Reply to thread

Message: [QUOTE="Bone Dog, post: 5038070, member: 12088"] I still marvel at that entire 2021-22 season. It was inspiring and heartbreaking by turns. I often wonder about the lessons it holds for us. At the beginning of the season Paige comes back from summer ankle surgery and looks spectacular, like she’s ready for a second NPOY. That Arkansas game looked like a warning to the rest of D1 — she barely takes a shot in the first quarter but ends the game with 30+ points. Against ND, it’s one of those bruising games and with the usual ND flopping, until the second half when Paige has had enough and takes the game over, and for good measure pins a couple fouls on Mabrey and Citron as a sort of warning: “cut the crap.” And then in the final minutes her knee collapses. It was like the entire team deflated. In the Ga Tech game they looked confused and we were left wondering if they would be able to pull a winning season together. That’s how devastating Paige’s injury was to everyone. She’d showed us how spectacular she could be and then it was all snatched away. Then Evina and Caroline and Nika and Azzi took turns carrying the emotional load, and by the time Paige comes back Geno can even joke about Paige needing to earn minutes in practice. And she looks alternately fragile and made of steel as she thumps Indiana NC St and Stanford one after another. I almost wept watching the NC St game. What couldn’t Paige do? But Dorka breaks her wrist, and Caroline’s hip is becoming more of a problem every week, Liv and Azzi are weakened, and it begins to look like the team is melting away right under Paige’s feet. The girl is practically held together by string and kinesio tape and yet she manages to carry the team to the NC game. It was the most incredible season ever. No way the team does any of that without her, but there was only so much she could do. When I think of what next season could look like, I think about how the team seemed that year before the ND game. Anything seemed possible then, as it does now. Sure, there were question marks then as now. But the core elements were in place just like now. But now I worry less about injuries than about legacy. Paige has one more season, maybe two, to put her mark on the team Azzi KK Ash Sarah Morgan Allie and Jana will take the team into the future. Kelis Gandy and (maybe) Lara may not have the same chance to play with Paige. And after that, it will be down to Ash and KK and Sarah and Morgan to set the example. The future looks bright, but also a little unnerving. I am really looking forward to seeing how the next few seasons unfold. This is also one reason the fixation on getting more bigs seems misguided to me. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach