Brink to Stanford | Page 3 | The Boneyard

Brink to Stanford

Southridge!! Nice pick up for Stanford. Should give Tara another Wing/Post player that could cause nightmares for the Pac 12.
 
DaBball said:
Without any big Oregon names in 2020, the next big 2021 name is Aaronette Vonleh. Borther of former NBA Portland Trailblazer Noah Vonleh. Ranked #13 and #1 Post by hoopgurlz
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nwhoopfan said:
It's weird how many PGs they have. I don't think Brown will have a real big impact this year, but maybe the following year. I'm wondering if Anna Wilson is ever gonna get significant minutes for them.
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Remember that Marta Sniezek is out with an injury so there will be a need/opportunity for from Jenna Brown and/or junior Anna Wilson to get some floor time alongside sophomore Kiana Williams (who strikes me as a bit more of shoot-first pg who could probably slide over to off-guard).
 
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Nice pickup for Stanford. This is a very early commitment by Brink. The comparisons to Stewie even on the "surface level" needs to stop. Not sure this is a great loss for UCONN. Gusters is the post player UCONN is after in 2020 and DeBerry in 2021. If UCONN is successful in their pursuits Brink was not going to crack a UCONN post lineup of Boston, ONO, Gusters & DeBerry. And before @Charliebball chimes in, UCONN doesn't do contingency offers. BTW recall that it was 6'1" Fan Belibi that kept both Brunelle and Brink relegated to the bench at USA basketball U17 this summer.
 
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DaBball said:
And also recall that Brink was one of the players who kept Gusters and DeBerry sitting at home:) they obviously saw something in Brink that they didn’t in either of those two hence why she was chosen to make the team.
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That is a fair point. USA basketball made a decision to exclude Gusters, Baldwin, and DeBerry from that team. What they might have seen is Brink being the most mobile of the four players. That team was definitely "up-tempo" which may have made Brink a better fit. The opposite is true if we are talking (what I was actually thinking) better fit for UCONN post play.
 
CocoHusky said:
Nice pickup for Stanford. This is a very early commitment by Brink. The comparisons to Stewie even on the "surface level" need to stop. Not sure this is a great loss for UCONN. Gusters is the post player UCONN is after in 2020 and DeBerry in 2021. If UCONN is successful in their pursuits Brink was not going to crack a UCONN post lineup of Boston, ONO, Gusters & DeBerry. And before @Charliebball chimes in, UCONN doesn't do contingency offers. BTW recall that it was 6'1" Fan Belibi that kept both Brunelle and Brink relegated to the bench at USA basketball U17 this summer.
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Will touch on and maybe synthesize a few of these points, some of which I touched on in a post on The Bench, in regards to Brink's signing.

- "This is a very early commitment by Brink." You bet. Had read about some unofficial visits by Brink to various West Coast schools, but had not seen anything indicating she was ready to jump so early.
- "Not sure this is a great loss for UConn." In the post I wrote last night, just sub in "Notre Dame."
My reasoning is I'm not entire certain where Brink is going to end up playing in college. Will she fill out a bit and play in the post? Be a four? In the fall of 2020, ND will have Mik Vaughn and Danielle Cosgrove beginning their second year of eligibility and Sam Brunelle coming aboard at the 4.
- "Contingency" I'll look at the contingency reference from a "what if" planning perspective. The key to this for ND and, I believe, UConn is what happens with Aliyah Boston. If either squad procures Boston's commitment, no need for another post in 2020, even 2021. In ND's case, that's especially true (see Mik Vaughn above).
(BTW, if ND and Boston do not commit to one another, I'll wager one Kylee Watson's name may come up again in regards to the Irish. MM got to see a lot of her when she was scouting Alli Campbell on the Philly Belles this summer.)
- Reference to Fran Belibi. Not only does Stanford have the high-flying forward coming, they also have the 3rd rated center in 2019 (and #16 overall) in Ashten Prechtel. All 6'5" of her. So there will competition for floor time at the Ranch as well.
 
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CocoHusky said:
That is a fair point. USA basketball made a decision to exclude Gusters, Baldwin, and DeBerry from that team. What they might have seen is Brink being the most mobile of the four players. That team was definitely "up-tempo" which may have made Brink a better fit. The opposite is true if we are talking (what I was actually thinking) better fit for UCONN post play.
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Without digging into the archives, I seem to recall you making a point during tryouts that if a player makes the finals for the U.S. team (top 18), that is a great accomplishment in itself and the final selection often comes down to nuances, as you just pointed out. Thought that point was spot on then and still do. In regards to ND, I have no doubt that Alli Campbell making the final 18 caught Muffet's eye, which was probably confirmed over the summer on the AAU circuit.
 
