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Hawthorne could be suprisingly in regular rotation next season

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chasingwildcat

All-Conference
Dec 23, 2024
2,240
4,754
38
He reminds me a lot of Will Riley in Illinois

Tall, agile, can play multiple positions, high IQ player with good skill set, both two are pretty thin

I will not be surprised if Hawthorne plays a lot next year, I think it is possible that even he does not gain a lot weight in this summer, he can still be good enough to play meaningful minutes
 
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UKalldayfromVA

Sophomore
Mar 21, 2022
76
124
0
He is a great "sleeper pick" to have on this team! Great intangibles , and sky is the limit upside, if he puts in the work!
Ijs, not comparing at all, but "how great was AD in his freshman yr with somewhat of a thin body frame"..
6'8 and, from what I read , still growing, with a crazy wingspan. Wouldn’t be mad at all if we got an SGA surprise season from Hawthorne.
 
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K_TIME

Heisman
Jan 2, 2003
18,056
24,849
113
I like pickign him up longterm....but I don't see who he knocks off minutes in 2025/26

1. He's a SF all the way for next year....6'8 175....I just can't see him playing PF.
2. So SF minutes are probably the most stacked part of roster (maybe C once Quantenance gets healthy)
- Oweh, Kam Williams and Colin Chandler, Trent Noah are all guys who will play SF....who will Hawthorne knock minutes from? He could knock Noah .....I'd have to see him knock Chandler out....but I cna't see a universe he knocks Oweh...nor Williams at the SF minutes
- Assuming SG is guys like Jasper, Aberdeen play SG


I just don't see it....About PG is the only spot I can see a kid getting rotation minutes....and Hawthorne ain't a PG
 
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chasingwildcat

All-Conference
Dec 23, 2024
2,240
4,754
38
K_TIME said:
I like pickign him up longterm....but I don't see who he knocks off minutes in 2025/26

1. He's a SF all the way for next year....6'8 175....I just can't see him playing PF.
2. So SF minutes are probably the most stacked part of roster (maybe C once Quantenance gets healthy)
- Oweh, Kam Williams and Colin Chandler, Trent Noah are all guys who will play SF....who will Hawthorne knock minutes from? He could knock Noah .....I'd have to see him knock Chandler out....but I cna't see a universe he knocks Oweh...nor Williams at the SF minutes
- Assuming SG is guys like Jasper, Aberdeen play SG


I just don't see it....About PG is the only spot I can see a kid getting rotation minutes....and Hawthorne ain't a PG
Click to expand...
If he is good enough, he will get his minutes

I think Will Riley from Illinois was only 180 pounds, similar frame with Hawthorne, and was major player for Illinois

If he is as good as freshman's Riley (just for example), he will be good enough to get some minutes
 
B

bucsrule8872

Heisman
May 30, 2005
24,397
29,352
0
He’s not playing much unless there is a major injury, IMHO.

He’s not strong enough to play the 4 in the SEC and like K_Time said, there’s a logjam at the 3.

Oweh and Williams are likely getting the lion’s share of the minutes at the 3.

Unless we have a slew of injuries again, he won’t play much this season.

Might should redshirt, live in the weight room, and just work on his body.

We might need him at the 3/4 next season. It’s hard to say who will be back and who will leave for the NBA or portal.
 
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P

Panthur

Heisman
Aug 5, 2008
9,225
12,780
0
With Hawthorne this coming year it’s all about how Pope wants to use his roster. If we mostly play 8 or 9 deep it’s hard to see where Hawthorne squeezes in.

If Pope uses mass substitutions to grind the opponent down and keep our pace fast it’s a different story. I could see him wanting to do that, not only because we have more depth to take advantage of but also because we have more slashers and less perimeter firepower in terms of what guys have demonstrated by volume and percentage. If we play that way I don’t see why Hawthorne couldn’t get his share of those minutes. By 247 at least he’s ranked a lot higher than Travis Perry was, and ranked the same as Collin Chandler was, without the rust. Both those guys got minutes last year before we had any injuries. In either scenario he’d have to really blow up to get a lot of minutes.
 
