Former UCONN'ers - how they are doing...

[EricLA]

Just a quick update on UCONN players who transferred:

Banks scored 16 points in an upset win over Michigan State on Thursday.
YTD she's averaging a 2nd best 13.8 PPG, 3.1 RPG and 2.2 APG. Her 3 point % is below average at 27%, but her FT shooting and FG%'s are 79.5% and 37.8% respectively. She averages over 28 minutes per game.

Michala Johnson scored 15 and grabbed 13 boards for a dreadful Wisconsin team who just lost to Michigan.
YTD she's averaging a 3rd best 11.3 PPG, and a team high 6.8 RPG. She's shooting over 51% from the field and averages almost 28 minutes per game.

Sadie Edwards became eligible to play in January and has played in 14 games, starting 12 of them. She's 3rd on the team in PPG at 12.2, but her 3 point % is below 23% for the year so far (yikes!!). Even her FT shooting is poor for a guard (63%). But she is averaging 29 minutes per game, over 2 assists/game, and just under 2 steals per game. I'm guessing her role is more of a slasher when it comes to scoring...

I'm glad each of these players is blossoming at their new school. I wish both sides had realized UCONN was not the right place for them during the recruiting process. Not sure it would have led to UCONN recruiting other players, but transfers are always disruptive, and of course Boykin is the latest to decide to leave. Of all the kids who have left, I think her departure potentially leaves the biggest gap, especially if Morgan leaves early...

 

[MilfordHusky]

Thanks for the update. They are all getting a lot of playing time, doing fairly well, and contributing. MJ likely is scoring inside and shooting rather well. BB and SE are shooting mediocre percentages.

 

[Sonny44]

Laura?

 

[HuskyNan]

Laura?

Lauren Engeln was dismissed from the Boston College team.

 

[Bonpland]

Lauren Engeln was dismissed from the Boston College team.

In fairness to Lauren she played one year at BC, made minor contributions (a few points a game) and was dismissed in her second season. Of course we don't know these kids (we think that we do), but I was surprised when I heard that she wouldn't be finishing her senior season with the team. I liked her when she was here (rooting for the underdog - see the thread on Courtney) and I hope that she's doing well in life.

There have been a dozen or so players over the years that I have wondered why they were recruited here. As I said earlier I liked Lauren from the start, but I also wondered about her athleticism in comparison to that of her UCONN teammates. Of course the same could be said about Maria Conlon who went on to become a vital cog in two championships, but still there have been players who have seemed overwhelmed at UCONN and looking back Lauren was among them.

 

[HuskyNan]

There have been a dozen or so players over the years that I have wondered why they were recruited here.

Players like a Cassie Kerns, Tahira Williams, Maria Conlon, Lauren Engeln, Courtney Ekmark, et al, aren't recruited because Geno needs to add yet another superstar to a loaded roster, he recruits those kids to be valuable role players in support of his superstars. Geno needs players that are good enough to challenge his stars in practice, mentor the incoming freshmen, and to lead by example without ego or temperamental behavior. It has to be as hard to find kids like that as it is to find a superstar. The term "role player" at UConn isn't derogatory; it's just a name for a player that's willing to be the grease in the machine. And we fans see them and love them for what they're willing to do, especially since they'll never receive the recognition due to them.

 

[Kibitzer]

Red Auerbach was insistent that his roster (15 players) include a few reliable "practice players." Their main role was to keep practices competitive, plus occasional game playing time (or DNP's).

Geno would never identify anyone on the UConn roster as a mere "practice player," but he has normally maintained a roster of about a dozen and relied on a tight rotation of 7 or 8 (with slight variations from year to year). Ya think maybe really great coaching minds think alike?

 

[carpe diem]

It reminds me of the comments of opposing coaches and players, most recently those of SC: you can watch film, you know how they play, you think you understand it, and then when you actually play UCONN it comes as a shock that they are so fast and so good. There is no way to really prepare for it. I think the same thing applies to new UCONN recruits: there is no way to really know what it is like to be a UCONN player until you have done it. Inevitably there will be recruits who think they know what to expect, get here, and find it is not really going to work for them. It can be no other way for a team like UCONN who practices and plays at a unique level that cannot be experienced really without actually giving it a try. I think in each of the players mentioned there is a sense that they did not want to work that hard for that few minutes, and were not really ready to be the TEAM players you have to be to succeed at UCONN.

 

[EricLA]

It reminds me of the comments of opposing coaches and players, most recently those of SC: you can watch film, you know how they play, you think you understand it, and then when you actually play UCONN it comes as a shock that they are so fast and so good. There is no way to really prepare for it. I think the same thing applies to new UCONN recruits: there is no way to really know what it is like to be a UCONN player until you have done it. Inevitably there will be recruits who think they know what to expect, get here, and find it is not really going to work for them. It can be no other way for a team like UCONN who practices and plays at a unique level that cannot be experienced really without actually giving it a try. I think in each of the players mentioned there is a sense that they did not want to work that hard for that few minutes, and were not really ready to be the TEAM players you have to be to succeed at UCONN.

I'm not sure how you can come to that conclusion. Banks worked her off after coming back from injuries, but it wasn't enough. Johnson was another kid hampered by injuries and trying to recover from that and break into the regular UCONN rotation is a tough thing, even for healthy kids. For both of those kids, when they left, they had nothing but nice things to say about UCONN, and Geno's comments reflected the same. I got the impression that both wanted more PT and that was the genesis for their leaving.

Sadie Edwards may have been a different story. Geno was caught on camera (at the NC parade the last spring) saying that Sadie was "lazy". To me that's at least tangential support for your comments regarding her. I have no idea how things went when she actually got to campus, but it doesn't bode well for a player when the HC thinks you are lazy before you even get to campus...

 

[HuskyNan]

I would really appreciate it if people would stop making up stuff about kids then presenting it as some sort of fact. Here's a clue - if the sentence starts with "I think" or contains any variation of "it appears/seems to me" or has the words "I heard a rumor", then it's just speculation. Harmful speculation, e.g. made up stuff that damages the reputation of a player (any player, any team), is not allowed here. Making up stuff to take a potshot at kids is a sure-fire way of getting me p.o.'d and I'd recommend avoiding that.