Edwards Next Pheesa? | Page 3 | The Boneyard

Edwards Next Pheesa?

Improve? .. we're not sure where she's "at" yet .. don't you agree? :)


Hey Jingo, Any athlete can improve from wherever they start out to wherever they finish!
So where Aaliyah is now I hope she improves during the season to have an impact on the team!
 
Hey Jingo, Any athlete can improve from wherever they start out to wherever they finish!
So where Aaliyah is now I hope she improves during the season to have an impact on the team!
What i m trying to say is that we don't have a baseline yet, eh? ... once we have a baseline, then, we can assess improvement IMO ...
 
She was 1 of 10! She was told to play to her strengths, obviously 3pt shooting is not one of her strengths, which is my point!
Agree with your point, but more concerned at her floor movement. She was hesitate, other than layups, and didn't try to get in position. Great talent, freakishly quick, but if UConn didn't get a fast break basket, gave defenders a 5 on 4 advantage due to her inability to function in UConn's offensive scheme. Respect other's thoughts that have seen her play in HS - all I can do is react to a relatively large sample size from last year.
 
What i m trying to say is that we don't have a baseline yet, eh? ... once we have a baseline, then, we can assess improvement IMO ...

We have tape on her from high school, are you not the same Jingo that earlier in this thread claimed that Griffen's HS tape was enough evidence to prove she was a good 3 pt shooter? A little hypocritical don't you think?
 
Soon enough, (2022) we may be revisiting the debate why a coach can only vote for 3AA's from their team.
Paige, Liv, Christyn, Aliyah. :)
 
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So when did Edwards go from being a wing to being a "true" 4? I thought that was settled 2 months ago when a couple posters declared absolutely that she didn't have power forward skills?
:eek: Don't recall anyone ever declaring "absolutely" that she did not have power forward skills. Quite the opposite, @Sluconn Husky and many others pointed out that she had great post up skills. In HS and on team Canada she was a wing forward. At UCONN this season she is best equipped of all the players on the roster to play the PF position. Best equipped means that Liv is going to need help rebounding and defending the post until Piath develops or Amari joins the team.
 
Soon enough, (2022) we may be revisiting the debate why a coach can only vote for 3AA's from their team.
Paige, Liv, Christyn, Aliyah. :)
Nothing wrong with taking turns and this would be a very nice problem to have. In 2021-22 season Liv @ Christyn will be seniors and taking their last shot at making AA if they have not already done so. Paige & Aliyah will only be in their sophomore campaigns. If UCONN has that many players competing for AA consideration it will also likely mean that UCONN has secure #12 and #13 is within UCONN grasp.
 
Of all the freshman Aaliyah has the most pressure on her it seems, a consequence of our "Bigs Light" recent history. She comes out of Canada with the reputation of being mature and tough. She'll certainly need both attributes if she is going to be asked to play back up center and PF/F. I'm reasonably confident she can pull it off.
 
Of all the freshman Aaliyah has the most pressure on her it seems, a consequence of our "Bigs Light" recent history. She comes out of Canada with the reputation of being mature and tough. She'll certainly need both attributes if she is going to be asked to play back up center and PF/F. I'm reasonably confident she can pull it off.
Not sure that I can agree with Aaliyah having more pressure than Paige! While Aaliyah is certainly a known commodity in the Boneyard, her notoriety in Women's Basketball pales next to Paige. I do agree that there is probably a greater need for Aaliyah to produce in the post given that there are more natural guard options than Post/PF options. If Paige does start from day 1, the pressure and expectations will be amped up more - not that she can't handle it.
 
We have tape on her from high school, are you not the same Jingo that earlier in this thread claimed that Griffen's HS tape was enough evidence to prove she was a good 3 pt shooter? A little hypocritical don't you think?
No, not HS tape .. I saw Aubrey in person, as did a few others who agree with me, eh? .. lively discussion [like this] is what makes the BY such a gr8 forum :)
 
I can’t speak to what type of 3-pt shooter Aubrey was throughout her HS career, but I watched her last 4 games in HS, in person, including the NY State Championship FF & the Federation Cup Tournament, against the best teams in the state of NY. In those 4 games, Aubrey lit it up with 30+ in each game, scoring from everywhere, including beyond the arc.

