Great in-depth story on Tacko's humble beginnings. Nice pub for the big man, who continues to improve most days.

http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketb...-relevancy

Nice

Sounds like a guy who wants to stay and finish his degree

Sounds like a 1st rounder to me!

He seems like a great kid.

I gotta man up on Tacko UCF fans....

I was relentless on you guys when he first came to your program. I recall telling you if he was all that he wouldn't be at UCF and I really did believe he was most likely going to be a gimmick. I also envisioned him getting dunked over by anybody on UC that was 6'6 or taller.

I was wrong. He is a ton better than I ever thought he would be.

(01-19-2017 07:52 AM)Bearcats#1 Wrote:  I gotta man up on Tacko UCF fans....

I was relentless on you guys when he first came to your program. I recall telling you if he was all that he wouldn't be at UCF and I really did believe he was most likely going to be a gimmick. I also envisioned him getting dunked over by anybody on UC that was 6'6 or taller.

I was wrong. He is a ton better than I ever thought he would be.

Good post.

Tacko was more like a box of chocolate...as you really didn't know what you were gonna get because he had only played organized basketball for a few years...but then UCF Coach Donnie Jones, Thompson at Georgetown and the fired coach at Ga Tech and others saw potential.

With the loss of practice time last summer/fall because of ONE person at the NCAA Clearinghouse dragging their feet...he missed out on soooo much that could have helped him even more last year...but even without that, he should glimpses of what could be...and now with a complete off-season of training, he has had some solid games this year.

While he is still shooting close to 80%, his value might be worth more on the defensive end...as most teams do NOT drive much in the lane when he is in the game (so they take less percentage outside shots), and as soon as Tacko is sent to the bench, opponents start attacking the lane.

Tacko still has much to learn...and his teammates need to do a MUCH better job in feeding him the ball on the low block, as in multiple games, he can go long stretches without even getting a touch...which lead to back to back scoreless games.

And yes, he is a GREAT kid who just loves going to school at UCF....super friendly with everyone he meets (just talk to him...don't line up for a "freak" photo...even though he will allow it).

Many times after the game, he can be found at the on-campus Sports Bar right next to the UCF Arena grabbing dinner with his FL Foster family. (One time last year, he came into the restaurant on his hover board...so he looked 8' 6"...which he soon had to get rid of since they could no longer be allowed in on-campus dorms due to the danger of recharging battery fires).