Saylor is coming!!! | Page 4 | The Boneyard

Saylor is coming!!!

GRIFFBIFF20 said:
I believe that Saylor will "SLOWLY" eat into the minutes that both CW and AM currently have, as the season goes on. People have to remember that Saylor, as a UCONN Husky, is a "Very Very Young PUP" and still needs to be "House Broken" first 🙂. I don't see it having much of an impact on the minutes that EW, AG, NM, or AE are presently getting or will get later on this season, and into the NCAA's
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I agree with you just don't think it will be that slow and as much as you probably don't want to hear this Saylor is also going to be eating into Aubrey minutes.
Why?
1) She is a coaches daughter.
3) Her perimeter defense is on par with Aubrey's=best on the team.
2) She is a legit 6'2" and sturdy=versatility to defend 1-4 and the ability to crate matchup problems.
4) She is a legit deep shooter=2nd best on this roster.
5) She is an insanely good passer and ball handler for her size.

Saylor is going to press multiple people for playing time and maybe exactly what this team needed.
 
CocoHusky said:
Very happy to have Saylor on board. Now I want UCONN to get greedy and go pick up Eleah Parker from PENN who is already in the transfer portal.
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I don't know pal. This perhaps may give an impetus to Azzi to make the same move. But yes, I don't know if people understand how good Saylor is on perimeter defense and how good a passer she is. Just ask MilfordHusky.
 
CocoHusky said:
I agree with you just don't think it will be that slow and as much as you probably don't want to hear this Saylor is also going to be eating into Aubrey minutes.
Why?
1) She is a coaches daughter.
3) Her perimeter defense is on par with Aubrey's=best on the team.
2) She is a legit 6'2" and sturdy=versatility to defend 1-4 and the ability to crate matchup problems.
4) She is a legit deep shooter=2nd best on this roster.
5) She is an insanely good passer and ball handler for her size.

Saylor is going to press multiple people for playing time and maybe exactly what this team needed.
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100% agree that Saylor, 'Given Time" will certainly help this Team, ESPECIALLY if she is able to live up to her reputation of being a "Sharp-Shooter" from beyond the 3 Point arc. This is an area that this team is current lacking in "Big Time". Thus the reason why I believe (and it has nothing to do with my favoritism for Aubrey), Saylor's impact could have an impact on CW's time and ESPECIALLY Anna's time, if Anna's 3 Point Percentage continues to be not what this team needs.

As far as Aubrey's time is concerned, YES, if where Aubrey regresses back to her Early Freshman Year production, then I would also include Aubrey into those players (as well as EW, NM, and AE) as minutes being taken away from. HOWEVER, if Aubrey continues at where she currently is and what she is hopefully expected to produce (especially coming off of her effort in the Providence Game), then, just for Aubrey's ability "Down Low" I don't see her minutes eroding at all.
 
I had the pleasure of watching Saylor play 3 games with Middletown last season. @RoadWarrior was with me for a couple of them.

As we've said before, Saylor is a highly versatile player. She jumps center to start the game and plays in the post in the zone defense. She also brings the ball up the floor and initiates the offense. She defends, rebounds, blocks shots, throws great passes (including from 50'), and scores from everywhere. Her step-back 3-pointer from 22-25' is unstoppable. She's not as great a shooter as Paige or Azzi, but she's good. Her form on FTs is classic. Saylor is a legit 6'2" and a coach's daughter. She has a good IQ and likes to be challenged.

Remember that Saylor had hip surgery (like Phee, Crystal, Sue, et al.) last spring and was on a crutch for a while. She had to recover and rehab. Saylor was unable to run or play hoops for a while, but she worked hard with her personal trainer. She likely was out of shape in the fall, because of the surgery, but should be ok now, though probably not in UConn basketball shape yet.

I suspect Saylor's decision was based partly to get some structure and partly to get a jump on the UConn learning curve. She hasn't played much basketball since March, so she probably is eager to get back on the court, which was looking questionable at Middletown. She'll be behind the curve on the plays and conditioning, but she's smart and a hard worker. This will definitely help her and the team for next fall. Can Saylor learn fast enough to contribute this season? It's a tough ask in a very short period of time, but her strong instincts will help her.

By the way, she's a really nice person. The team chemistry is excellent, and Say should fit right in. I commend her for taking this big step. As noted, she is a person who likes a challenge.

The HoopGurlz ranking is a joke. Almost everyone else has her listed between 5 and 15. I think that's accurate.

