That is an exhausting article. Definitely a rocky road. I was surprised by this quote Says former Tennessee head coach Holly Warlick, bluntly: "She could have worked harder for us. I think she gets it now. She's got a maturity level to her now that she probably didn't have in college." I am not sure if this is a well known quote from Holly and when she actually made it in relation to her Post Collegiate career? I am assuming she was still TN Head Coach???
Can she be the greatest player in the game? Let's be fair and not have ridiculous expectations. I think a better question is, can she be one of the best players in the game? As long as Stewie and EDD are around, I don't see Diamond being the best. But she has improved each year and has as much athleticism as anyone. Let's see her make the All-Star game a few more times and then All-WNBA.
She's on a nice trajectory.I think that Diamond will have a great pro career.
That is an exhausting article. Definitely a rocky road.
I was surprised by this quote
Says former Tennessee head coach Holly Warlick, bluntly: "She could have worked harder for us. I think she gets it now. She's got a maturity level to her now that she probably didn't have in college."
I am not sure if this is a well known quote from Holly and when she actually made it in relation to her Post Collegiate career?
I am assuming she was still TN Head Coach???
It is probably more accurate to say it is up to the coach "help" shape and motivate young players. True motivation though is the same as discipline and must be personal & internal. DD was the National Freshman of the year in WCBB and abandoned her UNC team that took # 1 seeded South Carolina to the wire. In the process DD also abondondoned 3 teammates who she had personally recruited to go to UNC as well as Te'a Cooper who committed to follow DD to UNC. All of this could be attributed to DD being young and immature until she abandoned her TN team. As inept as Holly was this is not one I think we get to pin on Holly. The Holly quote which @eebmg posted speaks volumes-about Diamond! Sounds like Diamond has grown up a lot. I'm not surprised that her basketball game has also mature because the talent was always there.Let's be clear: It's up to the coach to shape and motivate young players. And let's be clear that in the year before DD showed up at Tennessee, she performed as one of the finest players in NCAA women's basketball, earning a ROY designation (FOY?) in the ACC.
Holly failed to get DD to play at her best. But Holly also chronically failed to get her other players, and her teams, to perform at the level of their talent. It is telling that Holly blames others for her failure as a coach.
No wonder that she was fired, and not her team.
It is probably more accurate to say it is up to the coach "help" shape and motivate young players. True motivation though is the same as discipline and must be personal & internal. DD was the National Freshman of the year in WCBB and abandoned her UNC team that took # 1 seeded South Carolina to the wire. In the process DD also abondondoned 3 teammates who she had personally recruited to go to UNC as well as Te'a Cooper who committed to follow DD to UNC. All of this could be attributed to DD being young and immature until she abandoned her TN team. As inept as Holly was this is not one I think we get to pin on Holly. The Holly quote which @eebmg posted speaks volumes-about Diamond! Sounds like Diamond has grown up a lot. I'm not surprised that her basketball game has also mature because the talent was always there.
Maybe. But I also firmly believe that most/many players actually don't know what maximum effort looks like.I think if your coach is inept (or simply over matched) , it is really difficult for a player to give maximum effort.
I think that Diamond will have a great pro career.
Someone on ESPN (maybe Katie Douglas?) compared Diamond DeShields to a Deanna Nolan. Nolan was more a pure SG and DeShields is more a pure SF, but they have very similar perimeter games. Rebecca Lobo said she thought DeShields could reach a Maya Moore level if she really wanted to.
If Diamond suddenly started shooting 40% from 3 she'd be as good as any perimeter player in the world. As it is, she's effective enough that she opponents have to respect her jumper but she doesn't shoot well enough to be at the Maya Moore level.
She's already very good, though, and she should still be on an upward trajectory. I feel like she's starting to get more consistent already, which is important. We're seeing a lot less of what I would refer to as "bad Diamond" where she would take ill-advised shots and make reckless turnovers. And she's getting better at affecting the game when her shot isn't falling.
It's obvious with Diamond, and Mercedes Russell this year the problem was Holly. They both showed they were willing to learn, and work with good coaching.and I would say her intensity is very Mayaesque. She has really really surprised me and she has become one of the most entertaining players to watch.