Is UConn's best 3 pt shooter not named Katie Lou...?

[chrissaran]

Kia used to be like a bull in a china shop when she drove to the basket - out of control. Napheesa had the highest percentage last year by a wide margin. How do you rate the best shooter? Is it the highest percentage? That was Napheesa, and she may be again this year. There are too many variables to say this person is our best shooter.

 

[HumblePie]

If and when Katie Lou stops trying to get her shot off so quickly and starts taking the few extra seconds necessary to square her shoulders, set her feet and shoot in rhythm she'll be unstoppable.

 

[HoopsFan21]

Kia used to be like a bull in a china shop when she drove to the basket - out of control. Napheesa had the highest percentage last year by a wide margin. How do you rate the best shooter? Is it the highest percentage? That was Napheesa, and she may be again this year. There are too many variables to say this person is our best shooter.

Going by last year's stats, Kia was best at FTs, by far the best at 3FG (by about 4%), and was just 0.5% shy of being the best overall FG% excluding Collier and Gabby who take most of their shots at less than 10 ft from the hoop. That's pretty convincing.

 

[oldude]

If and when Katie Lou stops trying to get her shot off so quickly and starts taking the few extra seconds necessary to square her shoulders, set her feet and shoot in rhythm she'll be unstoppable.

For any effective 3-pt shooter, a quick release is essential. Steph Curry is the best 3-pt shooter I’ve ever seen and he has the quickest release. The longer it takes to get off a shot the easier it is for a defender to close out on a shooter.

While that’s not necessarily important for Lou against average competition, it is important against top college teams with athletic defenders and it will certainly be very important at the next level in the WNBA.

 

[msf22b]

We'll just have to move the line back for the woman.

 

[PAHuskeyFan]

I look at 3 point shooting similar to batting averages in baseball. It's not uncommon for baseball hitters to get hot, go on a multiple game hitting streak with multiple hits per game...and their average climbs. Then they go into a slump for a period of time and the average drops. It always seems the "cream of the crop" (i.e. the best hitters) end up near the top of the batting average standings every season. It's also not uncommon for those who were tops in batting average one season, to start the next season slow...but eventually they work out the kinks in the swing or the "almost hits" fall in, or ground balls get through the infield and their average climbs. Crash Davis (played by Kevin Costner) in the movie Bull Durham explained how a batting average can jump...and in his case a player be called up to the majors..."Know what the difference between hitting .250 and .300 is? It's 25 hits. 25 hits in 500 at bats is 50 points, okay? There's 6 months in a season, that's about 25 weeks. That means if you get just one extra flare a week - just one - a gorp... you get a groundball, you get a groundball with eyes... you get a dying quail, just one more dying quail a week... and you're in Yankee Stadium."

I believe it's similar with 3 point shooters... streaks and slumps. They can get hot (i.e. Lou 10 for 10 vs USF), and they can go cold or they can finish one season as one of the best in NCAA WBB, and start the next season off just a bit...they get shots that rim out...that bounce all around the rim and just don't drop...the next week or so, they get every bounce, every shot goes in and their percentage made rises.

Kia and Danger have started this season out en fuego from 3...and that's fantastic!! Lou has started a bit slowly from 3...possibly due to less work or "working out the kinks" due to injury and less playing time, but IMHO I believe she will heat up...just as I unfortunately suspect Kia and Danger will "cool off". The great thing for UCONN is WE have all three...and we don't need All of them to be hitting everything at the same time to win. AND, the fact that any of them can drop a 3 on an opponent pretty much any time they want means that they have to defend everyone, everywhere on the court.

I don't think it matters who we think "the best is" at this point... cause it only matters that the shooters we're talking about all play for the UCONN Huskies. And they are a very dangerous group!!!

 

[HumblePie]

For any effective 3-pt shooter, a quick release is essential. Steph Curry is the best 3-pt shooter I’ve ever seen and he has the quickest release. The longer it takes to get off a shot the easier it is for a defender to close out on a shooter.

