Shade loving UCONN
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Thanks for sharing, Nan... the basketball plays are impressive yet it might have been the exultation Ashlynn displayed at game's end that struck me the most. I can't wait to see her showing more of that passion (for winning) for the Huskies.
Methinks most of the countless excellent posts discussing UConn's backcourt for this coming season might have mostly overlooked this precocious and very talented incoming freshman. It's reassuring to think we'll have Ashlynn and KK as mainstays of the Huskies' backcourt for years to come.
With a couple more on the way in the next couple of classes.
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Oh, yes! We are set for the backcourt or the foreseeable future. And Geno & Co found these kids before the scouts figured out how great they are.
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Oh, she is going to be fun to have around the program.
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That's quite a reference
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Carnac
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We're all hoping she can come in and pick right up where she left off. What a boost to the team that would be. I'm looking for some BIG things from Ashlynn this season.I found an article from March that said:
Shade is averaging in the neighborhood of 24 points, nine rebounds and five assists per game.She’s shooting 40% from beyond the 3-point line.
“She doesn’t miss open shots. It’s pretty incredible to watch,” Marvin said.
La Lumiere's Ashlynn Shade named a McDonald's All-American
Ashlynn Shade makes everything on a basketball court look easywww.nwitimes.com
Carnac
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She appears to have that "air of confidence" about her that good shooters have. That confidence that says: "I expect the ball to go in every time I shoot."
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I believe she will fit in. She has that hustle, perimeter shot, great conditioning. May not this year, because of all the great players returning. But she will be ready, when her number gets called.
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Feedback I've received from a friend who has seen her play several times. Shade plays best under pressure, makes open shots, and can be counted on to make several critical steals a game. Feels she can provide the relentless pressure of Nika but with quicker footwork. While not a top one on one player, has to be guarded since she knows where the open spot is for a 3 or a drive to the basket. Few up and down games - you can count on her for consistent performance.
oldude
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Fingers crossed that everyone is healthy. With that said, the competition for PT at guard will be intense. Paige never wants to come off the court. Azzi is one of the best shooters UConn has ever had. Nika is a fierce competitor who Geno loves. Caroline, Aubrey and Quadence are more wings than guards, but they will all eat up minutes that could go to a 3rd or 4th guard. Ines just keeps on working hard, and who knows whether or not she can force herself into the rotation. Finally, there is Ashlynn’s fellow freshman KK who possesses an ankle braking handle, with the ability to get her shot anytime she wants.
Ashlynn is smart, talented, strong and tough. But PT will be difficult to secure this coming season, and the distinct possibility exists that every other guard on the roster could return in 2024-25.
Ashlynn is smart, talented, strong and tough. But PT will be difficult to secure this coming season, and the distinct possibility exists that every other guard on the roster could return in 2024-25.
HuskyNan
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Sounds a lot like Kelly Faris
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Totally agree that Ashlynn is going to fit in. The thing that I love the most about Ashlynn's game, besides the items you mentioned, is that she plays positionless basketball. To me, that is going to be huge for the program, especially if she hits a growth spurt. The mismatches in the post that she can create. OMG!! Also, I love her quickness! She is going to be a joy to watch.
You got me thinking with the possibility that every guard candidate could return in 2024-25 and there are not enough minutes to give to some very talented prospects this year, if that doesn't give a clue as to what some of those 5th year decisions might be.
I think we can all hope that players like KK, Ashlynn and Q can as Geno might say, force him to play them. Even if they do not make the big game rotation we can look for signs of future stardom when they get their more extended opportunities. Those opportunities might not open up much, however, if everyone that could came back did, and then the candidates for available positions grows by two with Allie and Morgan.
It is speculation of course, but my best guess is Nika and Aubrey are in their last year. Nika has the game against her sister, and I believe she said she hoped her parents could come for that and senior day. Paige could return and there is an heir apparent PG that will get an apprentice year in KK.
Aubrey has already spent an extra year on campus because of her red-shirt year, and I think she made a reference to this as her last year, and she has demonstrated she had recovered from the back surgery. With another year from Caroline, Q learning and Morgan coming on board that position (3) is well covered as well.
