UConn Men's Basketball Roster Preview: The curious case of Omar Calhoun

Who is the real Omar Calhoun?

Is it the explosive power guard from his freshman season? Or the passive, forgotten man from last season, that struggled in his return from injuries?

Calhoun, entering his junior season at the University of Connecticut, is at a crossroads in his career. It's time for the real Omar Calhoun to stand up.

In his freshmen season, Calhoun looked poised to be a stalwart in the UConn back-court. He had three 20+ point games, on his way to averaging 11.1 ppg on the season.

Following that breakout campaign, Calhoun underwent surgery on both hips in the offseason. An injury like that leads to a lack of mobility and the recovery time is long. Calhoun struggled for much of the year. As the season went along, his role diminished. By the NCAA tournament, Calhoun had lost all of minutes to senior Lasan Kromah and freshman Terrence Samuel. He averaged just 3.8 ppg in just 13.4 minutes per game.

Coach Kevin Ollie, in an interview with the Connecticut Post, noted Calhoun's recovery in the offseason.

"He's doing great off the basketball court. He looks healthy, springy and even more explosive. He's shooting the ball great, and in workouts he's leading and working hard, so I expect some great things from him this season," he said.

All this leads to a confusing question: what should UConn expect from Omar Calhoun?

The Husky back-court is crowded this year. Ryan Boatright, Terrence Samuel, Rodney Purvis, Daniel Hamilton and Sam Cassell Jr. all need minutes. Samuel, a sophomore, proved to be a dynamic change of pace guard, taking Calhoun's role as the first guard off the bench.

With such a glut at the guard positions, Calhoun will have to prove himself as being back in form if he wants minutes. I'd project Calhoun scoring to be relatively low, but still playing a pivotal role by providing veteran leadership on this young team.