While that’s not necessarily important for Lou against average competition, it is important against top college teams with athletic defenders and it will certainly be very important at the next level in the WNBA.

Oh give me a break. I was shooting 3 pt. range shots decades before there ever was such a thing! Ever heard the expression, "Be quick, but don't hurry."? It was a favorite of John Wooden, the legendary UCLA coach. If you haven't followed the basic fundamentals of shooting a basketball properly, you aren't going to make many of your shots. With little exception, you must square your shoulders to the basket, set your feet in accordance to the hand your shooting with, and shoot in rhythm...a fluid motion. When Katie Lou does this, she rarely misses. When she doesn't, she throws up one brick after another.

 

[oldude]

Oh give me a break. I was shooting 3 pt. range shots decades before there ever was such a thing!

Basketball has evolved some since the days of the two-handed set shot.

 

[HumblePie]

Basketball has evolved some since the days of the two-handed set shot.

I've forgotten more about the game of basketball (and shooting one) than you'll ever learn! Two-handed set shots was never my thing, but I do know how to shoot them.

 

[oldude]

I've forgotten more about the game of basketball (and shooting one) than you'll ever learn! Two-handed set shots was never my thing, but I do know how to shoot them.

I had no idea I was trading posts with a basketball superstar. I guess your handle is something of a misnomer....

 

[HumblePie]

I had no idea I was trading posts with a basketball superstar. I guess your handle is something of a misnomer....

Well, you finally got part of it right. My handle is for a rock band I enjoyed in the late 60s. And, when it comes to Katie Lou (and each of the Samuelson sisters), I've been watching them play this game since they were knee high to a grasshopper. That means I can pretty much tell you when she has no chance of making a 3 pt. shot.

 

[oldude]

Well, you finally got part of it right. My handle is for a rock band I enjoyed in the late 60s. And, when it comes to Katie Lou (and each of the Samuelson sisters), I've been watching them play this game since they were knee high to a grasshopper. That means I can pretty much tell you when she has no chance of making a 3 pt. shot.

Once again, your humility is overwhelming....

As for Lou’s shooting, maybe you should get in touch with her and give her some pointers. I’m sure she would welcome your advice...

 

[HGN]

An embarrassment of riches.

Boston , it may be some riches , but I don't think Geno is embarrassed by it.

 

[hjoerring]

When a defense focuses on Kia and Crystal the way they do Katie Lou, then you can acknowledge them as the best three-point shooter on the team. The offense runs a lot more smoothly with Lou in the game.

How does this relate to the point being made? That one player is making 3-point baskets with defenders hanging on her, while the others are standing alone at the said line?

 

[hjoerring]

View attachment 26870

Even Katie Lou knows this is a stupid question..!! In her career, Katie Lou has made 204 three-point shots, in 500 tries, for an accuracy rate of just under 41%. That's 612 points from beyond the arc. Nobody else is close, right?


There is no clear correct answer. But it is impressive as heck that UConn's three-point stats include the following:

There must be other features to look at, for example, who has the green-light-- when and where. I doubt that Nurse, CD and others can just fire away-- missing would hurt the team a lot more than it would coming from a relatively designated 3-point player. For example, I cannot see CD coming down and shooting 3s even if she is clipping at the rate of 60%. There must be a psychol. in there some where-- like making foul shots with the game on the line versus shots when little is at stake(?).

 

[HumblePie]

Once again, your humility is overwhelming....

As for Lou’s shooting, maybe you should get in touch with her and give her some pointers. I’m sure she would welcome your advice...

