Stewie at the Olympics...

[DavidinNaples]

Breanna Stewart is proving she belongs on the USA team with her performance in the first three games. Consider her stats:
1. Stewie is 2nd on the team in scoring w/ 41 points behind only D.T.
2. Those 41 pts come in only 39 minutes, by far the best point per minute ratio.
3. Stewart is 10-12 from the field, 83.3%..!
4. From 3 pt range she is 2-4 or 50%. Only DT (14) and Della Donne (3) have more threes.
5. Her 15 made free throws are double the nearest other player. DT and Tina have 7 each.
6. In her 39 minutes, Stewie has only 1 turnover.
7. She has 1 blocked shot, 1 steal and 2 assists.

Stewie comes off the bench, works hard on defense and runs the court like she always did at UConn. She is more than the future, Stewie is also the present..!!

Go USA..!!

 

[UcMiami]

What really surprises me is that she has blocked at least three shots but the official scorer has been really strange, and she has at least one more assist, a lead pass for a break-away basket that wasn't credited.

But yeah, she is doing a really good job.

On DT - in the WC in 2014, the team looked to Maya to get the offense going and she was delivering. In this Olympics, Maya's shooting has not been great so DT has taken on that role of settling the nerves for the rest of the team.

As we have seen through three games, opponents are terrified of Griner and Fowles (and to a lesser degree Charles) so they pack in the paint on defense making mid range and three point shooting essential - and that explains some of the choices on team selection. Outside of Fowles and Griner everyone else on the team is strong in those areas.

 

[JordyG]

As I'd said previously, all Stewie really needed was to relax, have confidence and play her game. Against the Serbs she also (and at last) played in the post a bit and once again showed how her length and quickness is a problem. Stewie also helps bringing the ball up and in breaking presses. Stewie still needs to understand how FIBA officials call fouls. 2018 and 2020 look bright.

I think it's also safe to say that without DT's shooting against the Serbs we would have had a problem. The Serbs moved the ball around the perimeter and through post entries very well, and their 3 point shooting kept the game close. Gonna miss her in 2018 and 2020.

Also as I said previously when others noted Griner wasn't getting minutes, she really just needed to get into game shape after her suspension. When she avoids foul trouble other teams really have no answer for her. But her athleticism also allows her to do other things such as cover occasionally on the perimeter and on switches. She can hit that mid range jumper that Fowles can't. Fowles who against the Serbs seemed to be Miss Butterfingers. Looking for more from her especially against the Aussies.

Also I still cringe when Whalen enters the game and relax when she hits the bench.

 

[warbler1055]

Whalen is fearless and she is a lot quicker than people realizes!!!

 

[MilfordHusky]

If you didn't know who the players were and someone asked you to pick out the newbie, it would be very hard to do. Everyone is playing well, and Stewie both fits in and is a scoring machine. She is the present and the future.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

What really surprises me is that she has blocked at least three shots but the official scorer has been really strange, and she has at least one more assist, a lead pass for a break-away basket that wasn't credited.

Totally. Like what is up with those "no card" plays. Stewie's history with USA basketball allows her to slide gracefully into the Olympic game, while EDD is said to be struggling a bit to adapt. Geno has said that if Stewie had DT's o r Maya's 'tude at UConn she would have been so much greater, but she was great enough wasn't she. Off of her freshman WNBA season, I suspect Geno was right.

 

[UcMiami]

If you didn't know who the players were and someone asked you to pick out the newbie, it would be very hard to do. Everyone is playing well, and Stewie both fits in and is a scoring machine. She is the present and the future.

Partly because she isn't the 'newbie' - people sort of forget that both she and Girner played for the NT team in the 2014 WC - that was their introduction to the NT and they already sort of know how the rhythm works on the team. I think EDD does show some of the 'newbie' issues - not quite sure when to assert herself and when to pass. She has more pro experience but the NT team is a different experience.

 

[OldAlum]

Practicing dunks courtesy of EDD!

USA Basketball | Facebook

 

[msf22b]

Think of Stewie's first bucket against the Serbs;
a driving, under the basket backhand put-in,
that was a slightly different move from any we'd seen in College (was it so long ago?)
Followed by a deep three (am I remembering the sequence correctly?).
C'mon
This kids right up there...Right Now.

 

[victor64]

She is playing like she knows she belongs. With all the weapons the US has, she is probably feels free not being the focus of the other team's defensive focus. It is one thing to be the best player in college. It is another thing to performing this well on the world stage. I would like to see Geno get her in the game earlier in the rotation.

 

[baggerbob]

Stewie knows how to create fouls on opponents while scoring. That attests to the fact that, in taking less shots, she gets to the foul line a lot.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Practicing dunks courtesy of EDD!

USA Basketball | Facebook

Nice! Can they do the reverse, Stewie to EDD?

 

[MilfordHusky]

Partly because she isn't the 'newbie' - people sort of forget that both she and Girner played for the NT team in the 2014 WC - that was their introduction to the NT and they already sort of know how the rhythm works on the team. I think EDD does show some of the 'newbie' issues - not quite sure when to assert herself and when to pass. She has more pro experience but the NT team is a different experience.

I agree that EDD struggled, at least against Serbia. I thought she looked good in the first 2 games. She has very limited international experience, at least at this level, and has admitted it.

