Lexi Gordon

[DesertGnome]

Forgive this Boneyard rookie if this topic has been addressed previously, but I am puzzled by the mysterious absence of Lexi Gordon from most threads. At best, she is briefly mentioned but generally she doesn’t appear in discussions of starting and reserve lineups, skill sets, etc. If she is mentioned, she is listed at the bottom of the “depth charts” but little is said about what her deficits and strengths might be. I briefly chatted with her at First Night and found her to be enthusiastic and confident, not to mention she made two 3s in a 3 on 3 game and looked active and focused in that over-stimulating environment. Is she injured and not expected to play as a result? Are we overlooking a potential positive contributor?

 

[vtcwbuff]

A big deficit is not being able to put the ball in the basket. I don't know if there were other reasons why she got so little playing time.

 

[Charliebball]

Forgive this Boneyard rookie if this topic has been addressed previously, but I am puzzled by the mysterious absence of Lexi Gordon from most threads. At best, she is briefly mentioned but generally she doesn’t appear in discussions of starting and reserve lineups, skill sets, etc. If she is mentioned, she is listed at the bottom of the “depth charts” but little is said about what her deficits and strengths might be. I briefly chatted with her at First Night and found her to be enthusiastic and confident, not to mention she made two 3s in a 3 on 3 game and looked active and focused in that over-stimulating environment. Is she injured and not expected to play as a result? Are we overlooking a potential positive contributor?

LG had a rough start at UConn............she was apparently not fully prepared for the rigors of Geno's practices and appeared out of her element on the court in mop up duty............she was a highly ranked high school player so the talent is there..............hopefully she will have grown from her difficult freshman year enough to be a meaningful contributor to the team this season........

 

[BroadwayVa]

Forgive this Boneyard rookie if this topic has been addressed previously, but I am puzzled by the mysterious absence of Lexi Gordon from most threads. At best, she is briefly mentioned but generally she doesn’t appear in discussions of starting and reserve lineups, skill sets, etc. If she is mentioned, she is listed at the bottom of the “depth charts” but little is said about what her deficits and strengths might be. I briefly chatted with her at First Night and found her to be enthusiastic and confident, not to mention she made two 3s in a 3 on 3 game and looked active and focused in that over-stimulating environment. Is she injured and not expected to play as a result? Are we overlooking a potential positive contributor?

Thanks for reflecting on Lexi Gordon, I had/have great hopes for her as do many Uconn Fans. Her potential coming in was pretty high. Last year she was a Frosh and apparently did not meet all of Geno's prerequisite so her PT was limited, very limited.
If she can make 2 0f 3 3's all day long, and can score as we expected, Geno will be hard pressed not to play her. Until the season REALLY starts all we can do is speculate and most speculation don't show well in bright day light'; including this.

 

[Kaizen]

She is fearless .. hope she has a breakthrough year

 

[Charliebball]

Thanks for reflecting on Lexi Gordon, I had/have great hopes for her as do many Uconn Fans. Her potential coming in was pretty high. Last year she was a Frosh and apparently did not meet all of Geno's prerequisite so her PT was limited, very limited.
If she can make 2 0f 3 3's all day long, and can score as we expected, Geno will be hard pressed not to play her. Until the season REALLY starts all we can do is speculate and most speculation don't show well in bright day light'; including this.

if I remember correctly, LG was known more for her mid range game then her three point shooting in high school.............she was also good in transition and tough under the basket...............I wouldn't expect too much long distance shooting from her...........

 

[Hayven]

She had a couple of nice 3s during First Night, hopefully that translates into games as well

 

[augustaTC]

As I recall she was pretty well regarded out of HS. Can't believe she has no skills or forgot how to shoot. I think she found the physical aspects of the Husky program hard last year (as many freshmen do) so she had the usual first year difficulties. Don't think I'd write her off just yet.

 

[JustinesGuy]

I’m a huge LG fan. I thought she would have a better year than she did. She kinda looked deer in head lights and didn’t produce. I’m hoping for a solid year out of LG. She seems like her personality is the size of Texas.

 

[Longtime fan]

We don't really know the answer to your question. Only the coaches do. She did not "flash" much when she earned ( or was awarded ) any playing time last season. We all have great hopes because we need everyone to become as good as they can be. But I think her first year ( mostly of invisibility ) has caused people to "forget" she is even on the team. I never think of her, and I think of everyone. Here's hoping she winds up first team AA. Thanks for putting her name back on the map.

