Recruiting Needs for 2013

[Sonny44]

No way they beat us again this year; mark my words.

 

[easttexastrash]

Anyone know why Baylor's Chandler is out this year? Is she injured? I know she has played 2 years there.

Chandler has had a couple of knee surgeries. She played some in her freshman season but never moved particularly well. She sat out last year after a surgery and some speculated that she would play this year and looks to be moving very well but some think that Mulkey is trying to carry her over to help transition into the post-Griner years.

I've watched her in pre-game warm-ups and man does she look like she could help this team. She has good size and a sweet lefty shot.

 

[easttexastrash]

Stanford gets Beebe. Baylor gets top 10-15 Alexis Prince and four or five other recruits ranked in the 20-80 range.

Baylor will add essentially three top 10-15 recruits in Washington, Prince and Chandler, plus the rest of next year's recruiting class, including another big (Higgins at 6-4) that should be able to provide some extra size to help out Griner. I expect to see Abuke, also 6-4, make some decent strides over the summer.

 

[easttexastrash]

No way they beat us again this year; mark my words.

I am guessing you mean Baylor when you say "they"? Baylor is going to be equally deep next year with the addition of Prince, Washington and Chandler. And don't underestimate the strides that Griner can still make this summer. She is going to benefit tremendously from her experience with the Olympic team, assuming that she makes the team. She is going to be, in my opinion, the greatest player to ever hit the court in college basketball, and she is already in the top 5, IMO. She will have another year to add some strength and additional post moves and will have been coached by the best that the women's game has to offer. It will take a monumental effort to stop her next year.

Next year, UCONN and Baylor will likely be the two best college teams to have ever hit the court at the same time. Baylor will have a tremendous senior presence and there will not be anything that they haven't faced in their careers.

I suspect that one of these teams will go into the Final Four undefeated and one will go in with one loss and will meet in the final game. With the first meeting being at UCONN, I have to give the advantage to the Huskies. On a neutral court, it may be one of the best games ever.

 

[Drumguy]

From what I have heard and seen (on here and Nan's site):

Diamond DeShields W
Taya Reimer F
Karlie Samuelson G
Jannah Tucker G
Stephanie Mavunga F

Also isn't Sierra Calhoun a '13?

 

[Wbbfan1]

Sierra Clahoun is in Class 2014. She's 6'1" and plays both 2 guard and wing.

Sierra Calhoun - Link

Also isn't Sierra Calhoun a '13?

 

[Suebird10fan]

I am guessing you mean Baylor when you say "they"? Baylor is going to be equally deep next year with the addition of Prince, Washington and Chandler. And don't underestimate the strides that Griner can still make this summer. She is going to benefit tremendously from her experience with the Olympic team, assuming that she makes the team. She is going to be, in my opinion, the greatest player to ever hit the court in college basketball, and she is already in the top 5, IMO. She will have another year to add some strength and additional post moves and will have been coached by the best that the women's game has to offer. It will take a monumental effort to stop her next year.

Next year, UCONN and Baylor will likely be the two best college teams to have ever hit the court at the same time. Baylor will have a tremendous senior presence and there will not be anything that they haven't faced in their careers.

I suspect that one of these teams will go into the Final Four undefeated and one will go in with one loss and will meet in the final game. With the first meeting being at UCONN, I have to give the advantage to the Huskies. On a neutral court, it may be one of the best games ever.

ETT, I'm willing to take back my comment that Baylor won't have significant added depth. But, here's a question. Has depth really been an issue this year? I know it's been a CONCERN, but has it actually been a problem? From looking at the stats, Condrey seems to be a solid contributor this year, which gives them a seven person rotation. When two of your starters play 70 to 75 minutes between them (in a competitive game), there's really no reason to have more than a seven-person rotation. So, from a downside risk perspective, the depth will be a plus for Baylor, but I don't see it giving them upside.

Now if you told me that depth has been a problem this year, perhaps because of foul trouble. And if you then told me that's why Baylor has struggled against SJU, ISU and Tx Tech. If you tell me all that, then I might upgrade my opinion of how good Baylor is this year, and therefore how good they'll be next year.

Putting depth aside ... I reiterate that anyone looking for WCBB players to improve between junior and senior years (Olympics or no Olympics) is setting themselves up for disappointment.

By the way, ETT, do you have multiple Texas loyalties ... if not, how did someone from East Texas end up rooting for a team from all the way on the other side of the state?

