"The Ludicrous, Unprecedented Greatness of Paige Bueckers" | The Boneyard

"The Ludicrous, Unprecedented Greatness of Paige Bueckers"

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Slate has an super-laudatory article about Paige's greatness. An interesting read:

Paige's "unprecedented greatness"
I just logged on to post this, but was happy to see you beat me to it. Probably not a popular source of info for the BY, but praise of UConn women's basketball is graciously welcomed.The photo at the top of the piece was taken during Paige's on court conversation with referee Dee Kantner. I believe she is showing Dee just where the defender fouled her during her previous shot attempt. What a kid!
 
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Waquoit

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The first sentence of the article is helpful in the talent v system debate:
All nine of the UConn women’s basketball team’s national titles in the past two decades were won by teams featuring Diana Taurasi, Maya Moore, or Breanna Stewart.

The next three aren't bad, either.
The three best players in UConn history also happen to be three of the best players in the history of the sport. Stewart, the youngest of the trio, graduated five years ago. The Huskies haven’t won a championship since.
 

UConnCat

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Ah, Mr. Bronsteen again. Every 2 years he gets bored reading law journals so he does some research on UConn women's basketball (logs on to message boards and espn) and writes an article. Tomorrow he'll be back to teaching contracts to some bored 1st years.
 
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Ah, Mr. Bronsteen again. Every 2 years he gets bored reading law journals so he does some research on UConn women's basketball (logs on to message boards and espn) and writes an article. Tomorrow he'll be back to teaching contracts to some bored 1st years.
UConnCat, I'm a huge fan of yours, so please forgive me for expressing the tentative view that you might be a bit too hard on these Slate articles. Over the past 30 years, one of the biggest developments in sports journalism is that some of its top practitioners had no access to inside information and instead made their careers by just watching the games, reading message boards and ESPN, and writing what they thought. The early writings of Bill Simmons (who was not a professor but held the equally random job of bartender), to take one of countless examples, revolutionized the field that way. Some great journalists have access to players and coaches and get quotes from them, but that doesn’t automatically make the journalist an astute observer, and it isn’t the only way to write good stuff.

Moreover, I think these Slate articles have a better track record than you've given them credit for. The first one came out just as Stewie was winning her fourth championship and was titled “The UConn Women’s Basketball Dynasty Is Over” -- which proved to be true. The second one came out two years ago. It predicted that UConn would land Bueckers, Fudd, and Amari DeBerry, none of whom had yet committed -- which proved to be true. That second article also predicted that in 2019, UConn “won’t win the title this year and will fail to reach its lofty standards next year while still being a dangerous tournament team that no one wants to face.” Also true. And it ended by predicting this: “Give it two or three years, and most fans will have forgotten that Geno Auriemma’s Huskies ever fell from their perch at all.” That, too, seems like a really good guess at the moment.

These articles are far from perfect, but given how hard it is to predict anything in sports, and how virtually everyone gets so much wrong, let’s give this its due. If you don’t like the substance, that’s one thing. But I very respectfully submit that criticizing it because of the author's job isn't the most relevant objection.
 
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Stewie, because of her height, could play all 5 positions on the court. So, if you were doing a pick-up game, she would have to be the first pick.

But, since basketball is a team sport, in terms of the total impact on the outcome of a game, they all reached the peak of greatness. So, using this top of the mountain analogy, the summit would not be a peak but a plateau that all four occupy.
 
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Exactly what many BYers have been saying all year! Validation.
 

UcMiami

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Nice article - but I am always a little annoyed at people looking at continued FF appearances and saying how Uconn has fallen by the wayside. I know 4 in a row was a peak, but 12 straight FF makes the peak just a little bit of a bump on a plateau of excellence!
 
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The next three aren't bad, either.
The three best players in UConn history also happen to be three of the best players in the history of the sport. Stewart, the youngest of the trio, graduated five years ago. The Huskies haven’t won a championship since.
Been saying for a long time that while Geno is the greatest coach, it does not hurt to have had the greatest players.
 
