Natalie Butler | The Boneyard

Natalie Butler

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Larry 7237

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I have been in Europe for the past 2 weeks. Has anybody heard anything about Butler?
 
Not a peep. But I sure hope she's working on her offensive and defensive footwork, upper body strength, and her outside shot. And here's hoping she finishes most of her layups this year.
 
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I summoned a World of Warcraft mage and she is casting her Big Mama Stef spell on Natalie as you read this.
 
chrissaran said:
Natalie needs to be a major factor this year. She needs to be a double/double every game. Hopefully she can channel "Big Mama Stef".
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I would be happy with 8 pts 8 rebs. There may be teams where there's no defensive match up for her and they go small. I think Gus has a good point. 100% healthy thumb and mentally strong. I'll add that she can't hesitate on that short jump shot.
 
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I'd really like to see her come back with a kind of "attack mode" attitude. I don't think it comes naturally to her and the great Tina Charles also had to develop it over time. Especially as a big, you need to play the game looking to impose your will on your opponent. That doesn't necessarily mean play physical, but just be more aggressive.
 
It never gets mentioned,but take a look at the practice competition that Natalie has had for a couple of years now.She has had Stokes,Stewart, and Tuck to bang or chase around the court.If we add in the transfers this coming year she will have gone up against some of the best competition that college basketball could ever have to offer.Now lets add in the practice guys and if she is healthy i expect that her learning curve should be nearly completed.She needs major minutes in real games this year and i have every confidence that Natalie will be a bellweather on both ends of the court.Only at UCONN and a very few other schools would this skills transition be able to take place.If any of the bigs from the class of 2018 want the very best chance to succeed, you have three guesses as to where to attend school and the first two don't count.
 
Right now the top 4 in the WNBA advanced stats, are Nneka, Tina, Stewie, and Maya, so Natalie practiced all year with one of the best. As long as she's healthy , she should do well.
 
ctkaiser said:
I would be happy with 8 pts 8 rebs. There may be teams where there's no defensive match up for her and they go small. I think Gus has a good point. 100% healthy thumb and mentally strong. I'll add that she can't hesitate on that short jump shot.
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In Stef's junior year, she averaged about 13.8 points and 7.3 rebounds a game so for those expecting her to Mama Stef, she wouldn't have to average a double, double at all.
 
baggerbob said:
Right now the top 4 in the WNBA advanced stats, are Nneka, Tina, Stewie, and Maya, so Natalie practiced all year with one of the best. As long as she's healthy , she should do well.
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That's pretty much the MVP race as well.
 
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The thumb injury couldn't have come at a worse time for Natalie! She worked her butt off transfer year and preseason then hurt the thumb right before the season started taking away everything + confidence she had built up and could never get it back in season, so this off season is tremendously important to get back that "edge" she had pre-injury!
I have complete faith Natalie will shine This season and beyond!
 
RSHERMVIKES said:
The thumb injury couldn't have come at a worse time for Natalie! She worked her butt off transfer year and preseason then hurt the thumb right before the season started taking away everything + confidence she had built up and could never get it back in season, so this off season is tremendously important to get back that "edge" she had pre-injury!
I have complete faith Natalie will shine This season and beyond!
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This, imo, says it all. That injury and the timing of it caused more problems than many seem to realize.
 
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JordyG said:
Not a peep. But I sure hope she's working on her offensive and defensive footwork, upper body strength, and her outside shot. And here's hoping she finishes most of her layups this year.
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Amen to that!
 
GiladKatzDeli said:
I'd really like to see her come back with a kind of "attack mode" attitude. I don't think it comes naturally to her and the great Tina Charles also had to develop it over time. Especially as a big, you need to play the game looking to impose your will on your opponent. That doesn't necessarily mean play physical, but just be more aggressive.
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She's from a military family, no? Agressiveness won't be a problem.
 
