Remember Ater Majok, the kid from Sudan via Australia who was supposed to be the next big star at UConn, wasn't, eventually was drafted by the Lakers and has since more or less fallen into oblivion?

Remember his guardian/handler named Ed Smith, who seemed to be trouble? Well, he's certainly proven to be just that, and now it's Thon Maker, some say the most talented 16-year-old out there right now, that seems to be getting some less-than-stellar advice from Smith. Here's a story from the Sydney Morning-Herald in Australia that talks about the negative effects Smith seems to have on young, African basketball prospects. Majok and UConn are featured prominently.

*** Meanwhile, as we had reported back on Aug. 8, it appears Jim Calhoun will be doing studio work for ESPN this college basketball season.

Source tells me Jim Calhoun may do some work for ESPN this season. Calhoun says been offered, nothing finalized.
— David Borges (@DaveBorges) August 8, 2014

Now, it's The Big Lead that's reporting Calhoun will be joining ESPN. If this happens, it sure will be entertaining television.

*** Lastly, had a brief conversation with Terrell Myers, the New Haven product who coached Derrick Jones's AAU team this past summer. Myers said Jones, who will be getting an in-home visit from UConn next week, had a "great summer. His outside shot was a bit more consistent, he had confidence in handling the ball. He was maturing as the summer went on, learning how to be a leader."

Myers, who knows Kevin Ollie very well, said that he might be at the in-home visit on Tuesday.

Doing a UConn season preview for Lindy's college basketball magazine. The preview has to be done by mid-July. The issue comes out in October. Every year, it seems, there are numerous changes between July and October that happen too late to be edited for the final edition -- from the departures of Nate Miles and Ater Majok in years past to Andre Drummond's surprise arrival last August.

Will there be any such movement this year? Say, a certain Hall of Fame coach deciding not to return late in the summer? I doubt it. And with that in mind, I had a phone conversation with Jim Calhoun this morning about the 2012-13 team. Here's a little of what he had to say:

(on next year's team, in general)

"I'm not saying it's the most talent we've ever had, it isn't. But we have a chance to be a better team -- not record-wise -- but a 'team.' We won't be having that national championship hangover.

(on changing the team's philosophy, without a dominant, shot-swatting center in the middle)

"You could see DeAndre (Daniels), Niels (Giffey), Leon (Tolksdorf), Tyler (Olander), all could be playing the four-spot. Hopefully, it's an offensive spot for us. We've definitely gone over the whole 'four-out' series, even 'five-out' (meaning four or five players playing outside the paint)."

(on Omar Calhoun)

"He's been terrific. He's almost 6-6, 200. His shot's a little funny, but it goes in ... all spring, our best shooter has been Omar."

(on having Ryan Boatright play point and moving Shabazz Napier off the ball)

"We'd like to do that more. Shabazz is probably our best pure shooter -- though it'll be interesting to see how DeAndre Daniels comes along."

(on R.J. Evans)

"R.J. is exactly what the doctor ordered. He came in not in as great shape as he would like to have been, but he's now 6-3, 210. When he's your fourth guard, you're in pretty good shape."

(on last year's "national championship hangover")

"We lost Kemba (Walker) and Charles (Okwandu), we lost the whole attitude we had the year before. It wasn't a bad attitude (last season), it wasn't that we weren't hungry anymore. But we turned to ourselves a little bit. That was obvious at the end of the season, and from some of the things that happened after the season was over."

(on the mass defections from last year's team)

"People make decisions in life, that's their decision. I wish them all the best. The two who left early, they should have gone early. Roscoe's a good kid, he wanted to leave, we would have liked him to stay. Same with Alex, he has a chance to play next year. Would Andre be better served (staying)? I think Jeremy should have gone. Those kids that want to leave, they have different pressures from different people. Life marches on. I'm gonna leave someday, too.

"Jerome (Dyson) came back and spent a couple of days with me. He was talking about what he did or didn't do when he was here. I told him, 'It doesn't make a difference. It's what you do today that matters.'"

Ater Majok promises that "one day", he'll shed light on why he left UConn last September under somewhat mysterious circumstances.

Just not today.



Here's a little of what Majok said prior to a Greater Hartford Pro-Am game Friday night:

(on being drafted by the Lakers in the second round)

"It's great, man. I'm a Laker now. It's a whole new beginning for me."

"They've said nothing's been handed to you, we've thrown you a life line and I've got to work for everything. They told me what I need to do to make the team, so I've just got to keep working hard."

"I'm playing in different pro-ams, just trying to get into as many games as possible."

