Qadence Samuels commits!

[Dogstar]

After looking at this photo, I’ll be surprised if we don’t get Delaney Thomas.

Wishing on a Star!

 

[Dogstar]

I suggest Quad!

Isnt Tht a muscle ?

 

[Gus Mahler]

Chemistry is a very important word

What about astronomy?

 

[Dogstar]

If one daughter is named Qadence and another daughter is named Qandance the parents set them up subliminally to develop good footwork.

HUH?....yeah ok I get it, but no lmao

 

[Carnac]

Let's assume for a moment all of these observations (attributes) are true and accurate. What a get for UConn. I admit to not having heard of Samuels before her commitment announcement, but these comments sure make her sound like a can’t miss recruit. I’m pleased just from what I’ve read in this thread.

The UConn staff always tells players that verbal this far away from their graduation month/year the things they want them to work on during their senior year. Now Samuels no longer has to concern herself with impressing college coaches that had an interest in her, or the distractions that come with being a top 50 Division 1 women's college basketball recruit.

She can work on her game and get ready for her first UConn contest 17 months from now. Welcome to the UConn family Qadence. You just picked a few hundred thousand (or so) new fans eager to see you play. I hope all of your dreams and desires are realized during your time at UConn.

 

[SVCBeercats]

She is a four star recruit listed at #35. I’m surprised UConn would recruit a player at that ranking unless they see something no one else does.

 

[Dogstar]

What about astronomy?

We should all reach for the stars, and even if we miss, we'll still be amongst the Heavens

 

[Carnac]

For all the hoopla about the "rankings", I did some research and here is how all our players stack up:

Hoopgurlz

• 6 Shade
• 7 Arnold
• 35 Samuels

Prospects Nation

• 3 Shade
• 8 Arnold
• NR in the top 25 Samuels

Blue Star

• 9 Shade
• 7 Arnold
• 32 Samuels

ASGR

• 9 Shade
• 7 Arnold
• 42 Samuels

JR All Star

• 5 Shade
• 16 Arnold
• NR top 100 Samuels

Prep Girls Hoops

• 33 Shade
• 8 Arnold
• NR top 50 Samuels

Some of my info is older - especially for ASGR - so i'm not sure if AS or KK's rankings have changed. In this thread ASGR listed Samuels' ranking so that was easy. Some of the rankings are way outliers - Prep Girls for Shade at 33? JR All Star for Arnold at 16?

Either way it looks like both Ashlynn and KK are squarely in the top 10 consensus. Quadence seems to be in the 30's for those who ranked her, but composite much lower since she's not in the top 100/50 for a pair of services.

But let's be honest. We beat out local Maryland, elite Louisville, up and coming Tennessee/UNC for a kid who a lot of teams apparently wanted. And bottom line, she will either be great and start eventually, good and be a solid reserve off the bench, decent and be a role player at the end of games, or some combo. We read that she runs like a gazelle, has a solid mid-range game (Mir never did), and has been working on her 3-point shot. Tons of upside. How will she develop? No idea. Fingers crossed that she develops a lot!

The staff will do all they can to help her develop and not only be a as good as she can be, but also a great kid and teammate. If she ends up unhappy and doesn't progress/develop enough to be a contributor as she envisioned, maybe she will transfer out. OBVIOUSLY I'm not projecting anything, but good players like Espinosa-Hunter, Poffenbarger and McLean weren't able to make it work at UCONN. AEH ended up having a very nice career at Seton Hall, McLean was really solid on a dreadful Virginia team, and it remains to be seen what Saylor does at Arkansas.

Anyway not trying to hijack the thread to talk about other players. Just to point out that we ALL should be super excited. We got a kid who WANTS to be at UCONN, and to me that means she wants to work hard, is aware of the challenges based on who else is coming/here, and is ready to rock and roll! Now she's one of ours, and I am pumped, like MOST of the folks on here.

Welcome to the basketball capital of the world, Quadence. I hope all your personal and basketball dreams come true!

As usual, well said EricLA.

 

[Gus Mahler]

We should all reach for the stars, and even if we miss, we'll still be amongst the Heavens

Siriusly good sentiment.

Nothing like looking up in the night sky in late March and spying our buddy Orion accompanied by his faithful canines.

 

[ctchamps]

HUH?....yeah ok I get it, but no lmao

It struck me as lit or GOAT ( in my day it was neat or cool but well before dope) that parents gave their daughters names that eliminated the u after Q, that had similar spelling and that had a similar theme even if it isn’t strongly correlated. Well done Mr. and Mrs Samuels.

 

[oldhusky]

After watching the U18 I'd much much rather have Brady at the 5 than Del Rosario. The only way DR rates higher is height, a very overrated factor. A year from now I'd be happy with a Brady/Edwards/Patterson front line.

