I certainly agree, Carnac, that effective rebounding has 2 qualities (besides being tall and being able to jump well): instinct and commitment. Certainly, Gabby and Pheesa have both. Lou may not have their instincts, but there's nothing stopping her--except herself--from making the effort.
Again and again, it really doesn't seem to matter much whether Lou does it or not: UConn has proved it can rebound with SC, and next year there won't be much space underneath for Lou anyway. My concern is that she get the most out of the fantastic coaching opportunities at UConn so that she can be the best professional possible.
Bags, I agree 100% with your response to my comment. However...............I did not mention any names in my take. I understand that a reader MAY assume or infer that I was referencing
Lou,
I was not.
I was speaking from a personal point of view. I was a post player in college. I'm very tall. I also
had hops. I was a pretty decent rebounder and shot blocker in my day. I wanted to be a good rebounder (so did my coaches), so I learned how to read and/or determine where the ball was going to come off the rim
BEFORE it hit the rim. That's having a nose for the ball. That's positioning yourself (jostling/banging) to get the rebound (after the shot is taken and looking at the trajectory of the ball) BEFORE it comes off the rim or backboard.
I also learned how to time my jumps (I often grabbed the ball above the rim), so that I beat the other players around me to the ball. Like Butler, I also learned not to bring the ball down once I had it. You know what happens when you do. She keeps the ball ABOVE her head while looking to pass it. Most rebounders learn their craft in high school, or AAU. Most players are recruited from high school because of the skill set they already have. I was a good rebounder/shot blocker BEFORE I got to college. Rare is the college coach that recruits a player hoping to teach that player a new skill once they arrive on campus. They hope to refine and improve on the skills they already have.
My attitude and thought process was, when a shot was taken (on either end of the court), if the ball does not go in, it's mine. Potential body contact (jostling/banging)
with anyone else never entered my mind. My attitude was I'm not worried about them, they need to be worried about ME!!!. 100 % of my focus and attention was on the basketball, and being the first one to grab it. Like I've seen Gabby do on numerous occasions, if I could not grab the ball, I tried to hit/tap it to one of my teammates. It's almost like an obsession. Some players will rebound the ball IF it comes to them.
An obsessive/determined rebounder will go get the ball
wherever it is.
I also had to learn how to block shots WITHOUT fouling the shooter. Once I did, my personal fouls per game average went down, and my production in these areas went way up. I never played on a team where all five starting players were obsessive rebounders. A coach can say "I want everybody to hit the boards". That's fine. A player can go to the boards, but it dos not mean his/her heart has to be in it.
A determined rebounder will move you (bang you) out of the way to get to the ball. I've been on both ends of those wrestling matches many times. Sometimes I was the mover, other times, I was the move-ee. These are the traits I see in Gabby and Napheesa. I saw Gabby and Naphessa both throw caution to the wind Monday, and challenge two players that were much taller than they are, for rebounds and on many occasions, they were successful. Gabby has heart and grit, so does Collier.
I NOT saying no one else on the team does not, just that these two do!
NOTE: It can be
very intimidating to go up against another player that you're literally looking up at, and have to try and out jump them, or block their shots.
