Something to Think about

[Tonyc]

Short and Sweet We went to the FF last season without Caroline without Griff without Azzi without Sarah without Jana and a whole bunch more. Just imagine this season I am so pumped up.

 

[Blond D.]

Short and Sweet We went to the FF last season without Caroline without Griff without Azzi without Sarah without Jana and a whole bunch more. Just imagine this season I am so pumped up.

But don't forget we THOUGHT we were gonna have just about everybody back before Jana got hurt. Ya never know how its gonna play out. We just have to pray everyone stays healthy.

 

[BBallF]

Short and Sweet We went to the FF last season without Caroline without Griff without Azzi without Sarah without Jana and a whole bunch more. Just imagine this season I am so pumped up.

All true. Question number 1 is how well will Griff, CD and Azzi play coming off their injuries. Question number 2 is how good and season durable is Jana. I think that she will be an instant fan favorite. I have never seen a better "bench teammate" before and the first time she dives for a ball ala' Dennis Rodman, and it is coming, the love affair will be in full bloom. Two things we do have a lot of right now is depth and a senior Paige who is bound and determined to go out a champion. We also have three very experienced sophomores in KK, Ice and Ash, a great freshmen class with a player in Sarah who can contribute right away and a very smart and skilled transfer in Chen who is going to be another Lou. Remember the old expression "It makes a very nice sandwich", well these players make a " very nice team".

 

[oldude]

For many years, I have looked forward to Tonyc’s comprehensive and detailed posts on the Boneyard. Given the relative brevity of this post I have to ask, who’s impersonating Tonyc on the BY?

 

[Cornell Lt]

This new generation of women's basketball all but eliminates the notion that one team will dominate. Yes , on paper UConn will be loaded, but so will about a half dozen other teams . That's what's going to make the upcoming season so enjoyable. UConn will most likely cake walk through the Big East regular season and win the conference tournament. The OOC schedule on the other hand will be a grind and I'd predict a loss or two. The NCAA Tournament will be a crap shoot, with seeding/matchups, injuries and karma playing a big role in who emerges as the Champion. Hang on tight 'cause 2024-2025 is going to be exciting and unpredictable.

 

[Bone Dog]

Hang on tight 'cause 2024-2025 is going to be exciting and unpredictable.

Excellent post! But that last line… Don’t wave a red flag in front of a bull. Now I have no choice but to make a prediction. Paige & Co will take a couple losses along the way — maybe SC or ND or USC — and then be unstoppable in March and April. Am I being exuberant? Yup. Irrational? Maybe or maybe not. It’s irrational to think I can know what the future holds. But it’s not ‘unreasonable’ in the sense of being blind to other possibilities.

Paige is stronger than ever and with a stronger team around her than she’s had in a while. I’ve been watching old videos of past seasons and past greats and wondering if Paige is more like Diana or more like Maya, both of whom were able to will their teams to an NC or five. She’s not as strong as Maya or perhaps quite as fast, but she has comparable resourcefulness at both ends of the court. She’s about as crafty as Diana and knows how to drop a timely dagger, but may not be quite as good (bad?) a trash talker. Whatever spectacle we are treated to, and (horrors!) even if it doesn’t include an NC, this promises to be a season for the ages.

 

[connboy77]

Short and Sweet We went to the FF last season without Caroline without Griff without Azzi without Sarah without Jana and a whole bunch more. Just imagine this season I am so pumped up.

As long as we stay healthy I don't see anyone beating us!

 

[PacoSwede]

This new generation of women's basketball all but eliminates the notion that one team will dominate. Yes , on paper UConn will be loaded, but so will about a half dozen other teams . .... The NCAA Tournament will be a crap shoot, with seeding/matchups, injuries and karma playing a big role in who emerges as the Champion. Hang on tight 'cause 2024-2025 is going to be exciting and unpredictable.

sure would be nice to have karma favoring the team, finally. it owes the huskies BIG time!

 

[sun]

UConn will need to make up for the loss of 3 players from last year.
Edwards who was a key All American caliber player along with Nika, & Amari who would have been a senior & the 2nd superbig on this year's team had she stayed.
That leaves UConn with only Jana being a superbig who is also a freshman.
Not having a 2nd superbig could end up being a weakness against other elite teams that have an AA superbig or more on their roster.

It could be up to UConn's guards to play perfect enough to win some big games as an underdog.
They may need to outhustle some of the other teams & have some super-effective sharpshooters waiting in the wings.
Lastly, let's hope that there won't too many additional cases of tendonitis and/or other complications resulting from the off season knee surgeries.

