Dawn Staley's Unhappiness With The Media

[RockyMTblue2]

Sorta reminds you of a blend of Ashton and Mulkey. The long version:



The short version was peppier:

Women's Basketball - ESPN

 

[scubadog]

The truth is : the attendance at many of these games will be pathetic. In fact the tv camera go out of their way not to show the empty stands. Everything is about tv matchups. Someone has to be a decent tv draw against UConn in regional finals. As Jack said, " you can't handle the truth " !

 

[CocoHusky]

This is mostly a Philly thing- finding something to be unhappy about. A few short weeks ago it was the Missouri AD. This week it's the media. Next week it will be lack of respect for A'Ja Wilson not being chosen UNANIMOUSLY for ALL the POY awards. Geno and Muffet are the same way.

 

[Orangutan]

When is Dawn not unhappy at some sort of perceived slight?

 

[CL82]

Yeah, I've got no problem with it. She's lobbying the committee for a more regional draw next year, and giving her team an excuse to feel disrepected. She's being a good coach.

(FWIW, when I coached I'd always cook up some slight so our kids would have a chip on their shoulders.)

 

[huskyd]

Did Dawn say that UConn is "a pretty good program"? I agree. Staley talked about the success of her team the "last four years." Surely she knows that she has a once-in-a-lifetime player in Aja, and that when Wilson leaves her program will likely go back to being ordinary. She's not the kind of coach who can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. It appears that Aja will leave with one NC (fortunate at that). If Wilson had signed with "a pretty good program," she'd be competing for 4. Bit of a grouch, I think.

 

[shiverz45]

Did Dawn say that UConn is "a pretty good program"? I agree. Staley talked about the success of her team the "last four years." Surely she knows that she has a once-in-a-lifetime player in Aja, and that when Wilson leaves her program will likely go back to being ordinary. She's not the kind of coach who can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. It appears that Aja will leave with one NC (fortunate at that). If Wilson had signed with "a pretty good program," she'd be competing for 4. Bit of a grouch, I think.

Before A'ja, South Carolina had already earned a number one seed and won a SEC championship. Even before that she also took a team with no one over 6'0 tall to 25 wins and a sweet 16. Only one player on that team was a top 100 recruit. SC is in a much better place than it was 5 to 6 years ago so I don't see it dropping that much. I guess it depends on your definition of "ordinary".

 

[shiverz45]

Did Dawn say that UConn is "a pretty good program"? I agree. Staley talked about the success of her team the "last four years." Surely she knows that she has a once-in-a-lifetime player in Aja, and that when Wilson leaves her program will likely go back to being ordinary. She's not the kind of coach who can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. It appears that Aja will leave with one NC (fortunate at that). If Wilson had signed with "a pretty good program," she'd be competing for 4. Bit of a grouch, I think.

Next year she will probably have one of the deepest and best backcourt in the country. 3 McDonalds All Americans in the back court not including Tyasha Harris. She may have to revert back to the early days when SC was guard dominated because she wont have the dominant post play but it will be a whole lot better than the early days.

 

[DaddyChoc]

the CViv treatment continues!

 

[triaddukefan]

Yeah, I've got no problem with it. She's lobbying the committee for a more regional draw next year, and giving her team an excuse to feel disrepected.

Well next year Greensboro will be a regional site again.... So Staley and little Carolina need to take care of business so they can take the bus here next March.

 

[SCspur]

Before A'ja, South Carolina had already earned a number one seed and won a SEC championship. Even before that she also took a team with no one over 6'0 tall to 25 wins and a sweet 16. Only one player on that team was a top 100 recruit. SC is in a much better place than it was 5 to 6 years ago so I don't see it dropping that much. I guess it depends on your definition of "ordinary".

Next year I see an AA PG, two All-SEC guards, two All-SEC forwards, and a potential SEC FOY on the roster. If that's "ordinary" I think a lot of coaches would kill to be ordinary.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

Well next year Greensboro will be a regional site again.... So Staley and little Carolina need to take care of business so they can take the bus here next March.

Thankfully, there isn't any local competition for that #1 seed, but they'll probably figure out a way to put the Gamecocks in Portland.

 

[HGN]

Yeah, I've got no problem with it. She's lobbying the committee for a more regional draw next year, and giving her team an excuse to feel disrepected. She's being a good coach.

(FWIW, when I coached I'd always cook up some slight so our kids would have a chip on their shoulders.)

ABSOLUTELY........ CL82 , you took the words right out of my mouth. Or right off my keyboard. Dawn is coaching for this years team and for next years more favorable committee placement.
EVERY team wants to be at home , or at least close to it. But you have to earn that right.

