One thing I like to do in evaluating a team is to ask “which player would be the hardest to replace?”. My first answer is Brink who I think is one of the two best players in the country. But, on reflection, we have more good alternatives to Brink than any other player – Betts, Iriafen, Prechtel, even Belibi if we are up against a smaller team. I think the hardest to replace right now would be Jones. She seems to be having a down year compared to her Soph and Jr years, but she does things for us no one else can.
We are going to have to be a much different team next year because we have no one who can step in and do what she does. The third hardest to replace may be Jump. Perhaps the best 3 point shooter in the country WHEN she gets room. The problem is her shot is relatively easy to defend. She is a better than average defender but does not help us much in any other category if she is defended tightly. From that point, everyone is kind of a specialist with at least one strength but also at least one weakness. Demetre, Bosgana, Iriafen, Emma-Nnopu, Lepolo, Nivar, and possibly Harriel could all enhance their strengths and minimize their weaknesses next year but right now they are specialists. My sense is that Betts, Demetre, Bosgana, Lepolo and Nivar (all with 2 or 3 yeas remaining) will be the most likely to emerge as very talented players with minor weaknesses. I think Harriel might as well but she seems to be out of favor with Tara (perhaps for good reason if she does not show well in practice). Betts needs to learn positioning a little better and get stronger but she will be a force for years to come. Demetre needs to learn to take mid-range shots which was her strength in high school. Bosgana needs to think pass before shooting and needs to drive more, Lepolo needs to shoot 3s more and learn to drive like Curry at Cal and Rice at UCLA. Nivar needs to shoot 3s much better and drive more. Harriel needs to get a lot more playing time and learn to drive. I think her 3 point shot might be OK if she played more. She was a prolific scorer in high school but she seems tentative now.
After watching WSU take down UCLA today, I think our conference could easily send 3 teams to the final 8 and 2 to the final 4. It would be great if we were one of those 2 but I would not be surprised to see us eliminated in the round of 8.
One final thought. If we had signed Kiki Rice or Olivia Miles we might be undefeated. They do a lot of things we, as a team, do not do.
We are going to have to be a much different team next year because we have no one who can step in and do what she does. The third hardest to replace may be Jump. Perhaps the best 3 point shooter in the country WHEN she gets room. The problem is her shot is relatively easy to defend. She is a better than average defender but does not help us much in any other category if she is defended tightly. From that point, everyone is kind of a specialist with at least one strength but also at least one weakness. Demetre, Bosgana, Iriafen, Emma-Nnopu, Lepolo, Nivar, and possibly Harriel could all enhance their strengths and minimize their weaknesses next year but right now they are specialists. My sense is that Betts, Demetre, Bosgana, Lepolo and Nivar (all with 2 or 3 yeas remaining) will be the most likely to emerge as very talented players with minor weaknesses. I think Harriel might as well but she seems to be out of favor with Tara (perhaps for good reason if she does not show well in practice). Betts needs to learn positioning a little better and get stronger but she will be a force for years to come. Demetre needs to learn to take mid-range shots which was her strength in high school. Bosgana needs to think pass before shooting and needs to drive more, Lepolo needs to shoot 3s more and learn to drive like Curry at Cal and Rice at UCLA. Nivar needs to shoot 3s much better and drive more. Harriel needs to get a lot more playing time and learn to drive. I think her 3 point shot might be OK if she played more. She was a prolific scorer in high school but she seems tentative now.
After watching WSU take down UCLA today, I think our conference could easily send 3 teams to the final 8 and 2 to the final 4. It would be great if we were one of those 2 but I would not be surprised to see us eliminated in the round of 8.
One final thought. If we had signed Kiki Rice or Olivia Miles we might be undefeated. They do a lot of things we, as a team, do not do.