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Something the way she moves and her effortless athleticism reminds me of Stewie. Game wise I'm not sure but very exciting prospect for Stanford. She'll need to add some muscle before coming to college but her upside looks phenomenal.

For those devaluing her based on physical strength or the fact that she got little playing time with team USA, keep in mind that Stewart was relegated to the bench in international play earlier in her career for similar reasons, and now she's clearly one of the top players in the world. Brink can add muscle and develop. You can't teach natural athleticism and fluidity on the court in combination with her size and length. Huge upside for sure. Whether she ever comes close to reaching Stewart's abilities or not, no reason to be upset by a comparison.
 
bballnut90 said:
For those devaluing her based on physical strength or the fact that she got little playing time with team USA, keep in mind that Stewart was relegated to the bench in international play earlier in her career for similar reasons, and now she's clearly one of the top players in the world.
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This is not accurate.

In 2009, Stewart made the USA U16 team as a 14-year-old and started every game and averaged 9.6 points/game.

As I posted above, Stewart made the U17 world championship team in 2010, as a 15-year-old, started every game and was the 2nd leading scorer and rebounder on the team.
 
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Dillon77 said:
Without digging into the archives, I seem to recall you making a point during tryouts that if a player makes the finals for the U.S. team (top 18), that is a great accomplishment and the final selection often comes down to nuances, as you just pointed out. Thought that point was spot on then and still do. In regards to ND, I have no doubt that Alli Campbell making the final 18 caught Muffet's eye, which was probably confirmed over the summer on the AAU circuit.
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This player also caught my eye at USA basketball trials.
 

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willtalk said:
It appears like the women's basketball center is shifting to the West Coast. The commit so soon after Kennedy Browns commit make me wonder if Brinks was waiting to see where she went. Perhaps Brinks was considering Oregon St and Browns commit sealed her choice?.
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This is a very real possibility. In the past, it’s been Stanford and everyone else on the west coast, but with the emergence of other programs over the past few years, west coast schools might finally have something to pitch to highly ranked recruits. Besides Stanford, OSU, Oregon, and UCLA have been regulars to see in Sweet 16+ games. It’ll be interesting to see how long much of their success lasts.
 
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CocoHusky said:
Nice pickup for Stanford. This is a very early commitment by Brink. The comparisons to Stewie even on the "surface level" needs to stop. Not sure this is a great loss for UCONN. Gusters is the post player UCONN is after in 2020 and DeBerry in 2021. If UCONN is successful in their pursuits Brink was not going to crack a UCONN post lineup of Boston, ONO, Gusters & DeBerry. And before @Charliebball chimes in, UCONN doesn't do contingency offers. BTW recall that it was 6'1" Fan Belibi that kept both Brunelle and Brink relegated to the bench at USA basketball U17 this summer.
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I believe Brink is going to be really good.................certainly not Stewart level but good enough to have an impact at UConn...................in my opinion, the odds of getting Gusters out of Texas are about the same as they were for Brink...............it's certainly another fairly significant recruiting loss in my book..........
 
For all those saying, “how many NC have west coast schools won?” Consider this: Baylor hasn’t been beyond the Elite 8 since they won the NC in 2012, Tennessee hasn’t been anywhere near a NC since Candace Parker left, Texas hasn’t had much success despite their consistent top 25 ranking, South Caroline won its first NC in 2017, and Notre Dame won it’s second (and first in 17 years) NC this past season. All of these schools routinely get top ranked recruits, so it’s not surprising to see kids picking schools that are finally on the map of WCBB AND closer to where they grew up.
 
UConnCat said:
This is not accurate.

In 2009, Stewart made the USA U16 team as a 14-year-old and started every game and averaged 9.6 points/game.

As I posted above, Stewart made the U17 world championship team in 2010, as a 15-year-old, started every game and was the 2nd leading scorer and rebounder on the team.
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I was referring to the 2014 worlds. Obviously playing at the senior level is a lot different than playing at the junior level, but my point is is that Brink has a lot of upside and you can't undervalue her based on one tournament where she was playing with teammates all a year older than her. She was one of just three 2020 players on the roster, the others being Hailey Van Lith, who performed at about the same level as a Brink, and Bueckers who was stellar and is the #1 kid in her class.
 
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bballnut90 said:
I was referring to the 2014 worlds. Obviously playing at the senior level is a lot different than playing at the junior level, but my point is is that Brink has a lot of upside and you can't write her off based on one tournament. She was one of just three 2020 players on the roster, the others being Hailey Van Lith who performed at about the same level as a Brink, and Bueckers who was stellar and is the #1 kid in her class.
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Dear Lord! In 2014 Stewie was 20, the only collegian, competing for minutes against a starting 5 that are locks to make the Naismith HOF. I still don't see the comparison!
 