I kept a running box score for Aubrey for each of those games and then posted her totals on the Boneyard. Off the top of my head, Aubrey probably knocked down 2-3 x 3-pt shots per game. I’m sure the posts are sitting around somewhere in the BY’s archives.
I'm thinking maybe that was against high school girls who allowed her to set up on the perimeter as if she was all alone in the gym whereas in college, she's actually got kids with their hands in her face and not allowing the space and time to get her shot off .... that is a world of difference, to say the least .... there's nothing I've seen of her to suggest that she'll ever be much of an outside threat .... she's an amazing athlete but her shooting skills aren't very impressive
 
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I'm thinking maybe that was against high school girls who allowed her to set up on the perimeter as if she was all alone in the gym whereas in college, she's actually got kids with their hands in her face and not allowing the space and time to get her shot off .... that is a world of difference, to say the least .... there's nothing I've seen of her to suggest that she'll ever be much of an outside threat .... she's an amazing athlete but her shooting skills aren't very impressive
Not so.
 
I'm thinking maybe that was against high school girls who allowed her to set up on the perimeter as if she was all alone in the gym whereas in college, she's actually got kids with their hands in her face and not allowing the space and time to get her shot off .... that is a world of difference, to say the least .... there's nothing I've seen of her to suggest that she'll ever be much of an outside threat .... she's an amazing athlete but her shooting skills aren't very impressive
No doubt that college defenders close out shooters much better than HS defenders. But Aubrey isn’t the first player to arrive at UConn and struggle from the arc as a freshmen. Mo was not a good shooter her freshman year. Kia was inconsistent. Lou really struggled during the first part of the season, as did Anna, before they all found their shooting rhythm.

Aubrey was 1-10 from the arc last season
while coming off the bench. Assuming she is a starter this season, let’s see how she does before we write her off as purely an inside player.
 
Regarding Aubrey's outside shot does anyone know where to get her high school stats? Maybe she had enough 3pt attempts to have some predictive value. Free throw percentage in high school is also potentially relevant.

Whenever I see a prospect taking and of course making a 3 pointer in a highlight video, my first reaction is to look at form, how quick the release, elevation, are there any off the dribble or contested, possibly step back etc.
After that in terms of how good a shooter is, I would rather see the stats, and not just the percentages, but the frequency of attempts. Some only shoot wide open spot up, catch and shoot threes, others can get threes off the dribble around screens, and really good scorers/shooters can with fakes or step backs hit threes one on one vs. a defender.

I would be thrilled if Aubrey could be the former, and someone like Azzi might be able to create a good 3pt attempt on her own.
 
An area where Aliyah may be more advanced than Pheesa. Not an expert but that looks like classic shooting form to me. PS. That is her jump shot, not a FT. :)

View attachment 59932
This! This right here is important! Pheesa’s shot needed to be fixed and her 3pfg% and ft% hurt because of her trying to adjust her shot. If Aaliyah’s shot is already there, she’ll only have to work on post skills and expanding her range rather than changing a fundamental part of her game. Think of what Pheesa could have done if her shooting form was good from the start. Very excited to see how Aaliyah turns out!
 
Regarding Aubrey's outside shot does anyone know where to get her high school stats? Maybe she had enough 3pt attempts to have some predictive value. Free throw percentage in high school is also potentially relevant.

Whenever I see a prospect taking and of course making a 3 pointer in a highlight video, my first reaction is to look at form, how quick the release, elevation, are there any off the dribble or contested, possibly step back etc.
After that in terms of how good a shooter is, I would rather see the stats, and not just the percentages, but the frequency of attempts. Some only shoot wide open spot up, catch and shoot threes, others can get threes off the dribble around screens, and really good scorers/shooters can with fakes or step backs hit threes one on one vs. a defender.

I would be thrilled if Aubrey could be the former, and someone like Azzi might be able to create a good 3pt attempt on her own.

Griffin made a total of 48 3pt fgs in 75 career high school games, she averaged .64 3pt makes per game, not exactly sharp shooter numbers.

