[2006alum]

With all due respect, since we know nothing of the conversations that are happening between player and coach, we have no idea what coach Paye is “telling” Eschmeyer, and speculating on messages, much less stating that they are plain for all to see is a fool’s errand.

Andrew Luck redshirted his freshman year.  One could have read into that as Coach Harbaugh telling Luck that he had more confidence in Tavita Pritchard than in Luck, and that there were lots of programs hungry to poach him.  Thankfully at the time there was plenty of communication that this was not the case and that some of the decision to redshirt came from Andrew and Oliver Luck.

Sure, Kate Paye may be committing a catastrophic error, and Eschmeyer may be in the transfer portal come the spring, and will thrive somewhere else.  In that case Kate Paye will ultimately be held accountable.  But until that actually happens, I suggest we all turn down the volume a little bit on the uninformed speculation as to what is being communicated to players and what a player will do.

Yeah, I know, this is a message board; I might as well be this guy:



BC

Thank you. Fully concur.

Thoughts on the two games in Las Vegas.

It was fun to attend the games in person, though with the court being in an outside tent, it felt like going to a high school gym. It was that small.

I thought the team had issues with their sight lines in the first game with FGCU. They were missing shots even in warmups. So, when the game began, they didn't shoot much better.

I thought the FGCU team brought energy and movement that we had a hard time with. That movement is why I think Kate went with MAS rather than Eschmeyer as much as she did. That was better on defense but an issue on offense because, as mentioned elsewhere in this thread, MAS refuses to shoot or drive to the hoop from the top of the key. Ironic too because in warmups for the second game, she shot from that spot and hit 10 shots in a row. Several of us in the stands think the coaches are in her head and she is trying so hard to run the called play that she forgets that part of the play is for her to make a decision that might include her shooting.

I also thought Ogden, who has probably the smoothest shot on the team, also kept hesitating to shoot the ball, continuously looking to pass one more time. That's why I think she stayed on the bench much of the second half. I did like the energy the team brought in the 4th quarter though. I think this game will serve as a film study for the team to see what they need to bring every game, all game, in the future.

Finally, I thought the game showed just how much more growth Coach Paye needs to go through to help the team get where they need to be.

The second game, against Colorado State was another level. To begin with, the team shot much better in warmups. And once the game started, it appeared that they were finally used to shooting in that environment. Secondly, I thought they started the game out with more energy and movement. They should why I think the offense the run can work. When they execute the way they are supposed to, this offense has elements that fit all of the players they have. But,, when they don't execute, it is easy to stop. That's why the person at the high post has to be someone who will shoot the 15 foot jumper, or drive from there. MY concern in the second game with MAS. Why I think she did not play much in the second game.

I loved the decision Coach P made late in the second quarter to bring in Amborn. I thought she should have brought her in earlier in the 4th quarter the game before, but she stopped herself. This time, she went for it. And I think the game changed momentum at that point. She brought not only her great shooting, but young enthusiasm. And that Eurostep drive to the hoop. Who knew? This move putting her in did two things. First, she was able to make some plays and show that she is ready for more playing time. It also, I think woke Ogden up. I think it finally clicked with her that she needs to be more aggressive and demonstrative. I loved watching her take charge in the second half, especially in the 4th quarter. Not just in finally realizing that she can shoot at three levels, but also in how she started directing things on the court, on both ends. She was telling people where to go on the court. Being so close to the court, it was fun to watch.

If we can only get that Ogden the rest of the time. I was sitting near her family and they were all cheering her on at the end when she was doing the TV interview afterwards. Maybe that will help her come out of her shell.

And of course, Agara and Clardy were all that.

The tournament was fun.

Some other fun facts. I sat next to and talked with Alex Eschmeyer's mom at the first game. I do not have the same concern as others here, even though she did not play much in the two games. This is not a Lauren Betts situation.

There were also a couple of old time, former players at the game. Jennifer Azzi was there. She works for the Las Vegas Aces so she come by each time Stanford is in town.

And, going almost that far back, Angie Paccione was there. Got to speak with her a bit. Fun times.

Belatedly, this was an excellent post with a lot of thoughtful analysis. Thanks for sharing it, and stop by more often! 

What you highlight with both Eschmeyer and Amborn is that they are more advanced offensively than defensively, and KP is doing what Tara often did with frosh, and prioritize our best/most experience defensive players. I do get that, for a lot of reasons. But I think this season we need to make a lot of significant progress on offense to be competitive in - let alone be invited to - the post-season, so I would actually prefer the risk of defensive lapses and blown coverage in exchange for speeding up Eschmeyer and Amborn's progression. Which I suppose is a nicer way of saying more Eschmeyer and Amborn time, less MAS and Lepolo time, please!

I am a little worried about Swain. It feels like each game her shot abandons her more as the season is progressing. With the exception of her output against an extremely overmatched Lehigh team, Swain is 6/38 in her last four games. I completely agree with you that she seems to lose confidence as soon as she approaches the paint in any kind of traffic, and she also seems hesitant shooting outside.  This is totally speculative, but didn't she have a rather late growth spurt? As mentioned in our recruiting thread, she was 5'8" relatively recently, and is now fully 5'11", and I wonder if it's thrown off her approach to shooting, outside and in? At times it just feels like she's not really fully in control of her body - she has the instinct to move like Haley Jones, but not the wherewithal to actually do it.

