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Message: [QUOTE="Carnac, post: 2302567, member: 5798"] [B]Dave, you did it again. Your timing could not have been better. [/B]In addition to a like, here's 2 thumbs up!! This post should calm some nerves here. I can't understand why folks that are suppose to be hard core UConn fans, are so hard and demanding of Crystal. Most of us are (I guessing) over 55 years old. I know a few are over 70. Crystal was 18 years last season. A freshman coming into what is thought to be the hardest system to learn and play under, for the coach that is also one of the most demanding and difficult to please, and we can't understand that. I wonder how many times she went to bed a night wondering...............What am I doing here? She said it last year 2 weeks after official practice began. She said (I'm paraphrasing): "[I][U]Nothing[/U] I did or experienced in high school or AAU prepared me for what I'm going through now". [/I]Every former UConn player says the same thing: Geno's practices are tough, real tough. Harder than the games. We (the fans) hear that, but it does not register with us. Some of us think that because a freshman come here highly touted, that she is suppose to make the adjustment , flip a switch, and seamlessly meld into the fabric of the program, and should be able to go on the floor and play like she's been in the program for 3 years. It's not going to happen. "NOTHING I did or experienced in high school prepared me for what I'm going through/experiencing now". I think DavidinNaples said what many of us are really thinking when he wrote (above): Written July 10th... "[I]Like most UConn fans, I'm dying to know how good of a player Crystal Dangerfield will turn out to be. "[COLOR=#ff0000][B]I can't resist the urge to compare her with a recent player of her size, talents and position, Moriah Jefferson.[/B] [/COLOR][B]Unfortunately, I tend to compare the Crystal we just saw, with the MoJeff we remember.[/B] That isn't fair to Dangerfield, because the Jefferson we most remember was a mature All-American winning her 4th straight National Championship. So, let's go back to Moriah's freshman year for a more accurate comparison. The results are very interesting[/I]". Crystal came on right after Mo's departure. She came in so highly touted as the best player in the state of Tennessee. The winner of every award given the the best point guard in the country. Won every thing in sight. We were told she is the second coming. We were bombarded with reports and sports columns about Crystal that we got so deep into the forest, we could n longer see the trees. Crystal was expected to take over where Mo left off. When she didn't, the wolves, nay sayers and critics all came out of the woodwork. Because of the "[I]non-existent[/I]" bench Geno had last year, Dangerfield was put in a very though and unenviable situation. She was thrust into the 6th man spot by default, having to come in and play with the starters, and perform consistently at a very high level. I looked at the expression on her face at times during different games. A deer in head lights look describes it best. A times she looked confident, other times she looked lost, hoping and praying not to make a mistake or doing something to incur Geno's wrath. I can't forget what Gabby said just before the season began her sophomore year (paraphrasing )"[I][B]Now I'm ready to play. Last year [U][COLOR=#ff0000]I didn't know what I was doing,[/COLOR][/U] now I do. I'm ready to play". [/B][/I] Give the freshmen a year to grow and make the transition from high school to college. Give them a year to learn Geno's system, and get comfortable with playing basketball his way with the best players in the country, which is totally different that what they where use to in high school/AAU. Yes, they will all experience growing pains which is expected. Players learn at different rates. How about we just trust Geno and staff to bring them along as THEY see fit, trust their judgment, and root like hell for them when they are on the floor. How about that? :cool: [/QUOTE]

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