Satou Sabally Will Enter the WNBA... UConn's 2021 NC Chances Just Went Up a Bit.

[CTtoSanDiego]

Just saw on the ESPN crawl that Satou will be going pro at the end of the year, further weakening OR next year. That slightly increases UConn's chances, though OR would not be the favorite either way. Other than our Huskies, I will be rooting for OR to win the NC this year, since it's always nice to see a new face win, not to mention that I detest Baylor and am not all that fond of SC.

Here's a link to the story on ESPNW: Ducks' Sabally to enter WNBA draft after season

 

[hoopsdiva]

I wonder how many other draft eligible juniors will declare? As much as I applaud the increase in salaries in the W, I wouldn't want to see WCBB turn into one and done land, like the men's side.

 

[eebmg]

Wow. Thought she would want to play with her sister

 

[eebmg]

Wow. Thought she would want to play with her sister

Oh. Just read the article. Financial issues are at the center of her decision. Best of luck.

 

[Figurehead]

Her family is very, very poor. Not unexpected in the slighest by Duck fans at all. At least they announced it the right way. Btw, Oregon is not going away.

 

[oldude]

No problem with her decision, but I am a little surprised she didn’t sit on the public announcement until Oregon’s season was over.

 

[hoopsdiva]

No problem with her decision, but I am a little surprised she didn’t sit on the public announcement until Oregon’s season was over.

Maybe she wanted to participate in senior night? Announcing this early lets her do that.

 

[EricSD]

Good for her. To be honest, with what Oregon was already losing after this year (Ionescu, Hebard, Moore), I did not see them as a NC threat next year anyway. Add in losing 4th starter Sabally, and I don't see them as top 10. Probably just outside the top 10.

I guess it depends on how good everyone else is that they have coming back and how much the freshmen can really contribute. Don't get me wrong - they will still be good, but I expect UCONN to whomp them by 20+ next season.

 

[oldude]

Maybe she wanted to participate in senior night? Announcing this early lets her do that.

Hadn’t thought of that. Even though she’s only a jr, it would be a nice gesture by Kelly Graves to allow Sabally to participate.

 

[jonson]

Hadn’t thought of that. Even though she’s only a jr, it would be a nice gesture by Kelly Graves to allow Sabally to participate.

She will.

 

[Kaizen]

Very nice to see Satou is trying to finish her bachelor degree this summer. A very smart girl.

But will Oregon becomes this year's ND next year with 4 starters leaving?

 

[oldude]

Very nice to see Satou is trying to finish her bachelor degree this summer. A very smart girl.

But will Oregon becomes this year's ND next year with 4 starters leaving?

I assume Boley also graduates this year, although I would expect her to be back as I don’t believe she has a pro career ahead of her.

 

[Charliebball]

I know the jump to pro includes American recruits but I suspect it's one of the risks of recruiting European players...........

 

[DaBball]

I still the the Ducks are a top-10 team. They bring in a top-2 recruiting class, and Sedona Prince and Nyara Sabally should make a really solid backcourt. Two unique players and athletes.

PaoPao is also the most underrated player in 2020. I think she’s a top-10 talent.

They’ll be young and likely more inconsistent, but still really talented. McDonald coming back could influence whether or not they’re a top-2 squad in the Pac-12 with Stanford.

Wouldn’t be surprised to see a top grad transfer land there as well if Graves recruits one.

 

[JordyG]

Just saw on the ESPN crawl that Satou will be going pro at the end of the year, further weakening OR next year. That slightly increases UConn's chances, though OR would not be the favorite either way. Other than our Huskies, I will be rooting for OR to win the NC this year, since it's always nice to see a new face win, not to mention that I detest Baylor and am not all that fond of SC.

Here's a link to the story on ESPNW: Ducks' Sabally to enter WNBA draft after season

I guess Sedona Prince just slide right in.

 

[willtalk]

They might not be wealthy, but I would not call anyone living in Germany extremely poor. We are not talking about a third world nation here. Bottom end standard of living in Germany is relatively high. She has said that she wants to help part of an extended family still in Gambia, so that qualifies as third world.

 

[BostonBay]

Wonder if Megan Walker leaves UConn early after this year?? She's eligible (turns 22 this year). Expect a lot more juniors to leave early as the money has gotten much better. Why risk an ACL if you're a top player?

 

[Rixxx]

Walker will have some challenges if she goes pro. JMHO...

 

[bballnut90]

Just saw on the ESPN crawl that Satou will be going pro at the end of the year, further weakening OR next year. That slightly increases UConn's chances, though OR would not be the favorite either way. Other than our Huskies, I will be rooting for OR to win the NC this year, since it's always nice to see a new face win, not to mention that I detest Baylor and am not all that fond of SC.

