2020 Piath Gabriel commits to UConn [Merged Thread]

[Carnac]

It's as if an Archangel came down from heaven

Nice one eebmg, I see what you did there.

 

[winlots]

Ah, enjoy it...won't last for long

AUGUSTA: Understand you. BUT will suggest that the good feelings could last for about five years . Understand me?

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Chris coaches the bigs.

And Geno helps all the position coaches. Ask Tina if Geno coached her ... and duck!

 

[cohenzone]

Now a roster of 10

G
Westbrook (Sr/Jr)
CW (Jr)
Makurat (So)
Bueckers (Fr)
Muhl (Fr)

F
Walker (Sr)
ONO (Jr)
Griffin (So)
McLean (Fr)
Gabriel (Fr)

Already Poffenbarger is in your doghouse.

 

[Vowelguy]

Already Poffenbarger is in your doghouse.

She is following year

 

[bluedevil]

This is big news..see what I did...

 

[Ozimoto]

This is big news..see what I did...

Ugh!

 

[CocoHusky]

I think the days of compartmentalizing and having defensive specialists are over.

You can be "less than AA level ranking" (my words) on offense and still fill the need in that area. While Auriemma might use a five out if he had the appropriate talent, he has demonstrated we can do quite well with a four out offense. And while someone who is only a defensive specialist may not be desirable, you want your "bigs" to anchor the defense in a similar manner that a point guard is the floor general for the offense. Those are the two roles that any team would do well to have filled by a certain type of specialist.

@eebmg I have to respectfully disagree based on the UCONN lineage and not just in the context of bigs as @diggerfoot maybe thinking. That UCONN linage runs from Greene-Faris -Stokes-Jefferson-Nurse-Williams: all of whom were at least initially somewhat offensively challenged but got into the UCONN rotation because they provided NDPOY caliber game changing defense. I view Mir and Piath as potentially of this same ilk. To crystalize @diggerfoot points, Kiah Stokes (a non-starter) blocked 147 shots in her last season at UCONN. If Piath can just block half that much (say 73) she will play plenty. BTW 73 blocks would have lead the team last year.

 

[MuchoDogYears]

Comparing Piath to Dolson coming out of HS doesn’t make much sense to me. Other than both being 6’5”, their skill set is completely opposite.

In high school Dolson was a superior offensive player while lacking defensive skills. Piath is a superior defensive player with an undeveloped offensive game.

The better comparison is maybe Kiah Stokes.

 

[CocoHusky]

Comparing Piath to Dolson coming out of HS doesn’t make much sense to me. Other than both being 6’5”, their skill set is completely opposite.
In high school Dolson was a superior offensive player while lacking defensive skills. Piath is a superior defensive player with an undeveloped offensive game.
The better comparison is maybe Kiah Stokes.

Either comparison works for me. I would be ecstatic if Piath's UCONN career turns out being close or comparable to either Dolson or Stokes.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

While I would agree for the most part, I would not say never.

Ask Stefanie Dolson, who calls herself bigmamastef.

Or Number 52 who won a UConn National Championship, was the National player of the year and went by the nickname Big Girl.

It may be that the average woman doesn't like being called big, but women recruited by UConn are anything but average.

What's shaping up here, the new wave of UConn greatness oh wise one @FairView, just makes me wanna do this:



Cuz that's what's gonna be done by the Huskies.

 

[Tonyc]

I think your gonna see how important great guard play is .... again... With the verbals and Geno has complied this team is going to be truly the definition of T.E.A.M. Unselfish and talented and the guards know how to make their team mates better. A few months ago some posters were questioning what Geno was doing and once again Geno proved he knows exactly what he's doing. To have ONO and now another Big that will need some development and experience on the big stage well it doesnt get much better then that. We already have a group that is gonna be FF bound and its only getting better. Cardoso and Fudd will round out the roster in the future which will be so good that their non starters just may be ranked in the top 4 in the polls. This is really getting exciting. Once again........Where are we going....we're going to the Top....the Very Top.

 

[MuchoDogYears]

Either comparison works for me. I would be ecstatic if Piath's UCONN career turns out being close or comparable to either Dolson or Stokes.

Geno favors offensively skilled players so hopefully Piath develops quickly in that skillset so her career tracks closer to Dolson’s than Kiah’s.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Geno has already lined up Piath's homecoming game ... in Football and Basketball, and Maryland football and a homecoming for a couple of Maryland girls, the pogo stick and Saylor the mortician. Football just might be renewed as an independent and a little Italian guy is leading the way.

