It's ASJHA!

[Vowelguy]

Yes and no. Yes, Geno leveraged the success had with Northeastern (primarily New England) girls to recruit the bejesus out of everywhere else. But he gets credit for having the cajones to do it. A lot of schools stay/stayed primarily regional.

I don't know how much cojones it took. Pretty much any coach will leverage local success to recruit nationally.

 

[msf22b]

I agree with those that note that arguments in The Summit are for the most part reasonable and not overly abusive.

What's interesting to me is that some of Scotter, Nan's and Mechelle's points are virtually the same as those on the UTENN board, but taking the other side of the argument.
If one of the main reasons that Asjha was taken was her familiarity with a system within a short practice period, than one has to understand that there is a natural flip side to that argument that others may choose to pursue.

At the end of the day, IMHO, Asjha's strength in the paint both offensively and defensively was probably the deciding factor over Candice, whom I favored, obviously for other reasons; her pure explosiveness.

 

[Vowelguy]

Actually, considering how Tammy really turned out, I would say that you would have to go a couple of years later, to Shea, Paige and Stacy to find non-NE recruits that made solid contributions (much more than solid, in Shea's case).

Also, there was Amy Duran, maybe in the same class as Arnold. Amy was solid.

Tammy was the #3 recruit I believe, so it was a huge coup for Geno. He showed that he was starting to compete on a national scale.

Amy was from Maryland, so still a Northeasterner.

Shea/Paige/Stacey were from the following year.

 

[Giovanni]

the 12th Olympian

Congrats!

They are having a hissy fit over on the Vol's Slummit, saying it's Geno's choice to select his former UConn players. I visit their myopic message board from time to time. I enjoy their jealousy of everything UConn women's basketball. All they think about is UConn!

 

[Waquoit]

If Dean Smith can pick all of his own guys, so can Geno.

 

[Bayareahusky]

Giovanni - I agree with you..... they are obsessed over there about us, while still maintaining that they are the penultimate in WCBB to the exclusion of all comers. Their jealousy is intense.... and for this particular chapter of TN talk, the Olympic picks are blatant bias, and Geno is the puppeteer behind the scenes lending all the influence. It borders on the amusing to witness.

 

[UConnCat]

If Dean Smith can pick all of his own guys, so can Geno.

Dean had 4 of his UNC players on the 1976 team (Ford, Davis, Kupchak and LaGarde). Dean also selected his Carolina Asst Coach Bill Guthridge as an asst on the USA team. Back then, of course, only collegians played so those guys were current UNC players. I have no memory of eyebrows being raised by the selections, though it would be hard to argue with Ford and Kupchak for sure. Most everyone back then was focused on winning the gold after the controversial loss 4 years earlier. The USA Men's team won the Gold Medal in 1976.

Each of the 6 UConn players on the current team have gone on to establish themselves professionally (WNBA and Europe).


EDIT: Upon further research, there indeed was controversy over the selection of 4 Carolina players on the Men's National Team. Boy does this sound familiar:

"North Carolina’s Dean Smith, who was 45 years old in 1976, was selected to fill that role by a committee that included Iba, Red Auerbach, Pete Newell, Wayne Embree and Dave Gavitt. The Tar Heel coach picked his good friend John Thompson and his right-hand man at UNC, Bill Guthridge, as his assistants.

Picking the 12-man roster for the 1976 U.S. Olympic team was far more controversial. When the team was announced after tryouts on the N.C. State campus in Raleigh, it included seven ACC players, including four from Smith’s own UNC team.

“I didn’t select the players; the selection committee did,” Smith later wrote in his autobiography. “I had a single vote. I was allowed to advise the committee on the type of players I was looking for, but that was no guarantee that I would get the players I wanted. In fact, I lost several arguments.”

Nevertheless, Smith became the target of critics who claimed that he stacked the team with his own players. He was blasted for cutting Marquette big man Bo Ellis, who actually quit during the second lap of Smith’s required mile run, while keeping his own Tommy LaGarde, a big man who had played second fiddle to UNC’s Mitch Kupchak during the 1975 season.

 

[ChicagoGG]

I agree with those that note that arguments in The Summit are for the most part reasonable and not overly abusive.

What's interesting to me is that some of Scotter, Nan's and Mechelle's points are virtually the same as those on the UTENN board, but taking the other side of the argument.
If one of the main reasons that Asjha was taken was her familiarity with a system within a short practice period, than one has to understand that there is a natural flip side to that argument that others may choose to pursue.

At the end of the day, IMHO, Asjha's strength in the paint both offensively and defensively was probably the deciding factor over Candice, whom I favored, obviously for other reasons; her pure explosiveness.

I am confused by this, as Candice is on the Olympic team.....see USA basketball site for roster.

 

[Wink96]

A great chose.Watched her from her freshman year at UCONN ,never a better competitor!

 

[UConnCat]

I agree with those that note that arguments in The Summit are for the most part reasonable and not overly abusive.