 

[MSGRET]

UConn will need to make up for the loss of 3 players from last year.
Edwards who was a key All American caliber player along with Nika, & Amari who would have been a senior & the 2nd superbig on this year's team had she stayed.
That leaves UConn with only Jana as the sole superbig who is also a freshman.
Not having a 2nd superbig could end up being a weakness against other elite teams that have an AA superbig or more on their roster.

It could be up to UConn's guards to play perfect enough to win some big games as an underdog.
They may need to outhustle some of the other teams & have some super-effective sharpshooters waiting in the wings.
Lastly, let's hope that there won't too many additional cases of tendonitis and/or other complications resulting from the off season knee surgeries.

Amari would have still been one of the last ones off the bench if she stayed. She saw the writing on the wall and decided to transfer out. Both Sarah and Ice would have been coming off the bench before and maybe even Ayanna.

 

[sun]

Amari would have been still one of the last ones off the bench if she stayed. She saw the writing on the wall and decided to transfer out. Both Sarah and Ice would have been coming off the bench before and maybe even Ayanna.

That's an assumption that I don't totally agree with.
If Jana needs a rest against an elite team with talented superbigs, then UConn could be at a disadvantage going forward all of the way through March Madness.
I can't predict or assume the match ups of who we're going to be playing as much as you seem to want to.

Who does UConn have to match up against Betts if Jana has foul trouble?
Sorry, I'm not going to be a blind cheerleader when the loss of Amari could end up hurting the team.
UConn only needs to lose one game to end its quest for a NC, so I try to be realistic about the value of having more than 1 superbig.

 

[BBallF]

As long as we stay healthy I don't see anyone beating us!

There are some very, very good teams out there such as USC, SC, and ND for starters. Key for us is Jana and to a certain extent Sarah.

 

[Bone Dog]

UConn will need to make up for the loss of 3 players from last year.
Edwards who was a key All American caliber player along with Nika, & Amari who would have been a senior & the 2nd superbig on this year's team had she stayed.
That leaves UConn with only Jana being a superbig who is also a freshman.
Not having a 2nd superbig could end up being a weakness against other elite teams that have an AA superbig or more on their roster.

It could be up to UConn's guards to play perfect enough to win some big games as an underdog.
They may need to outhustle some of the other teams & have some super-effective sharpshooters waiting in the wings.
Lastly, let's hope that there won't too many additional cases of tendonitis and/or other complications resulting from the off season knee surgeries.

I think you’re right. The backcourt is likely to be key to winning most if not all games. Fortunately, I think it’s likely that Geno will have the best backcourt in D1. Only two teams strike me as competitive with them, SC and ND. Two other teams have backcourts that may be close and also a potentially great front court: UCLA and USC.

As for teams with seasoned superbigs, the only ones I can think of that will matter are UCLA and… well that’s about it. Geno’s roster is comparable in size to every other team.

But, yes, the season will be a lot smoother if Jana and Sarah find their confidence sooner rather than later, and if Ice and Q have a sophomore leap, and if Ayanna and Aubrey come back ready to play. It’s bound to be better for the team to be bigger rather than smaller.

 

[MilfordHusky]

There are some very, very good teams out there such as USC, SC, and ND for starters. Key for us is Jana and to a certain extent Sarah.

I think that, to start the season, there is a clear top 6 that almost look like super teams. In no particular order: UConn, South Carolina, Southern California, UCLA, Notre Dame, and Texas. I think all of them return some really good players, including at the All-American level, add at least one elite transfer, and have a recruiting class that includes at least one top-20 player.

 

[Cuango]

UConn will need to make up for the loss of 3 players from last year.
Edwards who was a key All American caliber player along with Nika, & Amari who would have been a senior & the 2nd superbig on this year's team had she stayed.
That leaves UConn with only Jana being a superbig who is also a freshman.
Not having a 2nd superbig could end up being a weakness against other elite teams that have an AA superbig or more on their roster.

It could be up to UConn's guards to play perfect enough to win some big games as an underdog.
They may need to outhustle some of the other teams & have some super-effective sharpshooters waiting in the wings.
Lastly, let's hope that there won't too many additional cases of tendonitis and/or other complications resulting from the off season knee surgeries.

I can’t, assuming full health, see us being an underdog in any game this season with the possible exception of @ South Carolina!