 

[Sonny44]

We need to prevent other teams from getting any of the top picks that we don't have room for.

 

[MarieM]

this baylor team would probably end up like 2007-2008 uconn team... 36-1

 

[MarieM]

who knows if Griner even comes back next year!

 

[VAMike23]

With the first meeting being at UCONN, I have to give the advantage to the Huskies. On a neutral court, it may be one of the best games ever.

Precisely why I [agreed] that it will likely be a titanic battle between two very, very strong teams.... I do think that the difference in adding top 5 recruits and especially BStewart compared to adding top 15 recruits is pretty substantial in WCBB. I would guess UCONN will be favored in that battle, but the wildcard is how much Griner improves over this year. Still far away in the future, but fun to talk about.

 

[easttexastrash]

ETT, I'm willing to take back my comment that Baylor won't have significant added depth. But, here's a question. Has depth really been an issue this year? I know it's been a CONCERN, but has it actually been a problem? From looking at the stats, Condrey seems to be a solid contributor this year, which gives them a seven person rotation. When two of your starters play 70 to 75 minutes between them (in a competitive game), there's really no reason to have more than a seven-person rotation. So, from a downside risk perspective, the depth will be a plus for Baylor, but I don't see it giving them upside.

Now if you told me that depth has been a problem this year, perhaps because of foul trouble. And if you then told me that's why Baylor has struggled against SJU, ISU and Tx Tech. If you tell me all that, then I might upgrade my opinion of how good Baylor is this year, and therefore how good they'll be next year.

Putting depth aside ... I reiterate that anyone looking for WCBB players to improve between junior and senior years (Olympics or no Olympics) is setting themselves up for disappointment.

By the way, ETT, do you have multiple Texas loyalties ... if not, how did someone from East Texas end up rooting for a team from all the way on the other side of the state?

I think that the thing that you may be overlooking is the fact that some of the players that are being discussed may actually be better than some of the current starters. It also gives you the opportunity to take out players who may not be playing particularly well on one night and put in someone of nearly equal or greater talent, who may perform better on that night. I think that is where depth really makes you a better and stronger team. Not to mention the increased competition gained in practice each day.

I would say that there are a few examples this year of players who have improved considerably from their junior seasons. I would say that Stricklen, Nneka and Glory Johnson have made noticeable strides this year and are playing at a much higher level. Griner still has many strides that she can make and I suspect that she will.

As far as my Baylor allegiance, maybe some Texas geography lessons would be in order. El Paso (739 miles) is "all the way on the other side of the state." Lubbock (400 miles) is "all the way on the others side of the state." Harlingen, TX (624 miles) is "all the way on the other side of the state." Waco is only 199 miles from my home town, which in Texas, is not a long distance. Add the relatively close proximity and a family history with Baylor and it is easy to see where my loyalties to Baylor came from. And the Baylor campus is where I met my nearest and dearest friend in life.

 

[wallman]

Stanford gets Beebe. Baylor gets top 10-15 Alexis Prince and four or five other recruits ranked in the 20-80 range.

IMO both will find the transition difficult, I wouldn't be surprised if Beebe doesn't get minutes and Prince will have to improve greatly in the work ethic department, talent but doesn't go hard.

 

[EricSD]

Precisely why I [agreed] that it will likely be a titanic battle between two very, very strong teams.... I do think that the difference in adding top 5 recruits and especially BStewart compared to adding top 15 recruits is pretty substantial in WCBB. I would guess UCONN will be favored in that battle, but the wildcard is how much Griner improves over this year. Still far away in the future, but fun to talk about.

i agree it's fun to talk about, and it is really far away - so much hoops left this year, and then a good amount next year before we play too...

the year after Griner and the rest of her monster class leave, i think Baylor falls out of the top 5, and maybe the top 10 - it depends on how well other teams recruit. but who knows - that's like 2 years away. getting back to next year, we've all heard the glowing reports about Bree. she's coming in with more hype than any other recruit not named Diana or Candace (and maybe more hype and expectations than even them). but i have no idea, really, how to factor in 3 kids who i think are legit top 5 in their class vs. who Baylor is getting, which is not at the same level, then also factoring in improvements, etc by current players on the roster.

then of course they lose Condrey, Field, and Palmer while we lose Hayes. regardless of who is favored, i really believe that it will be all UCONN and Baylor next year with a pretty large gap between #2 and everyone else. i think Duke will be right up there and probably RU but i'm not sure after that. Stanford? Maryland? Kentucky? aTm? there are several schools that have had all top 10 classes and even some top 5 classes the past 3 years.

