Get to know Jana Elalfy

[CocoHusky]

I noticed that the other 3 UCONN recruits Ashlynn, KK and Qadance have their own threads and I did not want Jana to feel left out.
Most of this has been covered in the monthly recruiting thread.
This young lady is from Egypt is 6'4" and is projected to be a most finesse forward at he next level. She came up a guard and still exhibits very good guard skill with the ability to handle and step out shoot the occasional deep ball. For UCONN you can probably forget about the ball handling and project her as part of the UCONN F/Post rotation as a freshman. Let me blunt for a second: This young lady has as much offensive skills as Amari DeBerry, more quickness and has shown the ability to be a dominating rebounder. I would be shocked if Jana is not part of the regular rotation for UCONN next season.

She is not ranked by ESPN and the question has come up many times of where would/should she be ranked in the class of 2023. IMO she would be a top 40 Player in this class and the 8th best F/Post in the class.

 

[Zarathustra]

Welcome Jana! You will make the Boneyarders and your family proud!!
Best Wishes. Work hard and trust Geno and the Uconn staff to bring
the best out of your talents! Go Huskies!

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[DrummerDee]

I have a sneaky feeling she will be here in January. I may be wrong, but that's my gut feeling.

 

[Monte]

Wow! 6' 4" with great moves.

 

[Charliebball]

I noticed that the other 3 UCONN recruits Ashlynn, KK and Qadance have their own threads and I did not want Jana to feel left out.
Most of this has been covered in the monthly recruiting thread.
This young lady is from Egypt is 6'4" and is projected to be a most finesse forward at he next level. She came up a guard and still exhibits very good guard skill with the ability to handle and step out shoot the occasional deep ball. For UCONN you can probably forget about the ball handling and project her as part of the UCONN F/Post rotation as a freshman. Let me blunt for a second: This young lady has as much offensive skills as Amari DeBerry, more quickness and has shown the ability to be a dominating rebounder. I would be shocked if Jana is not part of the regular rotation for UCONN next season.

She is not ranked by ESPN and the question has come up many times of where would/should she be ranked in the class of 2023. IMO she would be a top 40 Player in this class and the 8th best F/Post in the class.

Really hard to tell where she ranks compared to the USA recruits but it's unusual to have a 6'4" player with such a variety of skills.........I look forward to seeing exactly where she fits into next season's team

 

[JordyG]

I noticed that the other 3 UCONN recruits Ashlynn, KK and Qadance have their own threads and I did not want Jana to feel left out.
Most of this has been covered in the monthly recruiting thread.
This young lady is from Egypt is 6'4" and is projected to be a most finesse forward at he next level. She came up a guard and still exhibits very good guard skill with the ability to handle and step out shoot the occasional deep ball. For UCONN you can probably forget about the ball handling and project her as part of the UCONN F/Post rotation as a freshman. Let me blunt for a second: This young lady has as much offensive skills as Amari DeBerry, more quickness and has shown the ability to be a dominating rebounder. I would be shocked if Jana is not part of the regular rotation for UCONN next season.

She is not ranked by ESPN and the question has come up many times of where would/should she be ranked in the class of 2023. IMO she would be a top 40 Player in this class and the 8th best F/Post in the class.

I don't know. From what I've seen of Essence Cody I think Elalfy may be better. She's a better passer, runs the floor better, has a better feel for the game, is better with the ball, has better post moves, and has quicker feet. Cody has a nice little outside shot though. Elalfy seems to have quicker feet than Amari, and Elafy (unlike Amari or even Ayanna to this point) has shown a little drop step. Whether she's a better shooter remains to be seen. Elalfy certainly seems more aggressive inside when going for rebounds, but her ability to read the ball off the rim or out of the shooters hands is only fair at best. This is one of Amari's problems as well. Elalfy however seems to be more aware of how to use her girth to her advantage, while to me, this is Amari's biggest issue.

 

[ScottCT]

It's weird because she doesn't look 6'4 to me

 

[BobbyJ]

Great footwork and skills, she's going to put people in the blender around the paint. The key to her PT will be learning to play consistent, non stop defense and the UConn strength/conditioning should help her with that.

