Haley Jones to Stanford

[OneTrickPony]

I love the prospects we have with Mikayla and Olivia in development in addition to the current starting five.

 

[hoopsfan22]

Coombs potential is very high and I believe she shall develop the ability to make the 3 consistently along with a driving layup. Still at this point it is : Potential!

Geno needs to give Coombs and ONO the bulk of the non-starting minutes. Let them play through whatever dumb stuff that young players do on the court. I would include Batouly in that mix, but she reminds me a bit of Doty where her body is trying to tell her to hang 'em up, so I won't be surprised if she retires from basketball at the end of the season.

 

[SCGamecock]

Well that would suck with Marshall being a elite player of size who if from NY, Uconn will definitely need some height next class.

Is UConn looking at Kylee Watson?

She's not the tallest but her ESPN profile says 6'2.. but I think she's much closer to 6'3 or a shade under 6'4 judging from a picture I saw of her standing next to A'ja.

 

[Kevin G]

Best of luck to her....except if Stanford plays UCONN

 

[SCGamecock]

A great day and really exciting time for Stanford.

I'll add that I expect ESPN #13 for 2020 6'4" forward Dalayah Daniels to ultimately join #2 6'4" F Cameron Brink and #37 5'7" PG Jana Van Gytenbeek. That would leave 1 scholarship left, and I do think Stanford is very much in the mix for Paige Bueckers. That would make Stanford "scary good" good.

Although Haley Van Lith is from "Pac-12 country" and said to have a 4.0 GPA, there has not been any chatter about her and Stanford (somewhat surprisingly). And with Jana Van Gytenbeek already committed, Tara might focus elsewhere position-wise anyway.

This infusion of talent looks like it could make Stanford a national championship contender in a way that it has not been since around the '08-'12 era.

I believe Stanford would have been a heavy favorite for ESPN #22/PN #11 and U17 USA Team Member PG Charisma Osborne, but did not have room. Though ranked lower, SG Hannah Jump very much has the outside shot Stanford is known to love and usually flourish with, and "jumped" on her Stanford offer with a relatively early commitment.

Stanford fan? Congrats on the commitment... Jones is a star! Whenever players that I enjoy following along during recruitment commit to other schools it always draws me to those programs so I will definitely watch more Stanford WBB going forward!

 

[Shades]

Do UConn fans believe that those players that choose UConn over Stanford, Duke, Harvard are less intelligent or capable in a classroom?

Doesn’t Stanford have a higher SAT standard, or do they ignore that for athletes?

 

[j66kicker]

Congratulations to Jones & Boston!

But what's with all the "Good luck" stuff? You're either with us or against us. And you're not with us. So "Good luck" - you're gonna need it when you play UConn.

 

[Shades]

That would leave 1 scholarship left, and I do think Stanford is very much in the mix for Paige Bueckers. That would make Stanford "scary good" good.

This is the first time I’ve ever heard it suggested Bueckers would go to Stanford. Why do you think that would be the case?

 

[j66kicker]

Do Uconn fans believe that those players that choose Uconn over Stanford, Duke, Harvard are less intelligent or capable in a classroom? As Geno once said: (Paraphrasing) There are as many working as "Waiting Staff" that graduate from those colleges as there are from Uconn; albeit, working high-class restaurants!"

Choke: We need more ND fans like you. Thanks.

That's easy: Yes.

Or have applied themselves less in the classroom? Yes. UConn's admission standards are lower, and there are many (most?) UConn athletes who did not meet the Stanford/Duke/Harvard admission standards.

 

[Go/huskies]

Is UConn looking at Kylee Watson?

She's not the tallest but her ESPN profile says 6'2.. but I think she's much closer to 6'3 or a shade under 6'4 judging from a picture I saw of her standing next to A'ja.

I believe it’s been reported that Uconn isn’t looking at Watson any longer.

 

[UConnCat]

She was NEVER leaving California!

Exactly, which is why you will get no credit for your first and only correct recruiting prediction. Shooting fish in a barrel doesn't earn prizes around here.

 

[Lawrence]

Good Luck to her.

 

[mbr33ct]

Who will be the next to start another thread on this subject?

 

[Bama fan]

Who will be the next to start another thread on this subject?

Sleeping dogs and that!

