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Williams and Heckel are on Campus today (merged)

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I’m still unsure how I feel about bringing Heckel in, given we have KK and Kelis. But if she’s visiting I could very likely see her committing as that says to me she’s looking to come back closer to home and UConn if everyone is healthy will be a title contender again…seems like a perfect fit for her.
 
I'm sure Heckel is a solid player and tough competitor, but I'm not sure her shooting percentages (especially the 3) is very good. The one knock on KK is her shooting, I would've liked to have added another good shooter that can handle the ball to help with the spread offense and keep defenders honest so they can't double Azzi or Shade all the time. But I trust the staff and what Geno sees when he evaluates. So lets get it!
 
ERWUC65 said:
Serah I can understand, with a one year effort benefitting both her and UConn. Kayleigh not so sure since she would be a three year deal, but she was with KK and Kelis at Dawg camp, so there may be some chemistry there. But my one question remains: of the three, is anyone of them a true PG (1) as we would need to run the offense and let Azzi be a pure shooting guard (2)?
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You don't think KK is a "true point" guard? She relieved Chen in every game, brought the ball up court and ran the offense? She has a suspect jumper and sometimes gets bottled up in the paint (Not as much as she did her freshman year)but she is a point guard nonetheless. So too is Heckel...
 
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Heckel was born in CT and lists Sue Bird as her hero. She would fit in nicely in the PG group between KK (junior) and Kellis Fischer (freshman).
 
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tchalla1 said:
You don't think KK is a "true point" guard? She relieved Chen in every game, brought the ball up court and ran the offense? She has a suspect jumper and sometimes gets bottled up in the paint (Not as much as she did her freshman year)but she is a point guard nonetheless. So too is Heckel...
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And KK is a PG that plays outstanding D!!!!
 
johnhelvete said:
Yes, last season Geno had two Pg's on the floor (sometimes three) for the majority of minutes and the previous season three (Paige,Nika,KK). The only downside, KK, Kelis and Heckel are all in the 5'9" range.
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PG's imo are SHORT quick players with great vision, passing ability, and able to finish at the rim or dish. Your three you mention imo forgets to include what I would call PF point forwards or ball handling bigs, Paige and Sarah. Paige being gone, Blanca being 6'2" would be one of those, like a JuJu who can bring ball down the court, transition, play up top, wing, post someone up... Blanca can learn from Sarah.
 
Great news…don’t you all know that Geno is a master of all things women’s basketball? He along with his great coaches and support staff know what they are doing.
I am amazed at the possibilities of today’s visit. Williams, of course, & Heckel as a bonus.
It’s a crazy portal world out there & a new playing field. UConn must keep up with the glitzy LSU’s & aggressive SC’s among others.
They know what they are doing.
This is now truly a business & UConn must compete to achieve.
Go Geno!
 
Putting the cart before the horse, IF we could land both of them, that would make our scholarship distribution:

Sr. 3 Azzi, CD, Serah Williams (for some reason when I type Azzi' initials it doesn't print)
Jr. 3 KK, AS, ICE
Soph. 6 JEA, SS, MC, AZ, A Patterson, Kayleigh Heckel
FR. Blanco, Kelis Fisher, Gandy

Geno must have liked having a large roster, but if we got both Serah Williams and Kayleigh Heckel we would have 15 and we struggled this year getting PT for 12. AG= 1/2 year, MC = the rest of AG's 1/2 year, and AP = all year.
 
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Either or both are a no brainer. Azzi is only here for 1 more year. This year would be a tad crowded but next year, KK and Ash (seniors), Kayleigh (junior) and Kelis (sophomore).

If UCONN is somehow able to land Jerzy out of 2026, that's another guard, but if you start Jana at the 5 and Sarah at the 4 (next year), plenty of PT for the guards/wings.

For this year, both would shore up everything. Honestly, I would want to see Williams start along with KK, Azzi, Ash/Blanca, and Sarah. We have no idea what we will get out of Carol or Ayanna, but excluding them, off the bench Kayleigh, Kelis, Blanca (if Ash starts), Ice, Jana, Allie and Gandy.