 

[alexrgct]

A&M will be young but very good too. They don't have the top players like UConn does, but they are bringing in numbers in their 2012 class.

 

[doggydaddy]

I would say that there are a few examples this year of players who have improved considerably from their junior seasons. I would say that Stricklen, Nneka and Glory Johnson have made noticeable strides this year and are playing at a much higher level.

Stricklen this year vs last year
2010-11 2011-12
MPG - 33.0 vs 29.8
FG Pct - 44.1 vs 48.9
3Pt Pct - 34.9 vs 38.5
PPG - 15.5 vs 12.8
RPG - 6.4 vs 7.3
APG - 1.9 vs 2.0
A/TO - .8 vs 1.2

She is not only NOT playing at a higher level, but except for points and minutes played, her stats are DOWN from last year. You could say she is performing at a lower level to be accurate.

It would be even worse if you took the 40 minute per game average.

2010-11 2011-12
MPG - 40.0 vs 40.0
PPG - 18.7 vs 17.2
RPG - 7.7 vs 9.7
APG - 2.3 vs 2.7

 

[RoyDodger]

From what I have heard and seen (on here and Nan's site):

Diamond DeShields W
Taya Reimer F
Karlie Samuelson G
Jannah Tucker G
Stephanie Mavunga F

Recruiting has long fascinated me (and Nan's site is an incredible aid in following UConn recuiting). I've always wondered why Geno seems to limit his recruiting to only a few. There must be more than five girls who are currently juniors in HS that could play at UConn. And in considering this, I've wondered what would Geno do (not likely, but who knows) if none of the recruits chose UConn.

 

[Icebear]

We have had those years, Roy, where UConn went scrambling for plan #2 or 3.

 

[Buzzyboy]

I don't think there's any way that UConn with the weapons they'll have next year will NOT be the heavy favorite for the NCAA title. I realize Griner is imposing but in a well officiated game, she might easily find herself in foul trouble against a deep talented club like the Huskies will be next year. The perimeter game they have will really stretch the Baylor defense and the talents of a Stewart with her quickness, her length, her scoring acumen and her passing ability will probably have Griner burnt out to the point of exhaustion by midway through the second half. No longer can she play it safe and unless she's getting the benefit of the doubt when there is contact, which she presently does, she's in serious foul trouble or backing off and allowing some much easier baskets than people are accustomed to with her. With the quickness of Jefferson, the offensive skills of Bria and KML and now Stewart along with Stef and Morgan and an improved Stokes, I don't even think it'd be close.

 

[Buzzyboy]

I am guessing you mean Baylor when you say "they"? Baylor is going to be equally deep next year with the addition of Prince, Washington and Chandler. And don't underestimate the strides that Griner can still make this summer. She is going to benefit tremendously from her experience with the Olympic team, assuming that she makes the team. She is going to be, in my opinion, the greatest player to ever hit the court in college basketball, and she is already in the top 5, IMO. She will have another year to add some strength and additional post moves and will have been coached by the best that the women's game has to offer. It will take a monumental effort to stop her next year.

Next year, UCONN and Baylor will likely be the two best college teams to have ever hit the court at the same time. Baylor will have a tremendous senior presence and there will not be anything that they haven't faced in their careers.

I suspect that one of these teams will go into the Final Four undefeated and one will go in with one loss and will meet in the final game. With the first meeting being at UCONN, I have to give the advantage to the Huskies. On a neutral court, it may be one of the best games ever.

I think that one thing that the Baylor team will never have experienced is a UConn team with DEPTH and that's exactly what they'll have next year. Another thing they'll have is a player some feel might be the most talented big girl to ever start college, Breanna Stewart. Griner basically was a wonderfully gifted and co-ordinated 6' 8" athlete who has developed skills over the course of her college career. Breanna Stewart has those skills GOING IN and will only improve on them in her college career excluding some serious injuries. Who knows but that she might be growing as we speak but even if her growth is over, her development isn't. How many international teams has Breanna been on where she is the youngest player and still shown herself to be the most talented person there???? We're also bringing in the highest rated point guard that Hoopgurlz has ever rated. Maybe we should be pretty good next year????? To have those skilled freshmen coming onto a team with the talent that this years team has and I can guarantee you that Baylor has NEVER experienced that level of depth and talent!!!!!