What's interesting to me is that some of Scotter, Nan's and Mechelle's points are virtually the same as those on the UTENN board, but taking the other side of the argument.
If one of the main reasons that Asjha was taken was her familiarity with a system within a short practice period, than one has to understand that there is a natural flip side to that argument that others may choose to pursue.

What exactly is the flip-side to wanting to compensate for the lack of available practice time by choosing players who are familiar with the coach and familiar with the other players?

 

[alexrgct]

I don't know how much cojones it took. Pretty much any coach will leverage local success to recruit nationally.

The Texas programs aren't doing it like they could be. Baylor got Alexis Prince, but that's one of they few examples. Seemed like the feeling was, well we're winning with Texas kids, so let's keeping focusing almost exclusively on that.

Geno branched out immediately and kept pushing. The Deep South was a tough nut to crack, but that didn't keep him and CD from trying and trying until they had success. Even in 2012, UConn is getting its first Texas kid. That's the relentlessness that's unique.

 

[Goodies07]

I am confused by this, as Candice is on the Olympic team.....see USA basketball site for roster.

Dupree was on the initial list of finalists. But the final 12-member Olympic team is listed here

 

[speedoo]

Dean had 4 of his UNC players on the 1976 team (Ford, Davis, Kupchak and LaGarde). Dean also selected his Carolina Asst Coach Bill Guthridge as an asst on the USA team. Back then, of course, only collegians played so those guys were current UNC players. I have no memory of eyebrows being raised by the selections, though it would be hard to argue with Ford and Kupchak for sure. Most everyone back then was focused on winning the gold after the controversial loss 4 years earlier. The USA Men's team won the Gold Medal in 1976.

Each of the 6 UConn players on the current team have gone on to establish themselves professionally (WNBA and Europe).


EDIT: Upon further research, there indeed was controversy over the selection of 4 Carolina players on the Men's National Team. Boy does this sound familiar:

"North Carolina’s Dean Smith, who was 45 years old in 1976, was selected to fill that role by a committee that included Iba, Red Auerbach, Pete Newell, Wayne Embree and Dave Gavitt. The Tar Heel coach picked his good friend John Thompson and his right-hand man at UNC, Bill Guthridge, as his assistants.

Picking the 12-man roster for the 1976 U.S. Olympic team was far more controversial. When the team was announced after tryouts on the N.C. State campus in Raleigh, it included seven ACC players, including four from Smith’s own UNC team.

“I didn’t select the players; the selection committee did,” Smith later wrote in his autobiography. “I had a single vote. I was allowed to advise the committee on the type of players I was looking for, but that was no guarantee that I would get the players I wanted. In fact, I lost several arguments.”

Nevertheless, Smith became the target of critics who claimed that he stacked the team with his own players. He was blasted for cutting Marquette big man Bo Ellis, who actually quit during the second lap of Smith’s required mile run, while keeping his own Tommy LaGarde, a big man who had played second fiddle to UNC’s Mitch Kupchak during the 1975 season.

Great find, Cat. That quote from Smith is the best insight I have come across into the way USA's olympic team selection actually works, and it's probably reasonable to assume it still works that way for both the men's and women's teams.

 

[HuskyNan]

Not sure if it's been posted. It may even have been in this thread, but i'm to tired to read back. Check out this video of Top ten highlights from the euro league. Asjha, Maya and Diana are all on there.

Great stuff. Lots of USA Olympians in that video - it's going to be a great summer of USA hoops.

 

[alexrgct]

The Texas programs aren't doing it like they could be. Baylor got Alexis Prince, but that's one of they few examples. Seemed like the feeling was, well we're winning with Texas kids, so let's keeping focusing almost exclusively on that.

Geno branched out immediately and kept pushing. The Deep South was a tough nut to crack, but that didn't keep him and CD from trying and trying until they had success. Even in 2012, UConn is getting its first Texas kid. That's the relentlessness that's unique.

Just to add to this, the rift between Pat and Geno wasn't really about how Geno recruited so much as that he was successful doing so. The "how" part was just a convenient straw man. When UConn and Tennessee first played, the LVs had Marciniak, a high school NPOY from Pennsylvania, and in the next year's recruiting class a girl from CTK named Chamique Holdsclaw. It rapidly became difficult for Pat to get those kinds of players from those states of Geno wanted them. So Geno had the northeast, Pat had the Deep South, and everywhere else was a battleground. But when Geno got Maya out of Atlanta, that really changed the power dynamic in WCBB. And that's when Pat was done. She might not be able to stop UConn, but she wasn't going to help by playing that annual game. I can't prove this obviously, but I am firmly convinced this is at the bottom of it.

