Jana's Lay Up

[CONN78SEJ]

I think @BobbyJ objected to the implication that freshman Caroline = Sarah as a player. Yes, she filled in as high scorer in Paige’s absence but unlike Sarah, Carol had 50 turnovers to 40 assists, shot 29% from three, and averaged 3.2 rebounds a game. Please don’t mistake my comment as criticism- Carol was tremendous in her freshman year and she saved the team more than once. But she is not like Sarah, who is a generational player

Hear what you are saying, but I will remind you that Caroline was ranked 5th in the nation coming out of high school. She was a talented player coming out of high school, I think I remember some scuttlebut about her practicing with the boys team in high school.

 

[HuskyNan]

Hear what you are saying, but I will remind you that Caroline was ranked 5th in the nation coming out of high school. She was a talented player coming out of high school, I think I remember some scuttlebut about her practicing with the boys team in high school.

I love Caroline’s game and what she did in the injury-plagued year. What could she be now if she’d never gotten the concussions? Her talent is unmistakable and what she accomplished as a freshman is undeniable. Please don’t doubt my admiration of her. My opinion, which is worth no more than anyone else’s, is that while Caroline is very talented, she’s not a generational player.

 

[Bone Dog]

Hear what you are saying, but I will remind you that Caroline was ranked 5th in the nation coming out of high school. She was a talented player coming out of high school, I think I remember some scuttlebut about her practicing with the boys team in high school.

I remember Geno saying about Caroline after that first summer that she seemed to have a chip on her shoulder about being overlooked in the rankings. At least, that may be how she saw it… and I’m not inclined to argue with her about it.

 

[Oldschoolbb]

So, you want a college freshman to be like an NBA player that had already completed his college education and played in the pros a few years. No pressure there, Jana

I’m pretty sure UConn’s coaches have already told Jana about bringing the ball down but being told, or watching film, doesn’t prepare you to act with a couple defenders bodying you up and hacking at you.

So you're saying she's not coachable? She's got established bad habits. How does a coaching staff break them? One way is film. Another way is negative reinforcement when those bad habits present themselves. I saw McHale play in person when he was in college and he was already doing those things properly.

 

[BobbyJ]

I remember Geno saying about Caroline after that first summer that she seemed to have a chip on her shoulder about being overlooked in the rankings. At least, that may be how she saw it… and I’m not inclined to argue with her about it.

Overlooked? At #5? She and DeBerry (#15gulp) should have been thrilled. For comparison Miles was at #8, Harmon #10, Citron #16, Iriafen #19 and Sellers #22. More evidence that a dartboard gets used for a lot of these rankings and that GA probably doesn't pay much attention to them.

 

[Zarathustra]

I sort of like Husky Nan's factual presentation
But Caroline won games...
That counts for a lot.

I also remember a number of wonderful Blocks that Carol
put "into the stands" with some VIGOR!! Sarah and Carol
share that "stoic" face after making some remarkable plays...
we all remember her drive and her layup to defeat Doug Bruno's
DePaul squad... no?? Heart Pounding stuff!!

 

[CONN78SEJ]

I also remember a number of wonderful Blocks that Carol
put "into the stands" with some VIGOR!! Sarah and Carol
share that "stoic" face after making some remarkable plays...
we all remember her drive and her layup to defeat Doug Bruno's
DePaul squad... no?? Heart Pounding stuff!!

I wish there was a “triple like” that I could’ve given you.

 

[WiseWillie]

She has a bad habit of pulling the ball down to just above her waist when she shoots. She becomes more like 5'11" than 6'5", plus it's very slow. When she is wide open she speeds up her motion to not get blocked and she throws it over the rim.
I am sure they are working with her to catch it and go up with one motion.

For sure all of the noted deficiencies are being worked on. Let's trust HOF'ers Jamelle and CD in providing the coaching needed. We all need to give Jana some slack. She is motivated, determined, working hard and is an enthusiastic teammate. She will do whatever it takes to be a positive influencer on the court.

 

[Plebe]

Hear what you are saying, but I will remind you that Caroline was ranked 5th in the nation coming out of high school. She was a talented player coming out of high school, I think I remember some scuttlebut about her practicing with the boys team in high school.