Look, you're the one who started rebuffing my statement about what Katie Lou needs to do to become a consistently great 3-pt. shooter. Countering a mistaken belief that quickness is more important than accuracy. Offering how great Steph Curry is and how quickly he gets his shot off. What you have failed to do is breakdown his shot. Try analyzing it from start to finish and see if you don't find that he squares his shoulders, sets his feet and shoots in rhythm. He's become very quick at it because he has great confidence in his ability. He didn't come into the NBA as good as he is now, nor did he deliver his long range bombs as quickly. It's necessary to learn to crawl before you walk and eventually run. It all goes in progression and when things start to fail, you go back to the basics for correction.

For some reason you feel qualified to judge my expertise and make snide remarks about it and me. Strangely when I return those kind of favors, the esteem moderators of the site give me a warning for making a personal attack. Quite a double standard exists here.

 

[oldude]

Look, you're the one who started rebuffing my statement about what Katie Lou needs to do to become a consistently great 3-pt. shooter. Countering a mistaken belief that quickness is more important than accuracy. Offering how great Steph Curry is and how quickly he gets his shot off. What you have failed to do is breakdown his shot. Try analyzing it from start to finish and see if you don't find that he squares his shoulders, sets his feet and shoots in rhythm. He's become very quick at it because he has great confidence in his ability. He didn't come into the NBA as good as he is now, nor did he deliver his long range bombs as quickly. It's necessary to learn to crawl before you walk and eventually run. It all goes in progression and when things start to fail, you go back to the basics for correction.

For some reason you feel qualified to judge my expertise and make snide remarks about it and me. Strangely when I return those kind of favors, the esteem moderators of the site give me a warning for making a personal attack. Quite a double standard exists here.

You can mischaracterize my response if you wish, but I never suggested that "quickness is more important than accuracy." Clearly accuracy is important and squaring up and shooting in rhythm are elements of being an accurate shooter.

You had suggested that Lou, "starts taking a few extra seconds" when shooting 3-pt shots. Surely someone with your extensive basketball knowledge understands that against any decent competition, a player doesn't have a couple extra seconds to get themselves lined up to shoot a 3-pt shot, or any shot for that matter. Maybe you get a couple extra seconds to shoot playing rec league ball when nobody's playing any defense, but not in big time WBB.

 

[HumblePie]

You can mischaracterize my response if you wish, but I never suggested that "quickness is more important than accuracy." Clearly accuracy is important and squaring up and shooting in rhythm are elements of being an accurate shooter.

You had suggested that Lou, "starts taking a few extra seconds" when shooting 3-pt shots. Surely someone with your extensive basketball knowledge understands that against any decent competition, a player doesn't have a couple extra seconds to get themselves lined up to shoot a 3-pt shot, or any shot for that matter. Maybe you get a couple extra seconds to shoot playing rec league ball when nobody's playing any defense, but not in big time WBB.

Where on earth did you get the idea I ever played "rec league ball"? Of course you again where trying to insult me. I was playing against top caliber defenses in my early teens. But the point is not about my prowess or your lack of it. My comment that she should take a few extra seconds is more than valid, and would apply to anyone playing the game at any level. Why take a shot you can't possibly make? You make it sound as though a few seconds is a lifetime. It isn't and if you haven't set up correctly for a shot, simply pass the ball to a teammate or do something else with it. Additionally, there are very few opposing players guarding Katie Lou at the 3-pt line that could block her shot anyway. I study her game and she has plenty of seconds to properly align herself. Oh, and regarding my so-called mischaracterization, do yourself a favor and re-read what you wrote and then tell me your summation wasn't that quickness is more important than shooting a ball correctly (accurately). I have no more time for you on this discussion. Have a nice day!

 

[Huskee11]

Maybe you get a couple extra seconds to shoot playing rec league ball when nobody's playing any defense, but not in big time WBB.

Hey, hey, I played rec league ball and had a lot of my shots swatted away.