 

[Aluminny69]

Short and Sweet We went to the FF last season without Caroline without Griff without Azzi without Sarah without Jana and a whole bunch more. Just imagine this season I am so pumped up.

We are going into this season with Muhl and Edwards, after four years with them. They will be difficult to replace.

 

[Alydar]

We are going into this season without Muhl and Edwards, after four years with them. They will be difficult to replace.

Absolutely. And Geno has a lot of problem solvers this season.

 

[MSGRET]

That's an assumption that I don't totally agree with.
If Jana needs a rest against an elite team with talented superbigs, then UConn could be at a disadvantage going forward all of the way through March Madness.
I can't predict or assume the match ups of who we're going to be playing as much as you seem to want to.

Who does UConn have to match up against Betts if Jana has foul trouble?
Sorry, I'm not going to be a blind cheerleader when the loss of Amari could end up hurting the team.
UConn only needs to lose one game to end its quest for a NC, so I try to be realistic about the value of having more than 1 superbig.

Ice and Strong are better options than Amari any day of the week and twice on Sundays. Amari had not gotten any better over the 3 years that she was there, she was always in the wrong spots and looked like a dear in the headlights most of the time. Geno was forced to use a Freshman over a Junior because of that.

 

[Bone Dog]

Who does UConn have to match up against Betts if Jana has foul trouble?

Who did LSU have to rely on when Angel and Aliyah Del Rosario got in foul trouble against Betts in last year's Sweet Sixteen game? No one, and yet they still won and eliminated UCLA. How soon everyone forgets this.

Who will Geno have if Jana gets in foul trouble? Ice, Ayanna, and Sarah. That's more size than LSU had. And don't get me started about the possibility of Aubrey and Caroline being ready. And I haven't even mentioned Paige

Good things are headed our way.

 

[Centerstream]

We also have three very experienced sophomores in KK, Ice and Ash,

Umm, is Qadence still on the team?
What about Ayanna?
I haven't been opening the BY every day this offseason, so maybe I missed some headlines...

 

[Linart]

Let’s take a walk down memory lane here:

2020-21 The year of COVID. Playing in empty arenas before cardboard cutouts.
Games cancelled right and left. This is awful we said, but wait till next season.

2021-22 Aubrey out for the season, Paige out for half a season, Azzi out half a season.
Dorka breaks her wrist at the most inopportune time. What terrible luck we said, but wait
till next season.

2022-23 Paige out for the season, Ice out for the season, Azzi out half a season,
Caroline out half a season. It can’t get any worse we said, so wait till next season.

2023-24 Azzi out for the season, Jana out for the season, Ayanna out for the season,
Caroline out for the season, Aubrey out half a season.

I am reminded of the saying:

“Man plans. God laughs.”

 

[BBallF]

Umm, is Qadence still on the team?
What about Ayanna?
I haven't been opening the BY every day this offseason, so maybe I missed some headlines...

The experience level is not the same as KK, Ash and Ice. I look for Q to have a very good and maybe great year and she has a tremendous upside as an athletic offensive player but her playing time will depend on her defense. As for Ay, a whole year off tends to negate the experience she had in her freshman year. We will see what she can do and we hope she is fully healed.

 

[BBallF]

I think that, to start the season, there is a clear top 6 that almost look like super teams. In no particular order: UConn, South Carolina, Southern California, UCLA, Notre Dame, and Texas. I think all of them return some really good players, including at the All-American level, add at least one elite transfer, and have a recruiting class that includes at least one top-20 player.

True. I really can't remember a year like this with so many stacked teams.

 

[hoophuskee]

Let’s take a walk down memory lane here:

2020-21 The year of COVID. Playing in empty arenas before cardboard cutouts.
Games cancelled right and left. This is awful we said, but wait till next season.

2021-22 Aubrey out for the season, Paige out for half a season, Azzi out half a season.
Dorka breaks her wrist at the most inopportune time. What terrible luck we said, but wait
till next season.

2022-23 Paige out for the season, Ice out for the season, Azzi out half a season,
Caroline out half a season. It can’t get any worse we said, so wait till next season.

2023-24 Azzi out for the season, Jana out for the season, Ayanna out for the season,
Caroline out for the season, Aubrey out half a season.

I am reminded of the saying:

“Man plans. God laughs.”

I'm not sure what the point of your post is. This is a UCONN chatboard to discuss about the possibilities of the season. So, your point is to only discuss the injuires instead of talking anything positive about this new season? Is this you, Muffett?