Too early 2018-19 Rankings

[bballnut90]

Yeah a tough problem for Muffet to deal with LOL

Could definitely affect how Shepard plays though, similar to how the emergence of Stevens impacted Collier's play for much of the season. I'm a firm believer that more talent isn't always better.

 

[shiverz45]

By what date would Z (and Pheesa) have to declare for the draft? Threads like this aren't valuable until after that day.

I think you have to declare within a day or 2 after the championship game. I recalled Allisha Gray saying she had to make a decision right after she got off the plane from winning the national championship.

 

[shiverz45]

Not sure of the date but I think it is very soon like within 10 days.

I think you will have to declare a day or 2 after the championship.

 

[j66kicker]

I think you have to declare within a day or 2 after the championship game. I recalled Allisha Gray saying she had to make a decision right after she got off the plane from winning the national championship.

Yeah I think the date has passed, but if you’re still playing you have 24 or 48 hours after your last game to declare. We’ll know soon.

 

[stwainfan]

Based just on talent in no order .
Baylor, UConn, Notre Dame, Texas, Louisville all have talented rosters.
All those teams should be top ten. Tennessee is talented but young. I think it depends on how this years freshman Davis, Westbrook, Hayes, and Kasi develop over the off season.

 

[scubadog]

Yeah I think the date has passed, but if you’re still playing you have 24 or 48 hours after your last game to declare. We’ll know soon.

I'm sure your right

 

[Shmermerer]

I see Syracuse taking another step forward.

Mangakahia/Salgues
Cooper/Young
Drummond/Sissoko
Strautmane/Engstler
Finklea-Guity/Tabdi

Not sure about all of the other guards they have but Engstler and the French recruits they have are very good.

Kiarra Lewis will also be eligible as well. She transferred from Ohio State. Super talented former top 25 recruit.

 

[Centerstream]

Yeah I think the date has passed, but if you’re still playing you have 24 or 48 hours after your last game to declare. We’ll know soon.

I am guessing/hoping that some BYers are following Z and Pheesa on that Twitter thingy....

 

[Fairfield Fan]

So, the risk of getting hurt in hard UConn practices to play a perfect game against AAC is worth it ? I hope she stays , but I have my very serious doubts. I hope I'm wrong for our sakes.

Z is still healthy, with no chronic problems. She didn't start at UConn, and she still had some questionable games. I'm guessing that her professional earnings potential would be enhanced with a good season as a starter and AA after her name.

So I'm guessing that she comes back.

 

[scubadog]

Z is still healthy, with no chronic problems. She didn't start at UConn, and she still had some questionable games. I'm guessing that her professional earnings potential would be enhanced with a good season as a starter and AA after her name.

So I'm guessing that she comes back.

I certainly hope you are right. But one only has to remember Stokes , who didn't start, was drafted and is having a good pro career. I would say Z is ahead of her right now .

 

[Linart]

But Z said she came to UConn to win a NC. Maybe a second chance next year to do that. Fingers crossed.

 

[PAHuskeyFan]

Uhh perhaps you’ve heard of this thing called practice with the UConn coaching staff?

AND arguably the toughest OOC schedule in all of WCBB.... Other conferences are not so deep/competitive either... maybe the SEC with their top 4 or 5 teams...but these things change every year.

Z is happy at UConn...she said so in a recent interview...words to the effect of "I found that place I need to be"... I believe she stays and takes next year to hone her skills... maybe even become NPOY caliber... but of course if she isn't the "pre-ordained" one, then it's a crap shoot. But, I believe she stays, I believe UConn is a VERY good Team next season and competes again for the NC.

 

[ed4ourgirls]

I certainly don't see Pheesa bailing on her good buddy Lou.
Those two came in together, and I'm confident they will go out together.

 

[oldude]

AND arguably the toughest OOC schedule in all of WCBB.... Other conferences are not so deep/competitive either... maybe the SEC with their top 4 or 5 teams...but these things change every year.

