KML opinion piece

[Zorro]

Kml is a good player..no a great player, but she could be even better than great if she were to run faster or jump just a tad higher or defender quick players easier. If anyone believes that her weight doesnt affect her in any way need to take their rose tinted glasses off. This isnt a discussion about wether kml is a good or bad person its simply about basketball ability. Here let me try to give you an example. If a player weighed 600 pounds wouldn't that make them slower or not be able to runas long? An extreme example for sure but sometimes extreme examples are needed to make people understand. The more you weigh the worse you're going to play so at 500 pounds overweight it would be completely obvious how much worse she would play than someone at ideal weight. Now kml isnt 500 lbs overweight [mod edit] . How much does it effect her that she isnt at ideal weight? maybe she can run the floor a 10th of a second faster maybe she can jump one inch higher maybe she can defend quicker guards just little bit better. Someone to say that her weight has zero effect on her stats and defending ability are blatantly lying to themselves. I'll say it again KML Great player, but could she have been one of the best ever or at least better than she is now? Hell yea

And just how do you know that she is not at HER ideal weight? Are you, perhaps, a professional trainer? (The people she has been working with are.) Jes wondrin.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

No, this is actually a topic that has been discussed from time to time. Threads do get locked when the tone turns leering or otherwise inappropriate.

Thank you Nan and JS for your responses to those suggesting this topic is verboten on the Boneyard. I am surprised by the identity of a couple of those making that assertion, since they have a high basketball acumen and have been here with me through several site host iterations of the Boneyard.

At our best we can be super fans while still being capable of analytical, and that includes critical, thinking. Respect for our players should always be paramount, of course. However, if we cannot critically comment on perceived flaws in performance we rob the Boneyard of a key component in its value to hard core sports fans.

I have had a number of conversations with several Boneyarders of great longevity who have expressed growing disquiet about what they perceive as an intolerance to opinions which are less than PC on the Boneyard. I think the rules of the Boneyard encourage vigorous, factually supported discussion and have encouraged people to "hang in there." You just did the same.

 

[Beemer]

From what I have read here, KML spent the summer working on conditioning & nutrition with the UConn staff. I haven't seen anything to suggest that KML has not been or was not diligent about following whatever plan they came up with for her. If that was the case then criticism would definitely be warranted and I'd be all over her like gravy on a slice of turkey.

And while I'm not normally a betting person I would bet that a good part of the reason she didn't play well against Stanford was because she was already fighting the flu. Not that you'll ever hear KML use that as an excuse for her poor play.

Now, if she still struggles once she is back in the line up then I think further discussion about her conditioning, weight, etc. wouldn't be out of line at all. All this fuss over one game though is just too much IMHO.

 

[watanabe]

Most of yous guys are missing the point. All humans have weaknesses. It's the point of having a team effort. If KML's weknesses are showing, then dang it, the other team members are NOT doing their jobs. This discussion should be about why the individual player's weaknesses were so exposed and what their teammates did/did not do, to expose them. When this team is rocking, the weaknesses are covered witht the other players strengths.
This was our failure at Stanford. It was NOT a team effort. It was a bunch of individuals showing their weaknesses. Total fodder for Geno to work with. It was an excellent loss for the rest of the season.

 

[intlzncster]

Thank you Nan and JS for your responses to those suggesting this topic is verboten on the Boneyard. I am surprised by the identity of a couple of those making that assertion, since they have a high basketball acumen and have been here with me through several site host iterations of the Boneyard.

At our best we can be super fans while still being capable of analytical, and that includes critical, thinking. Respect for our players should always be paramount, of course. However, if we cannot critically comment on perceived flaws in performance we rob the Boneyard of a key component in its value to hard core sports fans.

I have had a number of conversations with several Boneyarders of great longevity who have expressed growing disquiet about what they perceive as an intolerance to opinions which are less than PC on the Boneyard. I think the rules of the Boneyard encourage vigorous, factually supported discussion and have encouraged people to "hang in there." You just did the same.

