[81alum]

One way to put the pain of Baylor behind is to start thinking forward to next year.  And so I ask, what will next year’s team be like?

Returning starters from this year’s team include Chiney, Joslyn, Toni, and Amber.

Chiney.  Chiney needs to develop as a player in the way that Nneka did.  Nneka, however, took some time developing her jump shot.  I don’t remember it being very evident against A&M, for example. (I could be wrong, I try not to remember that game too thorougly.)  It would be good if Chiney could get her jump shot going early next year rather than waiting for her senior year.  If not, other teams will put most of their emphasis on shutting Chiney down and there won't be Nneka to divide their attention.

Joslyn.  Will Joslyn move in to the 4 and start playing in Nneka’s old slot?  Or will she stay at the 3?  That is an interesting question and probably depends on how Frosh Beebe develops or whether Boothe stays and develops, stays and remains on the bench, or leaves after this year.  Joslyn was absolutely terrific at times this year, and then she had games when she was guarded by athletic, tall posts where she got very quiet.  She needs a little more aggression at times.

Toni.  I presume Toni’s starting spot is secure, but there are questions.  Will she continue to split time at the point or will she become a pure shooting guard?  Especially if she is used as a shooter she must improve her three point shooting significantly.  If not, there will be good bench guards next year that could take more and more of her minutes. 

Amber.  Amber developed very well this year and is a bright spot.  Clearly she also needs to develop a three point shot.  Our guards probably can no longer afford to be good defensive, ball handling types that score no more than single digits.  They need to be a much bigger part of our offense if we are going to replace Nneka’s 24 points a game. 

Who will be the fifth starter?  Possibilities are numerous:
1. Booth at the 5 which would mean keeping Joslyn at the 3.
2. Moving Joslyn to the 4 and bringing Bonnie in at the 3.
3. Moving Joslyn to the 4 and bringing Taylor in at the 3.
4. Bring in frosh Beebe at the 4 and leaving Joslyn at the 3.
5. Going with three guards and starting Jasmine or Alex Green.

I’m not sure if the 3 guard idea is likely, even though some TV announcers speculated about it, because we are a bit thin at guard.  It is not that we would lack for three starting guards–Jasmine Camp already started for us before she was injured, and played well against Connecticut. Alex Green has not yet played and might turn out to be very good too.  Sara James is our other guard, and has potential to develop, although Tara has not yet shown confidence in her as a starter.  I'm not sure really why she has not been used more--she always looked pretty good to me on defense.  But our team is thin at guard and stocked at forward, so it would restrict our ability to give playing time to most of our players to do the 3 guard thing.

Bonnie I think has the potential to start at the 3, but I get the impression she needs to work on her defense and spend some time in the weight room over the summer.

Taylor seems like the most rounded 3 we have, but needs rather dramatically to increase her aggressiveness on offense, in my opinion.  Perhaps that will be easier with a year of experience under her belt and what will probably be an offensive philosophy that is more diversified.

Mikaela Ruef is now a wild card in my mind.  I just don't know what kind of player she will be after a year off.  She has played the 3 before, but that does not seem to me to be her natural position.  So she would be competing for the 3 or the 4 slots?  With Nneka's departure maybe Ruef is in the rotation for the posts?

Erica Payne seems like a terrific player to me, but she needs to expand her repertoire to get more playing time.  I think she needs to develop her jump shot and compete for the 3 slot.  She seems to have good moves under the basket, but it is hard to see her getting many minutes over Chiney and Joslyn who also have those moves.  If she could hit the three as well as Bonnie, say, she has a superior ability to put the ball on the floor and drive to the basket, and it would be a good combination.

Incoming class:

Alyson Beebe would probably have the potential to be a first year starter except we don’t yet know how she is recovering from her injury.  She is currently ranked 12th overall in her class but was ranked higher than that and was recruited by everyone before she injured her knee and missed her senior year.  If she makes a full recovery and turns out not to be injury prone then she should be on track to become the next in the line of talented starting forwards. 

I picture Tess Picknell as another Sarah Boothe.  Similar size, perhaps better defensively, but in high school she has not been that much of an offensive threat.  I would imagine she will get minutes during the Fall and Tara will see how she develops.  Hard to see her as a first year starter, though.  Her minutes may depend a bit on whether Sarah comes back or not.