(on UConn)

"Whatever happened, happened. I never wanted to leave UConn. They're good guys, I went back today."

"No, no hard feelings with anybody there. I was there yesterday, I spoke to Coach Calhoun, Coach Blaney. I'm a Husky, and I'll always be a Husky."

(on watching UConn's run to a national title this past spring)

"I'm gonna tell you the truth: it was tough ... I know I was part of that team, but because of things that happened, I wasn't able to. I was really happy for Kemba, he carried that team."

"I was eligible (to play)."

... Me neither!

So where has Ater Majok been since his one unillustrious season at UConn?

Well, after leaving UConn in September, 2010, he went over to Turkey and played for about two months, averaging about 14 points per game. He then returned to his adopted homeland, Australia, where he hooked up with a team called the Gold Coast Blaze.

Before that season ended, however, Majok asked for his release so that he could start preparing for the NBA draft. He worked out in front of a bunch of teams in group settings, one time going through a vigorous workout with ex-NBA player and coach John Lucas in Houston while several teams watched.

But it was a the adidas Euro Camp in Italy a few weeks ago, where many of the top international players work out and where all 30 teams were represented, where Majok really started opening some eyes.

"They played him at the the 3 position," said his agent, Mike Lelchitski. "He's been working to transition to playing the 3. He had a really tough time in college playing the 4 and 5. He's tall, but that's not naturally his position. He was able to really turn some heads and did a lot of things people never saw and didn't expect. He ran the court and altered shots, but also played great perimeter defense, locked down some of the great international players, and shot the ball extremely well from 3."

Majok played so well that the Lakers invited him for an individual workout last week, the only individual workout the 6-foot-11 Majok had.

"The Lakers were extremely interested right off the bat," Lelchitski said. "They had four second-round picks and they were looking for guys that could develop down the line."

Majok will attend a Lakers mini-camp next week out in L.A. After that, thanks to the NBA's unsettled labor situation, everything is up in the air.

"Ater wants to have ability to play in NBA one day," Lelchitski said. "That’s his dream. Whatever steps they suggest he take, he’s open to them. He has a lot of interest in Europe right now. I think that’s a great place for him to develop. His passport allows him certain opportunities in Europle others don’t have. Even if he's not in the NBA the next 1-2 years, he's in a great spot, because he has a team that believes in him enough to invest a draft pick, which says a lot."

Good morning, y’all. Yes, that time stamp is correct. It’s about 5:15 a.m. as I’m posting this blog entry. Been battling a bad cold (maybe a little bronchitis) for the past few days, and just can’t get to sleep. So, figured I’d turn on the computer and blog some thoughts on UConn. It’s fast approaching that time of the season, after all.

A week from today, the annual Husky Run will be held at Storrs. Two nights after that, Late Night Madness will unfold at Gampel Pavilion, with ESPN in the house, apparently focusing on the women’s team (and Jim Calhoun likely hundreds of miles away facing the NCAA committee on infractions in Indianapolis).

The following Wednesday is the annual Big East media day at Madison Square Garden. When the conference coaches poll is released that day, it’s likely UConn will find itself somewhere in the middle of the pack. Maybe seventh or eighth. Maybe a little higher … or a little lower.

It’s understandable, as after likely first-team preseason all-Big East point guard Kemba Walker, the Huskies will be filled with one question mark after another. Everyone else on the team will either be a veteran who hasn’t really done a whole lot, or a freshman – six, at least to start the season, with 7-foot German Enosch Wolf a possible mid-season addition as well.

Something tells me being picked in the middle of the pack this season will suit Calhoun just fine. Last year, after all, the Huskies were picked to finish third in the conference, even garnering a first-place vote. At Big East media day, Calhoun –half-jokingly, half-seriously, as only he can – said: "My fellow coaches have made a vow going back 12 years of making sure I never got coach of the year by making us third or better preseason. There seems to be a pact. New coaches come in and are told that, I think."

The Huskies, of course, wound up stumbling to a 7-11 league record, finishing 12th in the Big East. If Calhoun can get this team into the upper echelon of the conference this season, he’ll certainly be in line for coach of the year honors. And here’s the deal: I think he can.

I think UConn is going to be pretty good this season. Oh, there’ll be some growing pains. There may be a few ugly losses along the way. That season-opener against Steve Pikiell’s Stony Brook could be a real early-season test, with ‘embarrassing loss’ written all over it. It’ll take time for this team to gel.

But I think they will. Why? Well, it’s hardly a scientific reason, but here goes: I just don’t see a team with Jim Calhoun on the sidelines and Kemba Walker with the ball missing the NCAA tournament two years in a row. There, that’s it. Kinda simplistic, I know, but that’s my reasoning.

