Video Evidence

Just got back from the Greater Hartford Pro-Am, where numerous UConn players were in the house at the Sports & Medicine Sciences Academy in Hartford.

In the opener, Ater Majok and Charles Okwandu helped lead Club Palace Slamm to a double-digit win over the Attorney Deron Freeman All-Stars (which included soon-to-be ex-Husky Jamaal Trice). Only caught bits and pieces of the game while interviewing other players, so it's hard to give a review of how Majok and Okwandu looked. Saw Majok make a few nice, athletic moves and, as always, play hard. Also saw him make a few of the mistakes he made too often last season, as well as hoist up an air-ball 3-point attempt that drew a "terrible shot!" commentary from MC Anthony "Chewy" Avent.

(P.S.: Michael Bradley and Jeremy Lamb are also on the Club Palace roster, but they weren't there Wednesday due to study hall).

The nightcap was the feature attraction, with Kemba Walker, Shabazz Napier, Tyler Olander and Alex Oriakhi leading the Doc Hurley All-Stars against Cambyland, which features URI-bound Anthony Jernigan, among others.

Didn't stay to the end, but saw enough of Walker to say he's playing as well as ever. Major grain of salt needed, as it's a rather free-form summer league, but Kemba was hitting one acrobatic driving layup after another and finding open teammates all night.

Here's a particularly impressive sequence, in which Walker hits Napier with a pass and Napier finds Olander for a 3-pointer on the wing. Olander misses the trey, but Walker corrals the loose ball and makes a nifty, baseline reverse layup.:

It's a nice sequence that features three players who could be key factors for the Huskies going forward.

Napier looked pretty good, with some nice drives to the hoop, though he wasn't able to finish too well. Also missed the two or three jumpers I saw him take. Here's a breakaway layup by Napier off a pass from Walker. Watching these two impressive guards share the floor is something that UConn fans might see a lot of this winter (though that would be a rather small backcourt):



And here's Napier driving to the hole and getting fouled while attempting a windmill, reverse layup. A little out of control, but quick. Real quick:


Olander also looks like a keeper. A 6-9 lefty who can shoot and finish inside, he made a nifty 3-point play in the time I was there and took the ball strong to the hole a few times, getting fouled and making most of his free throws. Here he is hitting a 16-footer for what would be a conventional 3-point play:



Lastly, if you want to watch the individual videos without hearing the echo of the other three at the same time, just let it run one time through and then play each one individually. Or pause the other three while you watch one. Enjoy. Hope to frequently update the blog with more (and, hopefully, better) video of UConn players in action at the league throughout the summer.