So if those two departed and we add Allie and Morgan we would have as many candidates for 1-3 as we have this year, namely 8. If Paige left for the WNBA it would be a huge talent loss of course, but we would still have a very promising 7. Makes me think we are done for the class of 2024 for guards, but of course are still looking for bigs.
Regardless I look forward to seeing the future potential for all our newcomers, hope one or two of them wind up in a large extended rotation with more pressing, and I hope Paige comes back for another year. If she does, even if two others depart, we would still have a ton of candidates for 1-3.
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oldude
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The one thing that could really spread around the PT is if Geno goes all in on a full court, full game, pressure defense, like tOSU, that forces up tempo games and turnovers. He’s been toying with the idea for some time, but he hasn’t necessarily had the personnel (depth) to implement it.
Geno said something a few weeks ago referencing Ashlynn, KK & Q that basically indicated they would be able to earn PT based on their ability to play pressure defense. The idea that the Huskies could apply defensive pressure with waves of defenders has great appeal. As Nika would say, “Everbody eats!!!”
If everyone comes back, there's not enough scholarships. If someone is really, really smart they could get some academic assistance and rejoin the team as a walk on. This won't happen because the NCAA (and other teams) would come at UConn with pitchforks (and this assistance is mostly limited to CT residents).
Or someone could give up their scholarship and start a go fund me page and come back as a walk on. Considering the nonsense going on with NIL, I'm surprised this hasn't happened yet.
Or there may be 1 or 2 players making enough money that they don't need a scholarship, but this is wildly unlikely. Give up potential pro money and pay UConn an outrageous out-of-state tuition? Ha.
Or someone could give up their scholarship and start a go fund me page and come back as a walk on. Considering the nonsense going on with NIL, I'm surprised this hasn't happened yet.
Or there may be 1 or 2 players making enough money that they don't need a scholarship, but this is wildly unlikely. Give up potential pro money and pay UConn an outrageous out-of-state tuition? Ha.
oldude
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Here’s a thought. Paige and perhaps Azzi could pay there own tuition, considering all the NIL money they would make, particularly if the Huskies win #12 this coming season…
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I expect them to press for sure. The only thing is, with UCONN's talent, and if they are healthy, UCONN is going to have big leads by halftime and into early the 3rd quarter vs. many teams. At that point you have to pull the press.
UCONN is not going to look to embarass teams.
And if you are pressing so much, then you aren't working on your halfcourt offense as much, As a result, you need to keep your starters (And the few adtional core players in with a shorter bench) so you can work on halfcourt - even if it is a big lead.
If you don';t practive enough in halfcourt, then in some games if the press isn't; working, you won;t be as prepared.
oldude
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Agreed. But if the Huskies are up big at the half, the starters will play the 3rd, work on the half court offense, and then the bench will have the entire 4th qtr to themselves.
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Great points, especially on the pressing element. With the amount of bodies and athleticism on the team, I don't see why we wouldn't install some type of press on the defensive end. With regards to the half court offense. A lot just depends on how deep the coaching staff wants to get with the offense and where the players Bball IQ status is at.
I think it was last year or the year before when Coach G was talking about how the coaching staff really didn't run a lot of plays because the Stewie & Maya Moore era squads just knew how to read and react to certain situations. They were running a version of the Princeton "Chin Series" and the players just knew how to read the defense.
With pressing, even if we are blowing teams out, you can still work on your offensive series. A lot just depends on the Bball IQ of the players and how much the coaching staff think their players can handle.
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Oldddude/Jelly This is how I see minutes will go - if the team is healthy.
- I see this as a trickle-down. And I literally mean (a slow) trickle-down. First off say UCONN is up by 20+ points at halftime in no danger of losing. They don’t start the press in 2nd half but work on their halfcourt. They aren't pros they are still college kids. So, they have a slight letdown in addition to they aren't pushing pace as much. The other team can now set their Defense more often so more shots are contested and generally any team doesn’t score as efficient in halfcourt sets vs running fastbreaks of course. And now in halfcourt - some days shots won't fall as much. So, it's a bit tougher and UCONN is a bit off, they only win the quarter by 5 points or so. Still near 25 + to 30-point lead if not at little more - but no danger of losing. Primarily, UCONN would have played their core players 6 up to 8 during this 3rd qtr stretch.
