Where Does Geno see Andrea Espinoza-Hunter Fitting In Next Season?

[SVCBeercats]

Actually I think the odds are quite good, because it unlikely a Freshmen will be on the floor with with Stevens, Williams, Nurse, and Collier because that would mean KLS is sitting on the bench. KLS running to her spot and waiting to shoot the ball was what put her on the pine last year because Geno was not having it. As good as this years team is, thier productive positions on the floor are predictable & the shooting range is more limited than last year's team. Last year's team had players that could dominate from multiple positions on the floor and the leading 3PT shooter was the PG.

I took the original poster's premise to mean she might be good enough to see time on the floor like KLS did as a frosh. Since she is a scorer like KLS, then it seemed reasonable to assume E-Hunter would sub for KLS. Realistically, most frosh get playing time in garbage time. Everyone gets open shots in garbage time because it is garbage time. Can they make them? Well even UCONN frosh for some reason tend to look more like high school players than college players at least in Nov and Dec garbage time. Even now with an upper classman on the floor the UCONN subs can look a bit uncordinated. I remember a 2015-16 video interview where Geno was asked how he watched the bench players in garbage time. He placed his hands over his face and then said to the effect, he tries not to think about next year (2016-17). Now the same helter skelter players will be NCAA champs.

 

[BroadwayVa]

I don't know how you can say AEH is a better shooter than Molly ---in her soph year in HS she exceeded 1000 points--no tiny accomplishment. From all previously reports on Molly she was a very good 3 ball shooter, attacked the basket and had a get top of the key running jump shot that was accurate. Point is: Loads of kids come to Uconn as high schools standouts--and have a year as Molly is having.
What makes anyone believe the new kids (Walker is the exceptions because of top level USA play) will excel where others fail---unless of course they have Dangers or Walkers credentials . You cannot compare Molly under Geno to AEH in HS--apples and turnips.

 

[CocoHusky]

I took the original poster's premise to mean she might be good enough to see time on the floor like KLS did as a frosh. Since she is a scorer like KLS, then it seemed reasonable to assume E-Hunter would sub for KLS. Realistically, most frosh get playing time in garbage time. Everyone gets open shots in garbage time because it is garbage time. Can they make them? Well even UCONN frosh for some reason tend to look more like high school players than college players at least in Nov and Dec garbage time. Even now with an upper classman on the floor the UCONN subs can look a bit uncordinated. I remember a 2015-16 video interview where Geno was asked how he watched the bench players in garbage time. He placed his hands over his face and then said to the effect, he tries not to think about next year (2016-17). Now the same helter skelter players will be NCAA champs.

All of the incoming Freshmen are scorers. KLS is a small forward, AEH is a guard. So I'm not sure how reasonable it is to assume that AEH will sub for KLS because two of the incoming frosh (Lexi and Megan) play the SF position. UCONN frosh that look like HS players will only play in garbage time regardless if it is November or March. Other freshmen that show the ability to impact the game play as Freshmen and some like Kia, KLS, and Napheesa even get to start as frosh. There is another Geno video where he state something like "People think it is easy to take this player out and put that player in & it is just not. The players that are leading the charge this year were anything
but helter skelter last year, they were just waiting for their turn.

 

[Fairfield Fan]

I understand your point about redshirting. But 14 players? Even for a genius like Geno who prefers playing 8 at the most. It means a wonderful player like Lexi Gordon might be tenth man. Some might think it is an enviable problem to have. I think juggling that much talent is every bit as difficult as playing with a short bench.

I don't recall Geno's ever redshirted anyone for other than medical reasons. Can't see him doing that now. Keep in mind that Azura has a maximum of two years left, and could be here only one year, while Batouly Camara has perhaps two or three years. After next year, Gabby and Kia will leave after next year as well. Saniya won't be there next year, opening up minutes. So it gets less crowded pretty quickly.

This year, Coach Geno has been forced to play his starters far longer than he's wanted to in important games, which have included more in the conference season than in the past. So I'm guessing that 1) he'll have bigger leads earlier on than he did this year due to playing a big post, and 2) because of that he'll be able to play more kids for more minutes, while resting his starters more. So I'm guessing that AE-H and other freshmen won't be too disappointed in their freshman year minutes.

 

[Charliebball]

I think "far more talented" is a sweeping judgment to make about a player who has not played a minute in college vs. a player whose college minutes have been so limited that it is hard to judge her "talent". From what I have seen, Molly Bent's limitations are not physical but mental -- getting into an offensive mindset that involves she herself taking more shots, and making better decisions with the ball.

Andi (I just checked) is ranked 37th by Hoopgurlz. That makes it unlikely that she will remind us of Crystal, Moriah, or KML. I doubt that she will even remind us of Mikayla Coombs. Apparently her level of high school competition has been less challenging than other UConn recruits, so we really don't know how well she will function in college at the mental level.

I wouldn't bet the ranch on Andi beating out Molly for playing time next year.

Actually I believe that AEH's high school competition was superior to either of this year's two freshmen.........her Blair Academy team played some highly ranked competition including Rutgers Prep, the Patrick School and Life Academy and while Ossining's conference schedule was not that demanding they have played against some really tough competition this year.......hard to predict how things will turn out for either of these two players but the one thing I do know is that neither will "fail" due to a lack of effort

 

[Gus Mahler]

My concern about competition of the four has been about Lexi. Anybody know about her high school's level?