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Message: [QUOTE="Bone Dog, post: 4498587, member: 12088"] [USER=750]@huskeynut[/USER] I agree with your general point. But I’m not sure of this particular memory: As I remember it, Evina was the leader in the first few weeks. Watch the UCLA game and you’ll really see it. I don’t think Nika was quite ready to lead at that point. It’s not merely about who started, but more who was the heart of the team. There was a turning point in the games against Tennessee and at Marquette. Evina was still a key player, but Nika had stepped up and begun to take the reins. I’m not sure this was something planned by Geno or if the girls just sorted it out among themselves. When Paige came back, of course, she became the leader and both Nika and Evina receded into the background. That’s how the team finished the season. In the tournament, Evina would get 15 or so mins off the bench and Nika would get 10. Interestingly, this pattern changed a little in the Stanford and SC games, when Nika got 15 or more mins. Perhaps this is when Geno really began to start planning for the elevation of Nika. Before Paige’s second injury this summer, I suspect he was already planning to start Nika at point with Paige and Azzi as shooting guards at that time. [/QUOTE]