Calhoun hasn’t missed out on the Big Dance in consecutive seasons since 1988-89, when the Huskies backed up their NIT title with another trip to the NIT. Few, if any, coaches in America can will a team to victory better than him. Walker is on pace to graduate after this season, so there’s a huge chance this is his final season in Storrs. He’s a ferocious competitor who’ll want a better legacy than back-to-back NIT bids in his final two years.

Now, being a great competitor doesn’t exactly put the ball in the basket or control the boards. It means, however, finding a way to win. Last year, led by the talented-but-rudderless trio of Jerome Dyson, Stanley Robinson and Gavin Edwards, UConn went 1-8 in games decided by five points or less. I don’t see a similar number being repeated this season. Really, can they get any worse?

Again, the Huskies will have to find answers. Someone will have to emerge as a 3-point threat. Walker is said to have improved his long-range shooting greatly, but UConn will need more than that. Perhaps freshmen Jeremy Lamb, Shabazz Napier, Niels Giffey and/or Roscoe Smith fit the bill. Maybe Jamal Coombs-McDaniel improves from last year’s 32-percent field-goal shooting.

UConn will have to rebound the ball, too, and that could be a problem. But I don’t see the somewhat odd departure of Ater Majok as being a huge loss. Yes, the Huskies could have used his 6-foot-11 length, but having a lot of size these days is a bit overrated. There are no dominant big men in the Big East this year. Still, Alex Oriakhi, Okwandu and, likely, at least one or two of the freshmen (Smith, Tyler Olander, Wolf?) will need step up.

I also think the Big East will be a little down this year. Certainly down from two years ago, and from a year ago, as well. Pittsburgh, Villanova and West Virginia appear to be the favorites right now, with Syracuse, Georgetown, Notre Dame, maybe even St. John's right in the mix. Count UConn among those teams, as well.

Bottom line, every returning UConn player will have to improve his game greatly – and that includes Walker. As terrific a player as he is, Walker has been prone to some inconsistency over the past two seasons. And the Huskies will need at least two or three – maybe more – of its freshmen to step up, big time. That’s a tough thing to ask for, but certainly not completely unreasonable.

With Jim Calhoun and Kemba Walker leading the way, I see it happening.

Ater Majok is heading off to Europe tomorrow, with hopes of hooking up with a professional team. Majok said he’s had offers from several teams, but the problem is that most Euro squads have already started their seasons.

Indeed, leaving UConn at the time he did really put Majok behind the eight-ball in terms of finding a pro team. Which, of course, leads to the $64,000 question: Why did Majok leave UConn?

The answer: we still don’t really know, or at least no one's saying. But it wasn't Majok's decision.

“I didn’t want to leave,” he said. “I’m not stupid. Why stay around here all summer, miss the NBA circuit, and then leave? At the end of the day, I had no choice.”

But he wouldn’t elaborate, instead referring the question to his agent, Mike Lelchitski, of the Washington, D.C.-based Sports International Group. Lelthitski wasn’t any more helpful.

“From what I understand, it wasn’t his decision,” Lelthitski said. “I don’t know what was behind it, but it’s pretty clear that it wasn’t his decision – or it wasn’t all his decision. It was his decision to go pro. He could have transferred to another school.”

Majok has been spending most of his time in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. area, working out with numerous NBA players (John Wall, Chris Paul, to name a few), as well as at the University of Maryland-Baltimore. He’s slated to fly over to Europe tomorrow, with hopes of eventually hooking up with a pro team – perhaps with help from the Contonu Agreement, which helps players from developing nations find a slot on European pro teams.

“He’s had a lot of offers,” said Lelthitski. “We feel that Ater has a very, very bright future. Being that he’s 23 years old and he’s going to be in the (NBA) draft next year, this next step he’s taking is probably the most crucial one of his career. Is he going to position himself to be a high draft pick in the U.S., or is he going to have an overseas career?”

Ater Majok has withdrawn from UConn, according to a press release from the school. Majok played in 26 games last year as a freshman, averaging 2.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.

A posting on a pro-Georgetown blog asked in its headline, "Is Connecticut About to Lose Scholarships?", and went on to speculate on the "impending doom" about to hit the program.

The answer to the headline: "Well, umm, Yeah." Or at least most likely.

It's pretty much been assumed all along that the Huskies will dock itself at least a scholarship or two, hasn't it? At least I've always heard it that way. I'm pretty sure the NCAA will agree that the program should lose scholarships. How many? Recruit Angelo Chol Tweeted that the Huskies "lost all their scholarships."

