Kneepkens

[Cuango]

Does anyone know if we are pursuing Gianna Kneepkens in the portal?

 

[Zarathustra]

Does anyone know if we are pursuing Gianna Kneepkens in the portal?

The original report from Talia Goodman of On3Sports on April 10, 2025
had Gianna Kneepkens scheduling four site visits: South Carolina,
Oklahoma, Texas, and UCLA. I found no "more recent" updates. She is
ranked by some as the most desirable Transfer Candidate. Of course,
she is not a "BIG". So, my attention is on Serah Williams.

 

[Charliebball]

I'd take Kneepkins in a heartbeat..........combine her with Azzi and Sarah and UConn would be virtually unstoppable from the three point line.......I can't imagine Geno bypassing her if there is any interest from the player.....

 

[CTBballfan243]

There really isn’t any available playing time at UConn. It is going to be difficult to find playing time for next years freshmen, never mind finding playing time for Ziebell, Cheli, Patterson, or Ducharme if she is able to play. KK, Shade, Fudd, Jana/Ice will play the majority of the minutes. The Coaches will have their hands full trying to keep everyone happy.

 

[JoePgh]

I'd take Kneepkins in a heartbeat..........combine her with Azzi and Sarah and UConn would be virtually unstoppable from the three point line.......I can't imagine Geno bypassing her if there is any interest from the player.....

In your comments in this and other threads, you show a consistent tendency to throw current UConn players overboard (or, less metaphorically, back to the bench) in favor of the latest new toy in the transfer portal. Don't you have any faith in the ability of players like KK and Ashlynn to develop further, even after seeing how much they have already developed in their time at UConn?

The same point applies to players like Morgan and Allie, whose development will be impaired by players coming in through the portal and soaking up many of their minutes.

 

[Stagnant]

There really isn’t any available playing time at UConn.

I don’t think we are in for Kneepkens. There is no chatter for her whatsoever.

But I do disagree with this point. Kneepkens goes to the front of the line if she were to transfer to UConn. She would be a guaranteed starter alongside Azzi and Sarah.

 

[Charliebball]

In your comments in this and other threads, you show a consistent tendency to throw current UConn players overboard (or, less metaphorically, back to the bench) in favor of the latest new toy in the transfer portal. Don't you have any faith in the ability of players like KK and Ashlynn to develop further, even after seeing how much they have already developed in their time at UConn?

The same point applies to players like Morgan and Allie, whose development will be impaired by players coming in through the portal and soaking up many of their minutes.

I'm not throwing them under the bus.......I'm a proponent of playing up to ten players regularly........so almost everybody gets 10 - 15 minutes a game.........when you can get an honorable mention All American guard who's six feet tall, shoots .504 from the field, .448 from three, .899 from the foul line and averages five rebounds a game you get her......

 

[CTBballfan243]

There really isn’t any available playing time at UConn. It is going to be difficult to find playing time for next years freshmen, never mind finding playing time for Ziebell, Cheli, Patterson, or Ducharme if she is able to play. KK, Shade, Fudd, Jana/Ice will play the majority of the minutes. The Coaches will have their hands full trying to keep everyone happy.

Oops, I forgot Strong LOL LOL.

 

[Zarathustra]

I'm not throwing them under the bus.......I'm a proponent of playing up to ten players regularly........so almost everybody gets 10 - 15 minutes a game.........when you can get an honorable mention All American guard who's six feet tall, shoots .504 from the field, .448 from three, .899 from the foul line and averages five rebounds a game you get her......

See my thread note #2. But what if Ms. Kneepkens has
no expressed interest in UCONN??? She is (reportedly)
following up with UCLA, TEXAS, OKLAHOMA, and the
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA. We will have
the answer soon enough.

 

[Charliebball]

See my thread note #2. But what if Ms. Kneepkens has
no expressed interest in UCONN??? She is (reportedly)
following up with UCLA, TEXAS, OKLAHOMA, and the
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA. We will have
the answer soon enough.

I am aware of that..........just wishful thinking on my part.......if SC signs Kneepkins along with Latson that will make them the team to beat next season......

 

[HuskyFan1125]

Word on the street is her last visit is UCLA. Close is good friends with Lynne Roberts (Sparks HC) and former Utah HC. Coincidence? I dont know. But worth keeping an eye on!