And realistically, if Women's sports ever want to be taken seriously by general sports fans, you have to be able to discuss the players as athletes first (and everything that entails). Protective mother/father syndrome just sets them (and women) back imo.

 

[UConnChapette]

Thank you Nan and JS for your responses to those suggesting this topic is verboten on the Boneyard. I am surprised by the identity of a couple of those making that assertion, since they have a high basketball acumen and have been here with me through several site host iterations of the Boneyard.

At our best we can be super fans while still being capable of analytical, and that includes critical, thinking. Respect for our players should always be paramount, of course. However, if we cannot critically comment on perceived flaws in performance we rob the Boneyard of a key component in its value to hard core sports fans.

I have had a number of conversations with several Boneyarders of great longevity who have expressed growing disquiet about what they perceive as an intolerance to opinions which are less than PC on the Boneyard. I think the rules of the Boneyard encourage vigorous, factually supported discussion and have encouraged people to "hang in there." You just did the same.

The key phrase here is "factually supported". Not sure who has the facts to prove Kaleena is "out of shape" or is carrying more than her ideal body weight or her BMI is too high. If you or anyone else has such proof, feel free to present it then we will have FACTS to support the discussion.. I dare say that young woman is carrying more muscle and is far better conditioned than 95% of the posters here.

And "flaws in performance"? A missed read on defense? A pass out of bounds? A missed wide open layup? A blown inbounds play? Poor shot selection. All a flaw in performance. When it starts getting to a players perceived body weight or other image issues, to me that goes too far.

The only fact we know is that shortly after the Stanford game it was revealed she had flu like symptoms. And then she did not play in the game SIX DAYS LATER because of the flu. When was the last time any one here had the flu? Not a cold...the flu? I remember three years ago. I was feeling weak, tired and listless for a few days before that flu truck ran me over. Once that happened I could barely move....my TOES hurt.

Women have a hard time dealing with body image issues. We are constantly flooded by social media and advertising extolling beauty and thinness. I don't think Kaleena is worried about what any of us anonymous posters think of her body type. My concern is more with the constant message that gets sent that compounds the media message that you have to look a certain way to be acceptable in the eyes of others and if you aren't, it is fair game to be critical no matter who that person is.

Honestly, I don't see all that much difference here with comments about Kaleena's perceived weight issue from the comments about Brittany Griner's deep voice and unfeminine ways that lead to some nasty and unpleasant comments about her. I am offended by both.

I used to love to spend time here. Not so much anymore. I am beginning to feel like this community is one I am not so proud to be a part of. In many ways it is becoming more like the Summitt. I don't mean it in the way you may think I mean it but I will leave it at that.

 

[Ellie]

Hope KML doesn't read The Boneyard. Good, Bad or Neutral this entire thread made me cringe. Just a kid ... I'm thinking.

 

[RadyLady]

Hope KML doesn't read The Boneyard. Good, Bad or Neutral this entire thread made me cringe. Just a kid ... I'm thinking.

yeah, uh, I know that the families read it.

 

[Icebear]

My concern with the flu like symptoms was that it was another bout of mono. That would have been consistent with a slowdown and lack of general sharpness extending to the following weekend game.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

The key phrase here is "factually supported". Not sure who has the facts to prove Kaleena is "out of shape" or is carrying more than her ideal body weight or her BMI is too high. If you or anyone else has such proof, feel free to present it then we will have FACTS to support the discussion.. I dare say that young woman is carrying more muscle and is far better conditioned than 95% of the posters here.

And "flaws in performance"? A missed read on defense? A pass out of bounds? A missed wide open layup? A blown inbounds play? Poor shot selection. All a flaw in performance. When it starts getting to a players perceived body weight or other image issues, to me that goes too far.

The only fact we know is that shortly after the Stanford game it was revealed she had flu like symptoms. And then she did not play in the game SIX DAYS LATER because of the flu. When was the last time any one here had the flu? Not a cold...the flu? I remember three years ago. I was feeling weak, tired and listless for a few days before that flu truck ran me over. Once that happened I could barely move....my TOES hurt.