 

[oldude]

I have a slightly different take on this. I think Dawn knows this is her last opportunity for some time to win a 2nd national championship, and that’s unlikely to happen if SC has to go through UConn, a team they’ve never beaten, in Albany.

Last season, SC won their championship through a combination of talent, coaching and extraordinary luck. It started when Alaina Coates went down, which I will argue made SC a better team with Gray & Davis being able to attack the basket and sharp shooting Bianca-Cuevas moving to the 2 guard.

Then SC draws the easiest regional with only FSU in the way of a trip to the FF. When they get there, ND is not waiting for them, after Turner goes down and the Irish get knocked off by Stanford. In the semifinal, Stanford loses Karlie Samuelson, their best shooter, and SC advances to the championship.

Low & behold, MS St stuns UConn and SC faces a team they’ve already beaten twice. Luck is a part of any championship, but last year Dawn and the Gamecocks hit the lottery.

 

[DefenseBB]

The truth is : the attendance at many of these games will be pathetic. In fact the tv camera go out of their way not to show the empty stands. Everything is about tv matchups. Someone has to be a decent tv draw against UConn in regional finals. As Jack said, " you can't handle the truth " !

You half right and half wrong.
The half wrong: I really don't know that the committee looks at the TV draw as much as people think. The top teams rise and usually play each other anyway, creating the draw. This is true more so in the women's game as the seeding usually holds.

The half right: The reason the top 16 ranked schools host is to boost the attendance for the tournament. The game that the host school is playing in, is usually well attended, the other 3 games may not be. The bigger issue is the quality of the regional host area schools. We are lucky in the Northeast as mostly Albany and Bridgeport (local University's must apply to be the host-in Bridgeport's case, usually Fairfield) will actually bid on the hosting aspect knowing they can get UConn and attendence. For me, Greensboro in the south would be logical especially with a few strong teams in that region-Duke, NC State, SC. I don't know why Chicago/DePaul won't bid as ND is nearby and it is a central hub, much better than Lexington which has been dreadful. Plus with the new on-site facility for DePaul maybe they will bid in the future (plus Northwestern is there). The state of Texas has been poor as well and that is very surprising to me given the amount of talent and the strength of some the teams in that region-Baylor, Texas A&M, Texas, Oklahoma. Dallas as regional host has been poor to average at best and Ok City has been poor. The west has always been apathetic and last year's Stockton was dreadful with maybe the only hope for Oregon to shake the doldrums out of that group. Tara has struggled for years to build a strong following despite her excellent coaching.

So the whole "keep teams as local as possible" is mainly driven at attendance with some consideration for lower costs. The game, unfortunately, still has a ways to go for national consciousness despite our fanatical efforts.

The only neutral site games that have drawn are the final four as they always sell out.

 

[DaddyChoc]

I have a slightly different take on this. I think Dawn knows this is her last opportunity for some time to win a 2nd national championship, and that’s unlikely to happen if SC has to go through UConn, a team they’ve never beaten, in Albany.

Last season, SC won their championship through a combination of talent, coaching and extraordinary luck. It started when Alaina Coates went down, which I will argue made SC a better team with Gray & Davis being able to attack the basket and sharp shooting Bianca-Cuevas moving to the 2 guard.

Then SC draws the easiest regional with only FSU in the way of a trip to the FF. When they get there, ND is not waiting for them, after Turner goes down and the Irish get knocked off by Stanford. In the semifinal, Stanford loses Karlie Samuelson, their best shooter, and SC advances to the championship.

Low & behold, MS St stuns UConn and SC faces a team they’ve already beaten twice. Luck is a part of any championship, but last year Dawn and the Gamecocks hit the lottery.

"luck and stuns"

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I have a slightly different take on this. I think Dawn knows this is her last opportunity for some time to win a 2nd national championship, and that’s unlikely to happen if SC has to go through UConn, a team they’ve never beaten, in Albany.

Last season, SC won their championship through a combination of talent, coaching and extraordinary luck. It started when Alaina Coates went down, which I will argue made SC a better team with Gray & Davis being able to attack the basket and sharp shooting Bianca-Cuevas moving to the 2 guard.

Then SC draws the easiest regional with only FSU in the way of a trip to the FF. When they get there, ND is not waiting for them, after Turner goes down and the Irish get knocked off by Stanford. In the semifinal, Stanford loses Karlie Samuelson, their best shooter, and SC advances to the championship.

Low & behold, MS St stuns UConn and SC faces a team they’ve already beaten twice. Luck is a part of any championship, but last year Dawn and the Gamecocks hit the lottery.

That championship really offends UConn fans for some reason.

