A'ja Wilson

[OldPat]

Originally Posted by Rebel4ever

Sessions better step it up cause Bianca is coming in full force and will push for serious playing time.

Think they all will, Reb. The beauty of competitive team sports is that teammates push each other to get better.

KS knows her inability to hit the open J hurt the team against UNC, so she'll spend her summer practicing her shot from the top of the key.

Same thing with a lot of the other ladies. Try as she might, Tina never got her shot back. Tho I love her all-around game, Asia still doesn't look comfortable shooting three's. Now that we have so many tall trees, AW needs to extend her mid-range J to 3-point range if she can. So I think there will be a whole lot of shootin' going on in Cola this summer.

I'll bet DS&Staff are busy trying to figure out how to get Elem more involved in the game when she's in. Seemed like she sort of disappeared a bit down the stretch, and she's too good to languish on the bench. We're just a better team when she gets her minutes.

When I look at the make-up of next year's team, I see Havlicek's and Bailey Howell's everywhere. Just gotta figure out when, where & how to use them to our best advantage.

Hope a lot of the new class start early(Summer School) so they can get their feet wet. Our 'Little Gem' Bianca, for instance, needs to see what will & won't work for her offensively on the college level, but her biggest challenge will be to improve her D. KS can help her with that.

BTW in all the excitement yesterday I forgot to welcome the Wilson family into ours. But in retrospect, the smiles on Eva's & Roscoe's faces when A'ja announced her decision said all that needed to be said.

[CockyGuy]

Originally Posted by ReadR00ster

They just think their coach is so incredible better than anyone elses.

And I just don't see it. Geno is a great coach. Nine championships speak for themselves. But, is he THAT MUCH better than a McGraw, or Hatchell, or Vandeveer or has he consistently pulled the absolute best prep talent?

[gamecock88]

Originally Posted by CoGuy

And I just don't see it. Geno is a great coach. Nine championships speak for themselves. But, is he THAT MUCH better than a McGraw, or Hatchell, or Vandeveer or has he consistently pulled the absolute best prep talent?

It's because he's a man, with a brain 1/3 larger than the women coaches he routinely competes with

[trapper82]

Lovely young girl and obviously talented, welcome to the family!

[TwoNotch Dreams]

Originally Posted by Rebel4ever

Sessions better step it up cause Bianca is coming in full force and will push for serious playing time.

Coach Staley doesn't hand out favors though, so we'll have to see.

Sessions is probably going to be the starter. She's knows the system, knows the plays and despite adding a star-studded freshmen class, this is very much still a veteran team.

It wouldn't be surprising if Coach Staley sticks with the Sessions/Mitchell/Dozier/Welsch/Ibiama lineup.

Maybe A'ja could start, but Staley could bring her off the bench like she did Alaina this year. Could you imagine Aja and Alaina both coming off the bench? Good lord that would be insane.

[ReadR00ster]

Originally Posted by CockyGuy

And I just don't see it. Geno is a great coach. Nine championships speak for themselves. But, is he THAT MUCH better than a McGraw, or Hatchell, or Vandeveer or has he consistently pulled the absolute best prep talent?

They think he is THAT much better Staley. Which is why they are giving A'ja a hard time.

[Evilchicken2]

Originally Posted by ReadR00ster

They think he is THAT much better Staley. Which is why they are giving A'ja a hard time.

Listen, Staley has room for improvement. The final two minutes of the sweet 16 proves it!

[ReadR00ster]

Originally Posted by Evilchicken2

Listen, Staley has room for improvement. The final two minutes of the sweet 16 proves it!

I know, but I believe in coach Staley and so do her players, so I don't want to hear sour grapes from Uconn fans. And it has more to do with we need a few players to be able to step up and knock down some jump shots to loosen up defenses than it has anything to do with our coach. It's not easy to keep hit shots, time and time again when everyone knows we are going to do that and are waiting for it. Some teams we can beat that way, some we can't.

[TwoNotch Dreams]

Originally Posted by ReadR00ster

I know, but I believe in coach Staley and so do her players, so I don't want to hear sour grapes from Uconn fans. And it has more to do with we need a few players to be able to step up and knock down some jump shots to loosen up defenses than it has anything to do with our coach. It's not easy to keep hit shots, time and time again when everyone knows we are going to do that and are waiting for it. Some teams we can beat that way, some we can't.

