A Question On Paige Keeps Rolling Around In My Head

[RockyMTblue2]

If its been discussed I missed it. I would think it has come up, 'cuz I think it's pretty glaring. First, could we agree that Paige went into her first year in the W with the game she graduated with? Yes. Reasonable right. Well if you followed her through the W season you saw more than a modicum of stuff in her game that you did not see at UConn. My question is why didn't we? The only answer that makes sense to me is that it didn't fit Geno's game for whatever reason. Second question if that's so, why is it so? There are all sorts of smarter heads than me here that maybe can enlighten me? I'm dying to know.

I've included that season reprise for the ROY again in case it will be handy.

 

[Bald Husky]

Geno spent telling Paige her entire career to shoot, shoot, shoot. She did shoot when she wanted but never took over the game unless she was needed to. Now, since I watched every Wings game, I can tell you she started off the same way. This time though, I think she did it out of respect to the veterans that she was playing with. Soon after, she did discover that the team sucked, and if they had any chance of winning, she was going to have to step up, and yes, hunt her shots and shoot. We knew she had it in her, but with all the talent surrounding her at UConn she was more comfortable passing and giving the ball to teammates that could actually shoot. By the end of the Wings season, she was doing the passing thing again, as she was playing with 3 or 4 rookies and wanted to give them a chance to shine. I haven't heard anything, but I believe the coach may have told Paige to try to support her teammates, especially since they will be making a lot of moves next year, and displaying potential trade bait would help the team in its evaluations.

 

[uconnfan68]

The W is a faster and more physical game. She figured it early enough, and is making it to her liking now.

 

[YKCornelius]

If its been discussed I missed it. I would think it has come up, 'cuz I think it's pretty glaring. First, could we agree that Paige went into her first year in the W with the game she graduated with? Yes. Reasonable right. Well if you followed her through the W season you saw more than a modicum of stuff in her game that you did not see at UConn. My question is why didn't we? The only answer that makes sense to me is that it didn't fit Geno's game for whatever reason. Second question if that's so, why is it so? There are all sorts of smarter heads than me here that maybe can enlighten me? I'm dying to know.

I've included that season reprise for the ROY again in case it will be handy.

Rocky, what exactly did you see during the WNBA season that you didn't see during her UConn career? That she got the daylights beaten out of her? That she was often double-teamed and trapped when she received the ball in the half court with no teammates working to get free to receive a pass near her? Not having teammates in synchronized defensive schemes?

To me from Day One with Dallas Paige was put into a position trying integrate with other players who were former "go-to" players on their collegiate teams. The flaws in the Wings were in personnel, and coaches managing those personnel and getting them to buy into the notion that the offenses no longer ran through them. Many of the Wings players had an extremely hard time adjusting to their new role.

Specific to Paige's game, are you referring to the occasional acrobatic shots or logo threes that were a result of a crappy Wing's offense? Thankfully, the UConn offense and defensive play made those types of plays uncalled for.

That type of stuff was seen from Fulwiley, Hidalgo and occasionally Miles. Decided not UConn basketball, thank you Lord!

 

[RockyMTblue2]

A sweet intermission:

 

[diggerfoot]

There is not a single type of shot, nor type of pass, Bueckers made in the pros that I did not see her make in college as well. Without looking it up I am guessing her shots per game was slightly higher in the pros, and if her pro teammates had the same shooting percentages as her college teammates (it was almost 10% less) her assists per game would have been dramatically higher in the pros.

 

[Bone Dog]

There is not a single type of shot, nor type of pass, Bueckers made in the pros that I did not see her make in college as well.

Exactly. In fact, during the tournament Rebecca commented on how vast Paige’s arsenal of offensive weapons was more than once.

 

[Bigboote]

At UConn Paige had teammates who were generally better than their opponents. That was not so at Dallas, so she had to do more.

 

[and one]

Her game seems pretty similar to that of her UConn days to me. What is very different is the lack of teammates that can also play high level ball. As it is opponents in the W can double or triple Paige consistently and get really physical in the process. There isn't much of a penalty in doing so as the refs in the W famously allow a lot of contact and Paige doesn't have a lot of decent passing options. Sure, she got the double team/physical play treatment in college, just not every game and she could always just pass to teammates that could make the defense pay.

