It's true that Nika developed her game tremendously over the time she was at UConn. The key was that the seeds were always there, she just needed the right environment and time for them to blossom. I think the only thing that Geno may have been surprised about her UConn career was that she left with virtually every assist record. He foresaw the rest.
He didn't travel to Zagreb at the time he did during those precious few recruiting days he had available to recruit someone to sit on the bench. He knew what he was getting in Nika. Those who were here during her freshman season can easily recall all the chatter on the Boneyard about why Geno was giving her so many minutes - what could he possibly see in her to warrant that. By the end of that season the answer was apparent when he had her as his starting point guard. She was far from a finished product though. We all saw the continuing series of challenges and successful responses Nika faced over her next three seasons.
He wanted and he got exactly the player that he recruited, a relentless worker, totally committed to team success, a natural leader and a player that wanted to be continually challenged to meet whatever needs the team had for her. She said from the get go that she has never been the star of her teams but that no one would work harder and be more willing to do the little things others didn't want to do (as she put it the dirty work - defense, boxing out, picking...)
She came with her work ethic, her court vision, her love of setting up and feeding her teammates, her team first mentality, her boundless energy, her intensity, and her fire and love of the game. Her development, through her hard work to meet the challenges her coaches and that she herself gave, at UConn resulted in her ability to have control over her emotions, her ability to have sustained focus, her improved scoring and her understanding and implementation of ever-growing leadership abilities and responsibilities.
On the court, as long as she plays the game, her fire and hunger will always be there, as will, her desire to be continually challenged and improve, and her love of being part of and contributing to the success of her team will always be in the forefront. Nika is not done yet!