[2006alum]

With all due respect, since we know nothing of the conversations that are happening between player and coach, we have no idea what coach Paye is “telling” Eschmeyer, and speculating on messages, much less stating that they are plain for all to see is a fool’s errand.

Andrew Luck redshirted his freshman year.  One could have read into that as Coach Harbaugh telling Luck that he had more confidence in Tavita Pritchard than in Luck, and that there were lots of programs hungry to poach him.  Thankfully at the time there was plenty of communication that this was not the case and that some of the decision to redshirt came from Andrew and Oliver Luck.

Sure, Kate Paye may be committing a catastrophic error, and Eschmeyer may be in the transfer portal come the spring, and will thrive somewhere else.  In that case Kate Paye will ultimately be held accountable.  But until that actually happens, I suggest we all turn down the volume a little bit on the uninformed speculation as to what is being communicated to players and what a player will do.

Yeah, I know, this is a message board; I might as well be this guy:



BC

Thank you. Fully concur.

Thoughts on the two games in Las Vegas.

It was fun to attend the games in person, though with the court being in an outside tent, it felt like going to a high school gym. It was that small.

I thought the team had issues with their sight lines in the first game with FGCU. They were missing shots even in warmups. So, when the game began, they didn't shoot much better.

I thought the FGCU team brought energy and movement that we had a hard time with. That movement is why I think Kate went with MAS rather than Eschmeyer as much as she did. That was better on defense but an issue on offense because, as mentioned elsewhere in this thread, MAS refuses to shoot or drive to the hoop from the top of the key. Ironic too because in warmups for the second game, she shot from that spot and hit 10 shots in a row. Several of us in the stands think the coaches are in her head and she is trying so hard to run the called play that she forgets that part of the play is for her to make a decision that might include her shooting.

I also thought Ogden, who has probably the smoothest shot on the team, also kept hesitating to shoot the ball, continuously looking to pass one more time. That's why I think she stayed on the bench much of the second half. I did like the energy the team brought in the 4th quarter though. I think this game will serve as a film study for the team to see what they need to bring every game, all game, in the future.

Finally, I thought the game showed just how much more growth Coach Paye needs to go through to help the team get where they need to be.

The second game, against Colorado State was another level. To begin with, the team shot much better in warmups. And once the game started, it appeared that they were finally used to shooting in that environment. Secondly, I thought they started the game out with more energy and movement. They should why I think the offense the run can work. When they execute the way they are supposed to, this offense has elements that fit all of the players they have. But,, when they don't execute, it is easy to stop. That's why the person at the high post has to be someone who will shoot the 15 foot jumper, or drive from there. MY concern in the second game with MAS. Why I think she did not play much in the second game.

I loved the decision Coach P made late in the second quarter to bring in Amborn. I thought she should have brought her in earlier in the 4th quarter the game before, but she stopped herself. This time, she went for it. And I think the game changed momentum at that point. She brought not only her great shooting, but young enthusiasm. And that Eurostep drive to the hoop. Who knew? This move putting her in did two things. First, she was able to make some plays and show that she is ready for more playing time. It also, I think woke Ogden up. I think it finally clicked with her that she needs to be more aggressive and demonstrative. I loved watching her take charge in the second half, especially in the 4th quarter. Not just in finally realizing that she can shoot at three levels, but also in how she started directing things on the court, on both ends. She was telling people where to go on the court. Being so close to the court, it was fun to watch.

If we can only get that Ogden the rest of the time. I was sitting near her family and they were all cheering her on at the end when she was doing the TV interview afterwards. Maybe that will help her come out of her shell.

And of course, Agara and Clardy were all that.

The tournament was fun.

Some other fun facts. I sat next to and talked with Alex Eschmeyer's mom at the first game. I do not have the same concern as others here, even though she did not play much in the two games. This is not a Lauren Betts situation.

There were also a couple of old time, former players at the game. Jennifer Azzi was there. She works for the Las Vegas Aces so she come by each time Stanford is in town.

And, going almost that far back, Angie Paccione was there. Got to speak with her a bit. Fun times.

Belatedly, this was an excellent post with a lot of thoughtful analysis. Thanks for sharing it, and stop by more often! 

What you highlight with both Eschmeyer and Amborn is that they are more advanced offensively than defensively, and KP is doing what Tara often did with frosh, and prioritize our best/most experience defensive players. I do get that, for a lot of reasons. But I think this season we need to make a lot of significant progress on offense to be competitive in - let alone be invited to - the post-season, so I would actually prefer the risk of defensive lapses and blown coverage in exchange for speeding up Eschmeyer and Amborn's progression. Which I suppose is a nicer way of saying more Eschmeyer and Amborn time, less MAS and Lepolo time, please!

I am a little worried about Swain. It feels like each game her shot abandons her more as the season is progressing. With the exception of her output against an extremely overmatched Lehigh team, Swain is 6/38 in her last four games. I completely agree with you that she seems to lose confidence as soon as she approaches the paint in any kind of traffic, and she also seems hesitant shooting outside.  This is totally speculative, but didn't she have a rather late growth spurt? As mentioned in our recruiting thread, she was 5'8" relatively recently, and is now fully 5'11", and I wonder if it's thrown off her approach to shooting, outside and in? At times it just feels like she's not really fully in control of her body - she has the instinct to move like Haley Jones, but not the wherewithal to actually do it.