First of all, it's Twitter. Secondly, it's a high school senior, not the greatest source of breaking news. Thirdly, it's Twitter. And plus, we don't even know how many "all their scholarships" will be next year. Two, as it stands now. Or three if Kemba Walker goes pro. Or four if Ater Majok leaves, as has been reported. Or five or six if the two German recruits don't show up ...

According to Michael Buckner (popular guy these days), the NCAA's "rough formula" has been a 2-for-1 penalty: two lost scholarship for every one student-athlete involved in wrongdoing. That would mean two for Nate Miles. Of course, that doesn't explain how USC football was docked 30 scholarships over the next three seasons for the Reggie Bush mess.

“I could see them losing at least two (scholarships), but it wouldn’t surprise me if they lost more," Buckner said of UConn. "I don’t have a basis for it, but that’s up for the appeals committee to decide (if UConn appealed the decision).”

Now, throw all this out the window if Majok's potential departure has anything to do with recruiting violations involving him. A UConn source categorically denies that is the case. If it is, however, the Huskies are in some trouble: unlike Nate Miles, of course, Majok actually did play for the team. Honest.

We'll find out over the next few days (likely a Thursday presser) what UConn's self-imposed sanctions will be. We won't find out how the NCAA ultimately rules until November or December, at the earliest.

Losing scholarships isn't good, but it's hardly a death sentence. Keep in mind, the Huskies were one short last year, and had one scholarship player (Jamaal Trice) who never saw the light of day in Big East action. Oh, and Jon Mandeldove was on scholarship last year, too. OK, last year's a bad example, since the team wasn't so good. But the bottom line is, most fully-funded teams in college hoops have at least two or three skollies wasted at the end of the bench.

Really, there are only two words the Huskies don't want to hear from the NCAA committee on infractions: postseason ban.

Doesn't seem likely, but ...

“I think based on the allegations, there’s probably a remote possibility (of a postseason ban),” said Dan Fitzgerald, a New Haven attorney who specializes in sports law. “I would never say never when you’re dealing with the NCAA. But these are recruiting violations. To me, the most logical sanctions would be recruiting sanctions, punishment parallel to the act.”

Added Buckner: “Based upon what we know, I do not see (a postseason ban), unless there’s some other information that we haven’t seen. Normally, that occurs when you have an ineligible student-athlete that’s involved in some serious NCAA rules violations (and) plays in some kind of NCAA postseason contests.”

Miles, of course, didn't.

“The committee of infractions could still impose that,” Buckner said, “but it would have to explain a sound basis for it. The committee has been trying to implement more stringent penalties lately. Look at the USC case.”

Along with its hefty loss of scholarships (which it is appealing), the USC football program received a two-year postseason ban for what the NCAA deemed a “lack of institutional control” regarding Bush, who allegedly received gifts from sports agents while at the school. UConn has been admonished by the NCAA for “a failure … to adequately monitor the conduct and administration of the men’s basketball staff.” Likewise, Calhoun has failed to “promote an atmosphere of compliance in the men's basketball program,” according to the NCAA.

“The only way a postseason ban would come up,” Fitzgerald said, “is if the lack of compliance was so pronounced – the failure to monitor was more than just negligent, it was reckless. I certainly don’t think they would find that with a program like UConn, that for the most part has been very clean and on the up-and-up.”

Added Buckner: “The only reason I could think of (for the NCAA to hand UConn a postseason ban) is that they’re trying to punish or sanction UConn and its men’s basketball program for not doing the job it should have been doing, in terms of ensuring impermissible contact between agents and boosters is not occurring with prospects. The NCAA is taking a very harsh, stringent approach against not just UConn but USC, (several) SEC, ACC schools, for their dealings with prospects or enrolled student-athletes. They could come up with some reason for a harsh approach, (saying) that you’ve got to be proactive and ensure that your program isn’t doing these things.”

It’s virtually impossible to believe that UConn will self-impose some sort of postseason ban. USC, in its combined investigation of its football and basketball programs, self-imposed a postseason ban for its basketball team the past season, stemming from improper benefits received by O.J. Mayo. Of course, Mayo played a season with the Trojans.

***Oh, had a brief e-mail exchange with Patrick Sellers earlier today. He's coaching the Shanxi Zhongyu Brave Dragons, the team Stephon Marbury played for last year in China. The team is 15-2, and he's happy with the way the players and organization have treated him.

Predictably, he couldn't comment on any NCAA stuff, but ended the e-mail by saying "I guess I will probably see you guys in Indy."