I believe Brady is the better overall player as well, and if we recruited Del Rosario that decision would be on the table and perhaps Brady would be the odds on favorite if that was the main choice. There would be a skills difference in addition to height. Although I would project Brady better overall it is mostly because of her scoring and passing. I think Del Rosario is very likely to be the better rebounder and maybe shot blocker too.

Brady has to play a little out of position if at C. PF looks like her best position, but could she be better than 95% of the division 1 C's ? Yea she probably could. We will have a true C sized player starting at the 5 this year. We don't know if Dorka's backup will be or not. Amari is the only candidate taller than Brady.

Next year if Amari improves we might have a 6-5 starter at C, but if not her, then PF it is for starter and backup at the C position without Del Rosario or a top portal transfer. Against the vast majority of the teams that is not a problem at all. But aren't we good enough that we can look past most of the competition and ponder what is the best lineup to beat SC or Stanford etc. SC had the best C in the country in Boston (6-5) and arguably the best backup C as well who was 6-7. Stanford had Brink a very athletic 6-4 and now they add the #1 recruit in 6-7 Betts.

Those two teams look to have two true C's that 95% of the teams would love to have just one of , even the lessor of the two. Maybe Del Rosario would never be good enough to take minutes away from Brady, Edwards, Patterson or DeBerry. But it wouldn't be shocking at her rating if she did turn out to be better than a couple of those either. Three of the four are big question marks, and Aaliyah has shown us two different players, the freshmen version looked like a 4 year starter and future All American, and the early sophomore Aaliyah looked like a player any of the aforementioned could beat out.

I think we have many talented bigs, with a-lot of question marks, but at the moment the only proven C is Dorka and next year she is gone. We are a little top heavy in PF's and light on true C's, so I hope we still try for Del Rosario given the kind of twin towers our most serious competition is likely to have.

 

[Alydar]

I believe Brady is the better overall player as well, and if we recruited Del Rosario that decision would be on the table and perhaps Brady would be the odds on favorite if that was the main choice. There would be a skills difference in addition to height. Although I would project Brady better overall it is mostly because of her scoring and passing. I think Del Rosario is very likely to be the better rebounder and maybe shot blocker too.

Brady has to play a little out of position if at C. PF looks like her best position, but could she be better than 95% of the division 1 C's ? Yea she probably could. We will have a true C sized player starting at the 5 this year. We don't know if Dorka's backup will be or not. Amari is the only candidate taller than Brady.

Next year if Amari improves we might have a 6-5 starter at C, but if not her, then PF it is for starter and backup at the C position without Del Rosario or a top portal transfer. Against the vast majority of the teams that is not a problem at all. But aren't we good enough that we can look past most of the competition and ponder what is the best lineup to beat SC or Stanford etc. SC had the best C in the country in Boston (6-5) and arguably the best backup C as well who was 6-7. Stanford had Brink a very athletic 6-4 and now they add the #1 recruit in 6-7 Betts.

Those two teams look to have two true C's that 95% of the teams would love to have just one of , even the lessor of the two. Maybe Del Rosario would never be good enough to take minutes away from Brady, Edwards, Patterson or DeBerry. But it wouldn't be shocking at her rating if she did turn out to be better than a couple of those either. Three of the four are big question marks, and Aaliyah has shown us two different players, the freshmen version looked like a 4 year starter and future All American, and the early sophomore Aaliyah looked like a player any of the aforementioned could beat out.

I think we have many talented bigs, with a-lot of question marks, but at the moment the only proven C is Dorka and next year she is gone. We are a little top heavy in PF's and light on true C's, so I hope we still try for Del Rosario given the kind of twin towers our most serious competition is likely to have.

Although I would project Brady better overall it is mostly because of her scoring and passing.

Brady puts the ball in the hoop. And her footwork and her foot speed and her much better mobility.

There are very few legit centers in wcbb and most of them are too slow to play at UConn. If you find a skilled one a la Boston, she dominates. UConn's last center IMO was Stokes and she was 6'3" and a backup. UConn did OK with two 4's starting (Stewart/Tuck).

There is no rule that someone has to be a 5. UConn puts their frontline players at a high post and moves them around. And 6'1" Collier was probably the most successful low post ever for UConn. Find me players who can rebound, run the court, play defense and have an outside shot and I don't care how tall they are or what position their profile says they play.

I really really like Brady and Patterson. They have both worked hard to achieve an elite skill level and that is the best evidence that they will continue to work hard.

 

[Longtime fan]

For those who don’t read the Recruiting thread.


View attachment 77163

And the number 1 recruit in the class just committed to LSU. No big surprise, because she is from Louisiana and Kim is [fretty persuasive.

 

[Bone Dog]

And the number 1 recruit in the class just committed to LSU. No big surprise, because she is from Louisiana and Kim is [fretty persuasive.

Fretty is right

 

[UConnCat]

 

[Bone Dog]

That’s a lot of Samuels’s to populate UConn for years to come!!!