 

[speedoo]

Just to add to this, the rift between Pat and Geno wasn't really about how Geno recruited so much as that he was successful doing so. The "how" part was just a convenient straw man. When UConn and Tennessee first played, the LVs had Marciniak, a high school NPOY from Pennsylvania, and in the next year's recruiting class a girl from CTK named Chamique Holdsclaw. It rapidly became difficult for Pat to get those kinds of players from those states of Geno wanted them. So Geno had the northeast, Pat had the Deep South, and everywhere else was a battleground. But when Geno got Maya out of Atlanta, that really changed the power dynamic in WCBB. And that's when Pat was done. She might not be able to stop UConn, but she wasn't going to help by playing that annual game. I can't prove this obviously, but I am firmly convinced this is at the bottom of it.

Interesting and very possibly that is exactly what happened. But it's also very unlikely that we will ever know whether or not it's true.

 

[ChicagoGG]

Dupree was on the initial list of finalists. But the final 12-member Olympic team is listed here

Now, I see my confusion - I was speaking of Ms. Parker, and others were speaking of Ms. Dupree. I had my Candice and Candace (or some spelling thereof) mixed up. Thank you.

 

[Bayareahusky]

Just to add to this, the rift between Pat and Geno wasn't really about how Geno recruited so much as that he was successful doing so. The "how" part was just a convenient straw man. When UConn and Tennessee first played, the LVs had Marciniak, a high school NPOY from Pennsylvania, and in the next year's recruiting class a girl from CTK named Chamique Holdsclaw. It rapidly became difficult for Pat to get those kinds of players from those states of Geno wanted them. So Geno had the northeast, Pat had the Deep South, and everywhere else was a battleground. But when Geno got Maya out of Atlanta, that really changed the power dynamic in WCBB. And that's when Pat was done. She might not be able to stop UConn, but she wasn't going to help by playing that annual game. I can't prove this obviously, but I am firmly convinced this is at the bottom of it.

 

[Bayareahusky]

Alex - I think you are on the right track. When GA recruited Maya out of Georgia, PHS was beside herself, and that started the fury that drove her to the NCAA. Something wrong must have happened for her not to be able to have her pick of the litter in the South. Also, she was 9-13 in head to head vs. CT, and I don't think could bear the prospect of being 9-17. TN likes to say they do things the right and honest way, so they chose to just quit, drop out and be quiet about it.

 

[UConnCat]

Interesting and very possibly that is exactly what happened. But it's also very unlikely that we will ever know whether or not it's true.

Maybe Summitt will come clean in her memoirs. There's an announcement today that Summitt is teaming up with her favorite ghostwriter Sally Jenkins to write her memoirs. http://espn.go.com/womens-college-b...t-summitt-tennessee-volunteers-working-memoir

 

[speedoo]

Maybe Summitt will come clean in her memoirs. There's an announcement today that Summitt is teaming up with her favorite ghostwriter Sally Jenkins to write her memoirs. http://espn.go.com/womens-college-b...t-summitt-tennessee-volunteers-working-memoir

Well, if Summitt actually does with this book what she implies with her quotes, it will be quite a read. But the quotes could just be PR hype so I won't get excited about it for now. I've never read any of her books, or for that matter anything by Jenkins, so I have no experience to base an expectation on.

But I do believe this: as far as the Pat/Geno rift, and the truth about that is concerned, the ball is in her court. It's hard for me to believe that Geno would do anything at this point to harm her reputation, even if it means leaving things as they are. After all, the only group that seems to still believe the worst about Geno and UConn is a small group of folks to whom facts are irrelevant, and he could care less about them.

 

[Vowelguy]

The Texas programs aren't doing it like they could be. Baylor got Alexis Prince, but that's one of they few examples. Seemed like the feeling was, well we're winning with Texas kids, so let's keeping focusing almost exclusively on that.

Geno branched out immediately and kept pushing. The Deep South was a tough nut to crack, but that didn't keep him and CD from trying and trying until they had success. Even in 2012, UConn is getting its first Texas kid. That's the relentlessness that's unique.

Immediately? He started in 1985. Tammy Arnold was class of 96.

TAMU & Baylor are both relatively new to the national scene. And TX is so incredibly rich in talent it's much different than anywhere else.

 

[Vowelguy]

Just to add to this, the rift between Pat and Geno wasn't really about how Geno recruited so much as that he was successful doing so. The "how" part was just a convenient straw man. When UConn and Tennessee first played, the LVs had Marciniak, a high school NPOY from Pennsylvania, and in the next year's recruiting class a girl from CTK named Chamique Holdsclaw. It rapidly became difficult for Pat to get those kinds of players from those states of Geno wanted them. So Geno had the northeast, Pat had the Deep South, and everywhere else was a battleground. But when Geno got Maya out of Atlanta, that really changed the power dynamic in WCBB. And that's when Pat was done. She might not be able to stop UConn, but she wasn't going to help by playing that annual game. I can't prove this obviously, but I am firmly convinced this is at the bottom of it.

Never heard this, and don't see what evidence there is to support it.

There were not that many players where UConn & Tenn directly competed against each other, and arguably Geno's success in IN-OH years before Maya was just as much of a threat to TN as the South.

 

[cloudcastle]

It's already been said, but I have to say again:

Great news!
Congratulations, ASJHA!!!


Felt good all morning