Women have a hard time dealing with body image issues. We are constantly flooded by social media and advertising extolling beauty and thinness. I don't think Kaleena is worried about what any of us anonymous posters think of her body type. My concern is more with the constant message that gets sent that compounds the media message that you have to look a certain way to be acceptable in the eyes of others and if you aren't, it is fair game to be critical no matter who that person is.

Honestly, I don't see all that much difference here with comments about Kaleena's perceived weight issue from the comments about Brittany Griner's deep voice and unfeminine ways that lead to some nasty and unpleasant comments about her. I am offended by both.

I used to love to spend time here. Not so much anymore. I am beginning to feel like this community is one I am not so proud to be a part of. In many ways it is becoming more like the Summitt. I don't mean it in the way you may think I mean it but I will leave it at that.

Your reference to the Summitt I suppose underscores your feelings, however factually unsupported. If you have eyes to see, you know Kaleena has gained weight. Whether it is muscle, something else which cannot be mentioned, or a combination of both, when you put that together with Geno saying she has lost a step, it becomes a performance issue. She would not be the first athlete who overtrained and lost quickness if that is what is going on. Of course detractors will detract and those who prefer their view rosey will counter-attack. But we have prided ourselves here at the Boneyard at being able to have contrary opinions without getting snarkey with each other.

I am frankly surprised to see us at odds on this. Equating this discussion with homophobic smears about BG is startling to me.

 

[PalPa]

I did not see any facts posted here relative weight and condition. Just a lot of opinions from uninformed posters. I don't understand why all these folks get their jollies by throwing barbs at a young woman. Instead of shouting hooray because you are allowed to do so, you should be ashamed for having done it.

 

[UConnChapette]

Your reference to the Summitt I suppose underscores your feelings, however factually unsupported. If you have eyes to see, you know Kaleena has gained weight. Whether it is muscle, something else which cannot be mentioned, or a combination of both, when you put that together with Geno saying she has lost a step, it becomes a performance issue. She would not be the first athlete who overtrained and lost quickness if that is what is going on. Of course detractors will detract and those who prefer their view rosey will counter-attack. But we have prided ourselves here at the Boneyard at being able to have contrary opinions without getting snarkey with each other.

I am frankly surprised to see us at odds on this. Equating this discussion with homophobic smears about BG is startling to me.

Please do not presume what I should and should not be at odds with. I am offended by anything I see as unfair treatment and criticism, particularly when it comes to what a person is and how they look. My sense of being offended is not ranked based on the subject at hand.

This thread is at risk of turning ugly very quickly. I am doing my part by "stepping away from the keyboard" before I find myself sent to BY Siberia.

This is my last post on this subject.

 

[Stinger92860]

Ok, people, here's a couple tips:

1) KML is not a guard, she's a forward. Who replaced her in the lineup ? Tuck. Is she a guard ? No.

2) I watched the Stanford game, and of all the problems noted, KML getting beat off the dribble by guards was not one that I noted

3) Beyond the fact that KML is not a guard, when none of the actual guards on the team seemed capable of slowing down Stanford's guards, why would you think a forward would be ?

Please stop the amateur analysis of her body / conditioning / body type / etc. Its ridiculous.

With all respect, I do not see her as a true forward. If you want to say she is a 2/3 then I agree. You may view tuck as a 3/4, maybe a stretch 4.

 

[The Smart One]

And just how do you know that she is not at HER ideal weight? Are you, perhaps, a professional trainer? (The people she has been working with are.) Jes wondrin.

an ideal weight for a basketball player of her position. She isnt a banger and plays the perimer offensively and defensively quickness and jump shots trumps everything. There is no way you can say with a straight face that she is faster right now or jumps higher right now than if she were at a more appropriate weight... maybe it doesnt effect her much at all, shes still a great player but it does effect her at least a little bit.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Weight and its consequences for people are touchy issues and many of us develop attitudes and sensitivities about it.