I guess that means Sellers intends on appearing before the NCAA committee on infractions Oct. 15-16 in Indianapolis.

Was looking forward to seeing UConn incoming freshman Jeremy Lamb, who’s scored 76 points in his last two games, play in the Greater Hartford Pro-Am tonight. Naturally, Lamb’s not here, but there’s a good reason: study hall and night classes back in Storrs.

Here’s what Dr. Steve Sobel, who coaches Lamb’s Club Palace Slamm GHPA team, says about the 6-foot-5, long-armed guard:

“Jeremy Lamb is one of the most talented players I’ve ever had in 20 years of coaching at the pro-am level. Not only physically gifted, in terms of shooting ability, creating his own shot, (but) I told him was pleasantly surprised how he can take people off the dribble, long arms, he can rebound. I see him as a 2 or 3, potentially, and on the press I think he can even bring the ball up, if he doesn’t overdo it.

“And when I say talented, he’s also a kid who listens. He’s very gracious, you talk to him about where to play, he’s got a very bright mind for where you play your position. He can play the game from the neck up, as well as the physical (game). I think he’s going to be very special at UConn, to be honest with you. He’s going to have to wait his turn, he’s going to have to play within the system. But once he starts to make a contribution, I think it’s going to put them back in the race of the Big East. He’s that type of player.”

High praise, indeed. Maybe even a tinge of hyperbole. But in my book, anyone who can score 44 points (as Lamb did Sunday night) at virtually any level definitely has some game.

“I think he’s wiry strong. What he’s got to do is get some upper-body strength, but I don’t think he needs to overdo it. He’s kind of got a George Gervin body … he’s got that fluidity, he’s got that mentality, and he can jump over people.

“When Jim recruits a kid, I say, ‘Why should he wear a UConn uniform.’ I think I’ve gotten the answer the last two games.”

Here’s what Sobel has to say about another Club Palace Slamm player, Ater Majok,

Ater is probably the most loyal player I’ve had in two years in the pro-am. He hasn’t missed a game. Ater will do anything to compete. What Ater needs to know is that he does not have to do it alone. He’s got to be selective with his jump shots, he’s got to be 13 feet and in, and he’s got to be vicious on the boards. He’s not as vicious as he needs to be. If he does that, I think Coach has got to look at him for contributions in the Big East. I think he’s got an idea of what the Big East is really all about now. He’s got to do certain things, maybe 20-percent better, to get the minutes that are going to help UConn. He’s hanging in mentally, he’s working physically. He’s got to continue to run the court. He’s got what I call a ‘pro jump shot’ – it’s almost like a Garnett shot, it’s way up there. He’s got to work on his ballhandling, and his hands. His hands are not where I want them to be. He’s got so much raw potential, that a coach will lose sleep overnight. Because you can’t teach the body he’s got.”

This is getting ridiculous: incoming UConn freshman Jeremy Lamb poured in 44 points, to go with 13 boards, in Club Palace Slamm's 124-123 loss to Sparks Motor All-Stars in Greater Hartford Pro-Am action Sunday night.

Randy Hite led the winners with 39 points, 10 assists and eight boards.

Now, some of these stats have to be taken with a grain of salt, given the wide-open nature of the league. Still, anyone who can score 44 points in ANY league has got some game. Looking forward to see Lamb play.

Also, Ater Majok had 25 points, eight boards and six blocks for Club Palace in the loss.

Moving from UConn's future to its past, Jerome Dyson trumped Lamb with a 48-point performance on Sunday for Little Caesar's. It came in a 128-125 loss, however, to Harte Nissan, which was led by T.J. Mathis (25 points), Ryan Gomes (22) and Keith Cothran (18). Ex-PC Friar Kyle Wright had 22 points for Little Caesar's and Danny Lawhorn (no, he's not going to UConn) added 21.

Jeremy Lamb had 32 points and 10 boards and Ater Majok added 25 points and 11 rebounds in Club Palace Slamm's 107-100 loss to the Simoniz All-Stars tonight in Greater Hartford Pro-Am action.

I wasn't at the game, but it seems reports that Lamb could be a force this season may be spot-on.

Ater Majok had nine points, nine boards and six blocks in Club Palace's 90-69 win over Little Caesar's on Monday night in Greater Hartford Pro-Am action.

No games on Tuesday night, but some good action on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. and 8:15 p.m.

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.

If you're interested in seeing how UConn newcomers Jeremy Lamb, Michael Bradley and Shabazz Napier look, how much guys like Kemba Walker and Ater Majok have improved since we last saw them in March, or how Taliek Brown is playing since his UConn days, swing by the Sports & Medicine Sciences Academy in Hartford for some Greater Hartford Pro-Am action tonight.