 

[Blaneylover]

While we all would have loved her to sign with UConn, this miss makes more sense than the Boston miss. She's a terrific student who wants to stay close to home to play for a top program while attending an elite academic institution. I can't blame her. With that being said, next year's class just become really important.

 

[Jim R]

Haley did what was best for HALEY!

You are exactly right, and that's exactly how it should be. But, at times, its curious when these college bound stars are quoted as to the "why" of their choice. Take the top two recruits, Haley Jones, and Jordan Horston. In Haley's words: "It will be great to be a part of a program that is always up there competing for national championships," Always competing for National Chamionships? When was the last time they were in the Championship game? According to Horston, “I also want a coach that knows how to push me and help me become a better player. I’m always just trying to work on everything, but I don’t want to be the same player in college I want to get better.” And, she chose Tennessee and Warlick?
Make no mistake, the choice is certainly theirs, and hopefully their choice turns out to be exactly what they wanted.
But, as any compettitor knows, the best way to respond to "adversity" or "naysayers", is simply to prove them wrong. And, to do that, all we need to do is win, and everything else will fall into place. Including, more top recruits.

 

[bballnut90]

Great get for Tara and staff. Stanford is going to be GOOD for the next several years. They appear to have a strong core next year with Williams, Dodson, Hull and Fingall all back, plus Belibi and Jones. After that they bring in Brink and will have Williams/Jones/Brink together for 2 years, Jones and Brink together for 3. That combo likely gives Tara her best shot at a title in quite some time.

 

[newsincerity]

This is the first time I’ve ever heard it suggested Bueckers would go to Stanford. Why do you think that would be the case?

Take it with a grain of salt, but on her Facebook page she facetiously lists her job as being a point guard in the WNBA and her education as "studied at Stanford University."

It is known she is a high academic student (4.0 or close to) so it appears she has a good chance of getting passed admissions.

 

[Dove]

"Haley, why???????????"

 

[bbballfan23]

Geno needs to give Coombs and ONO the bulk of the non-starting minutes. Let them play through whatever dumb stuff that young players do on the court. I would include Batouly in that mix, but she reminds me a bit of Doty where her body is trying to tell her to hang 'em up, so I won't be surprised if she retires from basketball at the end of the season.

You realize we have a GREAT chance to win a championship this year right? I’m all for developing ONO but Geno will do what’s best to make sure THIS TEAM is prepared for a championship run. He won’t sacrifice any success for this years squad to make sure a team that is a long shot to win next year, is prepared.

 

[meyers7]

If we sign 5 or 6 from one class, we might as well only sign 2 or 3 because the other half will transfer. When was the last time we had a recruiting class of more than 3 remain intact? Other than the big three, when was the last time a recruiting class of more than 2 remained intact? Geno says 2 is his preferred class size, so if he can land a couple of top recruits in 2020 and again in 2021 the program will be fine. We may have to wait a little bit for another national title though.

Since you asked. Other than injuries.
More than 3 ?
Montgomery/Greene/Williams/Kerns
Strother/Turner/Crockett/Wolff
Taurasi/Conlon/Valley/Moore/Battle
Williams/Bird/Cash/Jones/Walters

More than 2 ? (the above and)
Dangerfield/Irwin/Bent (so far)
Stewart/Jefferson/Tuck
Houston/Swanier/Thomas

 

[Carnac]

Haley Jones, the top women’s basketball recruit in the country according to ESPN, announced Wednesday that she will play next year at Stanford, choosing to stay close to home over making the cross-country move to UConn, Notre Dame or South Carolina.

Jones made her announcement short and sweet, thanking all of the teams who recruited her before saying that she would be going to Stanford and pulling on their hat.

“I think one of the main reasons I chose Stanford was because of the academic powerhouse that it is, and also it has the same level of prestige for its athletics as well,” Jones said on ESPN after her decision. “So I think that it’s close to home is just an added bonus, and it makes me happy that my parents, grandparents, and all my friends can come see me for home games and hopefully get season tickets.”

The announcement deals a major blow to UConn, which now has only one recruit signed for next year. The Huskies had landed the top-ranked recruit three of the last four years and have consistently had some of the highest rated recruiting classes in the country.