Another addition: As Geno typically does with freshmen, he'll try to simplify things for Saylor. He may tell her to defend a particular player, grab some rebounds, play a certain place in a zone press, or get open for threes. She should be able to manage those things.
 
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JordyG said:
I don't know pal. This perhaps may give an impetus to Azzi to make the same move. But yes, I don't know if people understand how good Saylor is on perimeter defense and how good a passer she is. Just ask MilfordHusky.
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Per the Courant, Azzi and Caroline are finishing their high school year. Amari is noncommittal.
 
CocoHusky said:
Geno was talking about long distance (3Pt) shooting where UCONN is ranked 77th in the nation. That's not a typo & 77th puts us behind South Carolina. If you were to take out Paige's numbers we be about 200th. UCONN was number 1 last year so hopefully you can see why this is a serious concern.
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I know this was more of a satire smirk on the comment. I have said since last year discussing this years team that 3 point shooting would be an issue and it is. As I said that Paige and Anna would be our best options. They still are. Evina and Christyn can sink a few but if I was playing Uconn I would zone us but keep someone very close to Paige. Someone with size to make it difficult to should over. The others I would say fire away. Maybe Saylor might be a help. Certainly with Saylor Azzi and Caroline Ducharme and Paige and Anna 3 point shooting won't be problem.
 
eebmg said:
I would be very surprised if Saylor can get significant minutes this year since she is way behind in practice and learning the schemes etc.
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This may be so, but as frustrated as Geno is with the current roster's outside shooting, Saylor may get more playing time than you think,,, plus with her international experience, she's played at a high level already....
 
CL82 said:
I'm not a huge fan of adding players during the season, even players who have been with team and practicing, just not playing. It is often is hard to get them in sync.

Saylor's issue is even greater. All the chemistry, learning curve stuff that happens over the summer (normally) is now being dumped on her all at once. Add to that that she also needs to adjust to being a college student, living away from home and it is a lot to dump on a teenager. That said, Akok Akok over on the men's team did exactly this and it really helped him.

I think the key is for Saylor (and to a lesser extent, us) to treat this as a learning/conditioning year and have zero expectations about playing time. If she can do that, then this could be a great move for her.
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Agreed. I think it’s a lot to learn at a place like UConn. It’ll will be hard to catch up this late in the season. But then again, there have been many games postponed so she will have a little extra time to learn and practice like everyone else.
 
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Check out the long 3-pointer at :24. I think the steal and pass at :38 is by Saylor as well. Note that her hair is a little darker in this video. Her IG shows that she's back to brown hair lately:

 
tchalla1 said:
This may be so, but as frustrated as Geno is with the current roster's outside shooting, Saylor may get more playing time than you think,,, plus with her international experience, she's played at a high level already....
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Getting to a Higher 3 Point Shooting Percentage is something that Geno has publicly said this team definitely needs to improve upon. Yes, outside of Paige, we are not that good and will Saylor's reputation, if Anna doesn't significantly improve her outside % beyond the 3 point arc, her minutes could be impacted by Saylor's arrival
 
Makurat’s minutes are always going to be reduced according to everyone but Auriemma.
I have no idea if Poffenberger can step in and earn minutes at this juncture of the season but more power to her if she can. Coming off surgery, rehab, and not practicing, never mind playing, for the better part of a year, plus the jump from HS to D1 at Uconn, it will be extremely impressive if that happens.
 
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jabstep said:
Not bad for the worst shooting team Geno has ever had.
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I don't think bad shooting and a high percentage are necessarily inconsistent. Last year's team did not move the ball particularly well, at least by Uconn standards and found themselves with harder shots as a result. They were however a considerably better shooting team, and great long range shooting by Dangerfield and Walker compensated for the tougher shots.

This year's team is not a great shooting team by Uconn standards, but make up for it somewhat by getting much easier shots because of the way better ball movement. We usually have two point guards on the floor between Paige, Nika, and Evina, and usually along with a point forward type in Anna.

So yes the shooting percentage is good, and yet we have seen many easy shots missed that we expected to make. The excitement over next year's additions, and Saylor this year is when we combine the passers with the shooters.
 
CocoHusky said:
I agree with you just don't think it will be that slow and as much as you probably don't want to hear this Saylor is also going to be eating into Aubrey minutes.
Why?
1) She is a coaches daughter.
3) Her perimeter defense is on par with Aubrey's=best on the team.
2) She is a legit 6'2" and sturdy=versatility to defend 1-4 and the ability to crate matchup problems.
4) She is a legit deep shooter=2nd best on this roster.
5) She is an insanely good passer and ball handler for her size.