 

[EricSD]

Like all UCONN fans, I'll be rooting for Lexi big time. I don't know what she (or Coombs) were ranked on Blue Star but she was 29 and 22 per HG and PN. Coombs was even higher. Those rankings are just too high for these kids NOT to be contributors.

Keep in mind that Bent and Irwin were MUCH lower than Gordon (and Coombs). I would expect a greater improvement from the younger pair and that they would jump ahead of Bent and Irwin on the depth chart. Of course, it all depends on how they develop, how hard they work, and how much natural talent they actually had/have, but given their rankings, they should be solid contributors this year.

 

[Gus Mahler]

She has an endearing smile and personality, it seems. She's one of my sentimental favorites. I can envision her being in the thick of things late in her junior year and on into her senior year.

 

[MilfordHusky]

I believe Lexi is plural for Lexus. The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection, times 2.

 

[Vowelguy]

, but I am puzzled by the mysterious absence of Lexi Gordon from most threads.

You’re surprised that no one talks about a player that never plays and is never mentioned by the coach?

 

[Charliebball]

You’re surprised that no one talks about a player that never plays and is never mentioned by the coach?

well don't you find it a bit surprising that the number 29 ranked five star player in the country rarely played and the coach never talked about her...........?

 

[oldude]

Lexi’s issue last year was her fitness level. She was behind all of her teammates at the start of the season resulting in some nagging injuries which basically kept Lexi off the court throughout the preseason trip to Italy. Once the season started, Lexi was never able to catch up, so she ended up being the last player off the bench.

Despite that, Lexi always displayed a positive attitude on the bench with her teammates. Hopefully, this year she’s worked very hard in the offseason and will be able to compete for PT.

 

[Vowelguy]

well don't you find it a bit surprising that the number 29 ranked five star player in the country rarely played and the coach never talked about her......?

(1) That wasn't the question
(2) Not really. There is a long history of good HS players not playing a lot for Geno.

 

[JellyBean]

well don't you find it a bit surprising that the number 29 ranked five star player in the country rarely played and the coach never talked about her......?

I don't. The coaching staff knows why a player isn't playing. Also just because a player is ranked doesn't mean that they given anything. They have to earn those minutes on the floor. As fans/alumni, we know about the expectations and standards that Coach Auriemma & Coach CD demands from the players. If a player isn't meeting those standards, they won't play. Coach has said many times. He does not care if that player is ranked #1 or #100. Nothing is ever given. It is all earned.

 

[Charliebball]

I don't. The coaching staff knows why a player isn't playing. Also just because a player is ranked doesn't mean that they given anything. They have to earn those minutes on the floor. As fans/alumni, we know about the expectations and standards that Coach Auriemma & Coach CD demands from the players. If a player isn't meeting those standards, they won't play. Coach has said many times. He does not care if that player is ranked #1 or #100. Nothing is ever given. It is all earned.

I wasn't questioning why it happened, everybody knows the drill..................what I found somewhat surprising was that a very talented player wasn't able to make the transition to college level basketball..........not even close..............I'm sure it was a shock to the system for her..............I certainly hope that she gets it together this season...............

 

[Florida Fan]

I wasn't questioning why it happened, everybody knows the drill...what I found somewhat surprising was that a very talented player wasn't able to make the transition to college level basketball.....not even close....I'm sure it was a shock to the system for her....I certainly hope that she gets it together this season.....

Remembering Saniya Chong's odyssey, from Geno's sarcastic sound bites to valuable contributor. Many conjectured when she was going to transfer, but Saniya hung tough.

 

[Orangutan]

Doesn't pretty much every UConn player go through this to some degree?

At first, the player can't do anything right, Geno won't play her, etc. Over time, if she commits to learning and improving, she figures it out, becomes a great player, and we forget all about the times that she struggled.

I don't doubt that it will come together for Lexi at some point. If not this year, perhaps next year.

I'm very excited for the "Why is Christyn in Geno's doghouse?" phase, personally. Because trust me, it will happen.

 

[oldude]

Doesn't pretty much every UConn player go through this to some degree?

At first, the player can't do anything right, Geno won't play her, etc. Over time, if she commits to learning and improving, she figures it out, becomes a great player, and we forget all about the times that she struggled.

I don't doubt that it will come together for Lexi at some point. If not this year, perhaps next year.

