that Adams begin to make the most of these critical minutes. Adversity is part of being a freshman. Carrying five-star recruitment rankings onto campus with you doesn’t make it any easier.
Without more contributions out of the one guard position, the Huskies’ prospects of reaching the tournament and making a run seem dim. In order to achieve success this season, the Huskies need both Gibbs and Adams to become the best versions of themselves. The sooner, the better.
adams & gibbs are nice, overrated men/not their fault/current coach is not good at scouting + judging useful talent to win at level required which is not that overwhelming in aac; can you imagine the last two versions of this team trying to compete in the original big east?