 

[oldude]

Where on earth did you get the idea I ever played "rec league ball"? Of course you again where trying to insult me. I was playing against top caliber defenses in my early teens. But the point is not about my prowess or your lack of it. My comment that she should take a few extra seconds is more than valid, and would apply to anyone playing the game at any level. Why take a shot you can't possibly make? You make it sound as though a few seconds is a lifetime. It isn't and if you haven't set up correctly for a shot, simply pass the ball to a teammate or do something else with it. Additionally, there are very few opposing players guarding Katie Lou at the 3-pt line that could block her shot anyway. I study her game and she has plenty of seconds to properly align herself. Oh, and regarding my so-called mischaracterization, do yourself a favor and re-read what you wrote and then tell me your summation wasn't that quickness is more important than shooting a ball correctly (accurately). I have no more time for you on this discussion. Have a nice day!

Lot of stuff to respond to. For the record, I was not suggesting that you personally played rec league ball, but rather was speaking of a generic rec league player having lots of time to put up a shot.

As for your comment about Lou’s shot being difficult to block, I agree, but blocking her shot and defending her shot are two different things. Last year vs SC, 5’11” Alisha Gray held Lou to 2-12 shooting (0-5 from 3) by chasing her all over the court and getting up under her when she attempted a shot.

Finally, for the record, I played a lot of basketball all the way through college back in the 60’s & 70’s when a group out of Essex was topping the charts with songs like, “30 Days in the Hole” & “Natural Born Bugie.”

Basketball was a different game back then. Great post players, that did most of their work within 5 feet of both baskets, dominated the game. There was no 3-pt shot. Today, it’s all about quickness and athleticism. Big slow posts are dinosaurs.

Spreading the floor, moving the ball and catching the ball and releasing shots quickly, and accurately, is what it’s all about.

And thank you for wishing me a nice day. The same to you.

 

[dogged1]

Look, you're the one who started rebuffing my statement about what Katie Lou needs to do to become a consistently great 3-pt. shooter. Countering a mistaken belief that quickness is more important than accuracy. Offering how great Steph Curry is and how quickly he gets his shot off. What you have failed to do is breakdown his shot. Try analyzing it from start to finish and see if you don't find that he squares his shoulders, sets his feet and shoots in rhythm. He's become very quick at it because he has great confidence in his ability. He didn't come into the NBA as good as he is now, nor did he deliver his long range bombs as quickly. It's necessary to learn to crawl before you walk and eventually run. It all goes in progression and when things start to fail, you go back to the basics for correction.

For some reason you feel qualified to judge my expertise and make snide remarks about it and me. Strangely when I return those kind of favors, the esteem moderators of the site give me a warning for making a personal attack. Quite a double standard exists here.

Here's a quote from msf22bb regarding another poster with a similar posting style to yours:

Point of Information: I, and many of our 'yard colleagues generally refrain from personal, gratuitous attacks...like "Are you nuts." except in the most extreme instances, for which my comment certainly did not qualify.

I think msfb22 and the mods are onto something, you might want to consider that.

 

[oldude]

Hey, hey, I played rec league ball and had a lot of my shots swatted away.

I played a lot of ball at a number of different levels, and had more than my share of shots blocked, mostly because I was “elevation challenged.”

 

[GiladKatzDeli]

UConn has had some great shooters (Taurasi, Bird, Duran, KML, Moore, Strother, Davis, Jefferson, Svet, etc). I think Dangerfield and Nurse will come back to Earth a little bit.

Like many, I've been super impressed by the work Dangerfield has put in. A lot of times players with great athletic gifts simply rely on that athleticism and never develop the finer skills that take their game to the next level. Dangerfield's speed and quickness was always a weapon, now her skills, and perhaps more importantly, her confidence, appear to have caught up.

 

[chrissaran]

Gabby and Napheesa take their shots where the people who are much taller than they are play. They have a much better chance of having their shot blocked; yet, they rarely seem to get their shot blocked because of their amazing skill. They give up anywhere from 3" to 5" to their opponents.

 

[chrissaran]

HumblePie, I'm sure you can do a better job of teaching Lou how to shoot than her father did.