At 6:30 p.m. (or thereabouts), Club Palace Slamm takes on the Attorney Deron Freeman All-Stars. Lamb, Bradley, Majok and Napier all should be playing for Club Palace, along with a few other local college standouts. The Freeman All-Stars is also populated by some lesser-known local college talent.

Then at 8:15(ish), the Doc Hurley All-Stars, featuring Walker and Brown, among others, face Cambyland, which features older former stars like Charles "The Beast" Easterling, Ben Grate and Roosevelt Lee, along with Hartford prep star Anthony Jernigan. That should be an up-and-down, entertaining contest, to say the least.

Went to Gampel tonight to watch UConn players run at the conclusion of the school's hoops camp, which is running this week and next.

Jerome Dyson and Taliek Brown were in the house, and Tony Robertson has been here the previous few nights. Kemba Walker was back from LeBron James camp (he said he had no idea which way LeBron would go in his decision). Jamaal Trice and Darius Smith are still here, taking summer courses to try to boost their GPA's in order to transfer. Trice confirmed that he is, indeed, transferring -- he just has no idea where yet.

Jon Mandeldove is here, too. Big Dove said he'll be pulling a Stanley Robinson next year -- in other words, paying his own way while taking classes and holding down a job. Mandeldove has an apartment off-campus so he said he'll be paying in-state tuition. He also said he's nearly done with classes, and hopes to be completely done after the first semester so that he can concentrate solely on hoops for the second.

A few other nuggets:

***Walker will play for the USA Select Team against the NBA-stocked U.S. national team from July 18-25 in Vegas. He's already earned rave reviews at both the Deron Williams and LeBron James camps this summer, and feels he's really emerged as a true leader.

“I was talking a lot (on the floor),” he said. “I think I showed I’m a leader. And my shooting, I think I’ve improved a lot in that aspect.”

Walker will be one of just three scholarship upperclassmen on this year’s UConn team and is a co-captain with senior guard Donnell Beverly. The Huskies have seven incoming freshmen this season, the most since the early 1990’s. I asked him if he feels this year’s team is his team.

“I don’t feel it, I know it is,” he responded. “I’m just looking forward to being a leader.”

***Dyson, who went unselected in last month’s NBA Draft, will head to Vegas next week to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers summer league team.

***Ater Majok looks pretty good. Yes, it's just summertime pick-up games, but he made some moves and finishes that I haven't seen him make before. Jeremy Lamb can play a little bit, too.

***New commit Enosch Wolf's father apparently played basketball at Ohio State and was a teammate of Detlef Schrempf's on the German national squad.

***The Huskies will have a slightly different ... um ... complexion this season. Walker has already noticed it. We're told that a few weeks ago, while German Niels Giffey was making an official visit, Walker dribbled up the court and saw Tyler Olander, Giffey, as well as African natives Majok and Charles Okwandu ahead of him. He stopped his dribble.

"Man," Walker said, "we've got some di-versity this year!"

Jamal Coombs-McDaniel and Ater Majok were at Jim Calhoun's press conference today. Here's how they feel about knowing their coach will be around for at least four more years.

COOMBS-MCDANIEL:

"It's definitely a good feeling. I kind of knew all along that he was going to come back. He's been telling us that. It will also help our team in recruiting for the next couple of years."

(was there ever a doubt in your mind that Calhoun would return?)

"I just know how much of a competitor he is. He loves the state of Connecticut, he comes here at 7 a.m. even though he doesn't have to, so I definitely knew he was coming back."

(did the long time without a new contract affect recruiting negatively?)

"Yeah, I think it did. Some of the guys -- if you don't know if a coach is coming back, you don't want to put yourself in a predicament where you sign here and you're stuck here, without the coach you wanted to be here."

MAJOK:

"I'm excited that he's coming back. Everybody else is excited, I spoke to most of the guys on the team. We've got the coach, we've got the players, it's just time to get in the gym right now, get better and get ready for next year."

The two players also spoke on a few other subjects. Both were disappointed in this past season, both from a team and an individual standpoint.

"It was definitely a disappointment for me," said Coombs-McDaniel. "Coach said I played alright, but I expected much more out of myself. Next year, I'm going to come back and be one of the best players in the Big East."

Added Majok: "It was a tough season. It was exciting, and I learned a lot from it."

When asked what type of things he learned, Majok paused for a moment, then said: "I learned a lot of things. First of all, I've got to get stronger. That's one of the most important lessons I learned, and we'll take it from there."