 

[sharris952]

I have a slightly different take on this. I think Dawn knows this is her last opportunity for some time to win a 2nd national championship, and that’s unlikely to happen if SC has to go through UConn, a team they’ve never beaten, in Albany.

Last season, SC won their championship through a combination of talent, coaching and extraordinary luck. It started when Alaina Coates went down, which I will argue made SC a better team with Gray & Davis being able to attack the basket and sharp shooting Bianca-Cuevas moving to the 2 guard.

Then SC draws the easiest regional with only FSU in the way of a trip to the FF. When they get there, ND is not waiting for them, after Turner goes down and the Irish get knocked off by Stanford. In the semifinal, Stanford loses Karlie Samuelson, their best shooter, and SC advances to the championship.

Low & behold, MS St stuns UConn and SC faces a team they’ve already beaten twice. Luck is a part of any championship, but last year Dawn and the Gamecocks hit the lottery.

This narrative is so bore some. Every team wins a championship with a lot of skill and a "LITTLE" luck. If luck is Miss. ST beating UConn so they didn't have to play them then I will take that. For those of you that only watch SC when something negative occurs for them, Last year Dawn experimented throughout the year with the 4 guard 1 big lineup. She utilized it when Aja went out in the middle of the year with an ankle injury. During that stretch Coates went three straight games of scoring 20pts or more, and the team beat those opponents by double digits. She also utilized during games when she had the availability of both, to change things up. This was not pot luck of Coates injury. As for their region, any slight against FSU and other teams in their region, was offset by playing in Siberia away from any fan base possible. The "Turner" less ND is a tired excuse as they did not use "Coates" as their excuse for a late season loss. Yes a little "luck" is always involved, but to make the entire thing about luck is ludicrous.

 

[oldude]

That championship really offends UConn fans for some reason.

Not me. I like Dawn. She’s done a great job at SC. In my post, I site talent, coaching & luck for the Gamecocks championship, which is no different than any other team.

When UConn won their 2013 championship, luck played a big part of it as Louisville, a team UConn had beaten twice, stunned Britney Griner and Baylor in the other semifinal.

 

[oldude]

This narrative is so bore some. Every team wins a championship with a lot of skill and a "LITTLE" luck. If luck is Miss. ST beating UConn so they didn't have to play them then I will take that. For those of you that only watch SC when something negative occurs for them, Last year Dawn experimented throughout the year with the 4 guard 1 big lineup. She utilized it when Aja went out in the middle of the year with an ankle injury. During that stretch Coates went three straight games of scoring 20pts or more, and the team beat those opponents by double digits. She also utilized during games when she had the availability of both, to change things up. This was not pot luck of Coates injury. As for their region, any slight against FSU and other teams in their region, was offset by playing in Siberia away from any fan base possible. The "Turner" less ND is a tired excuse as they did not use "Coates" as their excuse for a late season loss. Yes a little "luck" is always involved, but to make the entire thing about luck is ludicrous.

Please read my post again. While I clearly focus on SC’s extraordinary luck in last years championship run, I certainly mention that talent and coaching were also elements of SC’s success.

 

[scubadog]

I have a slightly different take on this. I think Dawn knows this is her last opportunity for some time to win a 2nd national championship, and that’s unlikely to happen if SC has to go through UConn, a team they’ve never beaten, in Albany.

Last season, SC won their championship through a combination of talent, coaching and extraordinary luck. It started when Alaina Coates went down, which I will argue made SC a better team with Gray & Davis being able to attack the basket and sharp shooting Bianca-Cuevas moving to the 2 guard.

Then SC draws the easiest regional with only FSU in the way of a trip to the FF. When they get there, ND is not waiting for them, after Turner goes down and the Irish get knocked off by Stanford. In the semifinal, Stanford loses Karlie Samuelson, their best shooter, and SC advances to the championship.

Low & behold, MS St stuns UConn and SC faces a team they’ve already beaten twice. Luck is a part of any championship, but last year Dawn and the Gamecocks hit the lottery.

Miss. St. is hoping for a second lightning strike. If only SC can return the favor and knock the Huskies out for them. I think the Huskies are vastly improved over the same time last year. Mentally and physically. Short of a terrible shooting night against only a few teams, I'll ride Gabulous and Co. to a NC .

 

[CocoHusky]

Please read my post again. While I clearly focus on SC’s extraordinary luck in last years championship run, I certainly mention that talent and coaching were also elements of SC’s success.

When South Carolina beat Mississippi State in the 2017 Championship game it was for the third time that season. That is not luck!

 

[shiverz45]

I have a slightly different take on this. I think Dawn knows this is her last opportunity for some time to win a 2nd national championship, and that’s unlikely to happen if SC has to go through UConn, a team they’ve never beaten, in Albany.

