Geno and team meet with Media (10/8)- First Practice [merged thread] | Page 5 | The Boneyard

Geno and team meet with Media (10/8)- First Practice [merged thread]

I don't agree with that at all. Before Dorka signed with UCONN it was painfully obvious that UCONN was going to need more help up front. The specific need being if ONO and Aaliyah both started there was no reliable backup. Amari was the hope until Dorka signed which wasn't until mid April. There was also U19 basketball from this summer where Amari didn't exactly light things up but she did make the team and at least raise some hope that she might be a UCONN contributor.
Painfully obvious? On a team that went to the final 4 with 3 frosh?

Dorka came on board 6 months ago and you didnt revise your expectations at all for the year ahead?

I still think UConn will play 4 guards a decent amount of time.

Only 5 people can play at a time. Geno rarely has a rotation more than 8. Seems a tough argument to expect DeBerry would be in the top 8 this year.
 
Unless there is an injury IMO it is something to be concerned about for precisely the reason you state- Amari has been on campus for quite a while now. It is not a good sign when the rest of the team is deep in learning the offense and all the others demands of UCONN basketball you are off to the side running conditioning drills.
An article from July had the following to say:

DeBerry’s still learning to adjust to the faster, more physical college game.

“Amari is moving, but for every one step forward there’s a little half step backward because she’ll get nicked here, nicked there. But she doesn’t stop,” Auriemma said. “(She’s) another 6-5 kid that is skilled around the basket and can shoot the ball. We’ve got to get her up to speed at playing our pace.”

Auriemma believes that’ll come in time.

So, who knows? She was on the U19 USA team with Azzi and there are no reports of injury, so if she has been on campus for the past 6 weeks and is the only player to not be in practice week one condition, something seems to be a little out of whack here.
 
Is this something we should be concerned about? Amari has been on campus since August 28-29, roughly 6 weeks. She's had plenty of time as have her teammates, to get into shape to pass that conditioning test. Is this an "anomaly", or is this something that's going to linger throughout the season? Was Amari the only player that failed to pass her conditioning test? It appears so. No mention was made of any other player failing to pass their test. Geno won't play her if she can't run and keep up with the other 4 players on the court.

The last player I remember that had conditioning challenges was Lexi Gordon. She never played more than 3 minutes during garbage time. She was at the very end of the bench depth wise. Usually the last player to enter the game. She became a starter at Tech, and had a fair amount of success. If you remember she transferred during the holiday break her sophomore year to Texas Tech. She is now a graduate player at Duke.
Pretty sure I read that she had missed the test and was making it up, not that she had failed!
 
Painfully obvious? On a team that went to the final 4 with 3 frosh?

Dorka came on board 6 months ago and you didnt revise your expectations at all for the year ahead?

I still think UConn will play 4 guards a decent amount of time.

Only 5 people can play at a time. Geno rarely has a rotation more than 8. Seems a tough argument to expect DeBerry would be in the top 8 this year.
Yes.
Yes. 3 freshman and only two quality post players.
I did revise my expectations. Your post said that was "never" going to be the case.
Geno will play as many good players as he has available at least that what he repeated after the first practice yesterday.
ONO and Dorka could both be gone after this season leaving Geno with 1 quality post player. and two promising incoming Freshman. Dorka has stated that she intends to play two season but I still think it would be in UCONN best interest to have a Amari develop starting as a freshman instead of spectating. 14 MPG as a freshman was enough minutes to have ONO be ready to be a starter as a Sophomore. There is no reason Amari can't follow a similar development path.
 
Yes.
Yes. 3 freshman and only two quality post players.
I did revise my expectations. Your post said that was "never" going to be the case.
Geno will play as many good players as he has available at least that what he repeated after the first practice yesterday.
ONO and Dorka could both be gone after this season leaving Geno with 1 quality post player. and two promising incoming Freshman. Dorka has stated that she intends to play two season but I still think it would be in UCONN best interest to have a Amari develop starting as a freshman instead of spectating. 14 MPG as a freshman was enough minutes to have ONO be ready to be a starter as a Sophomore. There is no reason Amari can't follow a similar development path.

That might've been a thought prior to Dorka. But don't see 14 minutes for her this year.
 
.-.
That might've been a thought prior to Dorka. But don't see 14 minutes for her this year.
I agree. She only averaged 6.7 per game at USA U19, and the competition for minutes at UConn is far beyond that. I'm in the 5 per game (or less) crowd for her freshman year. And I think Dorka will get significant minutes this year.
 
Pretty sure I read that she had missed the test and was making it up, not that she had failed!
Not according to the Alexa tweet which stated:

"DeBerry is making up a conditioning test she didn’t pass, not an injury thing"

 
I would put my money on Holy Cross. We use to play them every year early in the year and they are right up the road .
Good thought. I'd also not rule out UMass Lowell as a payback for agreeing to play UCONN last year on short notice or even Albany or Maine which usually has good D1 teams competing for the American East championship.
 
.-.
The conditioning will come. Remember, she’s played in regulation basketball games since her teammates have. I’m suggesting that the time she spent with the Canadian National Team served her well. She practiced and played against grown women and professionals.

She didn’t spend the summer laying on a beach working on a tan while sipping Long Island iced tea. She was putting in work that helped not only her physical game, but her mental maturity and approach as well.
I think your last clause speaks to the best benefit.
 
Re scrimmage: Is Yale not a consideration?
Could be. Could be any one in D-I within an hour or two drive. We'll never know when or where or who because no one is allowed to talk about it. It's as secretive as the mission to get Osama bin Laden, and even then we at least got that picture of the president and team from the white house bunker watching it go down. If one of the horde didn't ask that generic question about the pre-season schedule we'd likely never know this game existed.
 
.-.
I've been distracted but have been lurking more lately. Am greatly looking forward to this season so you'll probably see me post more.
In the between I still can't make sense of your namesakes 8th. It still sounds like a kitchen sink symphony to me. I figure if neither Solti or Bernstein could make it sensible I give up.
 
In the between I still can't make sense of your namesakes 8th. It still sounds like a kitchen sink symphony to me. I figure if neither Solti or Bernstein could make it sensible I give up.
LOL. What, you're saying a thousand is too many? :D

Your point is taken, but both of those guys take things too fast. Ha!
 
Training camp sounds intense. I think it is another product of the transfer portal.
 

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