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Message: [QUOTE="Alydar, post: 5086232, member: 730"] My opinion is that pg, sg, w/sf, pf, c are not positions, they are roles. Players are assigned roles, not positions. And UConn has a number of players that appear at this point to be able to fill multiple roles. We don't have to be told who is filling the roles, for the most part that becomes clear by their play and since roles require different skill sets, size is a factor. Having a pg who can play multiple roles adds many dimensions to the offense. Having a pg who is a +++ shooter/scorer expands that offense and likely improves efficiency because the other 4 players get open looks. In 2021 Bueckers started the season while Muhl sat. Why? Everyone on the team and the coaches knew for certain that Bueckers was the best player and Geno decided that her best position was at the point. At some point Geno moved Bueckers to an off-guard position. Some say that it was because he wanted Muhl on the floor. Bueckers was a much better ball-handler, a much better passer and was faster than Muhl. My recollection was that Geno said in effect that Williams and Westbrook weren't producing from behind the arc and Bueckers was the only consistently effective outside shooter. So Geno moved Bueckers into a sg role, not because Muhl was a better pg but due to the need for other roles. In the last few seasons injuries have put both Ducharme(2-3) and Fudd,(1/2/3) two elite-level 3pt shooters (IMO) to the bench and once again Bueckers was needed to fill that role. Last season UConn played 4 guards by necessity and Bueckers guarded the opponents' pf on defense. On offense she played a 2/3 role. I remember seeing her defend the opposing 4 on the low block but I have no recollection of her posting up the opposing 4 on the low block. Why? Because her role as a 4 was only on the defensive end. On offense she was guarded by opposing guards, not by opposing 4's. Anyone claiming that her role on offense was at pf needs to provide evidence of that other than who she guarded on defense. As good a scorer as Bueckers is, she is better as a floor general, and it's difficult run a team while running off screens or setting screens for others. Geno said that he can sit and watch when Bueckers is at the point because her decisions are impeccable, while he had to stand and yell instructions when Muhl was at the point. I can count on a finger or two the players he has had over 40 years that he trusted as much. Bird? Moore? This year is fundamentally different from the last 4 in that UConn has a host of scorers at all three levels. The NEED for having Bueckers play away from the point does not exist. Someone here said that if Bueckers was at the point she would "eclipse" the other effective pg players who would lose minutes. My response to that is so what? She would eclipse others at another position too. That's what unicorns do. Having a pg who is a ++scorer is an incredible advantage for any offense since the pg will draw defenders to them and free up other teammates. I expect that Chen will have some of that ability and that Arnold will have improved over the passed summer but not to Bueckers' level. The fact that fans have favorites that they want to see play is the antithesis of "team play" and they are asking Geno to play favorites, the opposite of everything he preaches. Some other fans want Bueckers to surpass what Clark did last season. I'd love to see that but UConn isn't Iowa and in any case I don't think Clark matched Bueckers' POY season as a freshman. Clark scored more but she also shot a lot more Thanks to those who have responded with a number of thoughtful and persuasive posts on this topic. I believe that practice may have started yesterday (40 days before 1st game) and the players themselves finally get a say. [/QUOTE]

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