Wasn't UK in on this guy last year? Wonder if there will be interest again.
Alvaro Folgueiras in the portal!
- Thread starter Prince is STILL KING!
- Start date
He wouldn't be a top choice at PF to me. His rebounding production dropped by 50% going from Robert Morris to the Big Ten, and I think it would be similar in the SEC. His perimeter shooting also dropped from 41% at RMU to 33% at Iowa... was that from bigger more athletic defenders in the Big Ten?
I just don't love having either a PF or C that lacks athleticism and plays below the rim.
As a backup PF, maybe, but I'd think even then there may be better options.
Last edited:
Under a different coach last year, but Providence was one of the finalists for his services, something to consider…
Another perfect opportunity for Pope to showcase his whiffing prowess.
He’s a very nice player. Iowa could not have made that Elite 8 run without him.
Folks, Pope ain’t getting no one who will make UK a contender! Those players are going to play under proven coaches who won’t put them in an ice bath when they start the game hot!
I would take him in a heartbeat ,His Rebounding,dropped,because other big guys on Iowa 's team got them,and he's good defender and he makes big shots.
I admit that I was high on him last year coming out of Robert Morris, but I would strictly be interested in him as a bench piece now. The upside is that he’s a very good passer for his size, which could play well in Pope’s system and that he graded out above average defensively even after moving to the Big 10. The concern is that his rebounding rate and 3 point percentage (only 23% in Big 10 play) really fell off a cliff with the increased competition.
He did have a nice tournament, at least before disappearing against Illinois, so maybe you could convince yourself that he’s a bounce back candidate after having time to adjust, but he’d be extremely risky to guarantee a starting role to, which is what I assume he might want if he’s transferring again.
He did have a nice tournament, at least before disappearing against Illinois, so maybe you could convince yourself that he’s a bounce back candidate after having time to adjust, but he’d be extremely risky to guarantee a starting role to, which is what I assume he might want if he’s transferring again.
I was high on him last year in the portal.
So, I should've prefaced my original post that I didn't watch him this season, and I was basing my thoughts on what I remember of his highlights last year combined with seeing his drop in stats.
So, maybe I am just wrong, and he could be much better that I was giving him credit for...
Just watched some of his film from Iowa... yep, I was wrong. Even though I think he'd still struggle some defensively, I'd take him at the PF
Last edited:
Damn, tough crowd? 90% of the names that come up ya'll call "bench pieces." What are you expecting? Lebron, KD and Luka Doncic?
With a big mountain space eater like Mal could be, having a long athletic PF who can stretch the floor makes sense.
You bring up such a great bigger picture point with this. I think analytics are great at the pro level where the talent is evenly spread amongst the leagues and all numbers anre registered against the same competition.
Building a team in college on analytics alone is impossible. A 40% 3 point shooter averaging 20ppg in the mountain west is not the same as a 40% 3 point shooter averaging 20ppg in the SEC.
The skillset fits Pope’s system but I have concerns about athleticism.
I wouldn’t hate to get this kid, but hopefully there’s better options out there.
I wouldn’t hate to get this kid, but hopefully there’s better options out there.
Honestly, some might for NIL. For example, who do you think likely makes more NIL, the 8th man/backup PF at UK, or the starting PF at Drexel?
Now this kid is different b/c he's already in the Big Ten, so he's likely looking for a starting position for a P4 team, but I was just addressing your comment in general.
Don't think he started for Iowa, but was decent for them
Not much difference between him and jelavic that I saw
And yet we assess HS shooters based upon their percentages. And, those numbers often translate.
Agree. If one had dropped but the other not much, that may have been ok. But to lose both strengths, no, not acceptable.
Kerr, Garrison, Almanour all came to UK surely knowing they would likely come off the bench.
This guy is way better than Jelly but I don't know if you can pair him in the frontcourt with an already unathletic MM and expect to rebound and play defense against ultra athletic SEC bigs.
Now ya talking! Let's sign all 3 and see if Florida can beat us 3 times in one season!
You are WRONG.
BG came thinking he’d be a 4 & he started 29 of 32 games his freshman year at Ok State
Kerr was told he’d be able to compete for starting spot & I believe he thought Pope would play up tempo offense with 10 “starters” in a a platoon system. Kerr started in every game but 3 in the 100 games he played at Arizona & West Va after the Covid year. He thought of himself as a STARTER.
AA also started all but 3 games at FDU his soph & jr years there - He started 7 games at Ky
Oh. So when a coach brings in double digit portal players they all expect to start. I stand corrected.
What’s really fun is to whiff on 5-6 players, then land the 3rd or 4th choice at a position and then act like it’s the player you wanted all along because he fits the system. Thats gonna happen really soon.
I could see KD as a secondary scorer, Luka as your third option and LeBron as sixth man.
If Pope can’t at least do that, he needs to GTFO of Lexington. Wii R KENTUCKY!
Cal was the worst at promising PT & starting spots . Just ask DJ Wag - Reed - Dilly - Bryce Hopkin’s - Karter - Big Z among many others
Yeah and that’s unacceptable at Kentucky. I’ll have you know that only 92 of the top 100 players in the portal are remaining. This means, at best, we will be able to have a 95 player roster. WTF is Pope doing!? What happens if we have injuries to 43 point guards!!!??? Well, now we won’t have a point guard left because of the WHIFF GOD!!!!!!
IM SICK OF THIS SH*T!!!!! MARK POOP, GTFO OF LEXINGTON IF YOU CANT LAND A SINGLE PORTAL PLAYER BEFORE EIGHT OF THEM ARE ALREADY OFF THE BOARD! I DIDNT PAY FOR THIS TYPE OF CUSTOMER SERVICE! ALSO, IM ANGRY VERY FREQUENTLY!!!!
Go CatsYeah and that’s unacceptable at Kentucky. I’ll have you know that only 92 of the top 100 players in the portal are remaining. This means, at best, we will be able to have a 95 player roster. WTF is Pope doing!? What happens if we have injuries to 43 point guards!!!??? Well, now we won’t have a point guard left because of the WHIFF GOD!!!!!!
IM SICK OF THIS SH*T!!!!! MARK POOP, GTFO OF LEXINGTON IF YOU CANT LAND A SINGLE PORTAL PLAYER BEFORE EIGHT OF THEM ARE ALREADY OFF THE BOARD! I DIDNT PAY FOR THIS TYPE OF CUSTOMER SERVICE! ALSO, IM ANGRY VERY FREQUENTLY!!!!
Reed, Dillingham, Wagner, and Reeves all thought they were going to start? Damn. We sure don’t recruit mathematicians.
Doncic is versatile. Good bench piece at either the 1 or the 2
Must have a couple of alpha players like the two who just ran out of eligibility. Two who want the ball at crunch time. In my mind they must average this past year at least 16ppg. Moreno and Cam are not that type of player. We also need rebounders X 2 because again so Moreno and Cam are not that type of player. Finally having a shot blocker on defense always makes up for poor defense at the point of attack and Moreno is not a major shot blocker either.
So two proven scorers ie at least 16 ppg , one shot blocker, and two rebounders must be added. Then we can add a couple of back ups to our current group of back ups
So two proven scorers ie at least 16 ppg , one shot blocker, and two rebounders must be added. Then we can add a couple of back ups to our current group of back ups