 
Not sure that I can agree with Aaliyah having more pressure than Paige! While Aaliyah is certainly a known commodity in the Boneyard, her notoriety in Women's Basketball pales next to Paige. I do agree that there is probably a greater need for Aaliyah to produce in the post given that there are more natural guard options than Post/PF options. If Paige does start from day 1, the pressure and expectations will be amped up more - not that she can't handle it.
Your explanation would tend to agree that Aliyah has more pressure than Paige. If Paige were to falter at the PG spot then Evina is a more than capable PG and Nika probably didn't come all this way to spectate. If Aliyah were to falter at the PF position her backup would likely be three wing size players (Ann, Aubrey and Mir) or a center who is most likely a down the road contributor for UCONN. Both players IMO will live up to the expectation; Paige will most likely exceed it.
 
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Griffin made a total of 48 3pt fgs in 75 career high school games, she averaged .64 3pt makes per game, not exactly sharp shooter numbers.


In her first 3 years of high school Stewart made exactly ten 3 pt shots total (10-37). I can't find the link that includes her senior year but from memory she either took or made 30 as a senior. Even if she made 30 that's still 40 made 3's compared to 48 for Griffin. Not exactly sharp shooter numbers for Stewart either. :rolleyes:

As a UConn freshman Stewart shot 27% (10-59) from outside the arc during the regular season. Not exactly sharp shooter numbers. As a senior she shot 46% from behind the arc.


I really take issue with using unimpressive freshman stats to put a label on any player and placing them in a box. They get better if they work on it. I don't expect that with the outside shooters coming to Storrs this and next year that Griffin will ever become a go-to 3 point shooter but Geno would not have given her the green light to take them last season if she hadn't proven her ability to make them in practice.
 
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In her first 3 years of high school Stewart made exactly ten 3 pt shots total (10-37). I can't find the link that includes her senior year but from memory she either took or made 30 as a senior. Even if she made 30 that's still 40 made 3's compared to 48 for Griffin. Not exactly sharp shooter numbers for Stewart either. :rolleyes:

As a UConn freshman Stewart shot 27% (10-59) from outside the arc during the regular season. Not exactly sharp shooter numbers. As a senior she shot 46% from behind the arc.


I really take issue with using unimpressive freshman stats to put a label on any player and placing them in a box. They get better if they work on it. I don't expect that with the outside shooters coming to Storrs this and next year that Griffin will ever become a go-to 3 point shooter but Geno would not have given her the green light to take them last season if she hadn't proven her ability to make them in practice.
And Bre is "killin' it" from deep in the pros, eh?
 

In her first 3 years of high school Stewart made exactly ten 3 pt shots total (10-37). I can't find the link that includes her senior year but from memory she either took or made 30 as a senior. Even if she made 30 that's still 40 made 3's compared to 48 for Griffin. Not exactly sharp shooter numbers for Stewart either. :rolleyes:

As a UConn freshman Stewart shot 27% (10-59) from outside the arc during the regular season. Not exactly sharp shooter numbers. As a senior she shot 46% from behind the arc.


I really take issue with using unimpressive freshman stats to put a label on any player and placing them in a box. They get better if they work on it. I don't expect that with the outside shooters coming to Storrs this and next year that Griffin will ever become a go-to 3 point shooter but Geno would not have given her the green light to take them last season if she hadn't proven her ability to make them in practice.

And I really take issue with people not telling it like it is, not EVERY recruit that comes through UConn is the next Maya Moore or Diana Taurasi! Griffin is a good player, may even be great some day, but to say there are no deficiencies in her game is just absurd! She MADE 1 of 10 3 pt shots last year, obviously she wasn't comfortable shooting them either! Some of you people have to inject just a little objectivity.
 
And I really take issue with people not telling it like it is, not EVERY recruit that comes through UConn is the next Maya Moore or Diana Taurasi! Griffin is a good player, may even be great some day, but to say there are no deficiencies in her game is just absurd! She MADE 1 of 10 3 pt shots last year, obviously she wasn't comfortable shooting them either! Some of you people have to inject just a little objectivity.
And just because she wasnt comfortable taking 3s as a freshman means she'll never be comfortable taking them either. Good UConn players grow throughout their 4 years so let's give her the room to grow before you write her UConn story 3 years too early....
 
