Where Does Liam McNeeley Rank Among Dan Hurley's Most Talented UConn Players?
Ranking the 10 most talented UConn Huskies players Dan Hurley has coached…
2. Liam McNeeley
McNeeley’s talent level has been obvious this season as he’s shown he’s one of the best players in the nation regardless of class.
It’s easy to forget when watching him that McNeeley’s still just a 19-year-old freshman. Hurley told reporters before the season that McNeeley is the best freshman he’s coached at UConn in terms of readiness to compete at a high level from day one.
He’s the complete package offensively and should be a top-five or top-seven pick in the NBA draft this summer barring an unforeseen injury or wild drop in production.
McNeeley’s coming out party as UConn’s best player happened in mid-December at Madison Square Garden. He dominated a top-10 Gonzaga team under the brightest lights and announced himself as one of the country’s best players.
No one this young has carried such a heavy burden for a Huskies team in the Hurley era, and the scary thing is, McNeeley has a ton of room for improvement as the season rolls along, especially defensively speaking.
McNeeley reminds one of a stronger version of Gordon Hayward (Hayward put on a lot of muscle during his NBA career, but as a freshman at Butler didn’t have the type of physical profile that McNeeley does).
Like Hayward, McNeeley can operate as a de facto point guard in pick-and-roll, which UConn and Hurley figured out after Maui (they haven’t lost since).
But who tops McNeeley as the most talented player Hurley has coached at UConn? Find out below.
More NCAA: The 10 Most Talented Players Dan Hurley Has Coached At UConn: No. 1
-6cddf44b9a81eadb9d1a4c19c1b3db49.jpeg "Colin Keane")
Colin Keane is a contributing journalist for "UConn Huskies On SI." Born in Illinois, Colin grew up in Massachusetts as the third of four brothers. For his high school education, Colin attended St. Mark's School (Southborough, MA), where he played basketball and soccer and served as student body president. He went on to receive a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from Villanova University. Colin currently resides in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "UConn Huskies On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org