Kelly is my favorite UCONN women's player of all time. From the moment she stepped on the court during her freshman season in a very early season game I attended vs. Texas, you could instantly see in the first minute of her time on the court that she was a complete, fundamentally sound player. She knew intuitively where she needed to be on the court at all times. I also saw a very early season game in person vs. TX A&M when Jefferson and Stewart were freshmen, and they did not have anywhere near the court presence that Kelly had at the same stage of her career. They certainly both became better players than Kelly over time, but not because of anything to do with fundamentals, just greater overall talent.
That said, in the pros you need to at least be a threat to score the ball, even if you are an A+ defender and have other skills (excellent free throw shooter, rebounder, etc.), and all the intangibles. A lock down defender,
if that's all you can do, is a luxury only great teams can probably afford. Good, mediocre and bad teams need five players on the floor at all times that are at least a threat to score. Otherwise, the opposition can slough off on one offensive player and double up on the best scorer.
Regardless, I have no doubt she will do everything she can to make the roster. She always seemed to need more confidence in her offensive game. She probably needs to just let it rip.