Two years ago I weighed 178. Today I weigh 226. I can get no good advice about that weight gain. Two years ago I had to start taking a pill (no, jokers, not a sugar, placebo pill) which has a potential side effect of weight gain, but that is not saying the pill is the culprit.

My mother, dear kind lady that she was, had an absolute phobia about weight gain and was uncharitably harsh in her judgment of overweight people. In her later years, as dementia started to assert itself, she would say things to or about people in social situations that were appalling.

I have a daughter who is obese. She has lost, under medical supervision, 80 pounds in 5 months and she still has a long way to go. Two other daughters have very healthy BMIs. Weight and its causes are, in part at least, a mystery.

Now I, like Chapette, am done with this thread.

 

[vtcwbuff]

The key phrase here is "factually supported". Not sure who has the facts to prove Kaleena is "out of shape" or is carrying more than her ideal body weight or her BMI is too high. If you or anyone else has such proof, feel free to present it then we will have FACTS to support the discussion.. I dare say that young woman is carrying more muscle and is far better conditioned than 95% of the posters here.

And "flaws in performance"? A missed read on defense? A pass out of bounds? A missed wide open layup? A blown inbounds play? Poor shot selection. All a flaw in performance. When it starts getting to a players perceived body weight or other image issues, to me that goes too far.

The only fact we know is that shortly after the Stanford game it was revealed she had flu like symptoms. And then she did not play in the game SIX DAYS LATER because of the flu. When was the last time any one here had the flu? Not a cold...the flu? I remember three years ago. I was feeling weak, tired and listless for a few days before that flu truck ran me over. Once that happened I could barely move....my TOES hurt.

Women have a hard time dealing with body image issues. We are constantly flooded by social media and advertising extolling beauty and thinness. I don't think Kaleena is worried about what any of us anonymous posters think of her body type. My concern is more with the constant message that gets sent that compounds the media message that you have to look a certain way to be acceptable in the eyes of others and if you aren't, it is fair game to be critical no matter who that person is.

Honestly, I don't see all that much difference here with comments about Kaleena's perceived weight issue from the comments about Brittany Griner's deep voice and unfeminine ways that lead to some nasty and unpleasant comments about her. I am offended by both.

I used to love to spend time here. Not so much anymore. I am beginning to feel like this community is one I am not so proud to be a part of. In many ways it is becoming more like the Summitt. I don't mean it in the way you may think I mean it but I will leave it at that.

It's too bad that female wcbb players are too delicate to have their weight posted like most athletes.

 

[phil sampieri]

It's too bad that female wcbb players are too delicate to have their weight posted like most athletes.

This is the first post on this subject that mad me laugh.Are you sure you are not from another planet ? LOL

 

[Zorro]

an ideal weight for a basketball player of her position. She isnt a banger and plays the perimer offensively and defensively quickness and jump shots trumps everything. There is no way you can say with a straight face that she is faster right now or jumps higher right now than if she were at a more appropriate weight... maybe it doesnt effect her much at all, shes still a great player but it does effect her at least a little bit.

OK, we will just have to agree to disagree. You think that you know more about Kaleena's physical condition than she and the staff do. I disagree. 10-4

 

[Icebear]

an ideal weight for a basketball player of her position. She isnt a banger and plays the perimer offensively and defensively quickness and jump shots trumps everything. There is no way you can say with a straight face that she is faster right now or jumps higher right now than if she were at a more appropriate weight... maybe it doesnt effect her much at all, shes still a great player but it does effect her at least a little bit.

She was very much a banger during the tournament last year.

 

[Bgillon]

Your reference to the Summitt I suppose underscores your feelings, however factually unsupported. If you have eyes to see, you know Kaleena has gained weight. Whether it is muscle, something else which cannot be mentioned, or a combination of both, when you put that together with Geno saying she has lost a step, it becomes a performance issue. She would not be the first athlete who overtrained and lost quickness if that is what is going on. Of course detractors will detract and those who prefer their view rosey will counter-attack. But we have prided ourselves here at the Boneyard at being able to have contrary opinions without getting snarkey with each other.

