11-08-2021, 09:31 PM
(11-08-2021, 09:40 AM)joemontes Wrote:(11-08-2021, 09:29 AM)WBB fan Wrote: NCAA and Naismith Hall of Fame has announced its pre-season watch lists for the "Women's Naismith Starting Five" -- 20 names on the watchlist for each position -- point guard / shooting guard / small forward / power forward / center.
The Pac-12 is strongly represented, and the expected names from U Conn, South Carolina, etc. are all there.
Four Stanford players are on the lists right now -- three pretty obvious choices and one that to me is a surprise. Will be interesting to see how players evolve, but for now, here's the way the selection committees see the Card's potentital:
Point guard -- no one
Shooting guard -- Lexie Hull
Small forward -- Haley Jones
Power Forward -- Cameron Brink
Center -- Fran Belibi
It's a surprise to me that they classified Fran BELIBI as a Center, and not as a Power Forward.
I speculate that's because the last time they saw her play, she was assigned to guard South Carolina Center Aaliyah BOSTON in last season's FInal Four semis.
it's a bit tricky as stanford plays a 1 guard, 2 interchangeable wings, 2 interchangeable posts offense; but to my eyes, in the exhibition fran played center - ie she was the one under the basket on offense, with cam on the outside. on defense, fran was also the one defending right under the basket. lastly cam was the one who threw the ball in after an opposition basket. to my understanding, that's most often the job of the 4 to allow time for the 5 to lumber up the court (not that either fran or cam lumbers).
fran is not our tallest post, but she appears to be the most powerful (watch out for iriafen; she is ripped. and cam is not a pushover, either), therefore the player to defend the opponent's bulkiest post - e.g. boston in your example. on offense fran is a post-up player rather than a mid-range or outside shooter. for high-low offense, imo the pass would more often go from cam to fran than the other way around.
