All Things Paige Bueckers Recruitment Thread - Videos, Analysis, Tid-Bits, Articles
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bball_craz_31
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Whalen and McCarville seemed to do just fine in the WNBA coming from Minnesota. Banham and Zahui are both still in the league and played here. Oh then if top competition is what she needs that excludes UConn then right? I mean their conference if by far less competitive than the Big Ten.
Look at hometown kids that built up programs.
-Wilson at South Carolina, Vivians at Mississippi St, Canada at UCLA, Whalen at Minnesota, Delle-Donne went to Delaware and is a WNBA MVP.
Look at hometown kids that built up programs.
-Wilson at South Carolina, Vivians at Mississippi St, Canada at UCLA, Whalen at Minnesota, Delle-Donne went to Delaware and is a WNBA MVP.
Ski U Mah Gopher
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One other name:
Kelsey Plum
UW had not made the NCAA tournament the 6 years before she arrived, nor in her freshman year. And is lousy again.
I guess becoming the all-time scoring leader not at a traditional power ruined her career.
samloupete
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It doesn’t matter at all where you play if, indeed, you CAN play!! It only matters if you feel comfortable WHERE you play!! The coaches like Geno and Muffet try to convince you otherwise!!
Oregon Gopher
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Yeah because Whalen's career went nowhere after playing for the gophs
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TV 'journalists' (and I use the term loosely) are always the least informed when it comes to the nitty gritty of covering a team or program. It is the newspaper people and topic-specific bloggers who know more. The TV folks poach other people's information and roll in with a camera crew and a can of hairspray to cover the story after it has been covered elsewhere. It has always been that way. The fact is, Wolfson has no clue about Paige's intentions or the relative odds of her ending up at UCONN, Notre Dame, Minnesota or anywhere else. None. Even those closest to Bueckers don't know exactly what she is thinking. What we do know is there was only a sliver of a chance she was going to sign with the Gophers under Stollings and a good chance she will sign under Whalen. It's a tough decision and we're not likely to know the answer for another 9-10 months.
It’s interesting how these new accounts keep cropping up saying that either there’s no way Bueckers is staying in Minnesota (pipe dream) or it’d be the worse decision ever for her. I dunno, after this coming season, ND’s cupboard will be fairly empty (but they will have her buddy Brunelle coming in) and UConn has been in the downswing Tournament-wise and has been disappointing it’s fans recruiting-wise. Maybe it wouldn’t be such bad time to make some of your own noise with your own hometown team.
Not sure if you are referring to my comment as a 'new account' or someone else. I have been commenting on here since 2016 and talk with Paige on a regular basis.
You’re echoing Wolfson’s sentiment as far as having a better chance under Whalen. He’s basing it on seeing Bueckers at this recent scrimmage, and asssuming she’s never hung out with the team before, which hasn’t been the case, as reported on this message board. What was your reason that Whalen brings them a better chance? Whatever it is it’s based on assumptions, unless Bueckers has said it herself that the Gophers now have a better chance.
Anyway, I hope Whalen makes the effort to attend every one of Bueckers’ games that she can.
Can’t she verbal as early as next month?
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tripledouble
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Well, I took it as a positive that Beuckers showed up to watch the Gophers scrimmage. If she had no interest whatsoever in the program, why waste the time? Although I'm reluctant to be too positive, I'm taking this as a signal that Minnesota is at least in the mix. One of the things I don't like about college women's basketball is that there are about 5 programs that seem to get the "picks of the litter" and then the other programs are left with the leftovers. I'm of the feeling that the Gophers under Whalen can become an elite program. There's a lot of interest in women's basketball here, there are some good Minnesota players with which to build a foundation, and the BIG is a certainly a reputable conference. Della Donne committed to UConn and never played a game there. She opted to stay closer to home and her family and played for Delaware. Suicidal decision? Not. UConn and Notre Dame aren't for everyone. And if you're a good player, you won't go unnoticed by fans or WNBA wonks. If Whalen gets it going here, the Gophers can average 10,000-plus per game. Only a handful of women's hoops programs do that.
bball_craz_31
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I don't remember the exact quote but it was in Star Tribune article after Whalen was hired that Bueckers dad stated with Whalen hired she is looking at the U of Minnesota in a different light or something similar. Im sure the article is somewhere under this 11 page thread. Frankly, anyone would know Whalen would draw more attention to the program than Stollings or frankly anyone else ever would.
in terms of verbal, I feel they can verbal anytime they want. you see people verbal are freshman and sophomores in HS. I think its November of senior year that they have to wait to sign.
in terms of verbal, I feel they can verbal anytime they want. you see people verbal are freshman and sophomores in HS. I think its November of senior year that they have to wait to sign.
My reason is simple: She told me.
No, and I don’t think it would have taken much effort to see who I was talking about in this thread.
You think that was a good idea to reveal if you don’t want to explain how or why?
