Anna Makurat Commits to UConn

[Charliebball]

BTW..........................it's not like UConn's current roster is full of great defensive players..........................I think most would agree that everybody on the team can use some improvement in that area

 

[BobbyJ]

I sure hope you guys are right (you and @CocoHusky, @UConnCat, and of course Geno). I have no reason to doubt any of you. From the tape I've seen, she sure seems like an advanced basketball player for her age. I don't think she'll be intimidated by anyone, and like Christyn, I think she will find it fun to play in front of large crowds and in big games.

Let us hope she can play decent D and keep up with Crystal and Christyn.

I just think that if she has it between the ears and gives full effort on defense she’s going to get a lot of PT. And if your last sentence refers to speed, that shouldn’t be a problem considering the competition she’s had. Real good BB players rarely have to move full speed anyway. No comparison of course but even though he was slow, you never saw Larry Bird have to sprint anywhere.

 

[Ex Nutmegger]

Regarding team defense, with all the excellent guards we now have available to rotate in and out we shouldn’t see a UConn guard worry about fouling out of a game for three or four years. Our defense may not be as pretty as it was in the Stewy era, but it should be “fierce”, giving up four or five extra fouls a game in exchange for an absolutely smothering defense that frustrates and flusters the opposition.

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Makurat, a 6-foot-1 guard, grabbed the attention of a few players while competing in her native Poland, including ex-Husky Tiffany Hayes.


“She’s young, coming from a whole ’nother country to a prolific program like UConn. But coach (Geno Auriemma), he’s really good with preparing each individual, and getting individual talent out of them,” explained Hayes, who won two national championships at UConn and is preparing for her eighth season in the WNBA. “They’ve developed a lot of players over the years. I don’t think she’ll be any different.”

...

“They develop players so nicely, so hopefully it’s an easy transition for her. I think it will be,” Hayes said, adding that Makurat is a “really good” shooter. “Sometimes it’s hard for players that are from another country to get used to playing in America, but I think with some time, she’ll get with it. She’ll be a big help for them. She was a really good player.”


Thomas echoed Hayes’ assessment of Makurat as a shooter, adding that Makurat’s strength and size caught her attention.


“She can make plays off the pick-and-roll, and I think her going to UConn, building on her IQ and building on her skill set and being able to defend a little better, is really going to be good for her,” she said.

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