 

[doggydaddy]

Stricklen this year vs last year
2010-11 2011-12
MPG - 33.0 vs 29.8
FG Pct - 44.1 vs 48.9
3Pt Pct - 34.9 vs 38.5
PPG - 15.5 vs 12.8
RPG - 6.4 vs 7.3
APG - 1.9 vs 2.0
A/TO - .8 vs 1.2

She is not only NOT playing at a higher level, but except for points and minutes played, her stats are DOWN from last year. You could say she is performing at a lower level to be accurate.

It would be even worse if you took the 40 minute per game average.

2010-11 2011-12
MPG - 40.0 vs 40.0
PPG - 18.7 vs 17.2
RPG - 7.7 vs 9.7
APG - 2.3 vs 2.7

I had the years reversed. Oooops.

 

[Icebear]

I had the years reversed. Oooops.

Thought so. It's not the first time you or I have been bass....

 

[easttexastrash]

I think that one thing that the Baylor team will never have experienced is a UConn team with DEPTH and that's exactly what they'll have next year. Another thing they'll have is a player some feel might be the most talented big girl to ever start college, Breanna Stewart. Griner basically was a wonderfully gifted and co-ordinated 6' 8" athlete who has developed skills over the course of her college career. Breanna Stewart has those skills GOING IN and will only improve on them in her college career excluding some serious injuries. Who knows but that she might be growing as we speak but even if her growth is over, her development isn't. How many international teams has Breanna been on where she is the youngest player and still shown herself to be the most talented person there???? We're also bringing in the highest rated point guard that Hoopgurlz has ever rated. Maybe we should be pretty good next year????? To have those skilled freshmen coming onto a team with the talent that this years team has and I can guarantee you that Baylor has NEVER experienced that level of depth and talent!!!!!

And I assume that Stewart has encountered anything like Griner.? I have not seen Stewart play so I cannot speak to her skills. But if she can come in her senior year and compete on the same level as Griner, then let's cancel the season and award the trophy to UCONN now. She is going to kill Griner.

The position that Stewart plays is the position that will be hardest for an incoming player to play effectively against Baylor. She will probably have some impact in the paint but I highly doubt that she is going to come into college and take it to Griner. Griner will be the best post player to have ever played women's basketball.

 

[Icebear]

And I assume that Stewart has encountered anything like Griner.? I have not seen Stewart play so I cannot speak to her skills. But if she can come in her senior year and compete on the same level as Griner, then let's cancel the season and award the trophy to UCONN now. She is going to kill Griner.

Thank you. We gladly accept.

 

[jdubct]

And I assume that Stewart has encountered anything like Griner.? I have not seen Stewart play so I cannot speak to her skills. But if she can come in her senior year and compete on the same level as Griner, then let's cancel the season and award the trophy to UCONN now. She is going to kill Griner.

The position that Stewart plays is the position that will be hardest for an incoming player to play effectively against Baylor. She will probably have some impact in the paint but I highly doubt that she is going to come into college and take it to Griner. Griner will be the best post player to have ever played women's basketball.

I agree that Griner may become the best post player ever. Stewart will probably play a power forward/wing position and probably play alongside a center. She'll probably not be matched up against Griner though her 7'1" wingspan makes such a matchup intriguing.

 

[alexrgct]

And I assume that Stewart has encountered anything like Griner.? I have not seen Stewart play so I cannot speak to her skills. But if she can come in her senior year and compete on the same level as Griner, then let's cancel the season and award the trophy to UCONN now. She is going to kill Griner.

The position that Stewart plays is the position that will be hardest for an incoming player to play effectively against Baylor. She will probably have some impact in the paint but I highly doubt that she is going to come into college and take it to Griner. Griner will be the best post player to have ever played women's basketball.

Stewart's not really a post player in the classic sense of the word. Geno has described her as an evolutionary Rebecca Lobo insomuch as she can do a lot of things on the court that you wouldn't expect of someone her height, but she's an ultra-elite athlete in a way Lobo wasn't. He's also compared her to Kevin Garnett. So you're looking at more of a versatile power forward than a post player.

