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Message: [QUOTE="Bone Dog, post: 4955577, member: 12088"] I am an incorrigible optimist -- like [USER=73]@Tonyc[/USER] -- because it makes no sense to me to worry about troubles that don't exist yet. There'll be plenty of time for that if and when the troubles arrive. The current worry seems to be that the team is weak in the front court, that Ice will be a step down from Aaliyah at the 5, that Jana may not prove to be enough at the 5, that Ayanna will not be enough at the 4 and we'll have to play folks out of position to make up for it. Now here's the way I think about this. Ice played next to Aaliyah this season, both out of position with no one to back either of them up. Geno occasionally played them together, but mostly they played the 5 alone. Around them no one taller than 6'0". I don't think it's fair to hold Ice accountable for struggling in such a scheme in her first season. Ayanna struggled her first season, though she got to play in a deeper front court with Aaliyah and Dorka. She wasn't dominating, but she showed occasional flashes of brilliance as well as too much nerves (remember all the pump fakes on her shot?). The only thing going for Ice this season was that we had some perimeter shooting to open up the lane a little bit. But even this dwindled a bit as the calendar wore on. Fast forward to next season. Assuming a healthy lineup what will Ice and Ayanna find? [LIST] [*]First of all, they'll be playing next to Jana, a true big, first time for Ice, second for Ayanna. [*]Second, they'll be supported by a veritable army of perimeter shooters. They will not face a lot of double teams in the paint. [*]Third, they'll be the beneficiaries of the greatest passing game anyone's seen in a while, with Paige Sarah Azzi Morgan Allie KK Ash able to get them the ball where they can do something with it. Lobs, pocket passing, drive-n-dish, the whole package! [*]Finally, this is a backcourt that knows how to scrap for rebounds and chase down loose balls. This is what KK Paige and Q showed they can do this season, and Azzi and Aubrey showed it last season. I suspect Morgan and Sarah will bring some enthusiasm to winning all the 50/50 balls. The rebounding burden won't rest only on the front court players. [/LIST] What I see is the perfect situation for Jana Ice and Ayanna to hone their skills and perfect their game. Jana is the one we know the least about, but if you search for FIBA videos and HS games what you see is a player with good handles, a perimeter shot and low post moves -- none of which may be D1 ready yet -- and above all else, you see someone with a huge heart, someone who will fight through double and triple teams and score or grab the rebound. Whatever else she may turn out to be, [B]Jana is tough[/B]. What we know about Ice is that she can shoot from the elbow and beyond. Her post game is not very strong yet, and she doesn't always win contested rebounds. But we also know that she now understands the defensive system, which is huge. What we know about Ayanna is that she struggles on offense sometimes. But she is also quicker than most bigs, as strong as anyone, does not get pushed around in the paint, and runs the floor very well. And like Ice, she already understands the defensive system. What I expect to see is: [LIST] [*][B]Jana will start early[/B], maybe even in November. She'll get plenty of minutes -- maybe 20-25/g. [*][B]Ice and Ayanna will play next to her at the 4 when we're in a big lineup.[/B] [*]That [B]Sarah will play opposite her in the high-low game[/B] Geno likes. [*]We'll also see smaller sets, maybe with[B] Ice or Ayanna playing the five, but with a big backcourt like Paige Sarah Azzi Aubrey in a 4-out[/B]. Picture that, a tall 4-out set. Sub Morgan or Allie into that group and we'll have a dynamite pressing team. [*]And we'll also see [B]the traditional lineup, probably this one will start in November of Jana and Ice/Ayanna with Paige KK and Ash[/B] -- this one will allow Paige to get out from under the backboard more and Ash will be freed up for perimeter and midrange shots as well. [/LIST] Remember, even with a merely average big at the 5, someone like Kennedy Brown for example, Ice and Aaliyah's season would have been tremendously improved. [/QUOTE]

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