He's taking his official visit to NU right now.
Hope we get it done.
Hope we get it done.
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Braden Huff - 2022
- Thread starter cats_man_too
- Start date
Saw him play recently at a tournament. Sound player with good fundamentals; don’t think I saw him miss any of several pretty difficult finishes. Would be a nice addition.
Didn't wis just sign a 7 1" center transfer from cincy?? Hope we get a commit from Huff. Sounds like a great young player
Chris Vogt, though a useful player to have, is not as good as Matt Nicholson. Yet Wisconsin wanted him and Matt sits on our bench.
Matt Nicholson. We just haven’t seen Matt yet because our Coaches are oblivious to his skill set.
I don't know that there's an easy comparison. Seems to be the type of player Wisconsin usually gets.
What?? Are we doing the hype Matt Nicholson thing again? Chris Vogt was a pretty solid piece of Cincy's lineup who had some decent athleticism for a big man. I hope Matt turns out to be a better player, but we have seen zero evidence of this yet.
I agree with having zero evidence. My comment was not to hype MN or bring down CV. It was a jab to the fact that a 7 footer can be very useful. And needs to be developed.
CV is very, very limited, but was given the opportunity, even as a freshman, to get some minutes. Without looking it up, he was playing 4-5 minutes as a freshman, while having serious mobility issues, serious coordination problems, etc, etc. It was in the horizon league but, unlike ours in the last season, a team that had title ambitions. He still played.
I disagree with the comment about athleticism but CV evolved into a player who reads the game better, and can be useful in the rotation.
Gato:
I think there are a lot of people who post here who can't discern what you are saying...
Vogt is less talented than Nicholson. Less coordinated, can't run anything like Nicholson...
Nicholson, potentially a dominating player, got no playing time, no development whatsoever on a Wildcat team that was not contending for anything and should have gone out of its way to play the youngest guys on the roster. Especially a guy who is 7'1", 255 and can run.
Vogt didn't play much as a freshman at Northern Kentucky, got about 13 minutes per game as a sophomore and decided to transfer to Cincy in the much tougher AAC, where he started 29 of 30 games and averaged 10 pts and 5.3 rebounds a night in 29 minutes for the 20-10 (13-5) Bearcats.
Legit 7 footers have value. Nicholson is better than Vogt. All he needs is an opportunity.
Is that basically it?
In what way are you related to Nicholson? Brother, cousin, friend, classmate? That’s got to be the only logical explanation. Either that or you’re just screwing with us. 🤔
You think he was potentially dominating last season😂😂😂. I’ve heard some bad takes but that tops it. I’m not saying he won’t develop but he clearly wasn’t ready last season or he would have played. Bigs take time. If he lights it up season you’ll be clamoring they should have played him earlier. The time off in the weight room and adjusting to college life amid a pandemic for a whole year probably made him a lot better than he would have been last year. Pardon even talked about on Jordan ash’s podcast how when he was redshirting how much stronger and everything he got because he was working out so much because he didn’t have to stay fresh for games.
You’re best friend is a 7 footer. He was brought in to bang with the big boys in the big ten. That year off in the weight room was necessary. I think you all over estimate how much improvement you actually make during a season. Most of your improvement is made in the off-season. You have to worry about freshness during the season so practices are different then the off-season and you can’t work out as much.
He can’t be wrong. If Nicholson is great next year, we will get an “I told you so”. If Nicholson isn’t any good, CCC didn’t develop a fine prospect. Either way, he can continue to rail about Collins. This is worse than Wrassler’s Jordan Ash love affair, because he actually believes this crap.
I've watched Nicholson play since he was a freshman in high school. IMO he was an undervalued recruit who could become an important player for the program but needed the redshirt year.
Great, that’s good news. Nice to get feedback from someone who actually has seen him play a lot.
Thanks for the insight. The majority of skinny 7 footers require a redshirt year. The time spent conditioning, in the weight room and on the training table can do wonders. Look at the progress Ryan Young made after redshirting his freshman year. Despite what some may think, we are all rooting for Matt to succeed and be a big contributor.
I’m sure you all know he did not red shirt. And he still did not get 3-5 min a game.