Here's a link to the story on ESPNW: Ducks' Sabally to enter WNBA draft after season

Next year is going to be interesting. On paper UCONN looks like a clear front runner IMO since much of their talent is young and likely makes a big jump next season, plus Paige has all the makings of being a game changer. Unless we see otherwise in the tournament, they're a pretty big step behind Baylor/SC/Oregon so they'll need to make big strides to be a title favorite next year IMO. The upside is there though. Top transfer becomes eligible, replace current PG with #1 recruit, 3 double digit scorers back, 2 other contributing freshmen return, plus a very good recruiting class.

Comparativelu, Baylor/SC/Oregon all lose a LOT to graduation. Baylor 3 starters, SC 2, and Oregon 4. All lose at least 1 All American and a PG/post combo. SC I think is best suited to compete with UCONN but I'm not sure who replaces Harris for them. Baylor will be strong again with Richards/Smith/Egbo returning. Oregon appears to have a lot of good pieces but health and how quickly they fit together is the question.

Other good programs return a lot like Louisville, Oregon State, Arizona, Stanford, Kentucky, Mississippi State, and Maryland. I do think UCONN on paper looks the best but it should be a pretty balanced year IMO.

 

[Carnac]

Walker will have some challenges if she goes pro. JMHO...

Walker would greatly benefit from a 4th year of college level play and development. I hope she wants to play with Evina for 1 year. I expect Evina to play next year even though she will also be eligible to go to the WNBA.
Being away from the game for as long as she has (not to mention the commitment she made to Geno and the program), I fully expect her to return next year to hone her skills.

 

[Shades]

Walker would greatly benefit from a 4th year of college level play and development. I hope she wants to play with Evina for 1 year. I expect Evina to play next year even though she will also be eligible to go to the WNBA.
Being away from the game for as long as she has (not to mention the commitment she made to Geno and the program), I fully expect her to return next year to hone her skills.

I‘d be pushing for the Lynx to draft Walker at #6, unless Hebard was available at that spot. Tall players are a premium.

 

[HuskylnSC]

I don't hear much mention of the impact Aaliyah Edwards can make. At 6'3" with a mature physique and the advanced experience of playing for 2 years on the Canadian national team, she will not be a typical freshman. IMO, the determining factor of her contribution is how quickly she adapts to the UConn 'O' and 'D'.

When she does, she will give us a true 4 that allows Meg to shift to her natural 3 where she should dominate.

I'm looking for massive improvement in Liv. Since Jemelle has returned to coaching, she is playing much more aggressively. The attitude change has demonstrated results. I expect her to be much stronger next year with enhanced ability to score from 15 and in. If Piath can provide a few minutes of rest during the game, (and a couple of rebounds) that will be a plus.

The guards are 5 deep and all are good. Evina's year with the team should let her start out with an edge over Paige and Nika at the point. Once Paige takes over Evina can play both guard spots providing Geno with great substitution patterns.

Instant lockdown D (and transition O) off the bench is Aubrey and, hopefully, eventually Mir.

In my very optimistic view, it could be the beginning of something great and bad for women's basketball.

 

[jonson]

I still the the Ducks are a top-10 team. They bring in a top-2 recruiting class, and Sedona Prince and Nyara Sabally should make a really solid backcourt. Two unique players and athletes.

PaoPao is also the most underrated player in 2020. I think she’s a top-10 talent.

They’ll be young and likely more inconsistent, but still really talented. McDonald coming back could influence whether or not they’re a top-2 squad in the Pac-12 with Stanford.

Wouldn’t be surprised to see a top grad transfer land there as well if Graves recruits one.

Top 10 would be great, but I'd take top 20 at this point given all of the unknowns. Prince has been practicing full speed since January and going against both Hebard and Sabally on a daily basis. In Graves's words--and he generally gives accurate assessments--she has been "unstoppable" (a "game changer" in another quote). Nyara Sabally remains a question mark, but if she becomes the player she was prior to her injuries, they will be a very formidable duo up front, with, I suspect, one of the freshmen (Kylie Watson) as a primary backup along with Lydia Giomi.

Boley has said the will be back. (She has a double major in Product Design and Architecture and needs another year to complete both degrees after transferring.) I imagine that Shelly and Chavez will start at guard initially with some serious competition form PaoPao, who has finally been getting her due (Naismith finalist, among other things) after a couple of injuries early in her high school career. She is indeed, as @DaBball says, a top-10 talent, with another incoming guard (Maddie Scher) not far behind imo. Given all the talent (there are two other quite talented incoming freshmen, one of whom--Angela Dugalic--is my pick for "sleeper" of the class), and the challenge of finding minutes for everyone, I'd be very surprised if Graves went after a grad transfer. So--lots of very young/untested talent and likely a lot of inconsistent play early on, but the team could be very good by the time March rolls around.

