I hope everyone is enjoying this discussion because it really is interesting to me with lots and lots of good points being brought up. I am going to try and keep this a little short, but who knows with so many issues under consideration:
1. I think a defining moment for the Stewart/Taurasi comparison is that freshman year semi-final - Diana's worst game ever (?) vs. one of Breanna's best ever - their freshman years pretty similar (except for injuries) and one stepped up big time and the other did not - general feeling in both instances was that was the championship game. Both surrounded by very talented and experienced teammates.
2. We think of Stef and Bria as 'future AAs' and national championship winners without Maya, and we think of Turner and Strother, and Crockett as 'unable to get it done' on their own. But we also have to remember the 'reinforcements' that were added for Stef and Bria - AAs KML, Breanna, Moriah, and Morgan - and it wasn't until the second wave of reinforcements that they were actually able to break through for their last two years. Ann, Barb, and Willnett never got that type of infusion of talent - the only future AA arrived their senior season in Rene - there were some good recruits in Houston Thomas and Swanier, and Greene their senior year, as well as the injured Hunter as a transfer but there really isn't any comparison. And KML, Stewart, Tuck, and Jefferson to that 2005 and 2006 team and who knows what would have happened!
3. Specific to Stef - it wasn't until after her freshman experience that she realized she had to transform herself and proceeded to do so. Stef in her championship years is a very different player from Stef as a freshman.
4. Specific to Ann and Bria - they were actually very comparable as freshman - Hartley scored a little more 12.4 to 10.0, but Strother had more assists and fewer turnovers, and more rebounds - both playing 31+ minutes per game.
5. Faris was great and really good as a sophomore but she was sort of Battle 2.0 - they were both incredibly athletic and great defenders who provided a little offense when needed - Battle played fewer minutes but per minute provided very similar stats - scoring significantly more and more efficiently, while not being as good a passer with a significantly worse A/TO. They both rebounded really well from the wing/guard spot - per minute the edge goes to Battle, per game to Faris.
6. Taurasi as a guard and primary ball handler had an easier leadership role to perform than Maya as a forward. On that senior year team she was not only playing the 4, but for the 15 minutes per game that Stef was unable to play, she was playing as an undersized center and Faris was playing as an undersized 4 after Walker decamped. A much tougher job to direct the offense from those positions.
7. A good point about 4th games against the same opponent in a season ND, Baylor, and Uconn have all failed that test in the NCAA tournament - and in the last 5 years.
8. Digger - I am in complete agreement about making evaluations of relative talent based on previous and future accomplishments and trying to assign a value to a specific moment in time - a semifinal game. I am just trying to fight against mythology that has developed over time and get everyone to really look at those two years through a lens of actual facts, not the future disappointments or triumphs that somewhat muddy our memories. Neither of the two teams lacked in talented players, both relied on inexperienced players to grow up quickly and perform in the biggest moment. And both teams had wonderful superstar leaders. In a team sport against varying competition there is no answer, just a lovely discussion.
Aside: On TN iconic players - we think of Catchings with the whole package of college, pros, and USA rolled together, but in college Holdsclaw was the real terror of those TN teams I think and would be the one to stand with Parker. (Not unlike Moriah/Breanna)
Not so short after all.
), and I think DT's defensive liability has always been more of a myth generated by Geno than reality. None of these players were quite Kelly Faris in terms of defensive intensity, but they all played good defense. I will give Breanna a slight edge because of her height, but Maya playing both up in size against taller players and down in size against faster players performed very well.
