[TheFarm07]

Sometimes the price of balance is heresy .  In this evaluation, I think it’s important to notice that the WBB program was limping quite a bit before Paye took over. We all respect and admire Tara. Full stop.  Our WBB program completely missed the impact of NIL like payments and more importantly, the transfer portal. Further, we seemed to overestimate the holding power and attractiveness of a Stanford degree in a financial environment that at least appears to give young women a chance to make a lot of money at basketball…wherever your degree is from or whether you have one. (I’m not sure how real that is, but the perception is there and that counts for a great deal with 18-22 year olds)

We lost some championship caliber players through the portal and ceased to be the offer you would accept if you got it, almost whoever you were.  I believe Paye inherited a program in decline and that she has a rebuilding job. yes , she was part of the team that led the decline but she wasn’t the top dog .

FYI, while I have  shaken hands with Tara and Kate, I do not pretend to know them at all well . From what I do know, I them I admire each of them and am thankful for what they have given to Stanford.  Paye may or may not be the right long term coach. And Tara will,go down, in my books as the goat. But let’s be real about the job in front of Paye and the status of the program she took over.

I agree that in the last couple years under Tara, even with a national title banner still fresh in the rafters, the program was declining with the upset loss to Ole Miss in 2023. I saw the early warning signs even as early in the national semis loss to UConn in 2022 when it seemed like we didn't adapt to the Huskies' defense and they just seemed to want it more in that game

That's why I wanted the school to look beyond in-house for the next coach, someone that can invigorate the team and modernize it to deal with the environment it's now in. NIL largely neutralizes one of our biggest selling points - a Stanford degree that will help them to a lifelong career, esp. when so few make it to the WNBA and the salaries were not exactly lucrative, esp. compared to their male counterparts. We needed to adjust to that

While Paye wasn't dealt a strong hand when she took over, I would still argue that she hasn't done the best in the parts she has had control over - the on-court product. I haven't had a chance to see many games but the ones I have watched coupled with the commentary here, points to a team who has underperformed given our talent level

I didn't expect us to challenge UConn or South Carolina for the title this year but with a strong veteran base and a talented freshmen class, a Top-25 ranking and a NCAA tournament berth didn't seem too outrageous of an ask.

I don't think we've been in the rankings this season and our hopes of qualifying are hanging on by a thread.

[TheFarm07]

Sometimes the price of balance is heresy .  In this evaluation, I think it’s important to notice that the WBB program was limping quite a bit before Paye took over. We all respect and admire Tara. Full stop.  Our WBB program completely missed the impact of NIL like payments and more importantly, the transfer portal. Further, we seemed to overestimate the holding power and attractiveness of a Stanford degree in a financial environment that at least appears to give young women a chance to make a lot of money at basketball…wherever your degree is from or whether you have one. (I’m not sure how real that is, but the perception is there and that counts for a great deal with 18-22 year olds)

We lost some championship caliber players through the portal and ceased to be the offer you would accept if you got it, almost whoever you were.  I believe Paye inherited a program in decline and that she has a rebuilding job. yes , she was part of the team that led the decline but she wasn’t the top dog .

FYI, while I have  shaken hands with Tara and Kate, I do not pretend to know them at all well . From what I do know, I them I admire each of them and am thankful for what they have given to Stanford.  Paye may or may not be the right long term coach. And Tara will,go down, in my books as the goat. But let’s be real about the job in front of Paye and the status of the program she took over.

I agree that in the last couple years under Tara, even with a national title banner still fresh in the rafters, the program was declining with the upset loss to Ole Miss in 2023. I saw the early warning signs even as early in the national semis loss to UConn in 2022 when it seemed like we didn't adapt to the Huskies' defense and they just seemed to want it more in that game

That's why I wanted the school to look beyond in-house for the next coach, someone that can invigorate the team and modernize it to deal with the environment it's now in. NIL largely neutralizes one of our biggest selling points - a Stanford degree that will help them to a lifelong career, esp. when so few make it to the WNBA and the salaries were not exactly lucrative, esp. compared to their male counterparts. We needed to adjust to that

While Paye wasn't dealt a strong hand when she took over, I would still argue that she hasn't done the best in the parts she has had control over - the on-court product. I haven't had a chance to see many games but the ones I have watched coupled with the commentary here, points to a team who has underperformed given our talent level

I didn't expect us to challenge UConn or South Carolina for the title this year but with a strong veteran base and a talented freshmen class, a Top-25 ranking and a NCAA tournament berth didn't seem too outrageous of an ask.

I don't think we've been in the rankings this season and our hopes of qualifying are hanging on by a thread.