Waiting on Kayleigh Heckel

[Stagnant]

kinda agree with your post (not so much from the loyalty part) i always go by the eye test and Kayleigh Heckel
while certainly a good player who has has some sucess at a high level but in isn’t a “difference maker” and certainly doesn’t move the needle
on a 14 player roster
on the surface it seems to be saying that GA
doesn’t have confidence in some of the roster

Totally disagree. Heckel would make the rotation at UConn. She would be one of the top 10 players.

 

[Bone Dog]

Do you really need three guards under 5'8?

I'm pretty sure we don't have any guards under 5'8". KK is listed as 5'9", Ash at 5'10", Kelis is listed anywhere from 5'9" to 5'11", Azzi at 5'11", Allie at 6'0", Morgan at 6'2". K9 would be another 5'9" guard if she comes. If she doesn't, it's impossible to tell how tall she might be.

 

[Stagnant]

That Q theory is fan fiction. Wasting Heckel’s time like that would be a terrible look for the UConn program.

 

[Centerstream]

As for Kayleigh, she has only completed 1 semester in her freshman year, along with whatever courses she was able to knock out last summer. She needs to complete 20% of her degree requirements by the end of her freshman year in order to meet NCAA eligibility requirements for next year. Spring semester finals at USC are this coming week. Kayleigh was an honor student at Long Island Lutheran, so I have no doubt that she will sail through her finals. But for all of us impatient fans at UConn, ND, Michigan St and Vandy, we're just going to have to wait a little bit longer to learn her final choice.

Very interesting and informative post @oldude . But wouldn't the same degree requirements be in play for the portal entrant freshmen that committed to their new schools last month? Wouldn't they be in the same position as Heckel? Just wondering.

 

[Vancat]

I think UConn just likes to space out the announcements a bit.

 

[Goodgood]

It’s more the case that a freshman transfer can’t officially be accepted into their transcript indicates that they have completed 20% of their degree requirements, which likely includes their 2nd semester grades being submitted by their professors, who hopefully don’t sit on them before submitting them to the academic dean’s office.

Well, Avery Howell got accepted immediately to Washington and she was a freshman classmate of K9 at U$C...

 

[bantamlaker]

What the Heckel is taking so long?

This doesn’t really apply to Kayleigh who just came into focus fairly recently but I thought you might want some entertainment in the midst of this thread (and it certainly doesn’t apply to Sarah Strong who was well worth the wait).

 

[Bone Dog]

Well, Avery Howell got accepted immediately to Washington and she was a freshman classmate of K9 at U$C...

I think the issue isn't when she or the school made up their minds. It's about when the entire transaction has been approved by the NCAA. Some schools will pre-announce, assuming that approval is likely. It seems Geno has no interest in doing that.

 

[DEpup]

For me, it's still college and players should be developing. Sure KK was great being the spark off the bench but time doesn't stand still. She's still on a development track so she has to mature into the starting PG and all that comes with it. That has to be her summer challenge. Heckel K9 could then slide in as the new sophomore spark off the bench. That let's Kelis be the combo guard I think she really is and develop as a freshman without lots of pressure.

 

[sno-cat]

What the Heckel is taking so long?

Maybe Geno told her she would not be the starting PG and she is having a hard time dealing with that thought vs going to a lesser school and definitely starting. That would not be an easy decision IMO.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

I'm all for this transfer but I think we have conflated the two portal players here. Kayleigh is a freshman and was not a starter at USC. With the minutes she got she was a solid contributor and for all we know she may leave UConn an AA if she comes. Yes she was in a big time program but UConn is next level, which should excite here. Kaitlyn recently gave an interview and said something that surprised me initially. She said at UConn her body was transformed; that's a big word. But in the NCAAs UConn was playing with the same intensity in the 4th as they were in the 1st. That is very hard to do and speaks to the level of physical and mental conditioning when you are a Husky. I think there is much to be drawn out of Kayleigh and I hope she accepts the challenge.

 

[Zonepress]

Totally disagree. Heckel would make the rotation at UConn. She would be one of the top 10 players.

u made my point
being one of the top 10 players doesn’t make the team substantially better and puts an existing player out of the rotation

 

[Gus Mahler]

I'm pretty sure we don't have any guards under 5'8". KK is listed as 5'9", Ash at 5'10", Kelis is listed anywhere from 5'9" to 5'11", Azzi at 5'11", Allie at 6'0", Morgan at 6'2". K9 would be another 5'9" guard if she comes. If she doesn't, it's impossible to tell how tall she might be.

Have you been reading about Quantum Mechanics?

