She is/was shy, but she was always intelligent. poised, and articulate when dealing with media questions even in high school. That's part of what made me describe her as the perfect UConn player before she even played a minute at UConn. There's a difference between the desire to speak and the ability to speak. Kelly always had the ability to speak and her desire to speak to her teammates as a leader has changed, but her speaking to the media really hasn't changed much. Ask a question and get a great answer. The press conferences Maya and Kelly would do together were usually exceptional.
Omnu wasn't really born out of a comment on her shyness or because she wasn't articulate. It was born out of a national championship banquet and Kelly as the only new freshman having to constantly introduce herself to people in the mixer.
Sorry if this is nitpicking. Kelly has been my favorite player since the first time I saw her play in high school, and as someone that majored in history I'm especially sensitive to the myth making that happens to Kelly. People naturally want to fit her into a traditional narrative, and I feel an urge to protect the real story. No, Kelly wasn't a recruit that no one wanted and Geno found it out of no where. Kelly was nationally ranked as a recruit in both basketball and volleyball even when she was a freshman in high school. No, she wasn't a low ranked recruit. Multiple recruiting services had her in their top ten. No, she's not just a product of hard work and hustle. Kelly is an athlete with an elite combination of strength, speed, quickness, and jumping ability. I find the true story even better than the myth in part because the true story is completely unique.
Extremely articulate, poised, and wonderful to see and listen to - something worth saying and the ability to communicate those thoughts!
Her speaking achievements are substantial accomplishments in light of her more silent (shy) "Omnu" days (remember the nickname given to her by Kalana Greene?). I'm sure many of us can appreciate how hard that leap is to make. Congrats to you Kelly!!!