Majok will try out for the Australian national team in June. If he makes the team, he'll play in the world championships this August in Turkey.

Coombs-McDaniel noted that he's played with incoming freshman Shabazz Napier since he was about 10 years old.

"He's a prolific scorer, a great leader, a winner. He's going to come in and play hard, he's going to be a great player for us next year."

A fitting ending? Yes, to a great degree: the bad turnover, the clutch shot by the opponent, the missed shots in the closing seconds.

All the ingredients that have marked this disappointing season for UConn were on display in the final minute of its crushing, 65-63 second-round National Invitational Tournament loss to Virginia Tech tonight at Cassell Coliseum. Everything, that is, but the Huskies' effort.

UConn's heart and hustle, questionable too many times in too many losses this season, was unquestioned in this one. The Huskies played hard, played with passion, and played well enough to advance to the tournament's quarterfinals. They simply fell a bit short, and it will instead be the Hokies playing Rhode Island on Wednesday night.

Gotta admit, I was looking forward to a UConn-URI tilt on Wednesday at the Ryan Center. So was Jim Calhoun.

"If we hadn't played well tonight, I would have said it was time to bring the curtain down," Calhoun said. "It wasn't time to bring the curtain down. We got it. We didn't make some of the plays I would have liked to see us make, but we really got it tonight. It's unfortunate we couldn't have gotten a little finalization in the end."

The Huskies finish 18-16. More tellingly, they wind up 1-8 in games decided by five points or less.

"That was exactly what happened all season, pretty much every other game," senior Gavin Edwards said of the tight loss.

Added Kemba Walker: "It was just like a jinx or something. That's how it's been for the whole season."

UConn took a 52-51 lead on an Edwards stickback with 8 minutes, 17 seconds to play and didn't trail again until the closing seconds. A pair of free throws by Victor Davila with 49.3 seconds left brought Tech to within a point (63-62), and with 22.4 ticks left, Jerome Dyson had a pass tipped, collected the loose ball but was whistled for a backcourt violation.

"He got knocked out of bounds," said Calhoun. "He ended up underneath the scorer's table."

Added Dyson: I definitely did (get bumped). He hit the ball, the ball goes back, (the referee) calls backcourt. I didn't even hear the whistle blow until the ball went out of bounds, so … I don't have much to say."

Tech came down and quickly got it to red-hot Dorenzo Hudson, who buried a 17-footer off a screen to give the Hokies a 64-63 lead with 14.1 seconds left.

UConn called a timeout, and as the players returned to the floor, "Enter Sandman" blared on the p.a. system. Off to never, never land, indeed ... Walker took the ball to about 12 feet and had his shot blocked by Jeff Allen. He grabbed the loose ball but, instead of putting up a shot, passed to Edwards – who missed a point-blank shot.

"I was going to go up, but a guy stepped in front of me so I threw it to Gavin," said Walker. "Unfortunately, it didn't go in."

Said Edwards: "I thought he was going to shoot it."

Terrell Bell grabbed the rebound and was fouled. He missed the first free throw, made the second, Walker's three-quarter court shot fell way short, and UConn's season was over.

"It's a very hard game for me, far and away the hardest (of the season)," said Calhoun. "(It's) an NIT game in Blacksburg, Va., that the nation's not going to care about. But I care about it greatly, because they got it tonight. We, as a team, got it. That's the best opportunity I remember us having at the end of a game in one of these close games."

Virginia Tech improved to 25-8, matching a school record for wins in a season. ACC scoring leader Malcolm Delaney was held to just six points on 2-for-14 shooting, but Hudson picked up the slack with a game-high 27 points – 17 of them in the latter half on 7-for-10 shooting.

When not holding Delaney in check, Walker led the Huskies with 18 points. In their final games at UConn, Dyson had 15 points, Edwards 10 and Stanley Robinson nine.

When the dust had settled, Calhoun was asked about the status of the program and what the future holds.

"Right now, the only future I have is going into that locker room and let them know how I feel about them," he said. "(I'll tell them), 'If you do that every night the rest of your life, be it in basketball or otherwise, you're going to be just fine'."

***Both Calhoun and Tech coach Seth Greenberg were hit with technical fouls. Greenberg's came less than six minutes into the game after yelling at the officials. Calhoun's came just under four minutes into the latter half, after Robinson was called for an elbow while grabbing a rebound. The officials huddled around the monitor to determine whether it was a flagrant foul and repeatedly asked Calhoun to leave the area. He didn't, and referee Doug Shows T'd him up.

