Who's #2?

[Vowelguy]

Most people consider UConn the strongest team heading into next season. Who would be second (in your opinion)?

 

[oldude]

SC loses a lot, but Wilson and a decent supporting cast, along with a very good coach in Dawn Staley should be enough to outlast ND, Baylor and the other usual suspects who all have significant losses of their own to deal with.

 

[Go/huskies]

My vote was South Car because they return arguably the best player in WCBB

 

[itsasport]

The named teams lost so many players, I would put Miss State at 2.

 

[Huskie78]

Time for Texas to take a step up. They've got the talent to do it.

 

[Puppy Love]

My vote is Notre Dame for two reasons. First, they have a great coach. Second, the bad luck has to stop at some point.

 

[bballnut90]

SC. They still have Wilson and some good players waiting in the wings. Both guards coming back is huge for them.

Notre Dame might be without Turner which would mean their posts are Nelson, Westbeld and incoming freshman, Patterson. Also no Allen and a much shorter bench after a lighter recruiting year. For the last several years they've emerged as a clear #1 seed entering the tournament but im not sure that sticks next year. I think they take a step back next year as the clear.

Texas and Tennessee might be #2 and #3 when you look at talent on paper, but Texas needs to play more consistently and kick it up a notch while Tennessee just needs to learn how to play basketball together.

Baylor loses so much and has some massive question marks, most notably Kim's ability to get her team to the next step as a coach. She's made 3 Final Fours before, but somehow missed out the last 5 years with very good rosters each time.

 

[stwainfan]

I think in terms of talent its UConn and Tennessee.

 

[huskeynut]

SC - Wilson has some talent round here. Dawn is a good coach.

As for the others:
ND - big questions on the front line. I don't think Turner plays next season and that's a big blow for ND

Baylor - lost too much. Montpriemer transfering out is a big loss.

Texas - haven't shown they can challenge for #1 yet.

Mississippi State - maybe but they really collapsed against SC in the championship.

 

[triaddukefan]

Lower Carolina

 

[CL82]

SC.

When you are the reigning national champion, who is not located in Storrs, CT, then you should automatically get the #2 spot in the preseason polls.

 

[Vowelguy]

Lower Carolina

I thought they were Lesser Carolina?

 

[Vowelguy]

SC.

When you are the reigning national champion, who is not located in Storrs, CT, then you should automatically get the #2 spot in the preseason polls.

Since some people have a silly belief that teams deserve a certain poll ranking based on prior years performance, I tried to phrase the question as "who do you think is the 2nd best team?"

 

[msf22b]

They're the Carolina no-cheat-ems

 

[triaddukefan]

I thought they were Lesser Carolina?

Thats in the next thread.

Gotta rotate ....Lower Carolina, Little Carolina, Lesser Carolina..... Baby Carolina

 

[oldude]

Thats in the next thread.

Gotta rotate ....Lower Carolina, Little Carolina, Lesser Carolina..... Baby Carolina

How about "The Old South State" in contrast to NC's nickname, "The Old North State."

 

[Vowelguy]

Thats in the next thread.

Gotta rotate ....Lower Carolina, Little Carolina, Lesser Carolina..... Baby Carolina

Now I'm confused. I thought UNC was Baby Carolina?

 

[Dillon77]

SC loses a lot, but Wilson and a decent supporting cast, along with a very good coach in Dawn Staley should be enough to outlast ND, Baylor and the other usual suspects who all have significant losses of their own to deal with.

Wilson, with the returning guards (Harris, Cuevas Moore), ready-to-go transfer Alexis Jennings (from KY) ready to hit the boards and a pretty solid frosh class, should be a solid #2.

 

[oldude]

Wilson, with the returning guards (Harris, Cuevas Moore), ready-to-go transfer Alexis Jennings (from KY) ready to hit the boards and a pretty solid frosh class, should be a solid #2.

If I interpret your post correctly, we agree that SC is #2, but perhaps differ by degree with you being more confident than I. My lower degree of confidence has to do primarily with the loss of Gray & Davis who were both outstanding athletes that could attack the basket. I don't see anyone else on SC with similar skills.

 

[triaddukefan]

How about "The Old South State" in contrast to NC's nickname, "The Old North State."

I suppose you could ...... but it doesnt have the same ring as "the Old North State"

Now I'm confused. I thought UNC was Baby Carolina?

Never heard that before.... but UNC is definitely #2 ...... if you get where Im coming from...

 

[SCGamecock]

I'm not sure if we'll be as good as we were this year.. but I don't think our drop off is going to be as steep as most people probably think it should be after losing three first rounders.

Like it's been said already, we still return Wilson.. and next year is definitely going to be the A'ja Wilson Show for us. She wont have a Coates to dominate the paint and relegate her to the high post... now Wilson will be able to move all over the court. How far SC goes depends on how much her supporting cast steps up. Harris is a good point guard and a hard worker.. I think she's going to take a nice sophomore leap. Cuevas, who I accurately predicted last year to be much improved this season, is going to further establish herself as a scorer at the shooting guard spot... a role I think she's perfect for.. Cuevas pushes tempo and attacks the basket relentlessly, either making the layup or drawing the foul (occasionally both). She was also our best 3-point shooter last season.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Jennings will bring to the team. She's a proven competitor in the SEC and is versatile in a way that Coates wasn't, she also has exceptional footwork (Kentucky post players tend to.. Mitchell does well there, I guess). SC is going to need Cliney to expand her role as more than a defensive stopper... she has shown that she can score but needs to be more consistent (she's capable of some bad misses). Our 2016 class will be counted on heavily for depth and I expect Harrigan to improve a lot.. she got a lot of playing experience for a freshmen this year.

