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Message: [QUOTE="oldude, post: 4283821, member: 7511"] Let’s be clear about we do have on Amari and what we don’t have. Amari was the #12 rated player in her senior class. She fell 6 spots from her jr year because her senior season in HS was cancelled due to Covid, so we have no meaningful tape of her beating up on HS kids. What we do have is about 30 minutes of film from the U19 World Championships and 83 minutes of play this past season against college competition. Here’s what I see. Amari has a relatively big body and good hands, a key skill for any Big. She runs the court reasonably well, although I believe she can improve quite a bit with better conditioning. Amari also has the ability to score from a variety of places on the court. She can finish at the rim with either hand and has a really nice bank shot from 5’-10’. Amari’s 3-point shot is the second best looking stroke on the team to Azzi’s. :eek: Amari is also a very good passer from the high post. In the minutes Amari got when everyone was injured, she was more than willing to body up other post players and demonstrated a sound knowledge of defensive positioning (thank you Jamelle). Amari needs work on defensive recognition and providing help defense. I suggested that I want to see more aggression on defense from her, even if she goes through a period where she gets whistled for a bunch of fouls. Geno has indicated that Amari is one of the most skilled Bigs he’s ever had. That’s very much a legitimate comment. What she lacks at this point in time is better conditioning, experience & confidence. UConn fans can fantasize about some other Big in the transfer portal that may or may not have the ability to put the Huskies over the top next season. I don’t see that player. Next season, with Dorka & Aaliyah, UConn will have one of the best frontcourt combinations in WBB. I expect to see Ice & Ayanna crack the rotation once they figure things out. Amari has already committed to the first necessary step by planning to be in Storrs all summer working with Andrea Hudy on her strength & conditioning, while developing her game as well. IMO, Amari is a better option to backup Dorka & Aaliyah than anyone in the portal next season and a much better long term option to be UConn’s starting center in the years beyond. [/QUOTE]

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