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"The Ludicrous, Unprecedented Greatness of Paige Bueckers"

Paige has played one game against a decent team. I think she will be great and maybe she is now. I generally do not watch games vs overmatched opponents. However, I will watch to see Paige play.

Stats put up against weak competition though are not as indicative as stats put up against really good teams. That is when she will prove just how good she is.
 
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"The Ludicrous, Unprecedented Greatness of Paige Bueckers"

Paige has played one game against a decent team. I think she will be great and maybe she is now. I generally do not watch games vs overmatched opponents. However, I will watch to see Paige play.

Stats put up against weak competition though are not as indicative as stats put up against really good teams. That is when she will prove just how good she is.
Assuming you meant SC was the ‘decent team', I mean she did put up 31points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 6 steals and a block. Just sayin’...
 
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Assuming you meant SC was the ‘decent team.’ I mean she did put up 31points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 6 steals and a block. Just sayin’...
One game! One game is not a large enough sample size. I also think SC is overrated, Mainly because Dawn Staley is overrated. I say that because she basically uses a grinding style of play popular in the WNBA. This in my opinion, why the WNBA puts out a product that is not watched by many. This, despite some really great players. Winning just one Championship with A'ja Wilson plus a great supporting cast is big time underachievement.
 
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One game! One game is not a large enough sample size. I also think SC is overrated, Mainly because Dawn Staley is overrated. I say that because she basically uses a grinding style of play popular in the WNBA. This in my opinion, why the WNBA puts out a product that is not watched by many. This, despite some really great players. Winning just one Championship with A'ja Wilson plus a great supporting cast is big time underachievement.
I think your being a little harsh here. The sample size of "decent" teams is at least 3. Tennessee and Arkansas are decent teams. Paige put up 27 against Arkansas in a losing cause and on an off shooting night had arguably the biggest basket against Tennessee. As for SC that had to be one of the most clutch performances in recent memory. Games against Baylor and Louisville were canceled through no fault of Paiges. She can only play the games scheduled.
 

bballnut90

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One game! One game is not a large enough sample size. I also think SC is overrated, Mainly because Dawn Staley is overrated. I say that because she basically uses a grinding style of play popular in the WNBA. This in my opinion, why the WNBA puts out a product that is not watched by many. This, despite some really great players. Winning just one Championship with A'ja Wilson plus a great supporting cast is big time underachievement.
Lol A'ja Wilson wasn't some insanely dominant recruit like a Griner/Stewart/Parker who changed the landscape of the sport. UCONN was darn near unbeatable her first two years with Stewart, A'ja won as a junior and had a very weak supporting cast as a senior. Dawn did a good job those 4 years even if they played ugly basketball.
 
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The sample size of "decent" teams is at least 3. Tennessee and Arkansas are decent teams.
Uconn SOS is 67. So 1/7th of the games have been against 'decent' teams. But just one against a top ten. In Stewie's 1st year they played almost every top ten team, including 4 games against a team made up of 5 future WNBA all stars. Plus Griner and Sims. The Baylor and ND teams that year would clobber SC, Tenn & Ark. They would also clobber this year's Uconn team.
 
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Lol A'ja Wilson wasn't some insanely dominant recruit like a Griner/Stewart/Parker who changed the landscape of the sport.
Despite her notoriety, size and ability, plus playing with Odyssey Sims, Griner did not change any landscapes that I recall. So the three time AA and 1st pick in the draft only developed dominating ability after moving to the Pro's?
 
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Uconn SOS is 67. So 1/7th of the games have been against 'decent' teams. But just one against a top ten. In Stewie's 1st year they played almost every top ten team, including 4 games against a team made up of 5 future WNBA all stars. Plus Griner and Sims. The Baylor and ND teams that year would clobber SC, Tenn & Ark. They would also clobber this year's Uconn team.
Just look at the roster that Stewie was playing with her freshmen year compared to Paige. As a matter of fact there's no comparison. Stewie didn't have to do any heavy lifting.
 