***The vocal crowd of 6,983 wanted a technical on Ater Majok late in the first half. After Dyson had fouled Delaney and Delaney lay on the floor, it appeared Majok kicked Delaney – perhaps inadvertently – in the head. The refs didn't see it, but the crowed booed Majok each time he touched the ball, a la Ralph Sampson at Boston Garden in the 1986 NBA Finals, the rest of the way – even in the halftime layup drills.

***Davila was a 50.8 percent foul-shooter this season, but swished 4-of-4 over the final two minutes, barely grazing net on each shot.

***Final words from Robinson and Dyson, both of whom could hear their names selected in June's NBA Draft.

"Overall, I'll just say I'm happy I played with these guys," said Sticks. "I'm glad I came to UConn and stayed here all four years."

Dyson: "It's a little sad. The season had so many ups and downs. At times, we played like we're one of the best teams in the country, and at times we played like we shouldn't even be in the NIT. It hurts to know the potential that we had here and the efforts we made in some games weren't our best – and if we had, the season would have been a lot different.

"It's hard to put into words. The four years I've been here have been great. I owe coach a lot. He's been with me every step of the way, when he could have just given up on me. I'm just blessed and happy I had the opportunity to play here."

Does Dyson feel he's hurt his NBA stock with his end-of-the-season slump?

"They'll have a lot of opportunities to see me. There will be a lot of workouts and camps. I just have to get back on top of my game. I felt like the last two games, I was playing well. The shots felt good."

***Highly, highly doubtful, but you never know -- this could have been Walker's last game in a UConn uniform, too.

"I don't know yet," Walker said when asked if he's definitely coming back next season. "I'm leaving that up to coach. We'll talk about it soon, I'm pretty sure. He'll let me know."

Can't imagine how Walker doesn't return to Storrs next season.

There is a local connection on Virginia Tech: Allan Chaney, who lived in New London for three years, is a red-shirt sophomore.

Chaney is from Baltimore but moved to New London as a teen and played three years at New London High. He went off to play for Billy Donovan at Florida, but apparently had a miserable time and transferred to Tech to join his good friend, fellow Baltimore native Malcolm Delaney.

***Entertaining first half. UConn's got 11 offensive rebounds but eight turnovers, several of which helped turn a 12-point lead with 7:07 to go in the half to five (35-30) here at the break, following JT Thompson's 3-pointer at the buzzer (just the third trey of his career).

Tech coach Seth Greenberg got a technical foul for yelling at the refs less than six minutes into the game. Hokie fans wanted a tech on Ater Majok, after Jerome Dyson was called for a foul and it appeared Majok may have stepped on a VT player on the ground. I didn't see it, to be honest.

Tech had seven turnovers in the first 13 minutes but none over the last seven. ACC leading scorer Delaney is 0-for-6 with exactly one point, as Kemba Walker has done a nice job guarding him.

Not so fast ... Jim Calhoun backed off Saturday's postgame proclamation that the same five players who ended the game will start in Tuesday's Big East opener.

"We kept changing it today, based on what guys are doing in different drills, I'm sure we'll change it by tomorrow, as I think more through it," Calhoun said. "I think it's more important, how we play the game, whoever's on the floor. That will be determined by watching how they're playing, quite frankly."

For the 45 minutes or so the media was able to watch practice, Stanley Robinson, Donnell Beverly, Gavin Edwards, Ater Majok and Darius Smith ran on one team, while Charles Okwandu, Jerome Dyson, Alex Oriakhi, Jamal Coombs-McDaniel and Kemba Walker were on another.

How have Dyson and Robinson, in particular, handled Saturday's second-half benching?

"Stanley was very good on defense, came in with a very good attitude," Calhoun said. "Jerome was really good yesterday and today."

When asked about Dyson in particular, Walker gave a short pause, then said:
"I think he realizes what he's got to do. He's been real positive in practice, he's been talking, been going hard. Hopefully, he can transfer it to the game and be the leader that he is."

Dyson was not made available to the media today.

Both Walker and Edwards were asked if the team had lost any faith in its coach and/or, had the coach lost any faith in his team.

"I don’t think so," said Edwards. "Coach isn't one to give up on anybody. He's going to keep doing the best that he can. I don't think anybody has given up on the season, either. Everybody wants to play in the postseason and hopefully make the tournament but, if not, just keep playing somehow."

Added Walker: "Nah, not at all. We've always been together. Some nights, we just don't play hard. We all love each other, we're all cool. Nobody's not friends on this team."

But clearly, these Huskies are an enigma for their coach.

"If I could ever figure this team out," said Calhoun, "then I probably wouldn't be losing my mind."