Z is happy at UConn...she said so in a recent interview...words to the effect of "I found that place I need to be"... I believe she stays and takes next year to hone her skills... maybe even become NPOY caliber... but of course if she isn't the "pre-ordained" one, then it's a crap shoot. But, I believe she stays, I believe UConn is a VERY good Team next season and competes again for the NC.

As far as their OOC schedule is concerned, next year will be another “murderers row” for the Huskies that may lineup as even tougher than the last two seasons with road games against ND, Baylor & Louisville, arguably 3 of the top 5 teams in the country.

 

[HopJim]

Jere Longman wrote about "parity" today, and he's right. But a two-tiered parity. The very best teams are separated from the rest: these five: Notre Dame, Baylor, Connecticut, Oregon, Louisville, Texas. They're all recruiting the best players, and they're beating most everyone else most games. UConn for a couple of years now has not had the greatest recruiting time. Walker disappointed, and I'm sure she would agree. The other three recruits this year, one of which departed, were likewise not up to their rankings. So, too, for the non-Dangerfield recruits a year ago.

Will Crystal and ONO save reverse the trouble in the FF, and compensate for Kia's and Gabby's departure? Will Azure remain? Clearly, we will go into next season without a bench, or with a bench that can only contribute with a major advance in the off-season.

On the other hand, the other top five will arrive with some major talent. The proof of the pudding in terms of parity is what's happened the past couple of years.

We're not guaranteed another romp to the Final Four, and we're not going to be a 3:1 favorite for the championship next year either.

Times have changed.

Well said. I see approx. 10 teams that could all be in the chase throughout the year. Suggest that it will be Geno's strategy regarding how many players play that will determine where UConn is ranked. For two years he has played 6 and while the teams were undefeated in season, both could have had more energy in the semis.

 

[scubadog]

As far as their OOC schedule is concerned, next year will be another “murderers row” for the Huskies that may lineup as even tougher than the last two seasons with road games against ND, Baylor & Louisville, arguably 3 of the top 5 teams in the country.

I have no problem with a tough schedule. I just hope the bench gets developed even if we lose a couple. John Thompson's old Georgetown teams always lost a few along the way but had a nice deep bench in March. I think grinding the 6 players through 30 plus games really takes it's toll by this time of year. Thanks for all of posts Oldude. I have enjoyed them all season.

 

[msf22b]

Amazing that Tennessee with all their splendid recruiting, isn't on anyone's radar.
Waste of good talent

As we used to say in the band...
"Choice not chance, got us in this mess..."
(Set to the West Point pep song).

 

[MilfordHusky]

I think you will have to declare a day or 2 after the championship.

The WNBA draft is on April 12. I’m not sure of the deadline for players to declare for it, but I think it is sometime next week, roughly a week before the draft.

I think there is little to no chance that Azura leaves and no chance that Napheesa leaves. We’ll know soon enough.

Z knows how much she has to learn, and I think she wants a championship and to help Pheesa and Lou get another one.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Assuming that everyone stays—which I think will happen—I think UConn will be ranked 2, 3, or 4.

ND is likely #1, especially if they win tomorrow.

 

[Centerstream]

I guess our hope for a Top 10 ranking next season just flew out the window. Along with a lot of streaks...

 

[MilfordHusky]

I think top 10 is realistic, but no longer 2 or 3.

 

[Centerstream]

I think top 10 is realistic, but no longer 2 or 3.

You must be an optimist, me, a pessimist.

 

[MilfordHusky]

We'll have 2 of the top 5 players in the country and one of the best PGs, but, once again, we'll be small. And not deep.

Megan, Christyn, and Olivia will have to play to get 5 people on the floor.

 

[bbballfan23]

1. ND
2. Baylor
3. UConn
4. Oregon

Losing Z hurts but look at the core 3 of Samuelson, Collier & Dangerfield. Lou & Pheesa will be 2 of the top 4 off the board in the WNBA draft next April.

