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Message: [QUOTE="JoePgh, post: 4374140, member: 1131"] So I think (??) you are saying that the game has passed Geno's system by, not because it no longer works or can be beaten with newer systems when it is played correctly, but because the "attitude" of today's players makes it difficult or impossible for him to coach them to play it correctly. Have I got that right? Looking at UConn's current roster, I certainly don't see any "attitude" problems that make them unwilling to accept his coaching or play his system. And there are still players like Paige, Nika, Azzi, Ice Brady, and Caroline who seem to be drawn to UConn precisely because of the system that they play -- Paige said "it looked like so much fun" when she watched it on TV as a high school player. The newest recruit, Ines Bettencourt, seems to fit that mold as well. So maybe you are saying that UConn is not at the top level because it is not attracting the players who might get it there, presumably like those on the South Carolina roster. (Who else has recently had consistent success against UConn?) I will allow your point that perhaps Geno would have trouble coaching the Gamecock roster, because he might have trouble relating to those players, and therefore might have trouble teaching them his system. But can you imagine Dawn coaching UConn's roster? If Dawn had coached UConn's roster last year, do you think she would have taken the team to the National Final game? I certainly don't. And equally, if Geno were the SC coach last year, coaching the South Carolina roster, I'm not sure he would have gotten them to an NC trophy. But I think Geno would have a better record than Dawn in successfully coaching the other team's roster. All this proves is that coaches recruit players with whom they develop a rapport, and that rapport is often based on shared life experience. I don't think it is surprising that Geno, as a child immigrant himself to the US from Europe, finds an affinity with players who grew up in Europe. Nor is it coincidental that Dawn finds rapport with players who grew up with similar backgrounds to her own. But I doubt very much that it is a foregone conclusion that Dawn's kind of players are always going to beat Geno's kind of players, and that therefore his system (and the players who are attracted to it) have been "passed by". [/QUOTE]

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