After a long, tense wait, Husky fans can breathe a sigh of relief as Ater Majok announced Sunday that he will play for UConn this season. The decision came after a three month wait, where Majok declared for the NBA Draft, then withdrew his name and considered playing overseas for a season. Somewhat of a bookworm, Majok said one of the major factors for returning to UConn was to continue his education. Majok has been pursuing a degree in law from UConn this past year while he was in Storrs, and now he will be able to work more towards completing it.
Majok brings a large, athletic build to the Huskies lineup that they haven't seen since Emeka Okafor. At 6' 10", he is long, fast, and strong -- dangerous qualities that can pose a lot of problems for opponents. While he may not have the height to replace 2nd overall pick Hasheem Thabeet, he posseses a ton of offensive firepower that Thabeet lacked. While fans cringed last year everytime Thabeet took a jumpshot outside the paint, Majok consistently drains jumpshots from 18 feet, and can be incredibly versitile within the paint as well. His work ethic is unquestioned, as NBA Scouts raved about his indivudal workouts, something that Jim Calhoun values very highly.
Majok's versitility gives Calhoun a lot of options this year for the Huskies. Unless freshman Alex Oriakhi makes an overwhelming impression on Calhoun early in the season, we will mostly likely see a starting front court of Stanley Robinson, who is coming off a very successful half-season with UConn; Gavin Edwards, who is coming off somewhat of a breakout season; and Majok. Add those three to a backcourt duo of Jerome Dyson and Kemba Walker, and the Huskies may have a legitimate chance to make a long postseason run this year.
Monday, July 20, 2009
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