 

[Dillon77]

1. Notre Dame-this will be one of Notre Dame's most talented rosters ever. The starting 5 will likely be 4 seniors (Turner, Shepard, Ogunbowale, Mabrey) and 1 junior (Young). If they can stay healthy, they'll be very very good. And if they have injuries, they'll still be very very good knowing Muffet. Adding in Turner means Shepard can move to the high post which brings a whole new dimension to the roster.

2. UCONN-another stacked roster for UCONN comes in. A starting 5 of Stevens, Collier, KLS, Walker and Dangerfield give them AA threats at every position. Add in the #1 recruit to spot the guards and the #5 recruit to spot the posts and you have arguably the most dangerous team in the country. The biggest question mark will be on the defensive side now that Nurse and Williams are gone. Can they beat

3. Oregon-I still think they're a year away from being a title favorite, but a Final Four should be the expectation next year. Everyone but Bando returns, plus they bring in an exceptional shooter in Erin Boley. The trio of Sabally, Ionescu and Hebard will give opposing coaches nightmares.

4. Baylor-Kalani Brown will be a POY favorite next year and Cox should be an All American. Those two alone should make Baylor a title threat. Their major loss is outstanding PG Kristy Wallace but they have a nice freshman PG in Morris. They bring in a monster class that will require a lot of juggling by Mulkey to keep everyone happy (see Texas this year). Baylor has been a notorious underachiever for 6 straight years now....can they finally break the Final Four curse in Brown's last year?

5. Louisville-Asia Durr is back along with her entire team sans Hines-Allen. The frontcourt will be fine with Fuerhing and Shook. Their trio of guards (Jones/Carter/Evans) have huge upside and could make Louisville a contender if they can consistently finish shots like they did in the semifinals. This season was by far the best coaching job of Walz's career, I'm curious to see if he can keep it up.

6. Mississippi State-I might be overhyping them, but what they lose in talent they make up for in exceptional coaching...and they have Teaira McCowan, who might be the best big girl in the country next season. They have 2 strong guards back in Danbury and Holmes, and I'd also look for Bibby to step in as a starter. They need someone to emerge as a perimeter scoring threat who can get their own shot, but I don't see Mississippi State completely falling out of the mix.

7. Texas-On paper this team is the 2nd most talented in the country after UCONN. 7 top 10 kids plus Prince who was #12. They have a ton of question marks though. How will Sutton or Patterson step up at PG and replace McCarty? Will Boothe be back? Can Holmes return to freshman form after a tough sophomore year? How does Karen distribute front court minutes? I expect Texas to be streaky like they've been the last several years. When they play well, they are capable of beating anyone, but when they play lazy, they can lose to some bad teams.

8. Maryland-they were a better team this year than I expected. For all the flack she gets, Brenda is actually a pretty good coach. Everyone is back besides Confroy, and they bring in the #3 recruit in Shakira Austin who should stabilize the frontcourt. Kaila Charles is VERY good.

9. Oregon State-I think Rueck is one of the best coaches in the country and he has Slocum on the team and a top 10 recruit coming in. They also return everyone but Gulich from this year's team. I'd look for them to give Oregon a run for their money in the PAC.

10. Texas A&M-they lose Hillsman which is significant but they return Howard, Williams and Carter.


Teams in potential free fall include:

Tennessee-they sign another top 5 class but they lose their 2 best players and have Holly coaching. That's scary.

South Carolina-they were a pretty bad team without Wilson last year and she'll be gone. The lack of perimeter shooting and consistent play is a big red flag.

Duke-they lose their top 2 players and I don't see anyone waiting in the wings to make up the massive void left by Brown/Greenwell.

Ohio State-if they finish in the top half of the Big Ten, I'll be impressed. McGuff just wasted 4 years with Kelsey Mitchell (and 2 with Mavunga/Harper).....they likely plummet out of the national picture.

UCLA-no Final Fours for their #1 recruiting class, they still haven't talent but I don't expect to see them in any Final Four discussions next year.

