A Player's Perspective On Evina

[RockyMTblue2]

I'll take Paige's word on it.

“She’s one of the best people I’ve ever been around in my life,” Bueckers said. “She’s a really great leader. Even today, my shots weren’t falling at first, but she pushed it out of me to keep going, keep shooting... She’s our leader on our team and she does everything for us. She’s going through pain sometimes in practice, but she goes through it, she stays extra in drills and she does extra work after and before practice. Just to see how hard she works, it’s really inspirational.”

UConn women were at their best against Villanova with all three juniors heavily involved, contributing

Juniors Christyn Williams and Olivia Nelson-Ododa, along with redshirt junior Evina Westbrook, left their fingerprints all over the team’s 90-52 win against the Wildcats — once more serving as a reminder that no matter how promising this year’s freshman class is, the Huskies will only go as far...

www.courant.com

Keeping my fingers crossed on the effectiveness of the regime for her knee. Paige and Evina relating so well is a huge benefit to the team.

The article I took the quote from is worth a look. The notion that E, CW and ONO are the core is hardly earth shattering, but discounts the contributions of others that will grow over the course of this strange season.

 

[MooseJaw]

I'll take Paige's word on it.

“She’s one of the best people I’ve ever been around in my life,” Bueckers said. “She’s a really great leader. Even today, my shots weren’t falling at first, but she pushed it out of me to keep going, keep shooting... She’s our leader on our team and she does everything for us. She’s going through pain sometimes in practice, but she goes through it, she stays extra in drills and she does extra work after and before practice. Just to see how hard she works, it’s really inspirational.”

UConn women were at their best against Villanova with all three juniors heavily involved, contributing

Juniors Christyn Williams and Olivia Nelson-Ododa, along with redshirt junior Evina Westbrook, left their fingerprints all over the team’s 90-52 win against the Wildcats — once more serving as a reminder that no matter how promising this year’s freshman class is, the Huskies will only go as far...

www.courant.com

Keeping my fingers crossed on the effectiveness of the regime for her knee. Paige and Evina relating so well is a huge benefit to the team.

The article I took the quote from is worth a look. The notion that E, CW and ONO are the core is hardly earth shattering, but discounts the contributions of others that will grow over the course of this strange season.

Team leader, team mom and rounding into a team favorite, who isn't pulling for her to have a complete and exciting season.

 

[Bigboote]

Beginning to love this kid. Thanks for posting Rocky.

 

[huskyd]

Paige seems to bond with all of her teammates. Despite her accolades, she's down to earth and accessible. Her ability to get along with everyone is reflected in her play, which is inclusive and supportive of her mates. She lifts them with her passes and cheerleading; they reciprocate when Paige is (rarely) off her game. That's how it was at Hopkins; she's the same great person here.
I love the chemistry with this group.

 

[EricLA]

Evina is something special. I'm bummed she is going thru pain during practice. I wonder if her body will ever heal, or if she will be in constant pain. She looks great when out on the court, but I can't tell if that's her at 100%, or something less.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Evina is something special. I'm bummed she is going thru pain during practice. I wonder if her body will ever heal, or if she will be in constant pain. She looks great when out on the court, but I can't tell if that's her at 100%, or something less.

A couple of weeks ago in her "availability" Shea said that the knee will demand active managment as long as Evina plays.

 

[veryolddog]

I really admire her dedication and enthusiasm to participate and keep everything and everyone stable with all of the new players this year. She really is a contributor. And this also shows that she was mismanaged and wasted at the Orange School. I hope when the Team goes down there that they not only win but her star shines very bright.

 

[Bigboote]

Evina is something special. I'm bummed she is going thru pain during practice. I wonder if her body will ever heal, or if she will be in constant pain. She looks great when out on the court, but I can't tell if that's her at 100%, or something less.

I remember during Doty's senior season, she was having a good game but didn't play more than 10 or 15 minutes. In the postgame, a reporter asked Geno, "Do Caroline's knees hurt today?"

Geno responded something to the effect, "Caroline's knees hurt every day."

 

[oldude]

Evina and Paige’s relationship is great both on and off the court. On the court they really play off each other exceptionally well.

Off the court it’s like a big sister (Evina) and her little sister (Paige), who can be annoying, but big sis loves her just the same.

 

[JordyG]

A couple of weeks ago in her "availability" Shea said that the knee will demand active managment as long as Evina plays.

...and Shea should know.

 

[MSGRET]

Evina and Paige’s relationship is great both on and off the court. On the court they really play off each other exceptionally well.

Off the court it’s like a big sister (Evina) and her little sister (Paige), who can be annoying, but big sis loves her just the same.

Did you see the post game show with the on court interview with Evina, where Paige comes from behind her and pours water on Evina's head. It was priceless, Evina stated that Paige will pay for that, Kara agreed.

 

[eebmg]

Did you see the post game show with the on court interview with Evina, where Paige comes from behind her and pours water on Evina's head. It was priceless, Evina stated that Paige will pay for that, Kara agreed.

Any link?

 

[pvdoggy]

Any link?

 

[MilfordHusky]

Now I see why Evina was the #2 ranked recruit in 2017. She has a versatile game.

 

[oldude]

Now I see why Evina was the #2 ranked recruit in 2017. She has a versatile game.

On at least one rating service, Evina was rated #1, and from general observation, I would be hard pressed to tell you which of the top 2 players is better, and that’s after Evina had two knee surgeries.

