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A seven-year player, a freshman who’s not really a freshman, a potential NIL millionaire: This season’s 25 most intriguing women’s basketball players
From freshmen to transfers to superstars, Chantel Jennings lists the most intriguing players to watch this season.
theathletic.com
Interesting (although some of her choices dont make that much sense to me) survey about the 25 most interesting WBB players according to Charlotte . Wrote the blurbs of those of direct interest to UConn fans
22. Lauren Park-Lane, Seton Hall
Even if you didn’t watch a ton of Seton Hall basketball last season, you probably remember Park-Lane — she’s the 5-6 point guard who put up 29 points and dished out 10 assists against UConn in December. She ended the season as the Big East’s most improved player, and her offseason was incredibly productive. Park-Lane hit the weight room and added 11 pounds of muscle while focusing on her 3-point shot, where she hasn’t been very consistent. But through scrimmages this season, she’s shooting 41 percent from range. No team is going to battle UConn for that No. 1 spot in the Big East, but a stronger Park-Lane does give Seton Hall better odds to fight for No. 2 with Marquette and DePaul.
20. Mikayla Coombs, Georgia
Coombs went into her freshman season at UConn in 2017 as the No. 13 prospect in the nation. After appearing in 56 games, she transferred to Georgia, closer to her hometown of Buford, Ga. She sat out the 2019-20 season and last year she was the first player off the bench for the Bulldogs while playing the third-most minutes on the team. Head coach Joni Taylor has to replace two full-time starters from a season ago, and I think she’ll find one of those players in Coombs. Some of her best games last season were in the biggest and closest matchups of the year, and I’m curious to see how much her game flourishes as she’s finally in a starting role after such a long and winding college journey. Alongside Que Morrison, Jenna Staiti and Jordan Isaacs, we could see Georgia win some pretty big games this season, and I’d expect Coombs’ contributions to be a big reason why.
19. Cameron Brink, Stanford
18. Jordan Nixon, Texas A&M
17. Katie Benzan, Maryland
16. Talia von Oelhoffen, Oregon State
15. Anastasia Hayes, Mississippi State
14. Emily Engstler, Louisville
Fudd is the only true freshman on this list. As it is every season, freshmen are always intriguing prospects because even the ones who have been seen everywhere and played everywhere come in as a bit of an unknown. They haven’t played at the college speed nor have they seen the size and strength of players who are three or four years into collegiate strength training, and that makes the adjustment interesting to watch. But Fudd has an advantage over others: Her best friend, Paige Bueckers, is the leader of this UConn team. There’s not a better situation into which a freshman could step. If Fudd gets in her head or goes through a slump, it’s not just a new teammate who’s going to be trying to help her, it’s someone she has known and trusted for years. That makes her transition less daunting and her freshman season a little less freshman-like.
13. Azzi Fudd, UConn
12. Ali Patberg, Indiana
11. Veronica Burton, Northwestern
10. Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
9. Jordan Hamilton, Stanford
8. Leigha Brown, Michigan
7. Rhyne Howard, Kentucky
6. Endyia Rogers, Oregon
5. Monika Czinano, Iowa
4. Diamond Johnson, NC State
3. Angel Reese, Maryland
Bueckers — for better for worse — is going to be a guinea pig in this NIL era as few college athletes, regardless of sport, will have more attention on them (especially if her earning potential is anywhere near the reported $1 million a year, per the Wall Street Journal). But Bueckers is accustomed to the pressure and has thrived under it before. But, in an era where her play is now tied directly to her money, how does that impact a college player? The Huskies return nearly their full roster from a season ago, and they added an important piece in Ohio State transfer Dorka Juhász, but all eyes will still be on Bueckers. How does she improve upon a freshman season in which she took home the Naismith Trophy, the Wooden Award and AP Player of the Year honors? And more intriguingly, how does she balance that with being the face of NIL?
2. Paige Bueckers, UConn
1. NaLyssa Smith, Baylor