I am frankly surprised to see us at odds on this. Equating this discussion with homophobic smears about BG is startling to me.

I am disappointed about our inability to discuss KML without the PC police. Geno has said 2 things about her recently; she has lost a step and when she is in the game he cannot press the other team. For the poster who only wants us to use facts, that those were his comments is factual. I believe some of the negative comments stem from the fact that other posters to refuse to even acknowledge that opposing observations might be right.

 

[HuskyNan]

It's too bad that female wcbb players are too delicate to have their weight posted like most athletes.

USA Basketball has no problem posting weights.

2013 U19 Roster

 

[HuskyNan]

I am disappointed about our inability to discuss KML without the PC police. Geno has said 2 things about her recently; she has lost a step and when she is in the game he cannot press the other team. For the poster who only wants us to use facts, that those were his comments is factual. I believe some of the negative comments stem from the fact that other posters to refuse to even acknowledge that opposing observations might be right.

You ARE able discuss KML. You aren't able to discuss her without someone disagreeing with you. Such is life on the Internet.

 

[Adesmar123]

You aren't able to discuss her without someone disagreeing with you.

Nan, what can we do to correct that?

 

[Zorro]

Geno HAS said these things. Whether they are factual or motivational or a combo of both one can never be sure. (It is doubtful that he really, really thought that Kalana could not guard a chair, or that Saniya's defense cost the Huskies 30 points. Or that Bria was the primary defender of both baskets, theirs and ours.) Even if he was, for once, dead serious, one has to wonder, however, what you imagine yourself to be accomplishing by your continuing critical (and uninformed) posts about her supposed lack of conditioning.

 

[HuskyNan]

Nan, what can we do to correct that?

Nothing is wrong with two people of opposing opinions discussing a topic, so there's nothing that needs to be corrected. In fact, there's a lot right with it since it encourages discussion and, hopefully, a more in depth analysis of certain subjects. The key is to be respectful of opposing opinions.

 

[Adesmar123]

Nan I apologize, I forgot to turn on the sarcasm quotes.

 

[phil sampieri]

I am disappointed about our inability to discuss KML without the PC police. Geno has said 2 things about her recently; she has lost a step and when she is in the game he cannot press the other team. For the poster who only wants us to use facts, that those were his comments is factual. I believe some of the negative comments stem from the fact that other posters to refuse to even acknowledge that opposing observations might be right.

None of you who getg it. It's not the critisism of her ability to guard someone quicker than her or quotes from Geno. It is the unsensitive constant comments about her weight that bothers me anf like Rady I become embarassed by some of that insensitivity.

 

[HuskyNan]

Nan I apologize, I forgot to turn on the sarcasm quotes.

My bad, sarcasm meter isn't working today.

 

[watanabe]

None of you who getg it. It's not the critisism of her ability to guard someone quicker than her or quotes from Geno. It is the unsensitive constant comments about her weight that bothers me anf like Rady I become embarassed by some of that insensitivity.

It all seems pretty sensitive to me. Just makes no sense.

 

[ctkaiser]

Ok, people, here's a couple tips:

1) KML is not a guard, she's a forward. Who replaced her in the lineup ? Tuck. Is she a guard ? No.

2) I watched the Stanford game, and of all the problems noted, KML getting beat off the dribble by guards was not one that I noted

3) Beyond the fact that KML is not a guard, when none of the actual guards on the team seemed capable of slowing down Stanford's guards, why would you think a forward would be ?

Please stop the amateur analysis of her body / conditioning / body type / etc. Its ridiculous.

Let's be honest this UConn team will be playing a lot of zone this year and they should learn to play it better than they did against Stanford. By the way it might be easier to list the players that did not have the Stanford guards blow by them. Also note those two guards are exceptional players. I would rather play the season with KML then without her.