Bballnut: Nicely thought-out and put-together preview. I was a little preoccupied this weekend but I'd like to add a few points or there to your summary. Not even going to question the rankings per se, but just a question/add a few points.
Thanks for doing this.

- Notre Dame. In addition to everything you brought up, they have Mik Vaughn -- who played well in her six games before being injured -- coming back. Mik will probably learn from and back up Bri Turner. They have very similar builds and attack the game in a somewhat similar manner, so that will be a win-win. ND will also have a true point guard, Jordan Nixon. Given how well the troika of Mabrey-Ogunbowale-Young worked together, I suspect they'll work Nixon into a rotation and used a lot to counter ball pressure on Mabrey.

- UConn. Big question: Does Stevens come back? If so, she and O N-O will be a formidable post presence.

- Oregon: Sabrina Ionescu certainly looked like she was processing what went right and wrong against ND. A lot of the "uggh" stuff was regarding rebounding and it's up to her forwards to take board washing to another level.

- Baylor. I don't think most freshman walk into situations with top-flight teams but I could see Aquire DeCosta starting as a wing for Baylor with Cox and Brown and doing major damage, in par because of the attention those two posts will demand.

- Louisville: Not so sure Fuerhing and Shook make up for one of them and Hines-Allen, who was a very good athlete. I don't either of those two are at the same level and I don't see a lot more depth at forward. Won't afffect them most of the time, but against top-tier teams, it will.

- MSU. Where does the offense start? McCowan finishes or puts back. Is there a Vivians in the bunch? Also need to help her out on the boards...start Bibby.

- Maryland: If her knee recovers well, Blair Watson -- who was Marylad's second leading scorer before getting injured -- will join with Charles for a nice one-two punch. Austin is frosting, but I think Oliva Owens is the cake and will contribute solid rebounding as a frosh.

- Oregon State. 6'8" center Joanna Grymek from Poland takes over from Marie Gulich for one year and she's aided and abetted by two very tall, need-to-be refined frosh centers: 6'7" Patricia Morris and 6'9" Andrea Aquino. Don't think either will impact much as frosh, but keep an eye on Aquino going forward. Slocum will have a great effect on this team, too, but they're used to having an anchor of a very good center.

- Texas A&M. Should she stay or should see go?

Agree with most of your free-fall picks. How about possible Moving-up Teams:

- Syracuse. The myriad collection of domestic and international talent continues to get better, possibly much better with 6'2" French guard Kadiatou Sissoko and 6'2" New Yorker Emily Engstler at wing. If Coach Q has gotten the right ingredients, look for him to stir them up over the course of the season.

- Iowa. The marvelously efficient Megan Gustafson is back in the post, as are top two scoring guards Kathleen Doyle and MaKenzie Morris. Solid coaching and a team that should gain from a solid year in 2017-18.

 

[triaddukefan]

Duke should finish in the top 10.


of the ACC

 

[Vowelguy]

Revised in light of AZ's departure and further thought

1. Notre Dame - Return 4 of 5 starters + add 2 injured Fs + 2 top 20 HS recruits
2. Oregon - Ionescu & Hebard return. Lose Bando but add transfer Boley.
3. Baylor - Lose Kristy Wallace & Cohen but Brown, Cox, Morris back + THREE top 5 HS
4. UConn - Big losses of GW & KN but return 4 of 6
   
5. Louisville - Lose Hines-Allen but rest back.
6. Oregon St - Lose Gulich but add Slocum
7. Texas - Lose top 2 but next 4 our back + 2 top 10 HS.
8. Mizzou - Return 5 of top 6
9. Maryland - Return 4 of 5 starters + top 15 HS
10. Arizona St - Everyone back.

Next -- Georgia, Miss St, NC State, So Carolina, Stanford, Syracuse, West Virginia

 

[bballnut90]

Bballnut: Nicely thought-out and put-together preview. I was a little preoccupied this weekend but I'd like to add a few points or there to your summary. Not even going to question the rankings per se, but just a question/add a few points.
Thanks for doing this.