Can we please not use high-school rankings as any kind of conclusive evidence of anything other than the fallibility of high-school rankings? I need not recount the number of top 5, top 10 and top 15 recruits of the recent past that have fallen well shy of lofty expectations. Aneesah Morrow, by contrast, wasn't even in the top 100 and made All American as a freshman at DePaul.

Curious how a thread titled "Jana's Lay Up" ended up in a debate over the equivalence of Sarah and Caroline

 

[OldSchooler]

Our guards give too many bounce passes into both Sarah and Jana, even when double teamed. Give them the high pass lob when they have sealed off the defensive player especially when posts have inside position and the court is stretched.

Too many of those lob passes into the post are being picked off. I'm not a lip-reader, but I think what exercises Geno, when he turns in frustration to his assistants on the bench, is that Jana needs to sense when she needs to help out the guard by taking a step toward the passer.

 

[Zarathustra]

I wish there was a “triple like” that I could’ve given you.

A kindred SPIRIT! So many wonderful memories of
Carol... I even enjoyed Carol's ("calm and cool") post-game interviews with
the (now departed) female SNY reporter.... The reporter
even got a smile out of Carol!!! Time to get back to Jana's
Lay Up thread. GO JANA, sink those BUNNIES!!

 

[uconnever]

She always seems to be off-balance on her layups.

For some reason, she fades away on her layups and misses them a lot. She’s also rushing, she’ll calm down, but it does take away from her height by doing that and the really athletic players may block her. But she is clearly improving. We shall see.

 

[Alydar]

Too many of those lob passes into the post are being picked off. I'm not a lip-reader, but I think what exercises Geno, when he turns in frustration to his assistants on the bench, is that Jana needs to sense when she needs to help out the guard by taking a step toward the passer.

And the passers need to improve their passing. I see El Alfy open with space and the ball handler looking to pass into the corner.
As Bird has said, basketball is a game of "when", not what. Timing in a motion offense is critical and getting the ball into the low post requires great anticipation by the ball handler, a knowledge of what the post is about to do and getting them the ball at the right moment.

It seems that this discussion happens every time a talented freshman post shows up in Storrs. They get compared unfavorably to Bill Walton or Kevin McHale.

 

[MooseJaw]

Too many of those lob passes into the post are being picked off. I'm not a lip-reader, but I think what exercises Geno, when he turns in frustration to his assistants on the bench, is that Jana needs to sense when she needs to help out the guard by taking a step toward the passer.

Bingo.... Too many young players need to go to the ball, if not another player will. Case in point our past 5 who is no longer with the team. Jane does go to the ball just not often enough. There has been a little progress in this area, I'm sure she will only get better with a little time and practice. Most important, Jana seems to be racing 100 miles a minute. When her brain slows down the game will follow for her. When that happens, we will see improvement in every aspect of her game. Give her a little time, and remember she is what she is, not what you expect or what you want her to be. I for one am thrilled she is a Husky.

 

[Bone Dog]

Too many of those lob passes into the post are being picked off. I'm not a lip-reader, but I think what exercises Geno, when he turns in frustration to his assistants on the bench, is that Jana needs to sense when she needs to help out the guard by taking a step toward the passer.

Just to be clear, coming to the ball from the low post means giving up position on the block. This may be the best move under the circumstances. But if we’re looking for a no-dribble pivot move, this negates that. On the other hand, if we’re looking to see Jana put the ball on the floor and drive to a layup occasionally, then this can be useful.

 

[hipressure]

Jana's conditioning is not were it needs to be currently. So many missed close shots are indicative of poor upper and lower body strength. This can result in coordination issues as well as not being able to finish through contact. We have to remember this is essentially her freshman year. She really has not rounded into basketball form as of yet. If she truly puts in the work, she will get there. I for one am looking forward to it!

 

[BBallF]

I remember Geno saying about Caroline after that first summer that she seemed to have a chip on her shoulder about being overlooked in the rankings. At least, that may be how she saw it… and I’m not inclined to argue with her about it.

I have a great deal of sympathy for Caroline. That kid was a player through and through. I hope she plays again.

 

[BBallF]

I love Caroline’s game and what she did in the injury-plagued year. What could she be now if she’d never gotten the concussions? Her talent is unmistakable and what she accomplished as a freshman is undeniable. Please don’t doubt my admiration of her. My opinion, which is worth no more than anyone else’s, is that while Caroline is very talented, she’s not a generational player.

Certainly true. I remember her having every move and shot and being fearless. Who knows where she would have been by now. Just a shame.