What worries me is that Paige is stuck in Dallas for the term of her rookie contract and unless Dallas can get a decent team around her she is going to continue to get beat up every game. It would be awful to see Paige get injured. Bad for her, for Dallas, for the W.

 

[WiseWillie]

A sweet intermission:

We all do Rocky. We all do. She plays the game with such pure joy. You can see it on her face. She just loves doing whatever it will take to score, defend, steal, rebound or assist.

Anyone watching her magic on the court for her years at UConn and this amazing record-breaking rookie year simply has to admire the way she plays the game. Her tool arsenal is pretty darn potent and while she may have had all the tools while at UConn, as pointed out by others here it didn't require for her to use them as much as in this past season with the Wings. The best part is her arsenal will be getting even better because she works tirelessly to improve. My hope is that she takes the time off to rest but also keep working on her body especially her upper body with strength training because she is going to need it.

 

[Dugway]

Paige (and the Wings) would surely been better off if they had Sarah Strong on the team. Azzi would have been a huge luxury for them as well!

 

[MilfordHusky]

Paige had to work harder for her shots in Dallas than at UConn--partly because Dallas wasn't as good and partly because the competition was better.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

There is not a single type of shot, nor type of pass, Bueckers made in the pros that I did not see her make in college as well. Without looking it up I am guessing her shots per game was slightly higher in the pros, and if her pro teammates had the same shooting percentages as her college teammates (it was almost 10% less) her assists per game would have been dramatically higher in the pros.

I'm talking about what she did to get a shot. It's mostly about her moves, not the shots. Her footwork was extraordinary. Her ball handling pretty otherworldly. She froze a lot of players. There was one play in the hilite reel and a couple of others where she went through three players for a scoop layup and I still don't know how she pulled that off. Would pay money for an overhead shot of that play.

 

[my2cents]

I'm talking about what she did to get a shot. It's mostly about her moves, not the shots. Her footwork was extraordinary. Her ball handling pretty otherworldly. She froze a lot of players. There was one play in the hilite reel and a couple of others where she went through three players for a scoop layup and I still don't know how she pulled that off. Would pay money for an overhead shot of that play.

I agree. Her moves to get shots off were never displayed at UConn the way she was doing it for Dallas. A lot has to do with the injuries Dallas had and the need for Paige to score. UConn had way more scoring options than a depleted Dallas. ( Plus Geno doesn't like bad shots)
I also believe Paige has improved as a Pro vs. her UConn days.

 

[visitingcock]

Let’s compare her role as rookie with that of her freshman year - not her senior year when there was much more talent around her. People seem to forget her freshman performance against South Carolina when she was called upon to shoot the team to a victory at home.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

I agree. Her moves to get shots off were never displayed at UConn the way she was doing it for Dallas. A lot has to do with the injuries Dallas had and the need for Paige to score. UConn had way more scoring options than a depleted Dallas. ( Plus Geno doesn't like bad shots)
I also believe Paige has improved as a Pro vs. her UConn days.

It is hard to calibrate improvement when you start with someone as skilled as Paige, but I doubt she has improved more than learning how to brace for more contact. I do believe there will be improvemenet, but the fact is much that she displayed this season she displayed in high school.

 

[Vancat]

If its been discussed I missed it. I would think it has come up, 'cuz I think it's pretty glaring. First, could we agree that Paige went into her first year in the W with the game she graduated with? Yes. Reasonable right. Well if you followed her through the W season you saw more than a modicum of stuff in her game that you did not see at UConn. My question is why didn't we? The only answer that makes sense to me is that it didn't fit Geno's game for whatever reason. Second question if that's so, why is it so? There are all sorts of smarter heads than me here that maybe can enlighten me? I'm dying to know.

I've included that season reprise for the ROY again in case it will be handy.

I agree. My thought was that she didn’t do those things because she didn’t have to.

 

[sun]

She truely seems to be the quarterback for the Wings with their offense running through her.
She often had to defer that role to others while playing for UConn.
I think that she's also healthier than she was for much of her UConn career which allows her to shine.