I don't think she's going to compete head-to-head with Griner. What I'd expect is that she will play help D in the paint and free up Kelly to be more of a rover defensively. It's also possible that Geno will employ a super-big lineup in which Breanna spins down to the SF position and plays alongside Stef and Heather/Kiah. Throw in a backourt of 6'0" KML and Bria, and you create a ton of mismatches. No mismatch by itself would be of the magnitude Griner creates, but in aggregate would be tough to contend with.

I expect next season is going to be a year where we see a bunch of different lineups against different types of opponents. Time will tell what the "Baylor lineup" looks like, but it will be interesting...and very different from what we saw 12/18/11. And obviously, I'm hoping for a different result. I won't take offense if you're not

 

[doggydaddy]

And I assume that Stewart has encountered anything like Griner.? I have not seen Stewart play so I cannot speak to her skills. But if she can come in her senior year and compete on the same level as Griner, then let's cancel the season and award the trophy to UCONN now. She is going to kill Griner.

The position that Stewart plays is the position that will be hardest for an incoming player to play effectively against Baylor. She will probably have some impact in the paint but I highly doubt that she is going to come into college and take it to Griner. Griner will be the best post player to have ever played women's basketball.

I don't agree with anyone that says that Stewart will be matched up with Griner. For one thing, she will in all likelyhood come off the bench.

Uconn starters will probably be Doty, Hartley, Dolson, Faris and Lewis. I certainly hope that after playing Griner 2 or even 3 times (in the championship game this year?) Dolson will figure out how to compete with her better.

Stewart will be coming off the bench and in all likelyhood, it won't for Dolson but to go in at the 4 and create mismatch problems for Baylor. And I'd wager a guess that she will find a way to block few shots from the weakside. Maybe even one of Griners. Wouldn't that be a kick!

 

[RoyDodger]

We have had those years, Roy, where UConn went scrambling for plan #2 or 3.

Icebear, your comment made me look back at UConn's recruiting (or at least the freshman classes) since I started following the team in 2003-2004. And, I was surprised to see that the 2003-2004 team had no freshmen. Here's a list of UConn freshmen since that year (not counting EDD or Samarie Walker).

2003-2004-None
2004-2005-Ketia Swanier, Charde Houston, and Mel Thomas
2005-2006-Tahirah Williams, Renee Montgomery, Kalana Greene, and Cassie Kerns
2006-2007-Jacquie Fernandes, Meghan Gardler, Tina Charles, Kaili McLaren
2007-2008-Maya Moore and Lorin Dixon
2008-2009-Heather Buck, Caroline Doty, and Tiffany Hayes
2009-2010-Kelly Faris
2010-2011-Stefanie Dolson, Michala Johnson, Bria Hartley, and Lauren Engeln
2011-2012-Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Kiah Stokes, and Brianna Banks
2012-2013-Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson, and Morgan Tuck

So, of the nine years through this season, a single season had no recruits*, and another had only a single recruit. But it's also clear from this list that since 2004-2005, Geno has managed to recruit at least one outstanding team star per year.

*I mean recruits who actually came to UConn and played as freshmen.

 

[doggydaddy]

2008-2009-Heather Buck, Caroline Doty
2009-2010-Kelly Faris
2010-2011-Stefanie Dolson, Michala Johnson, Bria Hartley, and Lauren Engeln
2011-2012-Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Kiah Stokes, and Brianna Banks
2012-2013-Breanna Stewart, Moriah Jefferson, and Morgan Tuck

I don't know. I just like seeing this in writing. The 2012-2013 roster.

 

[Bestiarius]

Unless Griner is independently wealthy, I think there is a good chance that she will jump to the WNBA if Baylor wins the NC this year. If Baylor does not win the NC this year, I think Griner will still jump to the WNBA.

If Baylor wins the NC this year, what incentive does Griner have to stick around? What more is there to accomplish that is worth giving up the big bucks?

If they don't win it all this year, the chance of winning it all next year will be even less because of Uconn's improvement. Will she want to risk the very real chance of being eliminated again thereby suffering the heartbreak of no NCs? Let's face it, no matter how good a team is, winning a NC is very difficult. There's always the possibility of some team getting lucky and hitting everything they throw up. We at Uconn think it is easy to go undefeated for a consecutive year or two. Other teams probably don't think so. With the risks of playing another year in college, can anyone blame her if she jumps? The only way I see her remaining at Baylor is if the Olympic team doesn't get the gold.