Hailey Van Lith in the Portal

[pvdoggy]

Geno wants his shooters to shoot. Case in point. In UConn’s Sweet 16 loss to tOSU, Azzi was 6/17. How does that compare with Hailey Van Lith? In Louisville’s loss to Iowa in the Tournament she shot 8/19. Not much difference there.

and I wish Azzi would have shot more that game, especially in the 4th qtr.

 

[JellyBean]

I think people are getting a little paranoid about NIL and super teams and the rest of it. Yes there is some money now available to stellar athletes but a player like Van Lith is already drinking from that well, as would be Betts wherever she goes to school if she also produces on the court which I am pretty sure she will. And that is the bottom line.

There are a bunch of young women who are arriving at college with their own brand already, and the college they go to isn't all that important. And for some, what they do on court may not be either.

Thank you for bringing a sense balance to this whole thing. Reading some of the comments and folks act like women's basketball is in its final days. Talk of "Super Teams" and how the "NIL is ruining the game" is just a little too much and I agree, people are getting a little paranoid.

 

[UConnCat]

 

[oldude]

If Walz is correct, then it surely looks like Oregon is in play.

 

[PacoSwede]

and I wish the team had been taught how to break a press.

knowing how to beat the press and actually doing it are distinct things.

 

[oldude]

knowing how to beat the press and actually doing it are distinct things.

My thoughts exactly. You know that Geno spent considerable time in practice preparing UConn to deal with tOSU’s press. The plan was to have Azzi inbound the ball to a wing and then get the ball quickly to the middle to Nika to dribble into the frontcourt, or back to Azzi to swing it to the other side of the court.

Azzi made a number of bad decisions and the ball frequently got stuck in the corner. At some point, Geno had Nika inbound the ball. That worked a little better for awhile, but then Nika made some bad decisions.

For Geno it must have been like watching a car crash in slow motion. As I said after the game, a healthy Paige Bueckers shreds the Buckeye press easily, just like VA Tech’s pg did in the Elite 8.

 

[Bone Dog]

My thoughts exactly. You know that Geno spent considerable time in practice preparing UConn to deal with tOSU’s press. The plan was to have Azzi inbound the ball to a wing and then get the ball quickly to the middle to Nika to dribble into the frontcourt, or back to Azzi to swing it to the other side of the court.

Azzi made a number of bad decisions and the ball frequently got stuck in the corner. At some point, Geno had Nika inbound the ball. That worked a little better for awhile, but then Nika made some bad decisions.

For Geno it must have been like watching a car crash in slow motion. As I said after the game, a healthy Paige Bueckers shreds the Buckeye press easily, just like VA Tech’s pg did in the Elite 8.

Agree. It was emotional exhaustion, if you ask me. I don't hold Azzi or Nika responsible for missing the right pass, or the rest of the team for becoming stagnant against the press. They were emotionally spent. It was a long hard season.

 

[Gordo]

knowing how to beat the press and actually doing it are distinct things.

Not that the highest level of D1 basketball they aren't ... or at least shouldn't be.

 

[HuskyNan]

These guys have a spotty record so FWIW

 

[oldude]

These guys have a spotty record so FWIW

Either WER is wrong (again) or Jeff Walz is wrong about Hailey Van Lith’s desire to be closer to home. I am reminded of when Destiny Slocum out of the PNW transferred from MD, initially to be closer to home at OR St, ultimately ending up at Arkansas.

“The long and winding road, that leads to your door….”

 

[darrell]

If Walz is correct, then it surely looks like Oregon is in play.

Stanford (since she already graduated) would be a much better option. They still have a pretty good core of Brink, Demetre and Iriafen.

Oregon has completely gone downhill since the trip of Ionescu, Hebard and Sabally left.

 

[oldude]

Stanford (since she already graduated) would be a much better option. They still have a pretty good core of Brink, Demetre and Iriafen.

Oregon has completely gone downhill since the trip of Ionescu, Hebard and Sabally left.

But what if Oregon also brings in Betts along with Hailey Van Lith in a package deal? In addition, rumors are flying that next year will be Tara’s last at Stanford, and while they will still be a formidable team, they certainly don’t look like a national champion.

 

[Zarathustra]

Geno wants his shooters to shoot. Case in point. In UConn’s Sweet 16 loss to tOSU, Azzi was 6/17. How does that compare with Hailey Van Lith? In Louisville’s loss to Iowa in the Tournament she shot 8/19. Not much difference there.

Small sample size is a known source of error in statistical analysis.

 

[hoopsfan22]

Why would she want to come to UConn? There's already going to be a log jam for playing time at the guard spot between Paige, Nika, Azzi, and the newcomers.

 

[Zarathustra]

"closer to home" sounds like the WEST COAST!! Now, where in the west????

 

[oldude]

Small sample size is a known source of error in statistical analysis.

No doubt. But the perception that Hailey Van Lith is not someone UConn would be interested in, simply because she shoots a lot on a team that needs her to shoot a lot, is erroneous imo. I think UConn is not interested in Hailey Van Lith because the Huskies are loaded at guard. Had she been available before last season when Paige went down, UConn would have been knocking down the door.

 

[Charliebball]

Thank you for bringing a sense balance to this whole thing. Reading some of the comments and folks act like women's basketball is in its final days. Talk of "Super Teams" and how the "NIL is ruining the game" is just a little too much and I agree, people are getting a little paranoid.

It may be premature but that doesn't mean it won't happen eventually......the portal allows already powerful teams the ability to bypass years of recruiting to instantly attain the proven players they need to strengthen any weaknesses in their rosters that would have been far more difficult under the old transfer rules.....

 

[Waquoit]

Why would she want to come to UConn? There's already going to be a log jam for playing time at the guard spot between Paige, Nika, Azzi, and the newcomers.

Because she's wants a ring, she's better than all of them (cept PB) and we need a shooter?

 

[hoopsnloops32]

Because she's wants a ring, she's better than all of them (cept PB) and we need a shooter?

I don't think we "need" anything from the portal but if were to want anything the last thing would be another guard imo. We have plenty of shooters on this roster and enough coming in that adding someone like Hailey Van Lith would seem like creating a problem rather than fixing one. Why add a player that is typically a star to an already crowded backcourt? If we were to use the portal for anything I think it would be another proven big. I think we have a lot of talent and potential in the 4/5 position but the only proven commodity is Aaliyah.

Between Ice, Jana, Patterson, and Amari I think someone will step up and prove themselves but getting an insurance policy wouldn't be the worst move.

 

[HuskyNan]

Because she's wants a ring, she's better than all of them (cept PB) and we need a shooter?

 

[RSHERMVIKES]

and I wish the team had been taught how to break a press.

On the telecast Rebecca L. , Ryan R. and Holly Rowe all commented that Geno in one of the first timeouts yelled at the players "you've forgotten already we practiced breaking this press yesterday!"

 

[Waquoit]

We have plenty of shooters on this roster...

Do we have any makers, though? 6 for 23 in the big game.

 

[hoopsfan22]

Do we have any makers, though? 6 for 23 in the big game.

Sure with Paige coming back and Azzi getting fully healthy. That's a pretty good combo for makers I'd say.

 

[Gordo]

Van Lith isn't coming to UConn so stop wasting your time talking about it. Betts is the one we should hope to get since the only proven D1 post player we have is Aaliyah. All the others are either untested or simply haven't shown enough ability.

 

[hoopsnloops32]

Do we have any makers, though? 6 for 23 in the big game.

Yes. Again, it's not a need for next year. There are other gaps in the roster.