 

[Bone Dog]

I am aware of that..........just wishful thinking on my part.......if SC signs Kneepkins along with Latson that will make them the team to beat next season......

SC is already the team to beat for UConn, just as UConn is for SC. The only question is if there’s any other teams on that short list. Not USC, I expect, since the portal can’t fix their problems, and maybe not even UCLA, though Kneepkens might at least plug a perimeter hole for Cori.

But if this past season is any indication, I doubt a portal patchwork team can run with UConn in March and April. The solution for other teams isn’t size or shooters, but team cohesion. Only SC is really competitive in that regard because Dawn knows how to instill that as well as Geno does.

 

[Cuango]

I believe the days of SC dominating UConn are over. The stretch of games where we lost to them consistently were (as I have pointed out in other posts) mostly due to the fact that we were unable to field a healthy team for about 3 1/2 years! Yes, they are a tough opponent and one that could beat us occasionally (especially when Dawn has a dominant big and we don’t) but I never believed we were overmatched in any of the losses we suffered except in the sense that we were playing with one arm tied behind our back. Though we may have lost a few of those games even if we had been healthy, we would have surely won some too. They have my respect but even with Latson, I’m not buying that they are suddenly going to turn into some offensive juggernaut.

I could be wrong of course, but if we can just stay healthy now, we’re about to make people remember some things about UConn that they thought were gone forever! Number 12 was just a down payment! Geno has his mojo back, has a healthy team, has (once again) a truly generational player in Sarah Strong, and has a very talented supporting group to put around her and Azzi. Be afraid! Be very afraid!

 

[GoCardinal]

In your comments in this and other threads, you show a consistent tendency to throw current UConn players overboard (or, less metaphorically, back to the bench) in favor of the latest new toy in the transfer portal. Don't you have any faith in the ability of players like KK and Ashlynn to develop further, even after seeing how much they have already developed in their time at UConn?

The same point applies to players like Morgan and Allie, whose development will be impaired by players coming in through the portal and soaking up many of their minutes.

Because if a player like Kneepkens had UConn as her #1, you don’t pass on her because of the likes of Arnold, Shade, and Ziebell etc. She would be the 3rd best player the second she committed. This isn’t shade to any of those players, but Kneepkens is just that gifted and how shown an ability to produce efficiently for multiple seasons now.

While development is important, it’s important to remember the era we are in as it relates to collegiate sports. Most contenders simply don’t enough time to hope someone takes massive leaps every year.

 

[Bone Dog]

Because if a player like Kneepkens had UConn as her #1, you don’t pass on her because of the likes of Arnold, Shade, and Ziebell etc. She would be the 3rd best player the second she committed. This isn’t shade to any of those players, but Kneepkens is just that gifted and how shown an ability to produce efficiently for multiple seasons now.

While development is important, it’s important to remember the era we are in as it relates to collegiate sports. Most contenders simply don’t enough time to hope someone takes massive leaps every year.

First paragraph is more or less right. But the second paragraph seems to miss an important point: Geno specifically built his program and recruited for it in order to make time for development.

 

[LuvBball]

Does she play defense? I mean, Ziebell is a 6 ft guard who I'm sure can shoot at or near those averages but basically didnt touch the floor...

I don't think this team needs a plug and play guard, but what do I know?

 

[Charliebball]

Does she play defense? I mean, Ziebell is a 6 ft guard who I'm sure can shoot at or near those averages but basically didnt touch the floor...

I don't think this team needs a plug and play guard, but what do I know?

I love Morgan's game but she is not a great three point shooter at this time.......there are very few players that shoot over .500 overall and .450 from three and about 90% from the foul line...........and yes she plays defense and can rebound but I suppose it is a moot point because she's not headed to Storrs....

 

[diggerfoot]

SC adds Cardoso to Boston, was favored to repeat as champs even without Cardoso, yet falls short. They win again after Boston graduates.

ND “adds” Miles to Hidalgo and not only falls far short of their potential, their roster starts falling apart after the season is over.

These may be exceptions to the rule, UConn certainly has done well with the transfer portal, but always adding top talent no matter the circumstance does not guarantee success and sometimes can detract from it.