Though it is the first Olympics for both Britney and Stewie, there's a difference. BG has been a pro for 4 years or so, while Stewie is just a rookie. BG was the starting center and primary scoring option in Turkey. Stewie was the 11th or 12th player and was a little overmatched.

Stewie is the youngest player on the team by about 3 years. Her play doesn't reflect that at all. She had a senior season as good as anyone's, and her rookie campaign is matched only by Candace's ROY/MVP season. She is on her way to becoming the face of the game.

 

[UcMiami]

Practicing dunks courtesy of EDD!

USA Basketball | Facebook

And Catchings is filming it!

 

[rvwsleep]

And Catchings is filming it!

A metaphor for Tennessee's on-going fortunes ?

 

[bags27]

EDD and Stewie marched together at the opening ceremonies and I've seen them sit next to one another on the bench, really comfortable with one another, and here EDD happily sets up Stewie's dunk. There's lots of reasons for the affinity, and little reason to suspect competition, even though they are apparently currently an interchangeable pair in Geno's mind.

Stewie's role is like the ninth batter on an (American League) baseball team: sometimes it's one of the better hitters placed there strategically. Stewie might rotate in late, but often catches the opponents tired and/or with their subs in, and with the game a bit more free and loose, and then she can really rock.

 

[UcMiami]

So - through four games - Stewart is averaging 12.5 minutes per game - her numbers are pretty good, but just for fun here are her per 40:
Points: 36.8
Rebounds: 11.2
Foul shots: 16
The points per 40 would lead the team, as would the foul shots (she leads the team in this stat in raw number as well by almost 50%), rebounds would be 4th on the team behind Fowles, Moore, and Charles.

And she leads the team in field goal percentage at .77

 

[Fairfield Fan]

View attachment 14925

Breanna Stewart is proving she belongs on the USA team with her performance in the first three games. Consider her stats:
1. Stewie is 2nd on the team in scoring w/ 41 points behind only D.T.
2. Those 41 pts come in only 39 minutes, by far the best point per minute ratio.
3. Stewart is 10-12 from the field, 83.3%..!
4. From 3 pt range she is 2-4 or 50%. Only DT (14) and Della Donne (3) have more threes.
5. Her 15 made free throws are double the nearest other player. DT and Tina have 7 each.
6. In her 39 minutes, Stewie has only 1 turnover.
7. She has 1 blocked shot, 1 steal and 2 assists.

Stewie comes off the bench, works hard on defense and runs the court like she always did at UConn. She is more than the future, Stewie is also the present..!!

Go USA..!!

Remember that Candace Parker thing? Neither do I.

Never mind.

 

[bags27]

Sbut just for fun here are her per 40:

Interesting, but, then again nobody plays 40 minutes/game, so maybe a better index would be to adjust it to how many minutes the starters on average play (whatever that is....I'm guessing ~22 minutes on average?).

 

[UcMiami]

Interesting, but, then again nobody plays 40 minutes/game, so maybe a better index would be to adjust it to how many minutes the starters on average play (whatever that is....I'm guessing ~22 minutes on average?).

OK - DT is playing 22 minutes/gm - Stewart per 22 minutes is:
Points - 20.2
Rebounds - 6.1
Foul shots - 8.8

 

[MilfordHusky]

I had no doubt that Stewie belonged. She was still learning in Istanbul in 2014. Since then, she has 2 seasons of WCBB under her belt, plus 2/3 of a WNBA season. She also has had practiced with the NT. She's a lot stronger, more experienced, and better. Her performance in Seattle was a strong indicator that she would be fine. I also like that she's hanging out with Geno, Kathy, Sue, and Dee at Beach VB and bonding with Elena.

 

[baggerbob]

Wouldn't it be great if EDD somehow got to Seattle to play with Stewie, Sue, and Jewell.

 

[HuskiesU]

She's showing young girls why to choose 》UCONN《 Geno and staff made her work hard to be where shes at now. WOW!!! But get this... Cant you guys wait until 2020 when Mojeff in on the team because the last 1.5 of the season mo been looking like the best point guard despite her teams record.

 

[HuskiesU]

Wouldn't it be great if EDD somehow got to Seattle to play with Stewie, Sue, and Jewell.

No

 

[mkwstar23]

I agree that EDD struggled, at least against Serbia. I thought she looked good in the first 2 games. She has very limited international experience, at least at this level, and has admitted it.

Though it is the first Olympics for both Britney and Stewie, there's a difference. BG has been a pro for 4 years or so, while Stewie is just a rookie. BG was the starting center and primary scoring option in Turkey. Stewie was the 11th or 12th player and was a little overmatched.

Stewie is the youngest player on the team by about 3 years. Her play doesn't reflect that at all. She had a senior season as good as anyone's, and her rookie campaign is matched only by Candace's ROY/MVP season. She is on her way to becoming the face of the game.

Stewie has played like she is on her way to being the best player of the future...she still needs to gain weight and get stronger and that will come...very nice to see that Griner has come around and become a force again around the rim...EDD has played well offensively but really needs to improve defensively against the international players...she has four years to do that...question is who will join Maya as the perimeter scorer...Moriah will be one of the point guards i would imagine...maybe Kayla McBride can be that other shooter...be an interesting situation to watch as it develops