STORRS – In his mind, there was never a question whether Hassan Diarra would leave the UConn men’s basketball program after his senior season, knowing he had a fifth year of eligibility available.
As all five starters announced their decision to enter the NBA Draft, Diarra stayed quiet.
“UConn Nation, I heard there’s a lot of commotion asking whether I’m coming back or not,” he eventually said in an 11-second video message posted by Storrs Central . “But I’m just here to say, let’s go for a three-peat. Let’s do it again.”
Before he could make that announcement, Diarra had to have a conversation with coach Dan Hurley to make sure the two were on the same page as the two embarked on their third year together. Hurley challenged the point guard, who climbed up the depth chart each year in Storrs and now could be in position to crack the starting lineup.
“You can’t come back the same,” Hurley said. “Don’t come back the same player. If you come back the same player, then you should go play overseas or make a run for G League, or whatever. Don’t come back to UConn unless you’re gonna take another huge step in terms of the player you are.
“I mean, if you look at every player that’s played for us, really since we’ve been here, even on the first round flameouts that we had, the players have come back and all look a year better, and we need (you) to be a year better.”
Diarra had a strong end to his sophomore season at Texas A&M, which got Hurley’s attention. He came into UConn before the 2022-23 season with Tristen Newton and the two competed for the starting point guard spot, which was left vacant with the departure of RJ Cole. Of course, Newton won the job and is now in the Huskies of Honor after earning Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors and helping lead the program to its second consecutive national title.
Newton was chosen in the second round of this year’s NBA Draft to the Indiana Pacers, and the pathway was cleared for Diarra to step up.
Could he be an all-conference level player this season?
“I think that would be a natural next step, it’s a big step,” Hurley said after the team’s first official practice of the season on Friday.
After falling out of the Huskies’ rotation during the 2022-23 season, coaches worked with Diarra to improve his 3-point shot from a career-worst 18.9% that year to the 35.7% that helped him win Big East Sixth Man of the Year last season.
“He’s talented enough, I think he’s built for this league, he plays a style that’s conducive to it. It’s just all going to come down to how well he shoots the ball,” Hurley said. “He’s got to be a consistent high-30s 3-point shooter. If he’s able to do that, it brings a lot of the other things to the table that way. But there’s certainly an opportunity for him to go out and earn that.”
All of his work over the summer, being pushed by incoming transfer Aidan Mahaney and freshman Ahmad Nowell , Diarra says, has helped slow the game down for him. But Hurley’s other challenge to him, taking on a critical leadership role, is one he and the Huskies’ other veterans (Alex Karaban, Samson Johnson) have to continue working on.
“You need coaches leading, you need players leading, you need everybody leading,” Hurley said.
“I’m definitely embracing it this year. Honestly last year I did a little bit of leadership, this time I think I’m taking a next step in my career and becoming a full-time leader,” Diarra said. “It’s just so different how you want to communicate with each and every player, each and every player reacts differently. You can’t yell at each and every player, you have to go to them and talk to them. Sometimes people are visual learners, you’ve got to show them how to do it, so it’s just been an adjustment.”
Diarra’s impact since he’s worn a UConn uniform has been made as a defensive-minded guard, willing and wanting to infuse the team with energy off the bench. Last year, he made 3-pointers when he needed to and sped around the court making effort plays. At 6-foot-2, Diarra averaged three rebounds per game, often flying in for an offensive board and putting it back before the opponent could react.
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“He’s stepped up big time for us,” Karaban said. “He’s vocal out there, he’s really taken the assertive of being the point guard of the team and he knows he has big shoes to fill from Tristen. So he’s taking it day-by-day, he’s working hard at it and he’s just really trying to elevate his game from last year.”
If Diarra makes another leap, it will mostly come with improvement on the offensive end, where he averaged 6.1 points on a career-best 48.3% shooting from the field. Hurley named Diarra as one of the most important players for the team as it competes for a third consecutive national title.
“I’m super confident. Coach instills confidence in me, the players around me instill confidence in me. I feel like I’m ready for it,” Diarra said. “If there was a game tomorrow I’d have the same mindset as the national championship game: go out there, play the right way and do whatever needs to be done to win.”
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