 

[Waquoit]

A couple of weeks ago in her "availability" Shea said that the knee will demand active managment as long as Evina plays.

That's stinks. I like the way she looks up the floor and puts the pass on the money.

 

[JordyG]

Now I see why Evina was the #2 ranked recruit in 2017. She has a versatile game.

She has also shown she is not the wild turnover machine she was at Tenn nor is she the me first, poor shooting player she was under Holly.

 

[MooseJaw]

She has also shown she is not the wild turnover machine she was at Tenn nor is she the me first, poor shooting player she was under Holly.

Can't begin what it was like playing for Holly, A good asst. but a person who appeared to have reached her Peter principle. It took a while but Evina found the right place and coach, she will flourish and we all get to share in the rewards. One word for Evina.... Maturity.

 

[MSGRET]

She has also shown she is not the wild turnover machine she was at Tenn nor is she the me first, poor shooting player she was under Holly.

Could it be because she was the one that had to run an offense that really didn't have any set plays, you know like school yard basketball. That's what I perceived what Holly was teaching her players because there was no organized basketball while she was the coach.

 

[Go/huskies]

On at least one rating service, Evina was rated #1, and from general observation, I would be hard pressed to tell you which of the top 2 players is better, and that’s after Evina had two knee surgeries.

I agree, I thought Walker was a bigger guard coming out of high school, but I can’t even remember seeing her be comfortable bring the ball up the court, Walker wasn’t a bad player but she is definitely a combo forward and shouldn’t be playing guard.

 

[Longtime fan]

I'll take Paige's word on it.

“She’s one of the best people I’ve ever been around in my life,” Bueckers said. “She’s a really great leader. Even today, my shots weren’t falling at first, but she pushed it out of me to keep going, keep shooting... She’s our leader on our team and she does everything for us. She’s going through pain sometimes in practice, but she goes through it, she stays extra in drills and she does extra work after and before practice. Just to see how hard she works, it’s really inspirational.”

UConn women were at their best against Villanova with all three juniors heavily involved, contributing

Juniors Christyn Williams and Olivia Nelson-Ododa, along with redshirt junior Evina Westbrook, left their fingerprints all over the team’s 90-52 win against the Wildcats — once more serving as a reminder that no matter how promising this year’s freshman class is, the Huskies will only go as far...

www.courant.com

Keeping my fingers crossed on the effectiveness of the regime for her knee. Paige and Evina relating so well is a huge benefit to the team.

The article I took the quote from is worth a look. The notion that E, CW and ONO are the core is hardly earth shattering, but discounts the contributions of others that will grow over the course of this strange season.

I will say one thing; Geno cannot play Paige and Evina 40 minutes of every game. Someone, or something, will break down. Thankfully, he knows that.

 

[HopJim]

Suspect that one of the major reasons for Paige's respect is Evina's ability to deal with social media and the pressure that comes with being a highly ranked player. Anyone who has read Vol Nation when she transferred knows what I am referring to.

 

[The CDR-Ret]

She has also shown she is not the wild turnover machine she was at Tenn nor is she the me first, poor shooting player she was under Holly.

I believe it is because her teammates are ready for her passes, and their [UCONN women] skill levels are much higher than the negatively coached players at UT two years ago...

 

[oldude]

Our perspective on Evina has changed significantly now that she’s a Husky, but if you looked closely, Evina has always been an intensely committed athlete who wants to win.

While she was clearly one of, if not the top recruit in her class, Geno never actively recruited Evina out of HS. Perhaps it was Geography. Maybe it was because Geno already had early commitments from both Lexi Gordon & AEH. Whatever the reason, Evina ended up at TN playing for HW.

The disfunction at TN has been well documented. Evina was thrust into the middle of it, doing her best to fill the role of pg for the LV’s, a role she was never completely comfortable with. LV fans can be brutal, and many directed their ire at Evina as the losses mounted.

Despite all, Evina soldiered on. To Evina’s credit, after an uneven freshman year, she worked incredibly hard to improve, seeking out TN MBB HC Rick Barnes to work with her over the summer to remake her shooting mechanics. We might ask why Evina didn’t work with the WBB staff, but I think the answer is pretty obvious.

As a sophomore, Evina had a better year, but the LV’s were worse. It is also likely that the knee problem that required 2 surgeries at UConn, was present at TN, and Evina just played through the pain.

The disappointing end to Evina’s TN career was the 1st round loss to UCLA in the NCAA tournament her sophomore year. Following the game, in the locker room afterwards, deflated after a disappointing loss, a reporter stuck a mic in front of her asked Evina an inappropriate question. Evina mumbled something about “changes with the staff” which caused an uproar in some circles. While many criticized her remarks, in her own way, Evina was being a leader, speaking out on something that everyone knew, that HW was ineffective as a HC.

HW was fired and Kelly Harper was hired. While Evina did meet with Harper to discuss her future, she probably had already concluded that she had one chance to rebuild her career along the trajectory that appeared so promising coming out of HS. So Evina jumped at the opportunity to play for Geno.

After sitting out a year, along with two knee surgeries, Evina is finally beginning to fulfill her enormous basketball potential. It’s been a long journey, but she’s found a home at UConn. Evina’s talent, poise and leadership have been an absolute revelation. On January 21 when Evina and her new team travel to Knoxville, LV fans may struggle to recognize the poised young lady leading the Huskies to victory.