Paige as NPOY | Page 7 | The Boneyard

Paige as NPOY

There were two national articles just on Paige today. The New York Times and an AP Wire story. The NY Times article is being discussed in another thread. Below are links to the articles. The NY Times Article is via an alternative link so you don't have to go through their paywall.

What other current WCBB player is having solo articles written about them in the national press? Much less two in the same day!

If she continues playing the way she is currently, I would be very surprised if she doesn't get at least one National Player of the Year award!



us.newschant.com

Paige Bueckers Knows UConn’s History. She’s Paving Its Future. - News Chant USA

Burnout doesn’t appear to exist in Paige Bueckers’s world. In a coronavirus-riddled season the place scholar athletes can do little else on campus in addition to play their sport, the University of Connecticut freshman spends her uncommon free time outdoors of follow and video games immersing...
us.newschant.com us.newschant.com

www.usatoday.com

'In her DNA': Freshman Paige Bueckers already a UConn star

Freshman Paige Bueckers is already the go-to player for top-ranked UConn
www.usatoday.com
 
I didn’t consider Boston a strong candidate for NPOY at 13 ppg, but I suppose if SC went undefeated through the SEC with a statement against A&M, she’d have gotten some support even without big scoring numbers and a loss to us. That ship sailed with their loss at Tennessee. They can still make the A&M statement.

It really might be a Bueckers-Evans battle at this point. Subject to change as the week goes on and I get swayed by recency bias.
 
nutmegger said:
Bill Russell of the Celtics won 11 championshps in 13 seasons.
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Bill Russell once asked, "how many championships did Red Auerbach win without Bill Russell?" The answer of course is ZERO.... so Bill had two without Red with himself coaching himself. Bill's record would be tops and unbreakable. Next would be Yogi Berra's 10 Cahampionships with the Yankees in 18 years with them {best catcher ever IMHO}, and Maurice "Le Rocket" Richard with 8 championships in 18 years with Montreal Canadiens.
 
Sluconn Husky said:
I think she has a chance but needs a strong finish and probably some off games from others.

Can Paige overcome all those players with so few games played and one marquee performance? I think she needs more considering the reflexive nature against freshmen.
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If the season were to end right now-- Paige should win it. If she doesn't - it doesn't mean that she isn't the best however. It just means that those who voted were wrong.

Her game is historic. What player in the last 25 years as the number 1 option for an elite top 5 team has produced the level of efficiency she has?

In addition to- the one game vs the top 5 team on National TV wasn't just a great game. It was an all-time great performance. All-time great - freakish one-of-kind type of performance.

As for marquee performances even in the game she shot horribly her last shot that she drilled a 3 while coming off the bench with an injury was a marquee type performance because of the injury and the shot and situation of the game being on the line in the closing 10 seconds or so. Her game was more than just shooting.

Even the game UCONN lost = She had 27 points on 10-15 shooting going 3-3 from the 3pt line. If that isn't a marquee performance - I don't know what is. Her True Shooting % from that game was 80.55%. That's what a very good free throw shooters shoot when they are wide open at the ft line. She shot it from the floor while being defended.

Her Effective fg% was 76.67%. in that game This is all freakish marquee type of stuff. Add that's along with UCONN is the number 1 team in the country. I'm going to repeat it for some fans -- :) UCONN IS the number 1 team in the country. :)This particular number 1 team should not have another All-American. - So Paige doesn't have another player you can point to and say-- "She's made Paige's game so much easier. . . "

As Tony said-- anyone not having her as the number 1 player is just looking for an excuse not to have her number 1. As a result they aren't being fair. She's basically hit two deciding factor game-type-of winning 3's vs some darn good teams in which the game was in the balance along with this freakish efficiency. :)What Paige is doing at this moment - is historic. :)
 
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oldude said:
Ended up 5/21 with a couple layups down the stretch, but I agree that Evans looked like anything but the NPOY.
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Those were useless layups too - both down by 9 with around 30 seconds left when twos don’t help. Bad loss, bad performance from Evans - no great wins (a double digit loss in their one marquee game with NC State). Realistically, as much as one day shouldn’t put you out of the running, she should be out of the running. But the senior factor is still there.

Michigan got their biggest win and Hillmon did her thing again. 27 on 11-16 shooting, all from 3 feet and in, and with 0 assists, steals or blocks. But she‘s a factor in the race. Howard and Boston both having quiet days head to head but still a second half to go (I think both of them are out, but a huge game could get them back in).

It‘s really interesting at this point. I think you almost have to twist yourself in knots to come up with reasons not to vote for Paige.
 
Jackalope said:
On the Naismith Men's award side, three Frosh have won the award: Kevin Durant (2007), Anthony Davis (2012), and Zion Williamson (2019).

Paige is deserving. Voters didn't hold it against these players that were freshmen. I would hope that the same holds true for the Women's Award voters!
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The Men's award was heavy to One and Done..huge difference to WBB..
 