 

[Carnac]

I noticed that the other 3 UCONN recruits Ashlynn, KK and Qadance have their own threads and I did not want Jana to feel left out.
Most of this has been covered in the monthly recruiting thread.
This young lady is from Egypt is 6'4" and is projected to be a most finesse forward at he next level. She came up a guard and still exhibits very good guard skill with the ability to handle and step out shoot the occasional deep ball. For UCONN you can probably forget about the ball handling and project her as part of the UCONN F/Post rotation as a freshman. Let me blunt for a second: This young lady has as much offensive skills as Amari DeBerry, more quickness and has shown the ability to be a dominating rebounder. I would be shocked if Jana is not part of the regular rotation for UCONN next season.

She is not ranked by ESPN and the question has come up many times of where would/should she be ranked in the class of 2023. IMO she would be a top 40 Player in this class and the 8th best F/Post in the class.

Excellent idea Coco, good looking out. We want ALL of our recruits to feel welcome, and Jana is certainly welcome!! I'm sure there are some UConn fans that are not as familiar with her as they should be. With what we already have, and the recruits coming in, I can very easily see at least one, maybe two championships in the next 5 years. If I'm seeing spots before my eyes, or visions that are not there, somebody straighten me out.

There are only 2-3 teams that in my humble opinion could keep us from wining it all THIS YEAR. We have the talent!! Stanford showed us that South Carolina can be beat, even though they didn't. They gave the game away late in the 4th quarter and again in overtime. but showed us and the world that South Carolina is vulnerable and has a "soft spot." If we keep maturing and jelling as a team, we're going to be "a nasty piece of business" come March. that no one will want to play. Keep hope alive.

Thanks Coco.

 

[AmeriConn]

I noticed that the other 3 UCONN recruits Ashlynn, KK and Qadance have their own threads and I did not want Jana to feel left out.
Most of this has been covered in the monthly recruiting thread.
This young lady is from Egypt is 6'4" and is projected to be a most finesse forward at he next level. She came up a guard and still exhibits very good guard skill with the ability to handle and step out shoot the occasional deep ball. For UCONN you can probably forget about the ball handling and project her as part of the UCONN F/Post rotation as a freshman. Let me blunt for a second: This young lady has as much offensive skills as Amari DeBerry, more quickness and has shown the ability to be a dominating rebounder. I would be shocked if Jana is not part of the regular rotation for UCONN next season.

She is not ranked by ESPN and the question has come up many times of where would/should she be ranked in the class of 2023. IMO she would be a top 40 Player in this class and the 8th best F/Post in the class.

Jana has the moves. She answers the question, what’s it all about….Alfy?

 

[CocoHusky]

I don't know. From what I've seen of Essence Cody I think Elalfy may be better. She's a better passer, runs the floor better, has a better feel for the game, has better post moves, and has quicker feet. Cody has a nice little outside shot though. Elalfy seems to have quicker feet than Amari, and Elafy (unlike Amari or even Ayanna to this point) has shown a little drop step. Whether she's a better shooter remains to be seen. Elalfy certainly seems more aggressive inside when going for rebounds, but her ability to read the ball off the rim or out of the shooters hands is only fair at best. This is one of Amari's problems as well. Elalfy however seems to be more aware of how to use her girth to her advantage, while to me, this is Amari's biggest issue.

I not sure we are that far apart in our analysis. Essence Cody (#22) and Jana (top 40 IMO ) are close enough. The one thing about Jana, thus my reference to her not having to worry about ball handling when she gets to UCONN, is right now she does EVERYTHING for her FIBA teams. I can't wait until she gets to UCONN and has to concentrate on fewer things. Look at the video @HuskyNan posted for example. In that video she has to make several dribbles, fakes and counter moves to get a shot off. She's not going to have to utilize her entire bag at UCONN because someone else will get her the ball in good enough position that all it takes is one move or two to score. As far as Amari is concerned she will be a junior when Jana steps on campus. Amari best opportunity to get in the rotation is right now with Ice Brady sitting with an injury.

 

[Jim R]

Great footwork and skills, she's going to put people in the blender around the paint. The key to her PT will be learning to play consistent, non stop defense and the UConn strength/conditioning should help her with that.

Her footwork and ball skills reminds me of another recent big we had...you may remember her by her nickname -"Stewie"...although Jana's 3 point shooting form is not quite like Stewie's (and hers was classic, high release), her back to the basket and inside the paint moves may be as good - expect her to be a game changer!

 

[Next 12]

I had forgot about Jana. One more reason why we are getting better and better and next year will be a runaway. GO JANA!!! And as always,GO HUSKIES!!!