Our incoming freshmen class will be expected to play a lot according to Dawn. I think our class is a little underrated.. Williams is a 6'4 stretch 4 with a nice offensive game, can pop from the arc and score inside, she needs to get stronger to consistently play inside.... Grissett, at 6'2, is a strong wing that can defend 1-5, freakishly athletic and attacks the basket with aggression... Troup and Jackson are both 2/3 type guards (with Jackson being more of a 3-guard) and are very sharp offensively. Troup is very reminiscent of Tina Roy, but will likely end up being a better 3 point shooter and she can put the ball on the floor (something Roy couldn't do)... Jackson's game is more akin to Tiffany Mitchell. All four of them will see the court a lot this year.

We lost bonafide guards in Gray and Davis and a stalwart at center in Coates.. but our depth situation improved greatly this upcoming season. Like it's already been said, we have a lot of players just waiting in the wings...

 

[Puppy Love]

I think in terms of talent its UConn and Tennessee.

I think you are right in terms of talent. When the Vols got DD my first thought was 'THEY'RE BACK'. However, partly because of injuries, it hasn't worked out. I still think that Holly Warlick has not figured out how to be an effective head coach and she should have by now.

 

[Dillon77]

If I interpret your post correctly, we agree that SC is #2, but perhaps differ by degree with you being more confident than I. My lower degree of confidence has to do primarily with the loss of Gray & Davis who were both outstanding athletes that could attack the basket. I don't see anyone else on SC with similar skills.

Old Dude: I think they will miss the offensive strike forces of Davis and Gray. But I think Cuevas and Harris will step up offensively. Like SCGamecock, who knows that team better than I will in a month of game film, I think their incoming class will take hold throughout the year and I think Jennings will be a wingforward of sorts for Wilson, rebounding, doing dirty work, et al, while giving space to Wilson to do her considerable things.

I'm not sure if we'll be as good as we were this year.. but I don't think our drop off is going to be as steep as most people probably think it should be after losing three first rounders.

Like it's been said already, we still return Wilson.. and next year is definitely going to be the A'ja Wilson Show for us. She wont have a Coates to dominate the paint and relegate her to the high post... now Wilson will be able to move all over the court. How far SC goes depends on how much her supporting cast steps up. Harris is a good point guard and a hard worker.. I think she's going to take a nice sophomore leap. Cuevas, who I accurately predicted last year to be much improved this season, is going to further establish herself as a scorer at the shooting guard spot... a role I think she's perfect for.. Cuevas pushes tempo and attacks the basket relentlessly, either making the layup or drawing the foul (occasionally both). She was also our best 3-point shooter last season.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Jennings will bring to the team. She's a proven competitor in the SEC and is versatile in a way that Coates wasn't, she also has exceptional footwork (Kentucky post players tend to.. Mitchell does well there, I guess). SC is going to need Cliney to expand her role as more than a defensive stopper... she has shown that she can score but needs to be more consistent (she's capable of some bad misses). Our 2016 class will be counted on heavily for depth and I expect Harrigan to improve a lot.. she got a lot of playing experience for a freshmen this year.

Our incoming freshmen class will be expected to play a lot according to Dawn. I think our class is a little underrated.. Williams is a 6'4 stretch 4 with a nice offensive game, can pop from the arc and score inside, she needs to get stronger to consistently play inside.... Grissett, at 6'2, is a strong wing that can defend 1-5, freakishly athletic and attacks the basket with aggression... Troup and Jackson are both 2/3 type guards (with Jackson being more of a 3-guard) and are very sharp offensively. Troup is very reminiscent of Tina Roy, but will likely end up being a better 3 point shooter and she can put the ball on the floor (something Roy couldn't do)... Jackson's game is more akin to Tiffany Mitchell. All four of them will see the court a lot this year.

We lost bonafide guards in Gray and Davis and a stalwart at center in Coates.. but our depth situation improved greatly this upcoming season. Like it's already been said, we have a lot of players just waiting in the wings...

I think Wilson is going to be really stellar next season and expect Jennings to be a good fit, with Williams growing throughout the season.

My Irish, sans Turner (if the rehab is too tough) will just be stretched too much up -- particularly up front -- to keep on keepin' on. Heck, we're counting on Westfield to be the core returner and even she had surgery. We have so many people out ND cancelled their European trip!

 

[GoingPostal]

I voted for ND as the #2 team. My deep analysis was that the coach, in my opinion, is the second best coach in WCBB and that Brianna Turner will be back in time to have a significant impact on the 2017-18 season.

 

[UConnCat]

I'm struggling to pick a #2. Notre Dame has outstanding perimeter players (Mabrey, Arike and Young) but without Turner the inside game would be Westbeld, Nelson and two freshmen who won't be up to the task. Thompson has big shoes to fill replacing Allen but Thompson's strength is scoring more than passing and that's what she'll need to do for the Irish. I still expect Notre Dame to score enough points to win most games.

South Carolina has a solid inside player but, other than Harris, there are too many questions surrounding the supporting cast. SC will lose 1/2 its points to the WNBA and I don't know who is going to make up for that loss. UConn lost a lot of points to the WNBA last year but had two highly rated and offensively gifted sophomores ready to step in and score. I don't see that type of talent ready to step in and help Wilson.

Baylor will also be strong inside but with questions on the perimeter. We saw at times how Wallace can struggle when she tries to do too much. Prince, Davis and Jones are big losses for Baylor.

I guess I'll go with ND, with or without Turner.