So why did he not red shirt? Because CC was afraid of a (season ending) injury to one in the trio Young/Beran/Nance. Otherwise it makes zero sense to have him on the bench when he has zero intention of playing him.
And in the end it comes full circle to the love affair of Nance at the 5. The stupidest decision of the entire last season IMO.
So why did he not red shirt? Because CC was afraid of a (season ending) injury to one in the trio Young/Beran/Nance. Otherwise it makes zero sense to have him on the bench when he has zero intention of playing him.
And in the end it comes full circle to the love affair of Nance at the 5. The stupidest decision of the entire last season IMO.
👆This sums it👆
I saw every Vogt game for two years from the 10th row. I watched at least 20 games on TV the following two seasons.
Like someone said we have (close to) zero evidence of MN’s abilities. But frankly that’s enough to compare him to Vogt. And, ultimately Vogt became valuable. And I’m afraid MN never will. Or will, at a place other than NU.
He didn’t redshirt because everybody, in effect, got a “redshirt” last year.
Exactly correct. In essence, nobody redshirted as everyone received a redshirt year. C’mon @GatoLouco I would surely have thought you would have known that.
Sure. Call it brain fart. Shouldn’t have gone there. Argument was about him being more deserving than Vogt or not. Or deserving of seeing 3-5 a game.
He got a taste of some game action. With increased physical strength and continued practice I can see him starting to contribute in two years. Hoping he’ll become a force in years 4 & 5. Time will tell.
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And you should remember that coaches saw him in practice. His height increased dramatically his last year in HS and his development was likely stinted by Covid so his Sr yr cut short then getting here on campus (our classes start later) under very unusual circumstance. Likely had not gotten used to his body.
I trust the coaches evaluation in this a heck of a lot more than I trust your thoughts. He will get his shot this year
Last year, everyone basically RS so did not need to use it. He got a little time out there to help him understand what he needs to do
And don't forget he had a growth spurt and his Sr season was likely cut short as well because of Covid. The combination of everything meant he was just not ready. Hopefully by this year he will be stronger and more used to his body and ready to contribute. CCC and James have done some good things with BIGs including Olah, Pardon and Young so I trust them to know what they are doing
You guys are funny. Matt Nicholson was over 7 feet tall when he stepped onto campus. He weighed 250.
In the huddle he was clearly significantly bigger than Nance and Ryan Young.
He was physically ready. Mentally? I don't know - he never really got an opportunity.
Basing your opinions about NU players on what Chris Collins decides to do with them is not exactly a reliable approach. It is also the cheapest way to argue - just assume the coach is doing everything right and never makes mistakes. "He didn't play because he wasn't ready." What a copout. The coach recruits great players, gets the most out of them, coaches brilliantly during the games and we lose 13 straight? Listen to yourselves.... Does that really makes sense in your brains?
When I referred to Nicholson as "potentially dominating," thats what I meant. Potentially dominating. He is 7'1", 255 and can run the floor, rebound and block shots. That makes him potentially dominating, not "the best player right now." Some people don't understand English, I suppose.
Many of you guys want to have it both ways, but the reality of the situation is that there were about 10 freshmen who were 6'11, 220 or larger. Only 2 didn't get any playing time, Nicholson and the kid from England who was the 2nd backup for Luka Garza. So did Collins recruit another big stiff or is he just out of step with every other coach in the league?
Its one or the other.
In the huddle he was clearly significantly bigger than Nance and Ryan Young.
He was physically ready. Mentally? I don't know - he never really got an opportunity.
Basing your opinions about NU players on what Chris Collins decides to do with them is not exactly a reliable approach. It is also the cheapest way to argue - just assume the coach is doing everything right and never makes mistakes. "He didn't play because he wasn't ready." What a copout. The coach recruits great players, gets the most out of them, coaches brilliantly during the games and we lose 13 straight? Listen to yourselves.... Does that really makes sense in your brains?
When I referred to Nicholson as "potentially dominating," thats what I meant. Potentially dominating. He is 7'1", 255 and can run the floor, rebound and block shots. That makes him potentially dominating, not "the best player right now." Some people don't understand English, I suppose.