 

[oldude]

Very interesting and informative post @oldude . But wouldn't the same degree requirements be in play for the portal entrant freshmen that committed to their new schools last month? Wouldn't they be in the same position as Heckel? Just wondering.

I addressed that question in another post on this thread. There is nothing to keep a school from announcing a transfer based on a verbal commitment without all the necessary documentation. UConn won’t do that. But certainly a school like LSU would, considering that they embarrassed themselves by releasing a photo of Serah Williams in an LSU uniform in front of a big neon tiger right after her visit to Baton Rouge.

 

[Stagnant]

Sure, it does. We aren’t trying to get substantially better. Just better. Beating lsu or South Carolina is going to come down to fine margins.

 

[oldude]

Well, Avery Howell got accepted immediately to Washington and she was a freshman classmate of K9 at U$C...

This is the 3rd time I have addressed this question on this thread. A school could announce a transfer based on a verbal from the player. While UConn would never do that, LSU certainly would, considering that they put out a photo of Serah in an LSU uniform immediately after her visit.

In addition, do we know if Howell or the University of Washington announced her transfer on social media? In Serah, case she announced her transfer to UConn several days before the University officially announced it.

 

[oldude]

?

I'm not very plugged in but this is the first I've heard of any drama surrounding Q. Would you please elaborate?

It happened last year and it’s really not worth dragging through the mud again. Q seemed to genuinely enjoy all the post season celebrations and we all wish her the very best wherever she ends up.

 

[huskyd]

I asked this question in another thread that swerved to a discussion of Heckel committing to UConn.
Other than having Paige flex on her after Kayleigh's "and one" foul in the Elite Eight game, what has she done during her freshman season that indicates that she is going to the starting PG? She was a reserve player at USC even after JuJu went down. It seems to me after looking at some box scores that most of her playing time and points came after the game was pretty much in hand for USC.
Are you expecting a huge sophomore leap, even in a new, harder system?
Just would like to know...

Obviously, I'm just speculating. Watching Kayleigh play, she appears to have all of the tools to provide a steady hand at the point, plus she has 3 years yet to go. Distribution is her signature, not gaudy numbers. She is not yet aboard.
When people argue for KK, they forget the impact she has coming off the bench. Playing the point requires a different style and mind-set, more like Chen. The combo of KK and Ashlyn usually arriving at the same time gives UConn a big energy boost. Stick with that, I suggest.
A big variable is how the newbies pan out. Will any among them make a statement for playing time? I'm especially interested in the hybrid concept, in which a player can be both a guard and a small forward (like Morgan).
Right now we have an abundance of riches. Coach will sort things out as he usually does.

 

[Goldenflash]

What the Heckel is taking so long?

It hasn’t even been one Scaramucci yet.

 

[Gus Mahler]

Please don't. It's all just rumors and not very nice ones. No need to give any of it new life.

OK, would someone mind DMing me about it?

 

[Zonepress]

Please don't. It's all just rumors and not very nice ones. No need to give any of it new life.

aaah an adult in the room
thank you!!!

 

[Boreifs]

That Q theory is fan fiction. Wasting Heckel’s time like that would be a terrible look for the UConn program.

Not to mention the fact that they play different positions.

 

[Just.A.Fan]

KK will be the starting pg next season. If Kayleigh comes to Storrs she will get a lot of PT.

I disagree. Kayleigh won't be coming to Storrs to have a seat on the bench! If she comes, she may not start the first few games, but I believe she will be the starting PG. She left USC because she didn't start last season (and she averaged 17-18 minutes per game). Additionally, the chemistry of having KK come off the bench is way too strong to mess it up.

 

[hookshot]

I'm all for this transfer but I think we have conflated the two portal players here. Kayleigh is a freshman and was not a starter at USC. With the minutes she got she was a solid contributor and for all we know she may leave UConn an AA if she comes. Yes she was in a big time program but UConn is next level, which should excite here. Kaitlyn recently gave an interview and said something that surprised me initially. She said at UConn her body was transformed; that's a big word. But in the NCAAs UConn was playing with the same intensity in the 4th as they were in the 1st. That is very hard to do and speaks to the level of physical and mental conditioning when you are a Husky. I think there is much to be drawn out of Kayleigh and I hope she accepts the challenge.

A little bit of a stretch to say Uconn is next level when compared to another final 4 team that we lost to earlier in the year

 

[ec33]

u made my point
being one of the top 10 players doesn’t make the team substantially better and puts an existing player out of the rotation

This is UConn women's basketball. Injuries happen. Being the 4th player off the bench can turn into being a vital reserve far too readily.

I would suspect that Geno found coaching the season that preceded this past one very frustrating and he doesn't want to have that happen again in the near future.