I honestly think Kayleigh hurts Allie the most - the guard spots are already filled up, and unless she makes a big jump, she'll be at the end of the bench again this season.

Bottom line players always give up personal achievements for team goals (NC, etc.) when they come to UCONN. If any of these kids want to play 35+ MPG, UConn is not the right place for them anyway...
 
The only one they NEED is Williams. KK is quicker and faster than Heckel and a beast on defense. Morgan has the talent to be an outstanding point guard. All point guards are not short. See Magic Johnson and Paige Bueckers. What message will that send to Morgan and Allie? I believe they are both better guards then Heckel and I have been a fan of hers since I saw her in high school playing against some of the top players in the country. She had a chance to come to UConn out of high school but passed on it.
 
With so many players quickly committing to new teams, the fact that both Williams and Heckel have not rushed the process, leaving UConn for their last visit, is a very good sign that both players are serious, thoughtful individuals, who’s decisions are not all about PT or NIL, which is exactly what Geno is looking for in a transfer.
 
donalddoowop said:
The only one they NEED is Williams. KK is quicker and faster than Heckel and a beast on defense. Morgan has the talent to be an outstanding point guard. All point guards are not short. See Magic Johnson and Paige Bueckers. What message will that send to Morgan and Allie? I believe they are both better guards than Heckel and I have been a fan of hers since I saw her in high school playing against some of the top players in the country. She had a chance to come to UConn out of high school but passed on it.
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It seems to be that a lot of folks were wondering why Geno brought in Kaitlyn last year, for many of the same reasons that you raise about Heckel. Geno loves pg’s. His best lineup this past season had 4 former HS pg’s along with a small forward, who was also an excellent passer. If he brings in Heckel, Geno the mad scientist, will figure out how to get everyone PT.
 
In Geno and Co, I trust. They haven’t brought in any transfer that was detrimental to the team.

More importantly, Serah didn’t succumb to LSU’s efforts to let her leave without a commitment.

I don’t mind Heckel, she will be a Junior when the 26s come in. And we don’t know if the top point guards (mainly Harpring) are considering UConn. Considering she visited Vandy recently, that tells me she wants to be part of the UConn culture.

If they get Heckel, that allows them consider 27s, especially since Geno doesn’t start freshman often. Unless they prove they belong.

I think we will get both. And I look forward to hearing from the team how practices are harder than games, again :cool:

Also I know Kelis is coming in this year but given Geno’s history, he’s not going to rely on her unless she proves he needs to play her
 
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Heckel is a surprise. But a good one. We'll see.

To those who keep knocking KK, she will be just fine. You seem to forget she started her freshman year along with Ash. Paige played the 4. That team went to the final four. Her role, along with Ash, changed for this past season with Paige and a healthy Azzi.

Like it or not, next year's team will have a different look offensively. And it will take a while to gel.

Geno isn't even close to being done. This season proved that. UConn is known a PG U. Geno is the professor.
 
Geew1992 said:
Heckel visited Vandy, ND and Michigan St last week/weekend. Uconn wasn't on the original list.
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She’d probably start at any of those schools but have no shot at an NC. At Storrs she’ll be a rotation player but have a great shot at a ring.

Also, no ball dominant players at Storrs, unlike USC last season or Vandy and ND next season. It’s easier to accept a rotation spot if the ball is shared more generously.

There. That’s the case I can make for why K9 should choose UConn. If she doesn’t, it’s her loss. If she does, there could be great things in Storrs for her.
 
We have three players who have not played much owing to injuries. We have three freshmen. The other returning seven should see a lot of time early in the season. If there are two transfers, they will have the opportunity to learn the UConn system as the season develops And see significant playing time. The other players will have a chance to establish themselves as role players and/or manage the speed of their recoveries so they are 100% come March. I anticipate Geno will play high paced games as the team was doing at the end of the season that just concluded.
 
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