Gurleyman said:
Howard and Boston both having quiet days head to head but still a second half to go (I think both of them are out, but a huge game could get them back in).
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Howard not exactly matching Paige's performance against South Carolina. Hillmon is really, really good at what she's good at, no doubt, but I don't think she's NPOY level. Natasha Mack has been incredible for OSU but not sure anyone has noticed. I'm not certain Cunnane is even NC State's best player. Evans has been good but not Paige good. Charli Collier has 21 and 14 today. I haven't seen her play much at all but she's a scoring and rebounding monster. Almost no assists and I don't know what her defense looks like.

That would seem to leave Paige and Clark, and the anti-UConn contingent will have conniptions if that turns out a certain way.
 
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oldude said:
Ended up 5/21 with a couple layups down the stretch, but I agree that Evans looked like anything but the NPOY.
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So Evans a Senior, plays 8 more minutes and shoots 10 more shots than Paige and only outscores her by 2. Paige went 4 for 11 on a bum ankle and had better assists to turnover numbers 3.5 to 1 vs 2.5 to 1.
 
Howard ends up 2-11 for 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks against Carolina.

Boston was 1-4 (again, does Dawn not teach post passing?), 4 points, 11 boards, 3 assists, 2 blocks.
 
Sluconn Husky said:
Howard ends up 2-11 for 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks against Carolina.

Boston was 1-4 (again, does Dawn not teach post passing?), 4 points, 11 boards, 3 assists, 2 blocks.
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Has anyone, besides Paige, scored more than 20 points against SC this season?
 
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Sluconn Husky said:
Howard not exactly matching Paige's performance against South Carolina. Hillmon is really, really good at what she's good at, no doubt. But I don't think she's NPOY level. Natasha Mack has been incredible for OSU but not sure anyone has noticed. I'm not certain Cunnane is even NC State's best player. Evans has been good but not Paige good. Charli Collier has 12 and 15 today. I haven't seen her play much at all but she's a scoring and rebounding monster. Almost no assists and I don't know what her defense looks like.

That would seem to leave Paige and Clark, and the anti-UConn contingent will have conniptions if that turns out a certain way.
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I don’t think Clark has much of a chance at 7th place in the Big 10 - her personal numbers are outstanding of course, but so far they don’t translate to a national impact that would warrant NPOY discussion. They do have games with Maryland and Michigan left, so she could potentially advance her candidacy with a couple big nights and/or wins that get Iowa up to, say, fourth or fifth in the Big 10 and into the top 25. Don’t want to count her out yet until those games happen.

Collier is considered the probable No. 1 pick in the draft as a skilled 6-5 forward, and is similar to Clark in that she has huge numbers, but her team is unranked and lacking big wins. And when they went against Baylor recently in a marquee game she had 2 points and 5 rebounds. She’s had a couple other 5-20 and 2-12 type really disappointing games in losses. Don’t think she’s a factor - Mack and NaLyssa Smith are probably in front of her for Big 12 POY (maybe Joens and the guard at WV too).

Mack is actually the one person ahead of Paige in win shares (last I saw - maybe Paige has slipped another couple spots after the X game), but Ok State hasn’t really sniffed the polls since they lost to Tulsa and started slow in conference. She maybe has a chance with one game left at Baylor to enter the discussion with a huge game in a win over them that make people notice her credentials, but she’s definitely fighting from behind.

Of course, I could be wrong about absolutely everything.
 
Honestly, if I had to pick a NPOY right now, I'd go with Naz Hillmon at Michigan. She's having an unbelievable year averaging 25.9 points per game, shooting 65%, and adding 11.5 rebounds per game. Honestly, Paige is good, but Naz Hillmon is just on another level at the moment -- IMO.
 
Lorcan said:
Honestly, if I had to pick a NPOY right now, I'd go with Naz Hillmon at Michigan. She's having an unbelievable year averaging 25.9 points per game, shooting 65%, and adding 11.5 rebounds per game. Honestly, Paige is good, but Naz Hillmon is just on another level at the moment -- IMO.
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I said this the other day, but if they never gave Naphessa Collier a NPOY award then Hillmon certainly doesn't deserve one. Collier had three better seasons than Hillmon is having.
 
Sluconn Husky said:
I said this the other day, but if they never gave Naphessa Collier a NPOY award then Hillmon certainly doesn't deserve one. Collier had three better seasons than Hillmon is having.
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I watched Hillmon play today. Like Pheesa, she has great hands and can score at a high percentage in close. But that’s it. Doesn’t play much defense and doesn’t seem to make her team better. Can’t compare to Pheesa. Not even close.
 
More often than not, within the past decade the NPOY as been on one of the top ranking teams, who also went relatively deep into the tourney. When players got it but, their teams didn’t do well in the tourney were:
1: the early Baylor exit due to Shoni Schimmel’s heroics
2: Kelsey Plum was averaging over 30 points a game, eventually becoming the scoring leader in Division 1
3: Napheesa being overlooked for Megan Gustafson
4: Sabrina Ionescu. Regardless of whatever participation banner is hanging in someone’s gym, we all know Oregon would have won it all last year

Of Hillsman, Paige, and Evans, only Pagie and Evans have a real opportunity in playing in April. I don’t believe Boston is in the running, as her numbers are not similar to the other three. That’s in large part due to her guards trying to get their points too.
 
