Natalie Butler

[Adesmar123]

I think Natalie Butler will become an critical piece of the UConn team as time goes by. But I believe she needs to hit the weight room in the off season.

 

[Kaizen]

Butler has great potential and I agree she is not as strong as Tuck and Stewie.
May be Tuck and Stewie can help her to make a quick, strong layup as soon as she receives a ball.

 

[UConn79]

Hasn't she been hitting the weights for the last 18 months during her red shirt time ? I love her enthusiasm and was excited to see she was transfering to UConn. Her stats as a freshman at Georgetown were very impressive, but " you're not in Kansas anymore Dorothy " !

After some solid games of rebounding, passing and shooting, I was at the ECU game and it was certainly not her best showing. Timing just seemed a little off. I dont want to compare her to other Husky greats. It is not fair to saddle her with any expectations. She has the potential and opportunity to be a solid contributor, and at some point we are going to need her to play quality minutes in a big game.

 

[JavaMan]

I'm surprised that I didn't see a mention regarding Natalie and her elbow taking out the player that went down in the ECU game after Geno said following the previous game that he wished that she'd level someone in the paint. I certainly hope the young lady from ECU is okay though.

 

[Kibitzer]

Natalie is a good player with a great attitude. She brings some important skills to UConn, most notably taking up a lot of space, horizontally and vertically. She snags a lot of rebounds, more because of height than hops. She has a nice touch to her shot and makes dazzling home run outlet passes.

Boneyard expectations were unrealistically high (remember all those "fifth starter?" threads?) since they were based almost entirely on her Georgetown stats -- scant personal viewing. Nat almost forces Geno to go to a zone defense since her slow lateral movement does not permit her to participate in the standard man-to-man with five defenders constantly switching. She (like most mere mortals) is by no means comparable to Stokes, who set the bar so amazingly high.

I view Natalie as a player who will contribute to team success but only in limited situations. And from off the bench for the foreseeable future.

 

[ctfjr]

There is a boatload of potential but right now she is a project. I don't think she will get very many minutes, if any, tonight unless Tuck/Stewie get into foul trouble.

 

[alexrgct]

There is a boatload of potential but right now she is a project. I don't think she will get very many minutes, if any, tonight unless Tuck/Stewie get into foul trouble.

Or if Wilson and/or Coates create Matchup problems and Uconn needs a 6'5" body playing defense.

I'm curious as to why Butler should be hitting the weight room. Uconn has a S&C program. Natalie would be well taken care of with such training. Or do people not know what is contained in a weight room? If her weight is in question at all here, I don't like where this thread could be going.

 

[Adesmar123]

Or if Wilson and/or Coates create Matchup problems and Uconn needs a 6'5" body playing defense.

I'm curious as to why Butler should be hitting the weight room. Uconn has a S&C program. Natalie would be well taken care of with such training. Or do people not know what is contained in a weight room? If her weight is in question at all here, I don't like where this thread could be going.

Funny you brought up her weight. Why would you do that?

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Funny you brought up her weight. Why would you do that?

Because Alex is a wiseguy

 

[alexrgct]

Funny you brought up her weight. Why would you do that?

I'm asking what is gained by her hitting the eight room. What soecific attributes would be addressed if Natalie does so? What could she gain that she wouldn't specifically from Uconn's second-to-none S&C program?

I'm concerned by the OP, espcially without clarification on what I'm asking. Without that clarification, I don't like where the thread is going as i said already.

 

[Kevin G]

Natalie just needs to play good solid defense and rebound and not foul! Although, SC is a terrible FT shooting team.

 

[Adesmar123]

You build strength in a weight room. That's pretty obvious.

You mentioned her weight. Again why bring that up? You didn't like where it was going but it didn't get there. So you mentioned it?

 

[jsloanjr]

She might be Geno's secret weapon tonight.......3 bigs across the baseline..........

 

[Adesmar123]

She just needs to work on her upper body strength. She has a good 12' jump shot.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

She just needs to work on her upper body strength. She has a good 12' jump shot.

I guess alex was serious.

 

[OldAlum]

Stokes did not play much in the SC game last year, so I suspect Geno is comfortable doing without Butler in this game. I do hope Natalie bounces back after the last game. I thought she looked way more tentative than she had before - do some meditation, Nat, and get your head beck in the game!