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bballnut90 said:
I was referring to the 2014 worlds. Obviously playing at the senior level is a lot different than playing at the junior level, but my point is is that Brink has a lot of upside and you can't write her off based on one tournament. She was one of just three 2020 players on the roster, the others being Hailey Van Lith who performed at about the same level as a Brink, and Bueckers who was stellar and is the #1 kid in her class.
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Wait, wut? You compared Stewart's experience as a 20-year-old college junior on the senior national team at the World Championships with Brink's experience on a U17 team? Saying that's comparing apples and oranges gives it too much credit, particularly when there are more (age) appropriate comparisons available.

Of course Brink has tremendous upside (can not believe I used this word) and no one here is denying that. It's the comparisons to Stewart that seem like a stretch.
 
CocoHusky said:
Dear Lord! In 2014 Stewie was 20, the only collegian, competing for minutes against a starting 5 that are locks to make the Naismith HOF. I still don't see the comparison!
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The comparison highlights that players take time to to adjust playing at the next level up. Brink is a young long 6-4 forward with natural athleticism and moves very well. Upside is huge. If she chose to attend UCONN, she would've made a big impact there with Geno's coaching.
 
bballnut90 said:
The comparison highlights that players take time to to adjust playing at the next level up. Brink is a young long 6-4 forward with natural athleticism and moves very well. Upside is huge. If she chose to attend UCONN, she would've made a big impact there with Geno's coaching.
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you should know by now that the minute a recruit passes on UConn as in the case of (Amihere, Horston, Brink) they are sometimes devalued from being potential All-Americans to no big loss............I'm not exactly sure how that will work for Boston and/or Jones if they choose to go elsewhere .................
 
Dillon77 said:
Remember that Marta Sniezek is out with an injury so there will be a need/opportunity for from Jenna Brown and/or junior Anna Wilson to get some floor time alongside sophomore Kiana Williams (who strikes me as a bit more of shoot-first pg who could probably slide over to off-guard).
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Didn't realize Sniezek is injured, thanks for the info. Agree about Williams.
 
For those of you that are worried about how this may impact other potential Uconn recruits, Ms Brink plays her AAU ball for Cal Stars, whose roster also includes one Ms Haley Jones. Of course, Oregon also has a former Cal Stars player by the name of Sabrina Ionescu who may also be whispering in Ms. Jones' ear
 
Brink is rail-thin, very athletic, runs like the wind, and very skilled if raw. She rebounds, blocks shots, is an excellent passer, has terrific feet, and has post-up and shooting abilities. I'd like to think it's fair to compare those aspects of her to Stewart without the assumption that she's as good a prospect. Stewart was maybe a once-in-a-generation type. Brink can be really good-- and similar--without being at the same level.
 
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Razman43 said:
For those of you that are worried about how this may impact other potential Uconn recruits, Ms Brink plays her AAU ball for Cal Stars, whose roster also includes one Ms Haley Jones. Of course, Oregon also has a former Cal Stars player by the name of Sabrina Ionescu who may also be whispering in Ms. Jones' ear
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Please.......
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Sluconn Husky said:
Brink is rail-thin, very athletic, runs like the wind, and very skilled if raw. She rebounds, blocks shots, is an excellent passer, has terrific feet, and has post-up and shooting abilities. I'd like to think it's fair to compare those aspects of her to Stewart without the assumption that she's as good a prospect. Stewart was maybe a once-in-a-generation type. Brink can be really good-- and similar--without being at the same level.
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There are plenty of players that at a similar age displayed the same skill set as Brink -who is no doubt a terrific prospect. Enough players so that Stewie's name should never have come up.
 
CocoHusky said:
There are plenty of players that at a similar age displayed the same skill set as Brink -who is no doubt a terrific prospect. Enough players so that Stewie's name should never have come up.
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Big-time talents get compared to greats in some form or fashion. That's just the way it is. You think all those Bueckers/Taurasi comparisons--made by Geno himself!--are an accident? And that's a far more literal comparison in terms of total player whereas really only Brink's body type and skill set are being compared to Stewart. There were a ton of Maya Moore comps to Megan Walker the last year plus around here if you recall.

Oh, and I shouldn't forget that Azzi Fudd is getting many Maya comps at 15/16 years old.
 
Former University of Connecticut star and current USA head coach Carla Berube thinks so highly of her.

"She's awesome," Berube said. "Her ceiling is so high. She's gotten so much better as a player since last year, especially her confidence. She's like a quiet assassin out there." Berube once compared Azzi to Maya Moore and Diana Taurasi in an ESPN article last year.

Va. basketball phenom lives up to the hype
 
Stewie was (and is) a once in a generation player and while Brink got a great potential, she is not close to Stewie in the same age. PB and DT and Fudd and Maya are not bad comparisons as both PB and Fudd are in somewhat close proximity to DT and Maya in similar ages.
 
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