UConn women land commitment from 2020 prospect Piath Gabriel

The UConn women’s basketball program secured its fourth recruit for the Class of 2020...

www.middletownpress.com

"UConn, which will begin play as a football independent in 2020, also has future games scheduled with Power Five programs Boston College, Duke, North Carolina, Clemson and Tennessee.
The last time UConn played Maryland, the Terrapins won 32-21 on Sept. 14, 2013 with current UConn coach Randy Edsall in charge of the Maryland program."

UConn agrees to football series with Maryland

UConn football team continues to fill out future schedules with Power Five teams as the...

www.middletownpress.com

 

[HopJim]

It appears to me that the current shortcomings for Gabriel are mainly on offense. In the UConn system, particularly with the talent we otherwise have on the roster, what is most desired from a "big" is her defensive ability. In that case even if she never reaches AA level ranking because of her offense, we would have what we need regardless. What do our recruiting gurus say to that?

With the motion offense UConn runs, some predictable offense is needed from every player. Love that this year, Geno is not waiting for the #1 Big to sign-appears ready to coach up a top player with a good balance between offense and defense.

 

[HopJim]

I agree with Baylor (Brown and Cox) in your quote above, but Oregon hasn't mastered the "bigs integration" of late. 6'5" Mallory McGwire and 6'3" Sierra Campisano from the high school Class of 2016 transferred out of Oregon in an attempt to secure more playing time elsewhere. Lydia Giomi (6'6") has seen limited court time during her three seasons playing 6'4 alongside Ruthie Hebard in Eugene. 6'4" Satou Sabally is really a long and athletic 3 and prefers to play on the wing/perimeter.

As for the bigs at Oregon State (in case you intended to include that school with Baylor), there haven't been that many minutes in the past two seasons when two 6'5"+ bigs have been on the court simultaneously. It appears that a 6'5" "big" is more commonly paired up with a mobile 6'2"/6'3" athlete on the front line in the PAC-12 so that teams can adequately contest the three-point line and defend against fastbreaking teams with three-guard lineups. Oregon State could put three 6'6"+ bigs on the floor together at the same time, but getting up and down the court against the three-guard lineups would prove problematic.

The integration of multiple 6'5"+ bigs in the same lineup at the top level of women's college basketball is a big challenge.

Since this is a Gabriel thread, commenting about the issues of 2-3 slow Bigs having issues playing at the same time (which I agree with) doesn't apply. She appears to be athletic, quick, and more the "mobile big" that is mentioned.

 

[CL82]

Ugh!

Why? Everyone likes a good post.

 

[winlots]

I think your gonna see how important great guard play is
Cardoso and Fudd will round out the roster in the future which will be so good that their non starters just may be ranked in the top 4 in the polls. This is really getting exciting. Once again...Where are we going....we're going to the Top....the Very Top.

Tonyc: Doggone - don't know why is it is always such a struggle to get you to show a bit of confidence on occasion

 

[bluedevil]

I think we will have our own Mutumbo soon....

 

[bluedevil]

Whatever kool-aid Tony C. drinks I want the same flavor...

 

[UconnMark]

The optimism here in the last 24 hours is unprecedented for a Boneyard thread. It's like Tony C. has found a way to clone himself around a 100 times and then take out different screen names which he used to post his reaction to the great news!

 

[uconnfan68]

Comparing Piath to Dolson coming out of HS doesn’t make much sense to me. Other than both being 6’5”, their skill set is completely opposite.

In high school Dolson was a superior offensive player while lacking defensive skills. Piath is a superior defensive player with an undeveloped offensive game.

The better comparison is maybe Kiah Stokes.

I'd be thrilled with another Kiah Stokes.

 

[EricLA]

I like you a lot every day, my friend.

Thanks Mil. Same to you. Consider the giant apple of my head well shined.

Blech. Yooz guyz LOL...

 

[psconn]

Has anyone found any good hype videos of Piath? All I found was one vid of Piath being repeatedly torched by Hannah Iwaszkiewicz(?!). Not exactly what I hoped to see.

 

[JordyG]

Blech. Yooz guyz LOL...

Hope you didn't drop your avocado toast during the last quake. But I'm still laughing you cad.