I'm very excited for the "Why is Christyn in Geno's doghouse?" phase, personally. Because trust me, it will happen.

Yes, every freshman pays a visit to Geno’s doghouse at one time or another. But the exceptionally talented ones like DT, Maya, Stewie, Kia and Lou show their stuff right away despite, or maybe because of the fact that the little Italian is on them constantly. Hopefully Christyn and possibly Liv fall into the “exceptionally talented” group.

 

[willtalk]

It is a big jump from high school basketball to any high profile D1 program. That is not just in the higher level of competition but also the intensity of practices. Some players have a harder time adjusting to that change both in their skill level and the effort required. All these factors are compounded by those transitioning to Uconn. That is why Geno has always been careful to chose players not just for their skill level but also if they will be able to adapt to the intensity of his program.

Then we need to add the fact that some players skills just will not transition well to the next level of competition. This is true both from high school to college and from college to the Pro's. This is not meant as an evaluation of the player in question, only a generality that needs to be considered in doing so.

 

[Longtime fan]

Remembering Saniya Chong's odyssey, from Geno's sarcastic sound bites to valuable contributor. Many conjectured when she was going to transfer, but Saniya hung tough.

And Soniya only contributed in a major way her senior year.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Doesn't pretty much every UConn player go through this to some degree? .

Even Maya had a bad practice. I recall Geno being interviewed when one of the players walked by. Geno brought her over and asked,”Who just had a bad practice?” The player (Tiffany?) said almost gleefully, “Maya.” Maya didn’t have many bad practices, but did have at least that one.

And I believe that Diana was kicked out of practice at least once. Renee was banished to the swimming pool, which she hated.

 

[southofnorth]

Luckily we only have a couple of weeks to find out where she’s at when UConn opens against Ohio State (I know they have an exhibition before that, but I don’t think that’s a great judge of who can/will do what). It’s very possible that all the other headlines were just bigger and better than a bench player’s improvements. Walker’s 180, Lou healthy, Napheesa almost on a senior national team, Christyn’s bold prediction, etc. Unless Lexi suddenly became a DT-like player, I’d doubt we’d hear much about her. That said I hope she’s made a sizable jump and can be a consistent contributor.

 

[southofnorth]

And I believe that Diana was kicked out of practice at least once.

You are correct! I forget which video I saw it in, but they were discussing Diana Taurasi’s freshman year and how she just went about doing whatever she pleased. One day Geno got sick of it and told her to leave. Seems to have worked out in the long run I’d say

 

[DesertGnome]

Guess who’s missing from Geno’s discussion of the team in the Courant’s “Five takeaways from ESPN Media Day”: “Then we’ll get some great contributions from Kyla [Irwin], Mikayla [Coombs], Molly [Bent]. Olivia [Nelson-Ododa] will have some great moments, but other than those three that I mentioned at the beginning, we don’t have somebody who’s going to be pretty solid every day that we show up for practice.”

 

[Longtime fan]

Guess who’s missing from Geno’s discussion of the team in the Courant’s “Five takeaways from ESPN Media Day”: “Then we’ll get some great contributions from Kyla [Irwin], Mikayla [Coombs], Molly [Bent]. Olivia [Nelson-Ododa] will have some great moments, but other than those three that I mentioned at the beginning, we don’t have somebody who’s going to be pretty solid every day that we show up for practice.”

Embarrassing for Lexi. We can only hope it pisses her off and she becomes a tiger. Otherwise, she is dead meat.

 

[JoePgh]

Doesn't pretty much every UConn player go through this to some degree?

At first, the player can't do anything right, Geno won't play her, etc. Over time, if she commits to learning and improving, she figures it out, becomes a great player, and we forget all about the times that she struggled.

I don't doubt that it will come together for Lexi at some point. If not this year, perhaps next year.

I'm very excited for the "Why is Christyn in Geno's doghouse?" phase, personally. Because trust me, it will happen.

I can remember two freshmen who were never in Geno's doghouse (to my knowledge): Kelly Faris and Stef Dolson. Geno predicted before the first game that Kelly would never have a bad game at UConn (because the hustle and intelligence were always there even when her shot wasn't falling). She did have at least one bad game, against Duke in her freshman year, and although she was pulled from that game, she never got in Geno's doghouse.

If you recall, around January of Stef's freshman year, Geno said with some amazement that "Stef gets better by the week!"