But going into the 4th quarter, wouldn’t it be great if Aubrey stayed in to work on her outside game? She plays with Paige and Azzi which means she is mostly setting them up with picks or she flashes to the hoop (because they would lead the team in scoring as well as Edwards - in other words they get more shots.). But wouldn't it be great if she got extra minutes to work on her outside game? And what if she is 2-3 from 3 on this day or she hit a couple of mid-range shots? Wouldn't it be great to see her get extra minutes to keep it going and see if that shot has improved that Geno and the team overall can feel more confident? The more she hits, the more confident she'll probably get, right? Adn wouldn’t it be amazing to see her get the open locks in the flow of the Offense even without Paige or Azzi in? For those that say she can't hit-- then why would she ever take one 3-point shot as an example?
And Nika, wouldn’t it be great to see her shoot more in games already decided to see if her confidence (same as Aubrey) can grow? And suppose Ice beats out Jana and is the PF/C. UCONN would want to give her extra time because she was clearly the best and the more wind she can get along with just more time, would be much needed vs top competition. And wouldn't it be great she gets some extra minutes with players like Paige and Azzi too? And maybe she was in foul trouble in 1st half too. Anyhow, she won the job because she is/was better. If you need her to play more minutes in the real big games and suppose she is doing well in the big games which ofc is the goal why she starts and gets starter minutes anyway, then it won't help her as much if she doesn't practice playing some extra minutes in blowout games. And add in that Caroline hasn't played much basketball the past two years. And frankly Paige and Azzi haven't played much basketball the past two years. They will get trickle-down too. As will Ice especialy if she wins the starting spot (or Jana etc). If they play well in big games they (the statrter) need to be psuhed beyond "20 minutes." One day 1 player one another etc. Some of the top teams have played together for several years with a specific core. UCONN has not overall.
- I see this as a trickle-down. And I literally mean (a slow) trickle-down. First off say UCONN is up by 20+ points at halftime in no danger of losing. They don’t start the press in 2nd half but work on their halfcourt. They aren't pros they are still college kids. So, they have a slight letdown in addition to they aren't pushing pace as much. The other team can now set their Defense more often so more shots are contested and generally any team doesn’t score as efficient in halfcourt sets vs running fastbreaks of course. And now in halfcourt - some days shots won't fall as much. So, it's a bit tougher and UCONN is a bit off, they only win the quarter by 5 points or so. Still near 25 + to 30-point lead if not at little more - but no danger of losing. Primarily, UCONN would have played their core players 6 up to 8 during this 3rd qtr stretch.
But going into the 4th quarter, wouldn’t it be great if Aubrey stayed in to work on her outside game? She plays with Paige and Azzi which means she is mostly setting them up with picks or she flashes to the hoop (because they would lead the team in scoring as well as Edwards - in other words they get more shots.). But wouldn't it be great if she got extra minutes to work on her outside game? And what if she is 2-3 from 3 on this day or she hit a couple of mid-range shots? Wouldn't it be great to see her get extra minutes to keep it going and see if that shot has improved that Geno and the team overall can feel more confident? The more she hits, the more confident she'll probably get, right? Adn wouldn’t it be amazing to see her get the open locks in the flow of the Offense even without Paige or Azzi in? For those that say she can't hit-- then why would she ever take one 3-point shot as an example?