[81alum]

One way to put the pain of Baylor behind is to start thinking forward to next year.  And so I ask, what will next year’s team be like?

Returning starters from this year’s team include Chiney, Joslyn, Toni, and Amber.

Chiney.  Chiney needs to develop as a player in the way that Nneka did.  Nneka, however, took some time developing her jump shot.  I don’t remember it being very evident against A&M, for example. (I could be wrong, I try not to remember that game too thorougly.)  It would be good if Chiney could get her jump shot going early next year rather than waiting for her senior year.  If not, other teams will put most of their emphasis on shutting Chiney down and there won't be Nneka to divide their attention.

Joslyn.  Will Joslyn move in to the 4 and start playing in Nneka’s old slot?  Or will she stay at the 3?  That is an interesting question and probably depends on how Frosh Beebe develops or whether Boothe stays and develops, stays and remains on the bench, or leaves after this year.  Joslyn was absolutely terrific at times this year, and then she had games when she was guarded by athletic, tall posts where she got very quiet.  She needs a little more aggression at times.

Toni.  I presume Toni’s starting spot is secure, but there are questions.  Will she continue to split time at the point or will she become a pure shooting guard?  Especially if she is used as a shooter she must improve her three point shooting significantly.  If not, there will be good bench guards next year that could take more and more of her minutes. 

Amber.  Amber developed very well this year and is a bright spot.  Clearly she also needs to develop a three point shot.  Our guards probably can no longer afford to be good defensive, ball handling types that score no more than single digits.  They need to be a much bigger part of our offense if we are going to replace Nneka’s 24 points a game. 

Who will be the fifth starter?  Possibilities are numerous:
1. Booth at the 5 which would mean keeping Joslyn at the 3.
2. Moving Joslyn to the 4 and bringing Bonnie in at the 3.
3. Moving Joslyn to the 4 and bringing Taylor in at the 3.
4. Bring in frosh Beebe at the 4 and leaving Joslyn at the 3.
5. Going with three guards and starting Jasmine or Alex Green.

I’m not sure if the 3 guard idea is likely, even though some TV announcers speculated about it, because we are a bit thin at guard.  It is not that we would lack for three starting guards–Jasmine Camp already started for us before she was injured, and played well against Connecticut. Alex Green has not yet played and might turn out to be very good too.  Sara James is our other guard, and has potential to develop, although Tara has not yet shown confidence in her as a starter.  I'm not sure really why she has not been used more--she always looked pretty good to me on defense.  But our team is thin at guard and stocked at forward, so it would restrict our ability to give playing time to most of our players to do the 3 guard thing.

Bonnie I think has the potential to start at the 3, but I get the impression she needs to work on her defense and spend some time in the weight room over the summer.

Taylor seems like the most rounded 3 we have, but needs rather dramatically to increase her aggressiveness on offense, in my opinion.  Perhaps that will be easier with a year of experience under her belt and what will probably be an offensive philosophy that is more diversified.

Mikaela Ruef is now a wild card in my mind.  I just don't know what kind of player she will be after a year off.  She has played the 3 before, but that does not seem to me to be her natural position.  So she would be competing for the 3 or the 4 slots?  With Nneka's departure maybe Ruef is in the rotation for the posts?

Erica Payne seems like a terrific player to me, but she needs to expand her repertoire to get more playing time.  I think she needs to develop her jump shot and compete for the 3 slot.  She seems to have good moves under the basket, but it is hard to see her getting many minutes over Chiney and Joslyn who also have those moves.  If she could hit the three as well as Bonnie, say, she has a superior ability to put the ball on the floor and drive to the basket, and it would be a good combination.

Incoming class:

Alyson Beebe would probably have the potential to be a first year starter except we don’t yet know how she is recovering from her injury.  She is currently ranked 12th overall in her class but was ranked higher than that and was recruited by everyone before she injured her knee and missed her senior year.  If she makes a full recovery and turns out not to be injury prone then she should be on track to become the next in the line of talented starting forwards. 

I picture Tess Picknell as another Sarah Boothe.  Similar size, perhaps better defensively, but in high school she has not been that much of an offensive threat.  I would imagine she will get minutes during the Fall and Tara will see how she develops.  Hard to see her as a first year starter, though.  Her minutes may depend a bit on whether Sarah comes back or not.