 

[bballnut90]

Walker would greatly benefit from a 4th year of college level play and development. I hope she wants to play with Evina for 1 year. I expect Evina to play next year even though she will also be eligible to go to the WNBA.
Being away from the game for as long as she has (not to mention the commitment she made to Geno and the program), I fully expect her to return next year to hone her skills.

Walker is interesting. She'd probably be a top 6 or 7 pick if she bolts this year. A strong tournament could rise her stock too as high as 4th IMO. We've had limited opportunity this year to see her play against the best of the best but if she can put up big numbers against good teams, she could get a head start on her pro career. If she doesnt win a title I'd imagine she'll come back since she'll be on a front runner and should be a strong candidate for POY and maybe the #1 or #2 pick.

I'd be stunned if Westbrook left early. She's not on anyone's radar and wouldnt be a top 10 pick IMO.

 

[MSSportsGuy]

I think the game will start to see more of this. Saballay impressed me just as much as Ionescu and Hebard during our loss to them in the tournament. Great range and size

 

[Boreifs]

Very nice to see Satou is trying to finish her bachelor degree this summer. A very smart girl.

But will Oregon becomes this year's ND next year with 4 starters leaving?

Boley could also leave. She is a senior academically.

 

[jumpstart]

Next year is going to be interesting. On paper UCONN looks like a clear front runner IMO since much of their talent is young and likely makes a big jump next season, plus Paige has all the makings of being a game changer. Unless we see otherwise in the tournament, they're a pretty big step behind Baylor/SC/Oregon so they'll need to make big strides to be a title favorite next year IMO. The upside is there though. Top transfer becomes eligible, replace current PG with #1 recruit, 3 double digit scorers back, 2 other contributing freshmen return, plus a very good recruiting class.

Comparativelu, Baylor/SC/Oregon all lose a LOT to graduation. Baylor 3 starters, SC 2, and Oregon 4. All lose at least 1 All American and a PG/post combo. SC I think is best suited to compete with UCONN but I'm not sure who replaces Harris for them. Baylor will be strong again with Richards/Smith/Egbo returning. Oregon appears to have a lot of good pieces but health and how quickly they fit together is the question.

Other good programs return a lot like Louisville, Oregon State, Arizona, Stanford, Kentucky, Mississippi State, and Maryland. I do think UCONN on paper looks the best but it should be a pretty balanced year IMO.

South Carolina's starters play half a game on most nights without much of a drop off. The two starters will be replaced by Henderson and Amihere….they equal Harris and Herbert Harrington by the beginning of next season talent wise.

 

[Kevinmac]

Next year is going to be interesting. On paper UCONN looks like a clear front runner IMO since much of their talent is young and likely makes a big jump next season, plus Paige has all the makings of being a game changer. Unless we see otherwise in the tournament, they're a pretty big step behind Baylor/SC/Oregon so they'll need to make big strides to be a title favorite next year IMO. The upside is there though. Top transfer becomes eligible, replace current PG with #1 recruit, 3 double digit scorers back, 2 other contributing freshmen return, plus a very good recruiting class.

Comparativelu, Baylor/SC/Oregon all lose a LOT to graduation. Baylor 3 starters, SC 2, and Oregon 4. All lose at least 1 All American and a PG/post combo. SC I think is best suited to compete with UCONN but I'm not sure who replaces Harris for them. Baylor will be strong again with Richards/Smith/Egbo returning. Oregon appears to have a lot of good pieces but health and how quickly they fit together is the question.

Other good programs return a lot like Louisville, Oregon State, Arizona, Stanford, Kentucky, Mississippi State, and Maryland. I do think UCONN on paper looks the best but it should be a pretty balanced year IMO.

The key which team gets big transfers. We still need another power forward to join our team to beat South Carolina, Stamford, Louisville, and Oregon.

 

[southofnorth]

No problem with her decision, but I am a little surprised she didn’t sit on the public announcement until Oregon’s season was over.

I believe it said she was being asked by people and it was weighing heavy on her mind so she just wanted to get it out there and off her chest. I guess she talked it over with Graves because it said she would be participating in senior night.

 

[bballnut90]

South Carolina's starters play half a game on most nights without much of a drop off. The two starters will be replaced by Henderson and Amihere….they equal Harris and Herbert Harrington by the beginning of next season talent wise.

No way do they equal those 2. Henderson can shoot but doesnt run an offense like Ty does. Ty is a 4 year starter and will be an All American this year. MHH is excellent and a 4 year contributor. Amihere is a raw freshmen. Other players will get better but those positions will see a big drop off.