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ukhemingway

All-Conference
Dec 21, 2005
2,979
2,472
113
I see him as Brandon Ingram type.
Long, athletic enough, can shoot some, can handle some...Everything just needs to get a lil better. If he does that and adds 20 lbs i Feel like a year from now he'll get 20 min a game.
 
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NerlensCat

All-Conference
Feb 12, 2013
1,122
1,941
0
NerlensCat said:
Let’s not relegate the kid to the bench before we even see him playing. His play will determine how many minutes he gets.
Click to expand...
I would like to add, that is the same for everyone on the roster. The nice thing is, they all know they have to “compete” for minutes. Nothing is given, all is earned!
 
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JPFisher

JPFisher

Heisman
Jul 24, 2013
6,024
10,566
113
NerlensCat said:
Let’s not relegate the kid to the bench before we even see him playing. His play will determine how many minutes he gets.
Click to expand...
On some level I agree, but this dude should not be tasked with playing anything besides mop up minutes unless there's a slee of injuries.

He's probably too weak to play the four at this point. He badly needs to bulk up. So, that leaves him getting SG/W minutes. I think he'd need probably three of Aberdeen, Oweh, Williams, MoD, JJ, Chandler, and Noah to get injured to play. I think he's behind all of those guys... and not just because he's wiry and will get snapped in two like a Slim Jim in the SEC. We have experienced guys in front of him who should be getting the majority of minutes. They have experience, skills, strength, and they need to be utilized properly.

If BH earns playing time, I'm all for it. I just don't see it with the cast in front of him.
 
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UKWildcats1987

Heisman
Sep 9, 2021
17,901
30,052
113
As I said last season (and it proved true until massive injuries) , none of these experienced guys transferred here to sit behind some freshmen. OP acts like this guy is John wall or cousins or towns or fox, etc. Don't see it.
 
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UK’98UK’00

All-Conference
Mar 29, 2014
3,150
1,365
86
UKWildcats1987 said:
As I said last season (and it proved true until massive injuries) , none of these experienced guys transferred here to sit behind some freshmen. OP acts like this guy is John wall or cousins or towns or fox, etc. Don't see it.
Click to expand...
Yes you were so awesome with your predictions, no op came nowhere close to saying he’s wall or cousins. Try reading again the op, ask for help if necessary, then repost.
 
C

Cats192

Heisman
Apr 22, 2011
14,431
16,580
93
I hope he earns a ton of minutes. I think it's an uphill battle this season. That's not a knock on his ability. But he's a freshman on the thinner side. We have a team full of grown men. We will be playing teams full of grown men in the SEC.

I always make the comparison to the NBA All-Star team or the Team USA that goes to the Olympics. NBA All-Stars struggle to get minutes on these loaded teams. Someone has to be the odd man out.

Every off-season, each guy gets a thread. "I think you guys are sleeping on this guy." It's not that anyone is sleeping on him. It's just that we have a really deep and experienced roster. It's harder for a freshman to walk in to minutes.

My hope for Hawthorne is he gets stronger, puts on 15-20 lbs, and is ready to contribute next season. Anything beyond that is gravy.
 
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UKSanders_rivals37733

All-American
Jan 1, 2003
8,634
8,736
0
NerlensCat said:
I would like to add, that is the same for everyone on the roster. The nice thing is, they all know they have to “compete” for minutes. Nothing is given, all is earned!
Click to expand...

Seems like I've heard that before... 🤔
Should the players all get tattoos of that?
 
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treyforuk

All-Conference
May 21, 2002
8,250
2,912
0
UKalldayfromVA said:
He is a great "sleeper pick" to have on this team! Great intangibles , and sky is the limit upside, if he puts in the work!
Ijs, not comparing at all, but "how great was AD in his freshman yr with somewhat of a thin body frame"..
6'8 and, from what I read , still growing, with a crazy wingspan. Wouldn’t be mad at all if we got an SGA surprise season from Hawthorne.
Click to expand...
His body and how he moves reminds me of Prince.
 
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