Is Nika the X-Factor?

[oldude]

With Paige & Anna hobbled, Geno gave Nika 35 minutes in yesterday’s game vs Georgetown. This morning I rewatched the game focusing on Nika’s play.

At times Nika’s game was rushed and she made a number of bad decisions, turning the ball over on 5 occasions. But when you look beyond the mistakes, there are some intriguing elements to Nika’s game that may predict well for the Huskies.

Nika plays as hard as anyone on the team. She is constant energy. While she had several defensive breakdowns, Nika had 3 steals and forced several other turnovers with her agressive play and quick hands.

On offense, Nika is starting to make shots. She was a very respectable 2/5 from the arc. If Anna is out for an extended period of time, UConn will most certainly need another player capable of knocking down 3’s. While Nika made a number of bad decisions with the ball, she also dropped a number of beautiful dimes on her teammates. Nika only had one assist, but there were several missed shots, and one great pass under the basket that turned into a hockey assist.

It will be interesting to see how much, if any, Geno plays Nika against the small, guard oriented lineup at Arkansas. If Nika can continue to progress, and cut down on her mistakes, she just could become the X-factor for UConn with key minutes off the bench as a guard who can provide defensive pressure, passing and scoring.

 

[ScottCT]

Anna's injury may force Nika to develop faster, which is great for UConn in the long run.

 

[ABCDFE]

With Paige & Anna hobbled, Geno gave Nika 35 minutes in yesterday’s game vs Georgetown. This morning I rewatched the game focusing on Nika’s play.

At times Nika’s game was rushed and she made a number of bad decisions, turning the ball over on 5 occasions. But when you look beyond the mistakes, there are some intriguing elements to Nika’s game that may predict well for the Huskies.

Nika plays as hard as anyone on the team. She is constant energy. While she had several defensive breakdowns, Nika had 3 steals and forced several other turnovers with her agressive play and quick hands.

On offense, Nika is starting to make shots. She was a very respectable 2/5 from the arc. If Anna is out for an extended period of time, UConn will most certainly need another player capable of knocking down 3’s. While Nika made a number of bad decisions with the ball, she also dropped a number of beautiful dimes on her teammates. Nika only had one assist, but there were several missed shots, and one great pass under the basket that turned into a hockey assist.

It will be interesting to see how much, if any, Geno plays Nika against the small, guard oriented lineup at Arkansas. If Nika can continue to progress, and cut down on her mistakes, she just could become the X-factor for UConn with key minutes off the bench as a guard who can provide defensive pressure, passing and scoring.

I am more in the Coco Husky camp. She played ok against Georgetown. But she is not ready for against very good teams. She has no one single part of her game that is strong, only average or below average. I love her energy and I love her personality. But I am only describing what I see.

after watching her this season. I see someone a little better than Molly Bent in terms of talent. She cannot shoot unless absolute wide open. She cannot drive and finish. She has tough time against fast guards. She is out of control at least a few times a game. She has some good passes and some very bad ones.
With all that said she is a freshman and learning the game. I hope and believe she will be much better going forward. But at this point she is not ready to be out in big games unless we are absolutely in need of a body.

 

[oldude]

I am more in the Coco Husky camp. She played ok against Georgetown. But she is not ready for against very good teams. She has no one single part of her game that is strong, only average or below average. I love her energy and I love her personality. But I am only describing what I see.

after watching her this season. I see someone a little better than Molly Bent in terms of talent. She cannot shoot unless absolute wide open. She cannot drive and finish. She has tough time against fast guards. She is out of control at least a few times a game. She has some good passes and some very bad ones.
With all that said she is a freshman and learning the game. I hope and believe she will be much better going forward. But at this point she is not ready to be out in big games unless we are absolutely in need of a body.

I don’t disagree, but I guess I’m a glass half full guy. If Anna is out for an extended period of time, UConn will need a guard off the bench to step up in their 3 guard rotation, and that assumes Paige is back healthy next week. As of right now there are only three viable options: Mir, who is not a guard, Saylor, who is just out of HS and completely untested, or Nika.

 

[HopJim]

Dude, I agree with 99% of your posts but this is in that 1% and one of the reasons I hope Geno recruits a good point guard (Yes, I understand they would have to be ok to play behind Paige for 2 years). Nika is barely adequate when playing against the worst teams in one of the worst leagues. No defense, little offense - other posters net out the picture.

 

[oldude]

Dude, I agree with 99% of your posts but this is in that 1% and one of the reasons I hope Geno recruits a good point guard (Yes, I understand they would have to be ok to play behind Paige for 2 years). Nika is barely adequate when playing against the worst teams in one of the worst leagues. No defense, little offense - other posters net out the picture.

So if Anna is out for an extended period of time who comes off the bench for Paige, Evina or Christyn?