 

[blkkirk]

I remember watching Dolson,early in her career, and thinking similar things I am thinking about Butler. Dolson made some huge changes in her mobility/strength which affected all aspects of her game. We need a Stewart, Dolson, type player next year who intimidates people from coming into the paint. If Butler wants to play big minutes she is going to have to fill this void. Curious to see how this plays out.

 

[Kaizen]

If Geno/CD can change Dolson I am pretty sure they can change Butler to be the best center soon or later.

 

[pinotbear]

If Geno/CD can change Dolson I am pretty sure they can change Butler to be the best center soon or later.

A couple of thoughts here -
I really don't think that Butler is particularly heavy - some folks just aren't quick, folks, and exercise, etc., won't change that a whole lot. Don't know that Nat falls into the "slow" category, but, you can't teach "quick". You can teach recognition, judgement, but not neuron speed. Plus, some folks just have a big frame - no matter what you do, they'll never be built to do certain things as well as some other kids.
Coaches can encourage, lead, direct - but, they don't have a magic wand. Geno/CD didn't change Dolson: Dolson changed Dolson. Geno/CD may have provided the plan & support, but, if Stef didn't want to do it, and put the work in, then, nothing happens. It depends more on the player than the coach & staff.
I think Nat will improve because she wants to. Think about what she's gone through, giving up being a "big frog in a decent-sized pond" to come to UConn. She's fought through that transition, and then dealt with a frustrating injury. She's got the guts and the drive. She needs patience, and we need to extend the same to her.

 

[JoePgh]

I know that Natalie was having trouble holding onto rebounds against ECU on Saturday, but based on what I have seen, that seems quite atypical. I'm not sure that upper-body strength is her major limitation -- I would cite leaping and lateral mobility as bigger physical concerns.

Remember that Kiah Stokes also had a problem in her freshman and sophomore years with being relieved of rebounds when she brought them down to guard level. She definitely overcame that by the time she was a senior. I don't think the difference was greater physical strength; it was more a matter of better technique (keeping the ball high after the rebound).

I disagree with those who say that Natalie's minutes against South Carolina will be extremely limited. I think she will be given a fair chance to guard Coates 1-on-1, and will only be pulled if she clearly isn't getting the job done. For one thing, it is just about Geno's only chance to see if she can be effective against a capable post with size -- the AAC doesn't provide much chance to evaluate that. And as others have said, Coates (big and at least somewhat slow) is a more natural opponent for Natalie to guard than the small, quick forwards that do exist in the AAC.

 

[chrissaran]

Stef decided she needed to change her body. I forget the workout program she was doing, but she got great results. Natalie needs to do the same. One player who never got in that kind of shape was Kaili McLaren. She had a soft touch and was a incredible passer, but she could have done so much more.

 

[PhillyCoach]

Geno stays with the starters most of the night. Gabby will be the main sub and probably get 18-20 minutes. Collier gets 10-12 minutes. Chong could get 0 to 5 minutes. Based on big game trust - Butler will not get in the game at all.
Big games--big minutes for the starters. Lou's spot is where the most sub action takes place(that seems obvious) and Tuck could get a breather from Gabby most likely. If close, Stewie and Mo go 38 to 40 minutes.

 

[shakes65]

Good call Philly. I thought Gabby gave us good minutes rebounding great and playing defense. She must still focus on finishing off her drives and making the easy layups as she will get to the hoop often enough. Also, must be more careful on her passes.

 

[JordyG]

The problem next year is not when Butler is playing. But when she hits the bench who plays the post?

 

[Boreifs]

Kara Lawson called Stewart and Tuck the best front court in WBB, and added the comment "it isn't close". This game certainly vindicated her opinion. Natalie is 6'5" and has a nice jump shot and good outlet pass instincts. However, she has no post moves, not even a simple drop step (left or right), and does not have the defensive instincts to be able to switch effectively in man defense. Those problems virtually dictate that her impact on the court in meaningful games will have to wait until next year or the year after. This site has generally set up impossible expectations for a player who was not heavily recruited out of high school. The other players obviously like her and her role in practice undoubtedly helps prepare Morgan for playing against bigger post players. We often forget that UConn practices are where this team learns to play so well together and the opponents in those scrimmages also have incredibly important roles to play.