I agree with others that have said that Jones was never seriously considering UConn. She wanted to stay close to home. Stanford is 45 miles from her home. She already had a relationship with VanDerveer from attending youth basketball camps. Jones is not coming, fine. Good luck to her, but I'm done with reading anymore articles or BY comments about her or Boston. They chose not to come here, they can't help us. Let's move on.

 

[bbballfan23]

Are you kidding?? UConn will be in the top 5 teams, and that is not even debatable! A bad recruiting class (and this one was substandard for UConn) hurts down the road, but certainly not next season. Look at all the talent already on the team! UConn would need copious transfers to drop down that far, and those transfers would have to be starters. UConn will still have Danger and Meg and Chrystyn and ONO, plus Geno's coaching. There is no way they drop out of the top 5.

No I’m not. You realize we’re losing 2 of the top 5 players in college basketball that have been our go-to players the last 3 seasons. Both will end up top 5 in program history in scoring & you think you just plug in current players to replace them??

 

[meyers7]

No I’m not. You realize we’re losing 2 of the top 5 players in college basketball that have been our go-to players the last 3 seasons. Both will end up top 5 in program history in scoring & you think you just plug in current players to replace them??

We kinda did in 2016/17 and again in 2017/18. Granted didn't win a NC, but were a FF team. That's top 5.

 

[Fightin Choke]

No I’m not. You realize we’re losing 2 of the top 5 players in college basketball that have been our go-to players the last 3 seasons. Both will end up top 5 in program history in scoring & you think you just plug in current players to replace them??

I never said you could easily replace them. I said that UConn would be easily top 5, not ranked 10-15 as you suggested. Can you find 9 teams that should be better than UConn next season? No way! How many teams will have 2 #1 ranked players on their team? And have 2 others in the top 5? And none of them freshmen! That is a ridiculous amount of firepower, which will be coached by UConn's staff. And you are predicting a ranking between 10-15? I'll bet less than 10% of the members on this site agree with you (and it's not because they are homers).

 

[newsincerity]

Stanford fan? Congrats on the commitment... Jones is a star! Whenever players that I enjoy following along during recruitment commit to other schools it always draws me to those programs so I will definitely watch more Stanford WBB going forward!

Yes, one of the schools I root for the most. You could say I'm a Pac-12 fan.

I probably first knew about HJ the basketball star when she was in 7th grade! I remember being wowed by her dribbling then, since she had sort of a long loping stride more than shifty quickness and was already at or near her 6'1" size, yet so much control without any gangling awkwardness. It's almost puzzling that she started her high school career outside the top 20 since she seemed so polished so early.

People might not remember but HJ was one of the youngest at the 2015 USA Women’s U16 National Team Trials. I think she made it to the second-to-last cut, with Chloe Chapman (now two-sport star for hoops and soccer) the only other 2019 getting farther.

 

[CocoHusky]

Is UConn looking at Kylee Watson?
She's not the tallest but her ESPN profile says 6'2.. but I think she's much closer to 6'3 or a shade under 6'4 judging from a picture I saw of her standing next to A'ja.

Not for over a year now.

 

[bbballfan23]

We kinda did in 2016/17 and again in 2017/18. Granted didn't win a NC, but were a FF team. That's top 5.

Yes but we also had Collier & Gabby coming off the bench and Crystal stepping onto campus. Do you see any player like those 3 not playing much or at all right now? ONO is VERY raw. A ton of potential but very raw.

 

[bbballfan23]

I never said you could easily replace them. I said that UConn would be easily top 5, not ranked 10-15 as you suggested. Can you find 9 teams that should be better than UConn next season? No way! How many teams will have 2 #1 ranked players on their team? And have 2 others in the top 5? And none of them freshmen! That is a ridiculous amount of firepower, which will be coached by UConn's staff. And you are predicting a ranking between 10-15? I'll bet less than 10% of the members on this site agree with you (and it's not because they are homers).

Well considering many of the BYers has us ranked 4-5 coming into this year...

 

[Ex Nutmegger]

My wife and I ran into Monique and Patrick Jones downtown an hour ago. They were on their way back from the announcement ceremony. Patrick volunteered that it had been a tough choice between UConn and Stanford before I mentioned I was a UConn fan and had grown up eight miles from Storrs. Yes, Stanford is only 42 miles from here and only about ten miles from her high school. If she lived in Jefferson City Missouri she’d be headed to UConn.