 

[veryolddog]

I have to say that I agree with Olddude on this one. It certainly would be better to have a seasoned point guard, but....., if this is what you have left, then you have to go with what you have. My opinion, and I want to make sure you understand that this is not anyone else's opinion is that I like her energy, her passion to play the game, her eye to see the floor and take chances for passes to an open person. Is she perfect: no. Is she learning: yes. Can she shoot: yep. Is she gaining confidence: yes. Is she ready fo the big game: Is any Marine, Soldier or Sailer ready for their first time in combat? With luck and training and leadership: yes. But this is just a game, not a life threatening situation. Playing against Arkansas, if Niki is selected this would be a good experience. I would like to see Paige, if she is well. But, if not Nika is the go to person. There is nothing to lose but a game.

 

[pvdoggy]

Dude, I agree with 99% of your posts but this is in that 1% and one of the reasons I hope Geno recruits a good point guard (Yes, I understand they would have to be ok to play behind Paige for 2 years). Nika is barely adequate when playing against the worst teams in one of the worst leagues. No defense, little offense - other posters net out the picture.

As bad as people think NM is as a player, I wonder what Geno and his staff see when they recruited her. I am in the camp that thinks NM who may be a little slow but will turn out to be a decent player at Uconn.

 

[TheGOAT23]

They don’t teach effort at UCONN. She plays hard, but the defense.... I don’t see that same confidence that she had in the YouTube videos that I have seen of her before she arrived in Storrs. What could it be? The competition in her team’s leagues were weak? IDK Is it that she’s a freshman playing far away from home in a worldwide pandemic? I want to see her succeed because I feel that she’s much better than what we have seen to date.

 

[oldude]

As bad as people think NM is as a player, I wonder what Geno and his staff see when they recruited her. I am in the camp that thinks NM who may be a little slow but will turn out to be a decent player at Uconn.

As far as Geno’s view of Nika, you only have to look at how he used her in the Georgetown game. He started Nika, which meant she earned it in practice. Her first stint in the game was by far her worst.

When Geno took her out of the game, I feared we had seen the last of Nika until mop up time. However, after a time talking to the “guard whisperer” (Shea), Nika was back in the game just a few minutes later and she started the 2nd half to boot.

Her play yesterday was a mixed bag to be sure, but the fact that Geno gave her 35 minutes of PT indicate that I’m not the only one who believes Nika may well be the answer to UConn’s need for another guard in their rotation.

 

[cwaduke]

Remember she is a freshman with little playing time at this level. She will be very good.

 

[Eagle4]

Unfortunately at this point in time Nika seems to be a slightly better version of Molly Bent. That is not to say there is not time for improvement. She is not ready now to contribute against good teams and is only passable against weak opponents. She consistently gets beat off the dribble and her offense(shooting and decision making) is non-existent. My worry is that next year most if not all of the incoming recruits will pass her by unless there is substantial improvement. I fear the same can be said for Anna M. It may be mostly a confidence issue which is aggrivated by both being a long way from home. I am rooting for them but I'm concerned about what their ultimate contributions will be.

 

[Tonyc]

We dont know what is going on in practice or behind the scenes. Believe me behind the scenes we know nothing. Geno knows exactly what he is doin. Playing Nika yesterday for 35 minutes is to get her ready and I expect to see her more then we have especially with Anna down and we dont know what with Paige. Im hoping Paige is ready for Arkansas. I also expect a fast paced game which will help our defense shine. We have 5 starters who can give us double digits evey game. Most teams dont have that. We get alot of defections on defense. I think Paige plays Thursday and Geno will use Edwards and Nika off the bench. Mir will see some minutes too. We will need Anna back for SC. WE should be ok by then without her.

 

[warbler1055]

I like NM and root for her particularly since she comes from so far away to Storrs. But the best I can say is that the jury is still out. Hope that Nika will surpass most expectations.

 

[topogigio]

I say give Autumn a shot, as someone recently said, "what do you have to lose?"

 

[bluedevil]

I too want Nika to succeed of course. So far she is Molly 2.0 She plays slightly better than senior Molly. We all rooted for Molly. To me an X factor is a player under the radar who can come in and make a difference in a game..perhaps even be the reason a team wins a particular game. I hope she can be X....but considering who comes in next season it has to be soon.

 

[CocoHusky]

The key word Geno used yesterday in the post game presser regarding NM is discipline as in she is not. I had the same hopes that many of you continue to cling to and that is Nika would become a reliable backup PG to Paige and would be able to contribute to the perimeter defense. NM has been significantly disappointing thus far. What NM is lacking is not effort it is technique and athleticism. She may never be able to do anything about the latter but she needs to commit to better technique the same way KLS and KML did. Without that commitment Geno is not going to use NM unless he absolutely has to-see TN game.

 

[BobbyJ]

Dude, I agree with 99% of your posts but this is in that 1% and one of the reasons I hope Geno recruits a good point guard (Yes, I understand they would have to be ok to play behind Paige for 2 years). Nika is barely adequate when playing against the worst teams in one of the worst leagues. No defense, little offense - other posters net out the picture.

Fudd will be interchangeable with Bueckers next year at PG. She's the best Combo guard coming out of HS this year. At least one of the two will be on the floor for however long the game is in question next year.