Yeah, Staley is an awesome coach. She's not Geno, but who is? He's an all-time great women's basketball coach at the college level. Staley though has turned around a program and the team has got better every season she's been here. The players buy in and now she has an incredible recruiting class to continue to build around for the next 4 years.

South Carolina is going to be a contender every season if all the players pan out.

[JaxcockFL]

Originally Posted by ReadR00ster

They just think their coach is so incredible better than anyone elses.

And probably bitter with the knowledge of the fact that no conference out there wants them.

They did kick butt in basketball this year, though. No two ways about that.

[ReadR00ster]

Uconn fans =>

Everyone esle =>

[ConwayGamecock]

Originally Posted by CockyGuy

And I just don't see it. Geno is a great coach. Nine championships speak for themselves. But, is he THAT MUCH better than a McGraw, or Hatchell, or Vandeveer or has he consistently pulled the absolute best prep talent?

He's a quality coach, and has had some stability in his staff for years. But he's also had solid talent to help him to his successes, as most of the top coaches in WCBB have had...

He had his first consistent success at UConn building his team around his very first prep All-American Kerry Bascom, and UConn started competing for Big East titles and playing in the NCAAT. Her senior year, UConn made their first ever Final Four...

Who knows where USC would've ended up being had Coach Staley's first AA - Kelcy Bone - stayed in the program. Our two 25-win teams would've been Bone's Jr. and Sr. seasons, and we were good enough without her to get to the Sweet-16 once and 2nd round both years. Perhaps we might've made a Final Four? Perhaps we might've brought in more talented players to add to the team with Bone staying in the program? Who knows...

After Bascom, the 1991 FF success helped Auriemma bring in star player Rebecca Lobo, his 2nd prep All-America talent. Like Bascom who was from New Hampshire, Hartford, CT.-born and Mass.-raised Lobo chose UConn from dozens of other top programs for it's close proximity. Lobo's first 2 seasons, UConn went back to 1st and 2nd rd NCAAT exits. In 1994 the Huskies were 1st-time #1-seeds in the tourney but lost to eventual winner UNC in the Elite Eight. The next year in '95 UConn win their first National Championship...

Lobo was teamed with star players Jen Rizzotti, Jamelle Elliott, Carla Berube, and Kara Wolters.

Since then it's been star classes after star classes. That's what winning will do for a program where the coaching staff remains in place. Just as far back as I can find ranked classes, UConn's was #2 in 2008, #49 in '09 (had 1 recruit in Kelly Faris), #3 in '10, #2 in '11, #1 in '12, NR in '13 (had 1 recruit in Saniya Chong), and #4 in 2014.

UConn will be able to bring in a 4-5 player class for 2015, and are already in great standing with elite prospects like Asia Durr, Katie Lou Samuelson, Napheesa Collier, De'Janae Boykin, plus many others. They are UConn after all...

[ReadR00ster]

Originally Posted by TwoNotch Dreams

Yeah, Staley is an awesome coach. She's not Geno, but who is? He's an all-time great women's basketball coach at the college level. Staley though has turned around a program and the team has got better every season she's been here. The players buy in and now she has an incredible recruiting class to continue to build around for the next 4 years.

South Carolina is going to be a contender every season if all the players pan out.

They are different kind of coaches. Geno is like Coach K or Tom Izzo. Dawn reminds more of Doc Rivers.

[JDuro]

A'ja and Kaydra w/ Clemson's Makayla Johnson on the radio now: http://streamdb4web.securenetsystems.net/v5/WGCV

A'ja listed her 2nd, 3rd, 4th choice order: 2. UConn, 3. UT, 4. UNC

[Cockhornleghorn]

Originally Posted by JDuro

A'ja and Kaydra w/ Clemson's Makayla Johnson on the radio now: http://streamdb4web.securenetsystems.net/v5/WGCV

A'ja listed her 2nd, 3rd, 4th choice order: 2. UConn, 3. UT, 4. UNC

It wasn't taped, it just had their live programming on now.

[ConwayGamecock]

Per Twitter posts, A'ja was invited to the USA Basketball Women’s U18 National Team Trials recently. If she makes the team, she'll play for her future college head coach Dawn Staley....

[Cockhornleghorn]

Originally Posted by ConwayGamecock

Per Twitter posts, A'ja was invited to the USA Basketball Women’s U18 National Team Trials recently. If she makes the team, she'll play for her future college head coach Dawn Staley....

Does Dawn decide who makes the team? :)

[ucan'tlickourcocks]

I think its a pretty safe bet that A'ja will make the team!