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Hayven said:
More often than not, within the past decade the NPOY as been on one of the top ranking teams, who also went relatively deep into the tourney. When players got it but, their teams didn’t do well in the tourney were:
1: the early Baylor exit due to Shoni Schimmel’s heroics
2: Kelsey Plum was averaging over 30 points a game, eventually becoming the scoring leader in Division 1
3: Napheesa being overlooked for Megan Gustafson
4: Sabrina Ionescu. Regardless of whatever participation banner is hanging in someone’s gym, we all know Oregon would have won it all last year

Of Hillsman, Paige, and Evans, only Pagie and Evans have a real opportunity in playing in April. I don’t believe Boston is in the running, as her numbers are not similar to the other three. That’s in large part due to her guards trying to get their points too.
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Actually all NPOY votes are prior to Conference tourney play.
 
Lorcan said:
Honestly, if I had to pick a NPOY right now, I'd go with Naz Hillmon at Michigan. She's having an unbelievable year averaging 25.9 points per game, shooting 65%, and adding 11.5 rebounds per game. Honestly, Paige is good, but Naz Hillmon is just on another level at the moment -- IMO.
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There’s a good case to be made for Hillmon. Today’s win helped. One thing they were lacking was a win over a great team.

It’s so hard to compare her to Paige because they are totally different types of players. When you factor in the extra point for threes, their effective FG percentages are virtually identical. Hillmon gets you rebounds, Paige gets you assists. Hillmon doesn’t get you much else (21 assists, 9 blocks, 9 steals all year - and 7 assists came in one weird outlier game against Wisconsin when she shot 2-6 for 6 points, so she must have been double teamed on every touch). Paige probably has the “more ways to beat you“ argument in her favor, but in fairness a stat line doesn’t always show what impact players have (such as getting double teamed on every touch and maybe getting hockey assists as the ball is kicked out and then swung to an open shooter). But in the last five games combined, Hillmon has totaled 1 assist, 1 steal and 1 block, with today her third 0-0-0 in the last four. She’s just camping out on the block at both ends, trying to get a bucket or a rebound, and that’s it.

But if Michigan wins out their last few regular season games and Hillmon gets it, I certainly won’t raise a stink. She’s so good at doing what she does that you can’t say she didn’t earn it. I’ll be a little disappointed, sure, but one thing the last few games have shown is Paige certainly doesn’t care - she’s averaging only 10 shots a game against these Big East bottom feeder teams while trying to get her teammates shots. She’s clearly not too worried about her award candidacy, so I’m not going to worry about it much either. More a fun discussion than anything, since it would be WBB history if she won as a freshman, and we don’t have many ways to make history any more.
 
Rebecca Lobo touched on this in the SC/KY broadcast, but it's a very odd year for POY race in that the race hasn't really narrowed much (this was before Louisville loss). I'd probably give it to Bueckers at this point, but I think her claim to the crown is based mostly on her performance versus SC (which was an award winning performance, to be sure). Given the lack of true marquee games this year, very hard to get a full read on anyone.
 
Sluconn Husky said:
I said this the other day, but if they never gave Naphessa Collier a NPOY award then Hillmon certainly doesn't deserve one. Collier had three better seasons than Hillmon is having.
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It's tricky though -- it's not necessarily about whether Collier had amazing years -- it's more about who the competition is this year. Sure, Collier may have had great stats, but Gustafson was out of the world her senior year with unbelievable stat lines for Iowa.

I think if we're looking at the impact that players are having, and their impact this season -- it's hard to ignore what someone like Hillmon has done in breaking Michigan school records such as scoring 50 points in a game. I'd think that she'd be more recognized if Michigan hadn't gone on such a long COVID pause recently -- and she'll hopefully continue to roll in the last few games before the B10 Tournament.

As bbsamjj, said, I think the lack of marquee games hurts. I respect what Paige did in games like SC, TN, and others, but I'm not ready to coronate her yet -- and I think if Naz Hillmon has a big game against Iowa, she's definitely at the forefront of my list -- it's a shame that Michigan doesn't get to play Maryland in the regular season this year.

I think I'd argue that by camping out on the block, Hillmon opens up more for Michigan by design. She's been effective in helping them run their offense - but I haven't watched enough games from them to know how integral she is on the defensive end of the floor. Just because she's not doling out assists as a post, doesn't mean that she's not incredibly efficient and successful at carrying her team to a win.
 
Lorcan said:
Honestly, if I had to pick a NPOY right now, I'd go with Naz Hillmon at Michigan. She's having an unbelievable year averaging 25.9 points per game, shooting 65%, and adding 11.5 rebounds per game. Honestly, Paige is good, but Naz Hillmon is just on another level at the moment -- IMO.
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You lost me at "Paige is good" and then again at "another level".
 
eebmg said:
You lost me at "Paige is good" and then again at "another level".
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I agree with you.

What she did vs SC wasn't at another level? Her efficiency vs Arkansas in which her TS% wasn't at another level? Her entire season --her efficiency for a guard isn't at another level?

And her "one game" which seems to be downplayed by some is much bigger than any "other game."

IMO it's what someone said before - you literally have to make things up to not give it to her.
 
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