 

[diggerfoot]

We are used to so many highly touted guards that we are no longer aware of what can be done with less polished guards that have the right opportunity and coaching. Both Bent and Coombs had plenty of more polished competition ahead of them. Conlon did not. The tiresome Bball***** critic back in the day was way out of line and proven to be comically wrong, but the shortcomings he pointed out for Conlon were real. Empirically, both Bent and Coombs should have succeeded better than Conlon but they were not in a situation where opportunity knocked for them, as it did for Conlon.

Right now opportunity is knocking for Muhl and she is under the tutelage of the best coaching staff in WCBB. If Bueckers and/or Makurat come back soon that opportunity dissipates and she likely will go the route of Bent and Coombs. If both don't come back soon I believe she will go the route of Conlon. If just Bueckers comes back soon I think either outcome is possible, dependent on how Muhl handles the situation.

 

[my2cents]

Old dude is a tad optimistic on this one..."If you look past her mistakes she is good .is like saying if you look past my big gut, I look like Brad Pitt.
If she can barely handle Georgetown, how is she going to do against top ranked teams? Will not be pretty.

 

[Go/huskies]

I think Mühl got the start because if Liv, Edwards, and Griffin started theirs no post option off the bench. I also expect her minutes to taken by Azzi next year who can pass, but will also look for her shot and likely keep a defender glued to her, giving the team excellent spacing on the court.

 

[Bigboote]

As bad as people think NM is as a player, I wonder what Geno and his staff see when they recruited her. I am in the camp that thinks NM who may be a little slow but will turn out to be a decent player at Uconn.

Yeah, I love the folks who think they know more than Geno and the staff. He didn't play her 35 minutes in this game because there was no other option.

The girl's played 100 minutes with UConn, and that's after the 35 in the Georgetown game. I think we owe her more time before passing judgment.

 

[CocoHusky]

Yeah, I love the folks who think they know more than Geno and the staff. He didn't play her 35 minutes in this game because there was no other option.

The girl's played 100 minutes with UConn, and that's after the 35 in the Georgetown game. I think we owe her more time before passing judgment.

How many minutes did she play against TN?

 

[huskyd]

As bad as people think NM is as a player, I wonder what Geno and his staff see when they recruited her. I am in the camp that thinks NM who may be a little slow but will turn out to be a decent player at Uconn.

Nika and Ania both came at a time when UConn didn't seem to be attracting enough top players. Both women wanted to come to Storrs, so we were happy that someone actually did. Minimally, the two Europeans were warm bodies with experience in the overseas game (ie, almost "professionals").
Everything changed after Nika and Ania committed, and the Huskies suddenly became player rich. Now we have a nice collection of able women, one exceptional guard, and another magic maker coming to play alongside Paige next season. So, whatever the problems, they're short-term.
Of course Geno will use the imports as they are needed and available, as he should. There is no substitute for Buckets: "the best player, best passer, best shooter," saithe Geno. Amen.

 

[CocoHusky]

Old dude is a tad optimistic on this one..."If you look past her mistakes she is good .is like saying if you look past my big gut, I look like Brad Pitt.
If she can barely handle Georgetown, how is she going to do against top ranked teams? Will not be pretty.

 

[pvdoggy]

How many minutes did she play against TN?

Isn't it more about match up? TN was much more athletic and even then, Mir who is supposed to be uber-athletic, only got about 5 min in the game and did not do anything to speak of. Too early to tell about the freshman.

 

[Kaizen]

Remember she is a freshman with little playing time at this level. She will be very good.

We can not expect her as good as Paige but she has confident in yesterday's game. Good control of the ball and plenty energy in the court.

She will be great after years. She can be a backup guard for Paige and Anna.

 

[JordyG]

Dude, I agree with 99% of your posts but this is in that 1% and one of the reasons I hope Geno recruits a good point guard (Yes, I understand they would have to be ok to play behind Paige for 2 years). Nika is barely adequate when playing against the worst teams in one of the worst leagues. No defense, little offense - other posters net out the picture.

Geno already has recruited his PG of the future, and she's a better shooter than Paige. Her name is Azzi Fudd.

 

[CocoHusky]

Isn't it more about match up? TN was much more athletic and even then, Mir who is supposed to be uber-athletic, only got about 5 min in the game and did not do anything to speak of. Too early to tell about the freshman.

Definitely about the matchup and the readiness of the player and always Geno’s choice. Geno’s choice not to play her at all in TN is a better measuring stick vs him playing 35 minutes against Georgetown when his other two scholarship guards were unavailable. I understanding this thread is intended to be positive and help other cling to hope that NM is coming along. Deja vu : Mikayla Cooms.

 

[fang]

Old dude is a tad optimistic on this one..."If you look past her mistakes she is good .is like saying if you look past my big gut, I look like Brad Pitt.
If she can barely handle Georgetown, how is she going to do against top ranked teams? Will not be pretty.

If we all were judged by our first day at work, no one would have advanced. I see Nika as more like Kelly Faris - smart, hard working, but maybe a little limited on offense. With time, I believe she will be a regular contributor.