If you have holes in your roster, either due to talent or experience, then the portal can be a blessing. Chen starting over underclassmen does not carry the risk of bringing someone in to start over experienced upperclassmen who have demonstrated they can win on the biggest stage against the best teams.

One of UConn’s three pillars is “have fun.” It’s tougher to have fun and develop championship chemistry when the upperclassmen of a program who have emphatically demonstrated their worth have to look over their shoulders.

UConn already is favored by some to repeat because there are no holes; there is no lack of proven upperclassmen at the guard spot. Adding Kneepkens is a ”fix” for a problem that does not exist.

 

[ERWUC65]

SC adds Cardoso to Boston, was favored to repeat as champs even without Cardoso, yet falls short. They win again after Boston graduates.

ND “adds” Miles to Hidalgo and not only falls far short of their potential, their roster starts falling apart after the season is over.

These may be exceptions to the rule, UConn certainly has done well with the transfer portal, but always adding top talent no matter the circumstance does not guarantee success and sometimes can detract from it.

If you have holes in your roster, either due to talent or experience, then the portal can be a blessing. Chen starting over underclassmen does not carry the risk of bringing someone in to start over experienced upperclassmen who have demonstrated they can win on the biggest stage against the best teams.

One of UConn’s three pillars is “have fun.” It’s tougher to have fun and develop championship chemistry when the upperclassmen of a program who have emphatically demonstrated their worth have to look over their shoulders.

UConn already is favored by some to repeat because there are no holes; there is no lack of proven upperclassmen at the guard spot. Adding Kneepkens is a ”fix” for a problem that does not exist.

'there are no holes; there is no lack of proven upperclassmen at the guard spot. Adding Kneepkens is a ”fix” for a problem that does not exist.'
The first statement is true if you are only considering the SG (2) position where you have Azzi and Ash. The problem is at the PG (1) position where you have KK who only played their 2 years ago out of necessity and Kelis who is yet to play a college game. The first part of the second statement is true in that Kneepkens is an SG, not a true PG, but to state that a problem there does not exist is false.

 

[Alydar]

I'm not throwing them under the bus.......I'm a proponent of playing up to ten players regularly........so almost everybody gets 10 - 15 minutes a game.........when you can get an honorable mention All American guard who's six feet tall, shoots .504 from the field, .448 from three, .899 from the foul line and averages five rebounds a game you get her......

With no regard to her defense, her passing skills, her quickness or the fact that she will need to be happy getting half the minutes she got at Utah?

 

[Charliebball]

Does she play defense? I mean, Ziebell is a 6 ft guard who I'm sure can shoot at or near those averages but basically didnt touch the floor...

I don't think this team needs a plug and play guard, but what do I know?

Ziebell has great shooting skills but we simply haven't seen it in her time on the floor against lesser fourth quarter talent......her defense also needs some improvement........

 

[Charliebball]

With no regard to her defense, her passing skills, her quickness or the fact that she will need to be happy getting half the minutes she got at Utah?

With no regard to her defense, her passing skills, her quickness or the fact that she will need to be happy getting half the minutes she got at Utah?

good point but she's not going to get anything close to thirty minutes a game at South Carolina or UCLA either.....

 

[diggerfoot]

'there are no holes; there is no lack of proven upperclassmen at the guard spot. Adding Kneepkens is a ”fix” for a problem that does not exist.'
The first statement is true if you are only considering the SG (2) position where you have Azzi and Ash. The problem is at the PG (1) position where you have KK who only played their 2 years ago out of necessity and Kelis who is yet to play a college game. The first part of the second statement is true in that Kneepkens is an SG, not a true PG, but to state that a problem there does not exist is false.

Two and a half years ago people were advocating Fudd over Muhl to be PG. Last year Cheli showed PG capabilities. Neither should start over Arnold, but they certainly can provide relief. So my statement is false if you expect both PG to be the same caliber as Arnold, in which case:

1. How often do you think teams have two PGs of Arnold’s caliber?

2. How many PGs of Arnold’s caliber are there available that you think want to come and back up Arnold? or

3. Per my original point, how will the chemistry be if a PG comes in to usurp an upperclassmen who has proved herself.

In a realistic universe with one stud PG and others that can provide back up (and if Fudd plays PG as she has in the past there are 2-3 players that can slip into SG), my statement is not false.

