oldude
bamboo lover
- Joined
- Nov 15, 2016
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Geno approaches the transfer portal much differently than most any other HC. It starts by keeping the majority of the key rotational players on his existing roster.I’m not sure it even is a debate, since all sides seem to agree that getting Serah is a good idea. Sure, there’s reason to think recruiting transfers over an existing lineup of high school recruits could hurt morale. But Serah will probably have minimal impact there, just as Kaitlyn didn’t either. I say sign her up if she’s willing, but don’t be surprised if she turns out to be merely a valuable role player in Geno’s schemes.
On the other hand, we’ve all been treated to the spectacle of overstocked teams like UCLA and USC losing most of their rising sophomores to the portal. Talk of reloading being a necessity merely because other teams appear to be doing it can hardly fail to appear blind to the reality Geno and Paige just showed us.
Beers was last year’s necessity and looking back on it now I’m glad Geno didn’t sign her even if he could have. All of us were surprised when the only portal addition he made was an Ivy League guard — how did that solve the gaping holes in the lineup? — and yet no one would question the wisdom of that choice now.
This is the only reason I resist saying that Geno needs to add someone. He saw a path to an NC more clearly than any of us did. And that path didn’t require the necessity so many of us were certain of.
Subsequently, Geno is very picky about bringing in any transfers. He is looking for intelligent, talented, team-oriented individuals who will complement UConn’s existing roster.
Over the past 5 seasons, UConn has brought in 4 transfers: Evina, Dorka, Lou & Kaitlyn. 3 of the 4 had already completed their undergraduate degree. All were stars on their respective teams, and all accepted supporting roles at UConn.
As a result, UConn has a far easier time integrating a single transfer into an already solid rotation than teams that are making wholesale changes to their roster year after year.