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Message: [QUOTE="cferraro04, post: 4334334, member: 267"] Anybody remember the things Geno said about Tina Charles her first two years... Look how she turned out... Auriemma said. "When a lot of kids go to college, they want it to be great right away, they expect it to be great right away. When they don't have that success right away, they are looking for somebody to blame. They are looking for reasons why it didn't happen right away or they are transferring. I think Tina is a great story in that you have to fight through a lot of things to get what you want. STORRS, Conn. -- When the girl was young, the game was a dalliance. She was all arms and legs and smiles and two-handed set shots, but from one outing to the next it was never quite clear what she would bring to her basketball team. Auriemma believes Charles could prove to be one of the best -- if not [I]the [/I]best -- players he's ever had in his storied program. "But she needs a push," Auriemma said. "If you left it up to her, she'd take her sweet old time." Some outside the program might look at Charles and see a seamless, stress-free journey to basketball greatness. But Charles was constantly being pushed and prodded to reach her potential by Auriemma, associate head coach Chris Dailey and the rest of the UConn coaching staff. "Sometimes you have to go through painful experiences to experience the joy and that is what I am doing now," "Anytime I went into office good or bad, but usually bad, I would sit in that chair across from him," said Charles, who received the key to the city of Middletown and had May 20 declared "Tina Charles Day" in Middletown. "I really like the chair. He said I could only get the chair if I become the two-time All-American and the national player of the year. I achieved all of this and just recently I went (to visit). He was talking about a new facility that is supposed to be at UConn and he said you can take that chair but one last thing, you have to be a starter on the Olympic team. Coach Auriemma, he is still continuing the challenge me and that is the best thing about UConn." [/QUOTE]

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