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Message: [QUOTE="Lwrc, post: 3332475, member: 9903"] I would say yes and no. Yes in several ways, mostly those already mentioned. Immediate playing time, the rise of the Pac12, and other stuff mentioned. I would add three big points to the trend towards parity. One, Geno is not as legendary as he was once was. I say that with the highest regard towards the best women’s coach ever. But young players are not seeing Geno like they saw him 10 years ago, or Pat 25 years ago. Whether it’s Muffet, Dawn, Graves, Mulkey or the next big name (Kellie Harper?), too young players see multiple good options. Geno closing in on retiring only fuels that fire. Second, transfers. Good players move teams and create parity. Good players who might have stuck it out under Geno or Pat in the past are now moving on more quickly. This will continue to create parity. Third, deeper talent pools. I have watched WBB for over 20 years and in my opinion the talent level of players has grown ALOT. The difference between a player in the top 10 versus a player ranked in 50-75 range is not nearly as different as it used to be. Look at this years freshman class across WCBB. And next years class even stronger. This trend will continue to create a lot more parity. Someone with UConn blinders will say “the NC is UConns to lose the next three years” and hasn’t watched enough of these young girls. UConns recruits are awesome yes, but there are a lot of awesome players now. Paige is not on some different level than all the others. (She’s great and deserving of her accolades). As an example, if you think that Paige and company will have no problem with the combo of Cooke and Boston (and Dawn) for the next four years that’s crazy. And that’s just one example. No in a couple senses too. One, the parity isn’t happening quickly. So it’s very gradual and not super noticeable. As another poster said, parity amongst 5-6 programs yes (I think we have arrived at that). But amongst 10-15 programs no (but we’re headed that way). Secondly, no in a sense that traditional powers (UConn, SC, Baylor) will likely stay powerhouses for a long time. Although one might want to include Notre Dame on that list and I do think they are on the brink of slipping into the 10-20 range for years to come. Clark not picking ND speaks loudly to this parity trend. [/QUOTE]

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