Last season, SC won their championship through a combination of talent, coaching and extraordinary luck. It started when Alaina Coates went down, which I will argue made SC a better team with Gray & Davis being able to attack the basket and sharp shooting Bianca-Cuevas moving to the 2 guard.

Then SC draws the easiest regional with only FSU in the way of a trip to the FF. When they get there, ND is not waiting for them, after Turner goes down and the Irish get knocked off by Stanford. In the semifinal, Stanford loses Karlie Samuelson, their best shooter, and SC advances to the championship.

Low & behold, MS St stuns UConn and SC faces a team they’ve already beaten twice. Luck is a part of any championship, but last year Dawn and the Gamecocks hit the

I am sure during the championships UConn have won they, also had some luck involved if you go back and dissect them. SC probably man for man was the most talented team last year. UConn beat them by 11 0r 12 on their home court. Kaela Davis had her worse shooting night of the year. Who is to say if you would have got by MS. State you'll would have won.

 

[oldude]

When South Carolina beat Mississippi State in the 2017 Championship game it was for the third time that season. That is not luck!

View attachment 29347

I never suggested that it was. What I suggest is luck is the fact that SC had an easier route to the championship based on their draw, key injuries to Turner/ND, Samuelson/Stanford and even Coates/SC, along with the fact that SC did not have to face UConn along the way.

I’m not being critical of SC. They won the championship fair and square. But they got an extraordinary number of breaks along the way.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

Miss. St. is hoping for a second lightning strike. If only SC can return the favor and knock the Huskies out for them. I think the Huskies are vastly improved over the same time last year. Mentally and physically. Short of a terrible shooting night against only a few teams, I'll ride Gabulous and Co. to a NC .

It's a more experienced team and one that had to deal with very mild adversity in the form of losing a Final Four game. It does figure they'd be better.

 

[oldude]

I am sure during the championships UConn have won they, also had some luck involved if you go back and dissect them. SC probably man for man was the most talented team last year. UConn beat them by 11 0r 12 on their home court. Kaela Davis had her worse shooting night of the year. Who is to say if you would have got by MS. State you'll would have won.

I absolutely agree, but that wasn’t my original point. My point was that SC’s road to a 2nd championship is a lot tougher through Albany, particularly when SC has never beaten the Huskies.

In an earlier post on this thread, I also point out that UConn caught a break in 2013 when they didn’t have to face a Baylor team that had beaten them earlier in the season.

 

[CocoHusky]

I never suggested that it was. What I suggest is luck is the fact that SC had an easier route to the championship based on their draw, key injuries to Turner/ND, Samuelson/Stanford and even Coates/SC, along with the fact that SC did not have to face UConn along the way.
I’m not being critical of SC. They won the championship fair and square. But they got an extraordinary number of breaks along the way.

So where does this luck end and how far are you willing to stretch these so called "breaks"? I'm asking because some University of Maryland fans that I work with were swearing up and down that UCONN were the lucky ones because they did not have to face Maryland in their region. The missed UCONN foul shots were good luck for SC? Saniya impatience on the final possession? Where does luck end and excuses begin?

 

[CocoHusky]

I am sure during the championships UConn have won they, also had some luck involved if you go back and dissect them. SC probably man for man was the most talented team last year. UConn beat them by 11 0r 12 on their home court. Kaela Davis had her worse shooting night of the year. Who is to say if you would have got by MS. State you'll would have won.

Kaela Davis had a lot of shooting nights like that- that was certainly not her worse.

 

[Gamecockfan77]

I never suggested that it was. What I suggest is luck is the fact that SC had an easier route to the championship based on their draw, key injuries to Turner/ND, Samuelson/Stanford and even Coates/SC, along with the fact that SC did not have to face UConn along the way.

I’m not being critical of SC. They won the championship fair and square. But they got an extraordinary number of breaks along the way.

South Carolina played who earned the right to face them. Pretty rare that a team faces the stiffest challenge possible. Pretty rare that you'd consider losing an all conference starter to be a blessing, but I guess it wasn't a blessing for anyone else that suffered it. For the record, I don't think Notre Dame was all that good last year with or without Brianna Turner.

UConn is no stranger to good luck, even last year:

UConn played a 10 seed in the Regional Final and then luckily drew a two seed in the Final Four it inexplicably could not beat.
The previous year they played a four seed in the title game.
The year before that the lowest seed line they faced in the regional was a 5.
the year before that they faced a 9 a 12, a 3, and a 2.

UConn rarely gets challenged so I don't know that it mattered that much though.

 

[shiverz45]

Kaela Davis had a lot of shooting nights like that- that was certainly not her worse.

She shot 10% (1-10). That is her worse at SC