ROSELLE, N.J. — UConn coach Kevin Ollie plans to huddle next week with juniors DeAndre Daniels and Ryan Boatright about their future plans.
Originally projected as a 2015 NBA Draft pick, the 6-foot-9 Daniels helped his stock with a strong NCAA Tournament and may opt to declare this year. The 6-foot Boatright is not projected to get drafted and should probably return to the reigning national champions.
“We’re trying to get them finishing school so they can have their options of coming back if they decide to,” Ollie told SNY.tv of Daniels and Boatright. “I know they’re going to be thinking it over with their family and I’m going to be there for them either way they go. They’re always going to have a home in Connecticut, so if they do decide to come back we’re going to take them with open arms. If they decide to go, I’m going to give them advice on the next step of their life.”
Ollie said he would meet with them “Monday,Tuesday. I’ve been out of the office for a couple days and when I get back on Monday I’ll have a chance to talk to them.”
Ollie agreed they both helped themselves by winning the school’s fourth title Monday night over Kentucky.
“Oh yeah, Boatright helped himself,” he said. “DeAndre helped himself. Shabazz helped himself. Niels Giffey helped himself. When you’re the last team playing and the last team standing, people want to be associated with champions and that’s what we kept telling them.
“Everybody’s going to get the spotlight. It’s not just you as a player, it’s you as a university but people love winners. I think all of them rose their stock up tremendously.”
Senior point guard Shabazz Napier, winner of the Most Outstanding Player aware in the Final Four, is projected as a late-first or second-round picck.
Ollie is using his time in New Jersey to recruit. He is recruiting 2015 Roselle Catholic guard Isaiah Briscoe and 2015 forward Chris Silva.
After the clinic, he headed off to see 2016 point guard Tyus Battle of Gill St. Bernard’s.
“It’s great to see UConn back on top and I know a lot of kids saw us play,” Ollie said. “Being in Texas and beating Kentucky, beating the Michigan States, beating the Floridas, it don’t hurt. Put it that way. It definitely helps. And now we just gotta do our due diligence. It’s recruiting but I look at it as more of an evaluation. I want to get the right kids that fit our motto. And my motto is based on toughness and hard work and character and selflessness. We gotta do evaluations. I look at that more than just recruiting.”