- Notre Dame. In addition to everything you brought up, they have Mik Vaughn -- who played well in her six games before being injured -- coming back. Mik will probably learn from and back up Bri Turner. They have very similar builds and attack the game in a somewhat similar manner, so that will be a win-win. ND will also have a true point guard, Jordan Nixon. Given how well the troika of Mabrey-Ogunbowale-Young worked together, I suspect they'll work Nixon into a rotation and used a lot to counter ball pressure on Mabrey.

- UConn. Big question: Does Stevens come back? If so, she and O N-O will be a formidable post presence.

- Oregon: Sabrina Ionescu certainly looked like she was processing what went right and wrong against ND. A lot of the "uggh" stuff was regarding rebounding and it's up to her forwards to take board washing to another level.

- Baylor. I don't think most freshman walk into situations with top-flight teams but I could see Aquire DeCosta starting as a wing for Baylor with Cox and Brown and doing major damage, in par because of the attention those two posts will demand.

- Louisville: Not so sure Fuerhing and Shook make up for one of them and Hines-Allen, who was a very good athlete. I don't either of those two are at the same level and I don't see a lot more depth at forward. Won't afffect them most of the time, but against top-tier teams, it will.

- MSU. Where does the offense start? McCowan finishes or puts back. Is there a Vivians in the bunch? Also need to help her out on the boards...start Bibby.

- Maryland: If her knee recovers well, Blair Watson -- who was Marylad's second leading scorer before getting injured -- will join with Charles for a nice one-two punch. Austin is frosting, but I think Oliva Owens is the cake and will contribute solid rebounding as a frosh.

- Oregon. 6'8" center Joanna Grymek from Poland takes over from Marie Gulich for one year and she's aided and abetted by two very tall, need-to-be refined frosh centers: 6'7" Patricia Morris and 6'9" Andrea Aquino. Don't think either will impact much as frosh, but keep an eye on Aquino.

- Texas A&M. Should she stay or should see go?

Agree with most of your free-fall picks. How about possible Moving-up Teams:

- Syracuse. The myriad collection of domestic and international talent continues to get better, possibly much better with 6'2" French guard Kadiatou Sissoko and 6'2" New Yorker Emily Engstler at wing. If Coach Q has gotten the right ingredients, look for him to stir them up over the course of the season.

- Iowa. The marvelously efficient Megan Gustafson is back in the post, as are top two scoring guards Kathleen Doyle and MaKenzie Morris. Solid coaching and a team that should gain from a solid year in 2017-18.

Lots of good input here--you know more about many of these teams than I do. And congrats on your win--glad you were enjoying it yesterday.

Stevens is gone which is a huge blow for Geno. Notre Dame is looking better and better, especially if Turner comes back strong. Jess Shepard might be my dark horse pick for NPOY...I think skill wise, she might be the best player in the country with everything she brings to table. Put her in the high post next year where she can hit from midrange-deep or beat you off the dribble and she's going to be impossible to defend with Turner inside. Plus if she continues to get in better shape, look out.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

Now what's the ranking? I don't think UConn is a top-10 team without Gabby, Kia, and Z. We get in two freshmen, one of whom will be pressed into service as a starting post player, a player, we should note, has suffered a major knee injury. So no Gabby or Z in the front court. Megan Walker is still a major question mark after a disappointing freshman season. And there are two other freshmen who have not proved they are going to progress.

We're going in with an even thinner bench, and a front court that is suddenly enormously vulnerable to the front courts of other top 10 teams.

The world has changed, and next season is going to be painful.

 

[asuwish]

Will be interesting to see how Turner fits into the ND offense. She isn’t as versatile as Westbeld or Shepard

Does Turner with history of injures stay or go? I think no problem getting drafted as someone takes a chance on her athleticism. She maybe limited in playing with 4 starters back and 2 true point guards coming in not to mention they have another big who sat out with injury.