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Lol A'ja Wilson wasn't some insanely dominant recruit like a Griner/Stewart/Parker who changed the landscape of the sport. UCONN was darn near unbeatable her first two years with Stewart, A'ja won as a junior and had a very weak supporting cast as a senior. Dawn did a good job those 4 years even if they played ugly basketball.
The 6 players who were generational are Miller, Holdsclaw, Taurasi, Parker, Moore and Stewart! 16 NCs between them! I loved watching each of these player's in action. My favorite Vol was Holdsclaw who was just a dominant force for them!

Aja Wilson was a great player for SC but not generational. With Griner as a 6'8" center with athletic ability like hers should have won more but again not generational. Losing to Louisville like that should have never happened.
 
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Just look at the roster that Stewie was playing with her freshmen year compared to Paige. As a matter of fact there's no comparison. Stewie didn't have to do any heavy lifting.
Your statements are not matters of fact! They are matters of opinion. You want a fact: Stewie dominated the tournament. Another fact: Stewie played against far superior opponents. And it isn't even close.
 

bballnut90

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Despite her notoriety, size and ability, plus playing with Odyssey Sims, Griner did not change any landscapes that I recall. So the three time AA and 1st pick in the draft only developed dominating ability after moving to the Pro's?
Changed in the landscape in that Baylor became the feared top dog during her tenure there and she was the pre-eminent player in women's college basketball. She swept all POY awards her last two years and was runner up to Moore for most POY awards as a sophomore. Her lack of multiple titles puts her lower on the totem pole of greatness compared to the likes of Moore/Parker/Stewart/etc but she was immensely dominant at Baylor. People rightfully harp on Kim/BG for only winning 1 title during her 4 years, but Griner was a true goliath of a talent even if it didn't lead to multiple titles.

Wilson was never close to being in a similar position to Griner. SC was never considered a title favorite during her 4 years, she won POY awards just 1 season and wasn't a strong candidate for the award her other 3 years.
 

bballnut90

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The 6 players who were generational are Miller, Holdsclaw, Taurasi, Parker, Moore and Stewart! 16 NCs between them! I loved watching each of these player's in action. My favorite Vol was Holdsclaw who was just a dominant force for them!

Aja Wilson was a great player for SC but not generational. With Griner as a 6'8" center with athletic ability like hers should have won more but again not generational. Losing to Louisville like that should have never happened.

Holdsclaw is my all time favorite player...such a fun player to watch. Griner skill wise and dominance wise was good enough to be in that grouping but doesn't have the titles to match them since Baylor came up short in 2011 and 2013. 2x POY, runner up another year, and Baylor was a heavy title favorite for 2 seasons and a legitimate title threat a third. Wilson never came close to having a resume like BG's aside from each winning a title, albeit under very different circumstances.
 

bballnut90

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Your statements are not matters of fact! They are matters of opinion. You want a fact: Stewie dominated the tournament. Another fact: Stewie played against far superior opponents. And it isn't even close.

I'd suggest rewatching some of the 2012-13 games if you think Stewart carried the team in a similar manner to the way Paige. Stewart barely played at all vs Baylor and had a very up and down season.
 
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You need to read my comment better: They did not play Baylor in the tournament.
 

bballnut90

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How can you say this? Her 1st three years: 34-3, 33-2, 33-4. Maybe you misremembered?

Title favorite is different than title threat. In 2015/2016 everyone expected UCONN would win. Both years SC got soundly beat by UCONN during the regular season and no one realistically thought they were going to win it all. Junior year I think people thought they had an outside shot but again UCONN was the heavy title favorite since they soundly beat SC in the regular season. Notre Dame was viewed as the bigger title threat that year than SC, too.

Compare that to Griner where they were heavy title favorites her last two years and a good number of fans thought they would win her sophomore year too.
 

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