 

[The CDR-Ret]

Here is a QUESTION for Boneyarders. Would you place your faith in a number of a BB rating system of a young girl's talent versus, Geno, Cris and their staff's ability to rate a young woman's BB talent and character??????? What say you.....

100% with Geno & CD; Rating services are equivalent to the BY discussions of Playing Time and starting line-ups, as it only matters what Geno & CD decide and I'm cool with that as well.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy reading the discussions, but would rather watch/rewatch the games where 100% effort and team defense feed the offense regardless of which Huskies are playing.

I am hoping that all 11 play every game (healthy & all make a positive impact)...

 

[Purchase1]

That’s a lot of Samuels’s to populate UConn for years to come!!!

If I’m not mistaken Coach Valley also follows Qandace who is a talented youngster by all accounts. So maybe we get a sister act ala the Valley sisters ha!

 

[EricLA]

Love the family picture. Love the poofballs for her hair. Love that her sister has the same hair. Hope she keeps that all thru college.

LOVED Christyn's poofy hair. Not a fan when she changed it to the braids. Also a huge fan of Liya's purple and yellow braids. Love when players do something unique and fun (Side note - not a fan of the new Dangerfield hair...).

Anyway, if QS's personality is as fun as her hair, we are going to be in for 4 years of entertainment with her - and not just from a "great hoops" perspective!

 

[hoophuskee]

I believe Brady is the better overall player as well, and if we recruited Del Rosario that decision would be on the table and perhaps Brady would be the odds on favorite if that was the main choice. There would be a skills difference in addition to height. Although I would project Brady better overall it is mostly because of her scoring and passing. I think Del Rosario is very likely to be the better rebounder and maybe shot blocker too.

Brady has to play a little out of position if at C. PF looks like her best position, but could she be better than 95% of the division 1 C's ? Yea she probably could. We will have a true C sized player starting at the 5 this year. We don't know if Dorka's backup will be or not. Amari is the only candidate taller than Brady.

Next year if Amari improves we might have a 6-5 starter at C, but if not her, then PF it is for starter and backup at the C position without Del Rosario or a top portal transfer. Against the vast majority of the teams that is not a problem at all. But aren't we good enough that we can look past most of the competition and ponder what is the best lineup to beat SC or Stanford etc. SC had the best C in the country in Boston (6-5) and arguably the best backup C as well who was 6-7. Stanford had Brink a very athletic 6-4 and now they add the #1 recruit in 6-7 Betts.

Those two teams look to have two true C's that 95% of the teams would love to have just one of , even the lessor of the two. Maybe Del Rosario would never be good enough to take minutes away from Brady, Edwards, Patterson or DeBerry. But it wouldn't be shocking at her rating if she did turn out to be better than a couple of those either. Three of the four are big question marks, and Aaliyah has shown us two different players, the freshmen version looked like a 4 year starter and future All American, and the early sophomore Aaliyah looked like a player any of the aforementioned could beat out.

I think we have many talented bigs, with a-lot of question marks, but at the moment the only proven C is Dorka and next year she is gone. We are a little top heavy in PF's and light on true C's, so I hope we still try for Del Rosario given the kind of twin towers our most serious competition is likely to have.

IMO Edwards has shown to be a reliable center. And there is no question about it. For 1.5 years out of 2 in her early career she has performed pretty well. SO I don’t understand the trepidation just saying it. Why does a half year in her soph year trump 1.5 years of her frosh and soph years when she was fine?

 

[HuskyFan1125]

Congrats and welcome to UCONN nation.

 

[Bone Dog]

IMO Edwards has shown to be a reliable center. And there is no question about it. For 1.5 years out of 2 in her early career she has performed pretty well. SO I don’t understand the trepidation just saying it. Why does a half year in her soph year trump 1.5 years of her frosh and soph years when she was fine?

I’m with you on this one. I think our upperclassmen are ready. And I’m pretty confident in our sophomores.

 

[JellyBean]

Welcome, Qadence!! Super excited to have you joining the UConn program.

 

[TeamFirst!]

I've seen several references that Quadence is a good student also. Again, there are only so many kids that fit the Uconn profile. I love her energy level when she plays. She's all business out there and from what little I've seen a quick thinker. Her head is in the game. There is no cloud over her head like there is with so many young people. Her form looks decent on her jump shot to me at least ( I'm no expert ). I'm seeing length and a lot of quickness. She can move her feet. I think she has more defensive potential than just about anyone we have. In regard to her rating, I'm not seeing a lot of social media or PR activity on her. A lot of mediocre kids get PR out the wazoo and a higher rating as a result. Maybe she didn't get a lot of national exposure either. It costs money to play with a lot of these travel teams. At minimum, she gives Geno another player type in the player pool and increased depth. And this girl has potential to be great in the right environment. She chose well.

 

[sun]

Qadence reminds me of a young Angel Reese.