Jon Rothstein says UConn freshman looked like 'a veteran' in Huskies practice

For a UConn men's basketball team that lost the majority of its scoring from last season, Dan Hurley might be able to offset some of that lost production the old-fashioned way. 

The Huskies welcome a two-man freshman class to Storrs this summer that includes wing Colben Landrew and backup point guard Junior County. Landrew generated quite a bit of hype on the international circuit last month, starring for Team USA at the U-18 FIBA AmeriCup in Brazil.

But County has already endeared himself to CBS college basketball reporter Jon Rothstein, who attended UConn practice Tuesday and raved about the Utah native. 

"Another standout on Tuesday was freshman lead guard Junior County," Rothstein said in a video posted to his X account. "He shot the ball with confidence and also ran the Huskies' offense with the poise of a veteran."

County was the first commitment in UConn's 2026 recruiting class, choosing the Huskies in October 2025 over fellow finalists Arizona, Indiana, Maryland and Purdue. Listed as the No. 41 overall recruit in the 247Sports' composite rankings, County embraced Hurley's intense coaching style and identified UConn as the best landing spot for his development as a college basketball player. 

While Landrew started to earn some early 2027 NBA draft buzz and figures to compete for immediate playing time at UConn's fairly wide-open small forward position, County's role as a freshman seemed less clear entering summer workouts. Hurley returns first-team All-Big East point guard Silas Demary Jr. to his backcourt, and the Huskies also added guards Nils Machowski - the German is coming off his own all-conference season at Wofford - and Jaye Nash from the transfer portal. 

An emergent County would provide some intriguing lineup possibilities because of his ball-handling and physical versatility. Most prognosticators, including Rothstein, expect Braylon Mullins to start alongside Demary after the Indiana native's stellar freshman season, despite finishing with the lowest assist rate of any UConn starter last season and rarely serving as the team's primary ball-handler. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound County could allow Hurley to experiment with three-guard lineups while providing another steady ball-handler against extended pressure.

Overall, Rothstein is betting on County and UConn's newcomers to lead a smooth transition into a new era of Huskies basketball. The popular reporter has UConn as his preseason favorite to win the Big East and placed the Huskies No. 4 overall in his Rothstein 45 rankings released last month. 

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