Saylor is going to press multiple people for playing time and maybe exactly what this team needed.
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I think it will be slow and she may not press anyone for minutes. If this was Tennessee I would say yes. Unless she comes on like Paige, I don't think she will be see many minutes. There are not enough games left and Geno is still figuring who plays best together. UConn's system is very hard to grasp in a half season. I hope I am wrong. It is hard to believe she is as good on defense as some are saying.
 
DeeHusky said:
Agreed. I think it’s a lot to learn at a place like UConn. It’ll will be hard to catch up this late in the season. But then again, there have been many games postponed so she will have a little extra time to learn and practice like everyone else.
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I see very little downside risk to Saylor entering college early. Between the choice of staying home with little chance of playing and letting her skills atrophy or getting a jumpstart on college and continuing to develop as a player, she thought the latter was best for her. Other important Senior Year highlights are also rare in a virtual school year. Whether she sees any substantial time in a UCONN uniform this season remains to be seen. I do believe, however, as a top HS player, that her mindset will be to earn as many minutes as she can regardless of what player's minutes may be impacted.

Some posters are hoping that she might contribute as a 3-point shooter. She may but when I have seen her in person along with @MilfordHusky, she impacted the game in a variety of ways including, as a very good ballhandler, strong defender and a player capable of taking opponents off the dribble and getting to rim for an old-fashioned AND 1 three-point play.
 
CocoHusky said:
I agree with you just don't think it will be that slow and as much as you probably don't want to hear this Saylor is also going to be eating into Aubrey minutes.
Why?
1) She is a coaches daughter.
3) Her perimeter defense is on par with Aubrey's=best on the team.
2) She is a legit 6'2" and sturdy=versatility to defend 1-4 and the ability to crate matchup problems.
4) She is a legit deep shooter=2nd best on this roster.
5) She is an insanely good passer and ball handler for her size.

Saylor is going to press multiple people for playing time and maybe exactly what this team needed.
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Excellent analysis of why Saylor's playing time could be accelerated. I completely agree!
 
MilfordHusky said:
Per the Courant, Azzi and Caroline are finishing their high school year. Amari is noncommittal.
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Yeah I read it. But 17/18 year olds reserve the right to change their minds per minute on the regular. Meanwhile I'm intrigued by this ad on the right about manscaping.
 
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Of course she is not going to press anyone for minutes this year. Her joining the team has nothing to do with this year. This gives her a massive head start on next year. This year, she is less than a freshman, but next year she comes in a full fledged sophomore. Adding her this year does nothing for UConn women's basketball, it does everything for Saylor and her development.
 
mbr33ct said:
Where are Autumn's minutes coming from now?

Bored Cabin Fever GIF
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Walk-on's get their minutes in practice. Practices become their games. All walk-on's are aware of the situation and know the deal before they sign on.
 
CL82 said:
I'm not a huge fan of adding players during the season, even players who have been with team and practicing, just not playing. It is often is hard to get them in sync.

Saylor's issue is even greater. All the chemistry, learning curve stuff that happens over the summer (normally) is now being dumped on her all at once. Add to that that she also needs to adjust to being a college student, living away from home and it is a lot to dump on a teenager. That said, Akok Akok over on the men's team did exactly this and it really helped him.

I think the key is for Saylor (and to a lesser extent, us) to treat this as a learning/conditioning year and have zero expectations about playing time. If she can do that, then this could be a great move for her.
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Let's understand, Saylor will do what the coaches tell her to do, which is the direction her mind set should be, if she is ready and the team needs what she has to offer this season then we will see her wares on the court. I don't see them dumping on her, whatever she is able to assimilate this year is all to the good. We will see what happens but I anticipate that in a few weeks we will see a number of posts calling for her to be on the court. We will see her when Geno feels she can add something on the court and not on the bench. Many thanks for your thoughts they certainly gave me something to ponder.
 
MilfordHusky said:
Per the Courant, Azzi and Caroline are finishing their high school year. Amari is noncommittal.
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Because of the structure of their high schools, it might not even be possible for Azzi, Amari, and Caroline to graduate early. I looked it up and Middletown is on a block schedule (meaning they complete year-long courses in single semesters, but are only taking four at a time), which makes it much easier to wrap it up and head out a semester early. St. John's Collegiate, Williamsville South, and Noble & Greenough are on a traditional, year-long schedule.
 
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