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Ignatius L Hoops
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http://www.startribune.com/hiring-of-lindsay-whalen-goes-beyond-public-relations/479598603/
The quote was in Scoggins column:
The Gophers had zero chance of signing Bueckers before Whalen’s announcement. Bueckers’ father, Bob, was asked if his daughter will look at the Gophers differently now.
“Absolutely,” he said.
Disagree 100%
dpodoll68
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Unbelievably stupid take.
Halsey Hall
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No, I am not an idiot, and I am not a troll. I have been cheering for the Gophers for most of my life, and have followed this site for several years but I am rather new to posting on message boards. I have been watching Paige for about seven years, through AAU tournaments and practices. I’ve also watched many others of her caliber of talent. Her High School and North Tartan coaches have undoubtedly worked behind the scenes for years to help get her noticed, and her level of talent deserves a top level coach and program to continue her development. Yes, having Whalen as a coach does increase the odds of her staying home slightly, but she didn’t even stay home for high school, instead choosing to play at Hopkins. We have seen it over and over again that the top players will go to the top programs, and Minnesota is not now one of those. Maybe in the future, and hopefully in the near future, it will be.
bball_craz_31
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We gave you an example of plenty of top tier talent stayed home. South Carolina was not the powerhouse it is today before Aja Wilson, Delle-Donne went to a school that wasn't even a top tier mid-major and took them to the sweet 16. Top talent doesn't have to go to UConn or Notre Dame. Even if they do, they are not guaranteed to play. Look at Megan Walker who was the #1 ranked recruit in ESPN class of 2017. She barely plays. You mentioned higher competition, I once again say then UConn is out then due to their HORRIBLE conference. they don't play a close game in the conference for about the last 2 months of the season.
A good coach...yes Geno and McGraw are great coaches, but can either of them say they have accomplished what Whalen has? Whalen can pull from coaches like Geno, Reeve, etc. She basically can draw on WNBA championship level experiences to help a player. Also look at her staff, particularly Carly Thibault. She happened to coach on a team that BEAT UConn. She knows how to develop talent.
A good coach...yes Geno and McGraw are great coaches, but can either of them say they have accomplished what Whalen has? Whalen can pull from coaches like Geno, Reeve, etc. She basically can draw on WNBA championship level experiences to help a player. Also look at her staff, particularly Carly Thibault. She happened to coach on a team that BEAT UConn. She knows how to develop talent.
tripledouble
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Isn't it normal for young assistant coaches to bounce around a bit? My guess is that this could be a landing spot for Carly, maybe until she gets an HC offer. I'm not expecting her to be "one and done". I expect that she'll be here at least a few years.
Why would Minnesota be a landing spot when she was just at a Championship team? That seems like a better landing spot behind a coach that’s a lot closer to retirement. It’s probably just about the money. If she gets a better offer, she’s probably gone... a reality in life.
Look what Minnesota does for her resume. She’s probably doing and has done most things Whalen is supposed to do as a head coach but Whalen was either too busy with the Lynx or doesn’t know what she’s doing because she’s never done it before. Thibault is proving she can be a head coach and is now in a prime position to land her own head coaching job, even though she’s probably only 27 years old.
I’d be somewhat surprised if she lasted more than two seasons. Wouldn’t be surprised at all if she moved on after this season.
Look what Minnesota does for her resume. She’s probably doing and has done most things Whalen is supposed to do as a head coach but Whalen was either too busy with the Lynx or doesn’t know what she’s doing because she’s never done it before. Thibault is proving she can be a head coach and is now in a prime position to land her own head coaching job, even though she’s probably only 27 years old.
I’d be somewhat surprised if she lasted more than two seasons. Wouldn’t be surprised at all if she moved on after this season.
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Obviously any talented young coach can move on when there is a nice opportunity, but this isn't a normal head coach/assistant coach type of relationship. This is family. Carly came here because of her personal relationship with Whalen which dates back to when Lindsay lived at her house with her family in Connecticut when she was in grade school.
CutDownTheNet
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I remember an earlier post that mentioned an old Whalen quote (after her Minnesota coach quit at the time), something like "Last time I checked, the coaches didn't play a single minute." How many minutes of women's basketball has Geno played? OK, so Muffet has played a bit, I'll concede that one.
Although the College Sports Madness folks haven't finished posting their Top 44 Previews yet, they have posted their preseason picks for WNBA Draft Rankings at http://www.collegesportsmadness.com/womens-basketball/wnba-draft-profiles
Of the 24 NCAA WBB players listed in this pre-season WNBA draft poll, it's true that two are from UConn (#4 and #10) and four are from ND (#6, #7. #11, #14). But all the rest are from solo schools who have only one player on the list (including Minnesota who has Kenisha Bell on the list at #22 currently). And six of the top ten picks are from solo schools as well. So clearly, one does not "have to" go to either UConn or ND to become a top draft pick. On the other hand, the other schools of the top ten predicted picks are traditionally strong basketball schools. That makes sense, if only from the laws of statistics.