And Nika, wouldn’t it be great to see her shoot more in games already decided to see if her confidence (same as Aubrey) can grow? And suppose Ice beats out Jana and is the PF/C. UCONN would want to give her extra time because she was clearly the best and the more wind she can get along with just more time, would be much needed vs top competition. And wouldn't it be great she gets some extra minutes with players like Paige and Azzi too? And maybe she was in foul trouble in 1st half too. Anyhow, she won the job because she is/was better. If you need her to play more minutes in the real big games and suppose she is doing well in the big games which ofc is the goal why she starts and gets starter minutes anyway, then it won't help her as much if she doesn't practice playing some extra minutes in blowout games. And add in that Caroline hasn't played much basketball the past two years. And frankly Paige and Azzi haven't played much basketball the past two years. They will get trickle-down too. As will Ice especialy if she wins the starting spot (or Jana etc). If they play well in big games they (the statrter) need to be psuhed beyond "20 minutes." One day 1 player one another etc. Some of the top teams have played together for several years with a specific core. UCONN has not overall.
oldude
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Interesting analysis. So much depends on how many players on the 14 player roster earn Geno’s trust for meaningful PT. At present, 6 rotation players are sure bets (Paige, Azzi, Aaliyah, Nika, Aubrey & Caroline). Ayanna is very close if not already a 7th rotation player.
Then it starts to get tricky. After back surgery, will Amari finally live up to the potential we all hope she has. Can Ines make a sophomore leap, forcing Geno to put her in the rotation. We’ve heard good things about both Ice & Jana, that appear to indicate it will be very hard to keep them out of the rotation.
Finally, KK, Ashlynn & Q are all very talented freshmen, who are learning the UConn system and working hard. Will one or more of them force their way into the rotation as well.
It is not inconceivable that Geno may have 8 to 12 prime time players on his roster. That will make managing PT an extremely difficult challenge for Geno and his staff. Obviously the more UConn jumps on opponents with up tempo blowouts, the easier it will be to spread out the PT. Whatever happens, it’s going to be an interesting season, to say the least.
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I don't think running a press requires a deep rotation. tOSU ran theirs and rarely went deeper than 5+2 all season. This was the most ambitious pressing team in D1.
However....
if we're looking for an excuse to imagine Geno running a deeper rotation, then it's certainly fun to imagine that press would provide one.
However....
if we're looking for an excuse to imagine Geno running a deeper rotation, then it's certainly fun to imagine that press would provide one.
CL82
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And it isn't allowed under NCAA rules.
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Interesting?
So, you dodn't want to predict? Or if you were to predict, you believe that if healthy KK, Shade, and Q will be just as good options as Nika and Aubrey looking at both Offense and Defense as “one” rating? Realistically, imo that chance is near none unless health is an issue for Nika>Aubrey or for any of the core players. If UCONN has 8 players or even maybe 9, if they are heathy for the season, it's not like they are going to "wear out." These are highly fit kids. Not China-dolls. The other 4 - 6 players will play but in blowouts or comfortable winning games but not as player's being counted on in the big game(s).
Nika and Aubrey have had 4/5 years of tremendous results and accomplishments. The 3 young freshmen mentioned were not considered "the next Paige or Azzi" this past year. IMO it is near unrealistic to believe they will earn time in big games when game is close vs these two (and Caroline) if all 3 are healthy (as well as Paige, Azzi and Edwards). Everything ofc changes even if one player is hurt but there is too much terrific play and experience from the past from Nika and Aubrey at the 1 and 3 spots (Aubrey can be realistically replaced at the 4) to realistically think any of the 1,2 and 3 position frosh can take minutes away from Nika or Aubrey. So, its highly doubtful that they are going to "earn time" over these fine, experienced, winning type of players.
*The big issues with PT for the young guards/wings is that Paige and Azzi are expected to be super supreme players. Not just good but super. And Edwards adds to the offensive juggernaut and if healthy we’ve seen Caroline produce at a very, very high level. So, none of the 3 are going to get the ball out of their hands. So, their other alternative is Defense. And their coemption are the two players in Nika and Aubrey who specializes in this part of the game. And over the years their Offense has shown to fit well with the others. So,, imo for anyone to believe that you are going to take away minutes ta the 103 spots form these 5 accomplished players, just isn’t realistic. They aren’t going to wear down. Not with 5 spots for 3 positions in which quite a few games during the year there were comfortable wins and blowouts.
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Didn't Geno say in his last presser or two that he was planning to run a press this season?
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