Larry 7237 said:
Bags27, I was in France wearing my UCONN hat and t-shirt, where were you?
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We were in Great Britain (Skye, Lake District, Edinburgh and Hadrian's Wall). Absolutely wonderful. Of course, great, great people and amazing scenery (we did lots of hiking). What we didn't anticipate was the fantastic food (and still not prepared for the anticipated credit card bills, even with the pound lower after Brexit...). The Brits are great hosts in every way.

Hope France was good and that you weren't near Nice....so horrible....
 
bags27 said:
We were in Great Britain (Skye, Lake District, Edinburgh and Hadrian's Wall). Absolutely wonderful. Of course, great, great people and amazing scenery (we did lots of hiking). What we didn't anticipate was the fantastic food (and still not prepared for the anticipated credit card bills, even with the pound lower after Brexit...). The Brits are great hosts in every way.

Hope France was good and that you weren't near Nice....so horrible....
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Well, if you weren't near Nice, you'd be pretty miserable anyway...
 
pacific 44 said:
It never gets mentioned,but take a look at the practice competition that Natalie has had for a couple of years now.She has had Stokes,Stewart, and Tuck to bang or chase around the court.If we add in the transfers this coming year she will have gone up against some of the best competition that college basketball could ever have to offer.Now lets add in the practice guys and if she is healthy i expect that her learning curve should be nearly completed.She needs major minutes in real games this year and i have every confidence that Natalie will be a bellweather on both ends of the court.Only at UCONN and a very few other schools would this skills transition be able to take place.If any of the bigs from the class of 2018 want the very best chance to succeed, you have three guesses as to where to attend school and the first two don't count.
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It helps, but doesn't guarantee she will improve dramatically. I mean if you can't jump you can't jump. Look at Courtney's vigorous workouts. It didn't help her out at this level.
 
wbfree said:
It helps, but doesn't guarantee she will improve dramatically. I mean if you can't jump you can't jump. Look at Courtney's vigorous workouts. It didn't help her out at this level.
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Courtney Ekmark and Natalie Butler.

First, Courtney:

Courtney was as enthusiastic -- totally dedicated! -- to coming to play for Geno at UConn as any recruit, ever. She spent her senior HS year with a personal trainer to maximize her skills. And she certainly excelled as a HS star. Upon arrival she brought an impeccable character, positive attitude, excellent perimeter shooting skills, and a high BB IQ. So far, so good.

When she got hurt she was undeterred and remained driven to be a member of the UConn Huskies rotation. But it never happened. Why?:
- In her limited playing time (behind Kia, Moriah, Lou, Gabby and Saniya) she showed desire and some skill as a passer and spot-up shooter, BUT:
- Her reaction time on defense was not, um, exactly instantaneous;
- Nor was her lateral movement;
- In transition she couldn't keep pace with her fleet teammates;
- At the offensive end her "first step" when going to the hoop was easily defended;
- And steals or rebounds were a rarity.
- Finally, it is not a coincidence that she was the only player on the roster to never earn a Badass Award.
​
Courtney Ekmark is a great kid and will be missed by UConn. But not on the court when the bright lights are on. I expect her to start (after a siit-out season) at ASU and drop 10 ppg or so. They will love her as we have.:)

Next, Natalie:

Another great kid with an admirable attitude, an imposing (6'5") physical presence and impressive credentials. After a non-game-playing season, Nat joined the team on the court in 2015-2016. How did she do? In a word, her performance was inconsistent.
- Her thumb injury really set her back;
- Once recovered (physically and psychologically), she was generally deployed in zone defenses -- to take advantage of her height and conceal her slow lateral movement;
- She displayed a good shooting touch (to 15") and good passing skills, especially in transition; BUT:
- She did not appear to have either a "nose for the ball" or good vertical leaping skills and thus was an underachieving rebounder; and,
- Aside from occasional brief flashes, she lacked the knack for being That Dominant Player who "takes over" a big game.
​
What may we expect or hope for from Nat?
- More PT;
- Improved assimilation ("in the flow") into half-court offensive sets; and,
- General improvement resulting from dedication and hard work ethic.
​
Natalie will definitely be a player and a Badass in 2016-2017. How good? How often? Time will tell.;)​
 
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