Many of you guys want to have it both ways, but the reality of the situation is that there were about 10 freshmen who were 6'11, 220 or larger. Only 2 didn't get any playing time, Nicholson and the kid from England who was the 2nd backup for Luka Garza. So did Collins recruit another big stiff or is he just out of step with every other coach in the league?
Its one or the other.
The question is not "Is he" and is more, " Will he be" Bigs take longer to develop
Right and you get to carry on with your criticism either way. Then make up stuff about people assuming the Coach is always right and never makes mistakes. Why? It is because we don’t buy into some theory that you put out there about MN when you have NEVER seen him play more than a few minutes? You are a helleva a scout. I want you picking us up some unearthed gems on the AAU circuit. Better yet, you should only scout prospects 6’11 or taller. That seems to be your wheelhouse.
Listen to yourself, a team losses 13 in a row and the HC refuses to play a potentially dominating big man.
I really hope MN develops into a fine player next year. Everyone here wants the kid to succeed. I will even suffer through what are sure to be your “I told you so’s” for the remainder of CCC’s tenure. Just maybe, the last year was good for MN’s development. Whether 1 year or 10 years MN will continue to be your rallying cry like Wrasslers for Jordan Ash. It’s a shame you have made MN exhibit A for your crusade against the Coach.
I'm not on a crusade against the coach. I look at the results and try to find a reason things are going so poorly with NU basketball. Two years ago, the team was young and lacked cohesion. Individuals showed flashes of ability, but nothing went right and we lost 12 straight in the Big Ten, including some epic collapses. Last year, the team should have been better, but we lost 13 straight. You can't give the coach a pass on last year. Looking at the box scores it was pretty clear that our talent was being deployed ineffectively, with our most-used lineup being one of our worst per minute.
Nicholson should have been given a handful of regular minutes last year, just like nearly every other freshman big man in the Big Ten. Coaches do that for a reason. They want to see their guy play against opponents who aren't his teammates. Practice is not the same as a game.
If I recall correctly, Collins threw him in ONE game when we were actually competitive, against Purdue, facing the 7'4" Zach Edey. At the time it seemed like an odd move... giving Nicholson his first meaningful minutes against the one guy in the league who was taller and bigger than him. The move failed.
Nicholson will be a good player wherever he gets his opportunity. Hopefully it is with NU. Next year Ryan Young should get 25-28 minutes a night. He has earned it. Pete Nance as the 4 should take another step forward. Nicholson comes off the bench to spell Young and disrupt our opponents in the paint. Establish which of the guards will get the bulk of the playing time. Audige, Buie, Berry and Roper seems like a solid group, with potential to step up. Use Robbie Beran off the bench to spell Nance. Stop the revolving door of substitutions every time a guy turns the ball over. If we do all that, NU will be better next year, probably much better.
Nicholson should have been given a handful of regular minutes last year, just like nearly every other freshman big man in the Big Ten. Coaches do that for a reason. They want to see their guy play against opponents who aren't his teammates. Practice is not the same as a game.
If I recall correctly, Collins threw him in ONE game when we were actually competitive, against Purdue, facing the 7'4" Zach Edey. At the time it seemed like an odd move... giving Nicholson his first meaningful minutes against the one guy in the league who was taller and bigger than him. The move failed.
Nicholson will be a good player wherever he gets his opportunity. Hopefully it is with NU. Next year Ryan Young should get 25-28 minutes a night. He has earned it. Pete Nance as the 4 should take another step forward. Nicholson comes off the bench to spell Young and disrupt our opponents in the paint. Establish which of the guards will get the bulk of the playing time. Audige, Buie, Berry and Roper seems like a solid group, with potential to step up. Use Robbie Beran off the bench to spell Nance. Stop the revolving door of substitutions every time a guy turns the ball over. If we do all that, NU will be better next year, probably much better.
I’m in Atlanta for the first session of the Under Armour grassroots season and the Wolves are playing after my son’s game. I’ll see whether I can catch part of a game today or tomorrow morning. Tons of coaches at their games, of course. Think I saw Brian James in the coaches’ midway yesterday