 

[Cuango]

Not a baby hook shot, a baby jump shot. You go straight up and release the ball at the top of your jump at eye level or above, just like Ash's or Paige's.

Yes, it would be good if she were to be able to shoot that shot well, however, that shot is simply a lower percentage shot than a layup! Let’s get her to where she makes the bunny first.

 

[Steelerone]

I disagree with you about statistics being who you are as a player. The game is about so much more than stats. Stats can be misleading and your attitude and fire for the game are as important. Somebody like KK can dominate a game on the defensive end alone and end up with very few stats. Jana has that fire and intensity and that drive to be the best player that she can be. She wants to help the team and her teammates any way that she can. There are several posters that stated it very well. She has a lot of skills and has improved dramatically over the first half of the season. If she keeps developing at half that speed for the rest of the season she will provide what we need her to provide for the tournament.
I want to address a few people that are blaming players missing bunnies on the coaches because has been happening for years. It’s been happening for years because UConn keeps getting freshmen. What happens by the time these players are sophomores, juniors, and then seniors? They miss less and less bunnies and they play more and more. A lot of them end up being AA players and even more make it to the W. That is because of the coaching. I’ve been watching the program for decades because I enjoy watching excellence. And UConn Women’s bball is the epitomy of excellence. Geno and CD still do it better than anyone else (although there are some young coaches that I believe are doing it very well - Dawn S for instance). I understand that they are not perfect, but this is certainly not something that should be blamed on the coaches.

You are completely correct, KCD, but what I was saying is that people are expecting more than there is with every player. I can remember when Diana played that people were critical of her shooting too much and not being a good enough defender. We all know where she wound up, but not every player is Diana and to expect that is unrealistic.

 

[Cuango]

I think @BobbyJ objected to the implication that freshman Caroline = Sarah as a player. Yes, she filled in as high scorer in Paige’s absence but unlike Sarah, Carol had 50 turnovers to 40 assists, shot 29% from three, and averaged 3.2 rebounds a game. Please don’t mistake my comment as criticism- Carol was tremendous in her freshman year and she saved the team more than once. But she is not like Sarah, who is a generational player

Though certainly not at the same “generational” type level as Sarah, I too would have loved to see Caroline as a fourth year player who had stayed healthy throughout her time! I believe we would likely be watching an All American level player!

I pray that she will still be able to play a healthy season before she leaves but mostly, that she can simply return to full health and have a happy life! It would not surprise me to see her as a coach in the not too distant future!

 

[ccwarrior]

I will never understand the folks who consistently say that college players (adult women in this case), who have layed basketball for years - will get better at making layups if we just wait. These are the easiest shots in basketball (layups), and in this thread we are talking about a 6’5” player. We can like a player and still be honest about assessing things like missing layups, can we not?

 

[Alydar]

I've been living with blown bunnies for decades. El Alfy isn't any different from Charles or Dolson or even Stokes in that regard. Juhasz, a favorite of mine, transferred in as a B1G 1st teamer for 2 years and still missed bunnies and brought the ball down in traffic for a season. That's a lot of successful WNBA players and if El Alfy develops to that level I'll live with my frustration and vent myself by screaming profanities at the video screen in my living room.

 

[Skeets]

For some reason, she fades away on her layups and misses them a lot. She’s also rushing, she’ll calm down, but it does take away from her height by doing that and the really athletic players may block her. But she is clearly improving. We shall see.

Jana seems to have what Rebecca would call the "yips" when bunnies are an opportunity. She will overcome that and get progressively better.

 

[Skeets]

Overlooked? At #5? She and DeBerry (#15gulp) should have been thrilled. For comparison Miles was at #8, Harmon #10, Citron #16, Iriafen #19 and Sellers #22. More evidence that a dartboard gets used for a lot of these rankings and that GA probably doesn't pay much attention to them.

I agree. GA probably knows better than anyone that each class is pretty much a box of chocolates. Wasn't Sue Bird something like #28 coming out of HS? Geno said he wanted to meet the 27 kids ranked higher than her. Sue wound up having a pretty good basketball career.

It might be easy to get the top 2 or 3 right but after that get out the dart board. Plus, everyone is different. How can anyone know someone's upside? How can anyone know if a player is at their absolute peak coming out of high school and there's only 1 direction left to go? Chocolates.