 

[Carnac]

It's weird because she doesn't look 6'4 to me

She would if you were standing next to her.

 

[BobbyJ]

I not sure we are that far apart in our analysis. Essence Cody (#22) and Jana (top 40 IMO ) are close enough. The one thing about Jana, thus my reference to her not having to worry about ball handling when she gets to UCONN, is right now she does EVERYTHING for her FIBA teams. I can't wait until she gets to UCONN and has to concentrate on fewer things. Look at the video @HuskyNan posted for example. In that video she has to make several dribbles, fakes and counter moves to get a shot off. She's not going to have to utilize her entire bag at UCONN because someone else will get her the ball in good enough position that all it takes is one move or two to score. As far as Amari is concerned she will be a junior when Jana steps on campus. Amari best opportunity to get in the rotation is right now with Ice Brady sitting with an injury.

Good point right here. This has been the night and day difference in Edwards' offensive game this year. Until this season, Edwards would get the position but when the ball came she would sometimes freeze because she wasn't prepared to move immediately and didn't have any moves or shots other than a straight, blockable layup. Now she does. El Alfy already has those moves, footwork, and shots and just needs to learn how to get the position against big, stronger posts without fouling. She and Brady can become a nightmare in the high-low either way.

 

[BobbyJ]

Her footwork and ball skills reminds me of another recent big we had...you may remember her by her nickname -"Stewie"...although Jana's 3 point shooting form is not quite like Stewie's (and hers was classic, high release), her back to the basket and inside the paint moves may be as good - expect her to be a game changer!

I hope she can learn to pass out of the post like Stewart did. Then you'll really have something.

 

[Carnac]

Really hard to tell where she ranks compared to the USA recruits but it's unusual to have a 6'4" player with such a variety of skills.........I look forward to seeing exactly where she fits into next season's team

Like all foreign players coming in, she has to acclimate herself to life in the US. Playing with new teammates in a completely new and different system and environment for a new coach with high expectations at an elite level. She WILL make those adjustments, but it's not going to happen overnight.

Dorka will be gone next year. That leaves Amari and Ice as our other post players. Jana will get use to going against players of similar height in practice and the faster pace of the game here. She's not a newbie to the game, of course she needs a little wax and polish, but she'll adjust and be fine. A 6'4" guard......wow!

 

[Charliebball]

Like all foreign players coming in, she has to acclimate herself to life in the US. Playing with new teammates in a completely new and different system and environment for a new coach with high expectations at an elite level. She WILL make those adjustments, but it's not going to happen overnight.

Dorka will be gone next year. That leaves Amari and Ice as our other post players. Jana will get use to going against players of similar height in practice and the faster pace of the game here. She's not a newbie to the game, of course she needs a little wax and polish, but she'll adjust and be fine. A 6'4" guard......wow!

she also appears to be totally Americanized based on her social media and her English is now close to flawless since that video plus there's always an advantage to being a coach's daughter...........I'm looking for great things from her.......

 

[Scud49]

Wow, what a great kid, what a great prospect.....these 4 newcomers, Ashlynn, KK, Q, and Jana - it all just seems like an embarrassment of riches when added to our already super potent lineup. I think I'm in heaven.

 

[Carnac]

Wow, what a great kid, what a great prospect.....these 4 newcomers, Ashlynn, KK, Q, and Jana - it all just seems like an embarrassment of riches when added to our already super potent lineup. I think I'm in heaven.

You are!! This is basketball heaven.

 

[RoadMaster]

Tools, tools, and more tools.. Hard to be disappointed.

 

[oldhusky]

It's hard to tell with foreign players, but I see her as way better than top 40. Even comparable to ADR or Cunningham. Those are good prospects, but not major star types IMO. Jana appears to be well rounded and pretty good at multiple things. How she adjusts to a quantum leap in competition, I don't know, but I think she is likely to be ahead of Amari even in her freshmen year.

 

[BobbyJ]

It's hard to tell with foreign players, but I see her as way better than top 40. Even comparable to ADR or Cunningham. Those are good prospects, but not major star types IMO. Jana appears to be well rounded and pretty good at multiple things. How she adjusts to a quantum leap in competition, I don't know, but I think she is likely to be ahead of Amari even in her freshmen year.

I think she's better.

 

[tkaes]

Jana has the moves. She answers the question, what’s it all about….Alfy?

When you sort it out, you're absolutely right.