There is a video from UConn (apparently just released) which asks Geno to comment on the comparison between Aaliyah and Napheesa. He provides a full answer, saying that her intensity and her motor are just the same as Napheesa's, and she wants to have an impact on every possession. So in that respect he seemed to say that she is at the same level as Napheesa.

He said he wasn't so sure, at this point, that her game was as complete as Napheesa's. He didn't elaborate on what he meant by that, but I assume he is talking about position skills -- footwork, positioning, catching passes into the post. It is understandable that he would not be sure in October of a player's freshman year about the completeness of her skills in these areas, and it is pretty unlikely that Aaliyah is as skilled in these areas as Napheesa eventually became.

Geno also said that Pheesa played behind Stewie, Morgan, and Gabby as a freshman, and therefore had time to ease her way into her role, but Aaliyah will play a lot from the start of the season, so she will probably have a "baptism of fire". That sounds promising from the standpoint of her expected minutes.

Nothing was mentioned about fouls, but I have to think that Aaliyah is likely to get herself into foul trouble a lot until she learns how to play hard without fouling. Both Pheesa and Gabby were very foul-prone as freshmen and sophomores, but Aaliyah will probably follow the same path.
 
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Has this thread also lost it's way? I had to read title to see what thread I'm actually in...somehow it has morphed into an Aubrey thread. :rolleyes:
 
And I really take issue with people not telling it like it is, not EVERY recruit that comes through UConn is the next Maya Moore or Diana Taurasi! Griffin is a good player, may even be great some day, but to say there are no deficiencies in her game is just absurd! She MADE 1 of 10 3 pt shots last year, obviously she wasn't comfortable shooting them either! Some of you people have to inject just a little objectivity.
DT missed more shots than that in one game her freshman season, remember? Speaking of Edwards, I believe she, barring a major injury, will be special regardless of what position she plays.
 
Not sure that I can agree with Aaliyah having more pressure than Paige! While Aaliyah is certainly a known commodity in the Boneyard, her notoriety in Women's Basketball pales next to Paige. I do agree that there is probably a greater need for Aaliyah to produce in the post given that there are more natural guard options than Post/PF options. If Paige does start from day 1, the pressure and expectations will be amped up more - not that she can't handle it.

It is that greater need to produce I was referring to with Aaliyah. Paige certainly has the pressure of expectations, but there too we agree. She can handle it.
 
In any case the "substitution pattern" discussions this season should fill a couple pages of threads. With so many multi-position players the permutations are virtually endless. :)
 
And just because she wasnt comfortable taking 3s as a freshman means she'll never be comfortable taking them either. Good UConn players grow throughout their 4 years so let's give her the room to grow before you write her UConn story 3 years too early....

Did I ever say she would NEVER be comfortable at it? No, not even close! This WHOLE discussion started as whether Griffin is better suited to play the 4 or the 3 this year. My premise, backed by stats from HS and Frosh year, was that Griffin CURRENTLY lacks the 3pt jump shot needed to successfully play the 3 right now. However, as soon as you point out any flaw or critique a player, no matter how fair that critique is, some people on this board lose their mind and cannot be even the slightest bit objective. I realize I look at UConn through rose colored glasses sometimes too, but some people are just super homers on this board.
 
Did I ever say she would NEVER be comfortable at it? No, not even close! This WHOLE discussion started as whether Griffin is better suited to play the 4 or the 3 this year. My premise, backed by stats from HS and Frosh year, was that Griffin CURRENTLY lacks the 3pt jump shot needed to successfully play the 3 right now. However, as soon as you point out any flaw or critique a player, no matter how fair that critique is, some people on this board lose their mind and cannot be even the slightest bit objective. I realize I look at UConn through rose colored glasses sometimes too, but some people are just super homers on this board.
You used this word (objective) now as in certain posters "can't be". Could it be that they just don't agree with you? BTW I happen to agree with your in this sense (and suspect many others do as well): Regardless of what position Aubrey plays this season she will need to become a better 3pt shooter. I think there is at least a 1/2 dozen post telling you that some people think Aubrey can become a better 3pt shooter. I agree with all 7 of those post as well.
 
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