Not so good news - Paige (merged thread)

[KingKong139]

Disagree; maybe they should drop to third behind SC and Stanford, but who else is better than UConn without Paige?

This is heartbreaking news. Sending healing vibes to Paige and her loved ones and teammates.

UConn lost 2 starters and a 6th man (team leader) to the draft, now a top 3 player in the whole NCAA. I’d venture to say if not for Geno, UConn shouldn’t be a top 10 team preseason.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

ok, i'll stop now. this is supposed to be the 'get well soon, paige' thread, and not the 'one that got away' thread.
wait, one more.
'Domond has organized events to feed the homeless and clothe the needy.'
wiki.

 

[Cedar]

How many knee injuries did sue have during her uconn career?

I know that Sue Bird suffered a torn ACL 8 games into her freshman season. I’m not aware of any other knee injuries or surgeries during the remainder of her UCONN career.

Bird also missed the 2013 WNBA season due to knee surgery and subsequent rehab. In April 2017, she had surgery on her left knee and she missed training camp for the Seattle Storm. Bird also missed the 2019 season following another surgery on her left knee.

I hope Sue can introduce Paige to her performance enhancement specialist, Susan King Borchardt, who also has helped Breanna Stewart, Kelsey Plum, and other WNBA players. If it is permissible under NCAA rules, perhaps King Borchardt can consult with Paige and with Andrea Hudy to develop a good plan to help Paige recover from her knee surgery.

The secret to Sue Bird's sustained success: The trainer who helps the 41-year-old be at the top of her game

Sue Bird is the only WNBA player to win titles in three different decades. Meet the performance specialist, and some of the training, behind her late-career renaissance.

www.espn.com

 

[Stymie]

UConn lost 2 starters and a 6th man (team leader) to the draft, now a top 3 player in the whole NCAA. I’d venture to say if not for Geno, UConn shouldn’t be a top 10 team preseason.

If not for Geno’s RECRUITING-UCONN
May not be a top 10 preseason team.
Put he has put together an awesome array of talent, so they will open in the top 5 with a bullet.
Returning players have already shown newbies how adversity is dealt with and will continue to lead by example.
I new additions to rise to the occasion without missing a beat.
Of this I am convinced.
All that really matters is the final game in the tournament, and I fully expect UCONN to be one of those competing.

 

[Patty Bailey]

Definite tears here. Love Dorka and so happy we have her for another year! She's a great player and an even better human!

 

[NYCer20]

Was thinking that Paige will have been in college three years and played but a handful of games in front of the home crowd at Gampel. COVID season of no or extraordinarily limited fans, then a few games last year, none this year. And based on how she plays and her personality, she would have been unique with her relationship to the Gampel crowd, even given the extraordinary history of those who have come before. She can get the crowd rocking with her passing, shooting and fiery passion like no other. Just look at the small sample size, like the Notre Dame before the injury, or the tourney game against UCF, for examples of how she gets the crowd going and how the crowd gets her going. Three years and we've barely been able to see it, but hopefully we do eventually get two full years of that interaction.

 

[NHFan]

Have to wonder if she is heading towards "injury prone" territory? That said the number of acl injuries suffered by females in general gives me pause regarding their training??

 

[boontonbomber]

Pretty sure any team that drafts Paige is not going have 6000 people at their games. Though, on second thought, Paige might single-handedly attract that many just to watch her!

There are 4 averaging over 7,000 and 4 more over 5,000. Seattle attendance is over 10,000.

 

[eebmg]

UConn Alumni (with ACL experiences) offer advice for Paige.

Former UConn stars Breanna Stewart, Diana Taurasi and others react to Paige Bueckers’ ACL tear and where the Huskies go from here

When Breanna Stewart heard UConn women’s basketball star Paige Bueckers had torn the ACL in her left knee this week, she couldn’t help but think back to her own experience going through…

www.courant.com

and some welcome positivity on the season

Taurasi is confident if there’s any coach and program suited to make those adjustments, it’s Geno Auriemma and the Huskies.

“He’s always been a mastermind of making the most out of what he has,” Taurasi said. “Obviously, Paige is a big blow, she’s a big part of what they do as a team. But he’ll find a way to get the best out of the team and the incoming freshmen, and I have no doubt they’re gonna have another great season. It just might look different, but you can count on them going a long way in the tournament.”


and it must be a team effort

“You’re not going to be Paige, you’re not gonna find another player who is Paige,” Nurse said. “Each and every player has to step up just a little bit more than what they’ve done to kind of fill in those gaps.”

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[JRRRJ]

Knowing One, I believe it's too late to pick up a PG from the portal and be eligible for the 22-23 season. Maybe an international transfer? I don't know the rules for that. I do know that Nika is the only true PG that UConn has. Can Azzi spell Nika as PG and bring the ball up court? Yes, but she is more valuable playing off the ball. Can Caroline bring the ball up court? Yeah, but that's not optimum (I cringe at the thought). The little I know about Lou says that you might not her pressed into a PG role in big time D1 basketball. Have I missed someone?

I was a proponent of bringing in another big. Duh, how quickly things change...

I keep seeing this stuff and it drives me crazy . During the time when Caroline was one of the few still on their feet, she frequently brought the ball upcourt. Often against pressure. She has a good handle and did an excellent job of keeping her body between the pursuer and the ball. I don't recall seeing her lose posession in these circumstances. She usually gave the ball up when she got to the offensive end and went to her wing position.

 

[Bone Dog]

Paige does much more than bring the ball up the court.

In her freshman year, she was responsible for more than half the scoring, by my reckoning. Her points, the assists, and the extra attention defenses had to pay her, it all adds up. That made her more than a regular point guard.

Nika can be a regular point guard for us, but her own offense limits her effectiveness. Azzi can be a better point guard, maybe even do what Paige does for us. But it costs us the best shooting guard in the country to use her that way.

We really need Nika’s D, and she can be a serviceable point guard, and maybe develop into something even more this fall. I can imagine mixing up the lineups, using Azzi Caroline and Lou together with two bigs, and alternating this lineup with Nika Azzi Caroline and two bigs. The problem lineup, I think, is two guard and three bigs. I don’t think we can run that with Nika at point, since teams would end up sagging off her and playing 5 on 4.

 

[Bigboote]

UConn lost 2 starters and a 6th man (team leader) to the draft, now a top 3 player in the whole NCAA. I’d venture to say if not for Geno, UConn shouldn’t be a top 10 team preseason.

Yeah, but UConn DOES have Geno. And Geno has a couple months to figure things out, then the team has the whole preseason to figure out how to play without Paige. I think they're still top three and don't know who'd be above them if they were lower.

 

[Jc718]

One piece of optimism I’m going to cling to, we have Geno and they don’t.

 

[tower1]

One piece of optimism I’m going to cling to, we have Geno and they don’t.

OK let me know how that works out !

 

[jdote33]

Seems like they will keep her in good spirits.