 

[ERWUC65]

Two and a half years ago people were advocating Fudd over Muhl to be PG. Last year Cheli showed PG capabilities. Neither should start over Arnold, but they certainly can provide relief. So my statement is false if you expect both PG to be the same caliber as Arnold, in which case:

1. How often do you think teams have two PGs of Arnold’s caliber?

2. How many PGs of Arnold’s caliber are there available that you think want to come and back up Arnold? or

3. Per my original point, how will the chemistry be if a PG comes in to usurp an upperclassmen who has proved herself.

In a realistic universe with one stud PG and others that can provide back up (and if Fudd plays PG as she has in the past there are 2-3 players that can slip into SG), my statement is not false.

There is no counter to your position if your premise is valid that KK is a PG of the highest caliber. This will be resolved shortly by whether or not Geno chooses to stay with his current roster to fill this position or go to the portal.

 

[NycUcWbbFan]

'there are no holes; there is no lack of proven upperclassmen at the guard spot. Adding Kneepkens is a ”fix” for a problem that does not exist.'
The first statement is true if you are only considering the SG (2) position where you have Azzi and Ash. The problem is at the PG (1) position where you have KK who only played their 2 years ago out of necessity and Kelis who is yet to play a college game. The first part of the second statement is true in that Kneepkens is an SG, not a true PG, but to state that a problem there does not exist is false.

I am more with @Bonedog and Diggerfoot with this one, although I did articulate that there is potentially a temporary backup PG problem in the tough early OOC (with Morgan’s return timetable being uncertain);

• One key differentiator is the portal is not the only solution to this temporary problem;
• Put another way, UConn can manage with its current great roster where there are six starters or former starters who are current-player-proof-of-concept of UConn’s championship beautiful basketball;
• In contrast to this season when Geno transformed high raw potential, Geno has a lot more bandwidth next season to address potential weaknesses and sharpen or hone current or burgeoning strengths (such as the heavy dose of athleticism in the freshman class);
• So Geno will be yelling a lot at PG play as Geno yelled a lot at post play this season, and the players know that he has their “basketball player” development and the team’s peak postseason form in mind.

To see why the portal is not the only solution to a temporary backup PG problem:

• KK’s Final Four play was superb and she is ready to be the lead PG; as Moriah did before, KK will work extra hard to improve on her outside shot;
• As Kennitra Johnson was an effective freshman PG backup to Sue or Nika being thrust as lead freshman PG that by season’s end was indispensable, I am confident that Geno and CD will prepare Kellis well;
• As Bonedog pointed out elsewhere, there are many players who are capable ball handlers (I count 8) that can assume aspects of PG duties in UConn’s offense;
• Because of the 8 ball handlers, a repeat of the Ohio State debacle where UConn had 2-3 ball handlers — one of them a just recovered Azzi — from a roster of 8, is probably not going to happen;
• Azzi is a very capable PG; she was Carla Berube’s starting PG in a gold-medal winning FIBA tournament team with the other starters being Paige, Haley Jones, Horston and Boston; only KK was a prior PG in a FIBA tournament team (2022 with Juju), and I believe she was not the starting PG.

Geno has proven time and time again that he is best-in-class not only in championship preparation but in preparing players for the next level;

• Imo, the new paradigm of the portal and NIL leading to an arms-race Superteam era has emboldened Geno’s recruitment philosophy (larger and full quality rosters that he will develop) and deliberativeness with respect to the portal;
• He will use the portal to top-off his roster in areas of need or in ways to make it more non-redundantly lethal (e.g. the reported interest in Oluchi Okananwa who has since declared for Maryland);
• It has been very evident that Geno is very purposeful in his program — leading to the ”This.Is.Why.”commentary by Sarah’s mom (Allison Feaster) or the “Everything was done the right way” commentary by Nika’s dad (Darko Muhl); Geno is not influenced by the sugar highs of the portal arms race;
• It is always a pleasure to see Geno’s farm system work and Geno has a bunch of great incoming juniors and sophomores and returning walking wounded who will be working their butt off to build off the template which Paige, Kaitlyn and Aubrey left with this season.