The top three picks are Sabrina Ionescu from Oregon (you may recall how this tall PG helped Oregon end our NCAA run last spring - and do you think it's a coincidence that Whalen is recruiting tall guards like Paige?); and Teaira McCowan, a 6'7" center from Mississippi State; and Kalani Brown, a 6'7" center from Baylor (and after seeing what Britney Griner and Liz Cambage did in the WNBA last summer, do you think it's a coincidence that both WNBA teams and NCAA teams are recruiting tall posts?).
Besides Minnesota, the top-24 WNBA draft rankings include two other Big-Ten schools: Megan Gustafson of Iowa, and Hallie Thome of Michigan.
Although it looks like ND might hit the WNBA draft jackpot this year, those graduations leave the ND cupboard pretty bare. So will ND still be the powerhouse that it currently is, at the relevant time, should Paige end up deciding to lend her talents to the Irish? Maybe, maybe not. At that time, ND might be just another run-of-the-mill top-25 team. Of course, Muffet McGraw is a pretty good recruiter, so in that case, it probably wouldn't be Paige and her buddy playing two-on-five against the world. But the fates of dynasties wax and wane. UConn seems to be on a bit of a downswing at the moment, with only two players landing on the WNBA draft watch list. Only a couple years ago, in Rachel Banham's draft class, UConn had the top three drafts (with Banham going fourth). That was the first time any NCAA school took the top three slots (and not likely to happen again for a long time).
It's hard to guess how much playing for a "name brand" basketball team helps your chances for achieving a productive WNBA career. But to whatever extent one might think that a factor, and given the periodic waxing and waning of basketball dynasties, one would want to pick an NCAA school whose fortunes are on the upswing. Might I suggest one: University of Minnesota. Here's my guestimate of their future fortunes:
2019: approximately Round of 32
2020: approximately Sweet Sixteen
2021: approximately Elite Eight
2022: approximately Final Four
2023: hopefully National Championship game
It's clear that Paige has a Final Four in her future, regardless of where she decides to play. And if she plays elsewhere, us Minnesota-nice folks will honestly wish her the best of luck. But I think that the pretty-much unanimous preference of the readers/posters of this blog is that she compete at that Final Four while wearing a Gopher uniform. Just sayin.
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For me, Bueckers staying home to play would be the bigger, more impactful story on the club winning in the near future.
This is exceptional analysis Shades. Thanks for taking the time to do the research.
This also would be a great story that she would never forget as Minnesota is her home. She has friends and family here as well that would love to watch her play.
It’s a cyclical thing. In 2016, UConn had 3 players drafted in the first round. That left their cupboard bare. In 2017, UConn didn’t have a player drafted until the third round at #26 with Saniya Chong, who I believe was fairly prominent prospect coming in. She only lasted a year in the WNBA even with a rebuilding club. That same year ND didn’t have a player drafted until the second round with Lindsay Allen. She is barely hanging onto a job in the WNBA.
The thing about Geno, he just cares about his team winning. So he’ll use players however he sees fit as a means to that end. But he won’t always necessarily prepare all players for the WNBA level. Take Gabby Williams, for example. She came into UConn as a guard, so ideally she should be developed as a guard. She’s only 5’11, after all. But since he didn’t have a great center at the time, he used Gabby Williams instead, who was athletic enough to pull it off in college, but that left her ill-prepared for the WNBA. The Chicago Sky struggled mightily finding the proper position for Gabby. Too tiny to play PF in the WNBA, and not developed enough to play anything else. Of course it didn’t help that they also drafted DeShields, who fit in perfectly with the team as a SF.
Look what Geno did with Azura Stevens. She went to the trouble of transferring from Duke where she was the clear #1 player to sitting out a year per transfer rules. When she was finally was able to play for UConn, what did Geno do? He brings Stevens off the bench. Stevens had another year of eligibility left, but after one year of that and not coming away with a championship, she was gone. She ended up being a #6 pick, but had she been used as a starter, she would have been like #2 or #3.
The thing about Geno, he just cares about his team winning. So he’ll use players however he sees fit as a means to that end. But he won’t always necessarily prepare all players for the WNBA level. Take Gabby Williams, for example. She came into UConn as a guard, so ideally she should be developed as a guard. She’s only 5’11, after all. But since he didn’t have a great center at the time, he used Gabby Williams instead, who was athletic enough to pull it off in college, but that left her ill-prepared for the WNBA. The Chicago Sky struggled mightily finding the proper position for Gabby. Too tiny to play PF in the WNBA, and not developed enough to play anything else. Of course it didn’t help that they also drafted DeShields, who fit in perfectly with the team as a SF.
Look what Geno did with Azura Stevens. She went to the trouble of transferring from Duke where she was the clear #1 player to sitting out a year per transfer rules. When she was finally was able to play for UConn, what did Geno do? He brings Stevens off the bench. Stevens had another year of eligibility left, but after one year of that and not coming away with a championship, she was gone. She ended up being a #6 pick, but had she been used as a starter, she would have been like #2 or #3.