I agree 100%. Its a very tough call. I don't think the current team is final four material. Do you risk going to the portal and getting a transfer and mess with chemistry? Most of the people that MAY help aren't going to transfer and come off the bench. But in the same sense you should always be looking to put out the best team possible and winning championships should be the goal(within the rules). Tough call
Hawkeye Women’s BBall Season 2021-2022
- Thread starter huntermmm
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I think Scalia is really talented, has a toughness about her, and says she just wants to win now rather than go through a rebuild. Lisa has always said she doesn't like to mess with team chemistry which is why she rarely looks to the portal. Unless something changes, after Monika leaves Iowa won't have a player from Minnesota on their roster for the first time in forever.
Lindsay Whalen has 4 currently on her roster, 4 incoming recruits, and will need to hit the portal hard but luckily for her a lot of players from MN at other schools are now in the portal too.
Lindsay Whalen has 4 currently on her roster, 4 incoming recruits, and will need to hit the portal hard but luckily for her a lot of players from MN at other schools are now in the portal too.
If I were a Minnesota fan, I'd want her to be fired if they don't show significant improvement this year. The team has arguably gotten worse every season she's been there. If they go much further down, they will become Illinois and Wisconsin.Here is the Star Tribune article:
Gophers star guard Sara Scalia enters NCAA transfer portal
The Stillwater native was coach Lindsay Whalen's first recruit for the Gophers.www.startribune.com
I don't know what to think about Whalen. Besides Scalia, another starter and two off the bench are in the portal too. This on top of ABT Second Team Jasmine Powell leaving the team during the season. They are down to only four returning players, with a highly rated, all MN HS four player class coming in. She is revered in the state and knows how to recruit, but there is constant drama between her and the players. ABT first team Destiny Pitts left two years ago.
I doubt Scalia would be interested in Iowa. She would be looking to be the missing piece on a championship team. This story is more about the mess the Minnesota WBB team is in.
The last thing she could really hang her hat on was this recruiting class, but losing their best player and several other important pieces just before that class comes doesn't help put them in a place to succeed.
Isn’t the main need rebounding? The present starting five is led in rebounding by the point guard. She has many other things to expend her energy on; she needs help. Megan G. averaged more than 10 a game her last 3 years. I don’t expect any of the returning starters (other than CC) to suddenly become rebounders, but somebody needs to.
Hannah Stuelke will help some. Getting Sharon Goodman back will also help out. But how many minutes will they get is the more important question.
Does anyone else feel that Kate has the most untapped rebounding potential on our current roster? She's shown flashes (10 rebounds against ISU, 11 rebounds against Nebraska in the BTT, 8 rebounds in the first Indiana game), but at other times completely disappears on the glass.
She is playing out of position. Most of the time she's defending the perimeter which is why her rebounds are inconsistent. She should be playing the 4 but McKenna does not have it in her to guard the 3 so Kate is playing the 3 instead of the four.
i do want and believe we need a clear 3rd scorer.
games we lost when we scorered less or about 70 ... we didnt have that 3rd scorer to cover us.
dont dream. we could use a star and proven scorer to get to final four.
if we want to win we need to look at the landscape.
The risk isn't that you mess with team chemistry as much as how if would affect McCabe who is a top recruit at the 2. Scalia would be an upgrade but Bluder is not going to run Gabbie off or risk McCabe being unhappy in the future as McCabe likely stands to get more playing time behind Gabbie than she would behind Scalia.
Scalia is not what Iowa needs. She does nothing to help with defense or rebounding, and is not really a driver. The model for what Iowa needs is Laila Phelia.
she is an amazing player
but she got the opportunity to play and learn and fail and succeed as a freshman. without Phelia UM would not have the same season.
caitlin could use a weapon,
will we see McCabe get that opportunity
If Phelia ever figures out how to finish, she's going to be a star. That's still a relatively big "if" though.
Then she better transfer to Iowa, she would fit right in. Our girls had a hard time finishing against Creighton. haha
What makes that game hurt worse is that we're actually really good at finishing on 2s. Kate shoots 55% from 2. Caitlin shoots 54%. McKenna is at 61.7%. Gabbie is by far the worst of our regulars, and she's still at 45%
Phelia for comparison is at 40.3%. She's great at getting to the basket, but just struggles a lot when she gets there.
Yea, but if Gabbie were to continue those drives she starts she would probably be at point 0045%, so it is good that she does back the ball back out. lol
It seems that Sydney Parrish will be a good get if she is interested in Iowa then, since she fits the 3 position and everybody here thinks Stuelke will play the 4. Kampschroeder is more like a 2.
Kampschroeder's final 3 were Oregon State, Iowa, and Stanford. Don't know a thing about her game but if she had an offer from Stanford I'd think she's probably reasonably athletic.
I would love it if Stuelke could play both the 2 and 3. But I don't think she is quick enough to guard the 2 or the better 3's, maybe her height would offset the quickness. I sure loved watching Naz Hillmon chasing those guards around.
Scalia can in fact get to the basket. She played the emergency PG for Minnesota a few times this year. I watched multiple Minnesota games this year. Her rebounding and defense are adequate, but again because she's typically on the perimeter or guarding the perimeter so her skills do not get showcased. She simply prefers to lay on the perimeter and MN had multiple players that could get to the hoop so there wasn't need for her to change her role.
I don't expect Bluder to pursue her. She would be an upgrade at SG and can back up the PG but there's just not enough minutes to go around. The only way I see Bluder even looking at a transfer would be a grad transfer PG with just 1 year eligibility. But you'd have to find someone who doesn't care about minutes and just wants Iowa for grad school and a chance to keep playing.
Also, I think Iowa has what they need already in Taylor McCabe who is a 3 level scorer who can get to the rim and defend.
I also expect Scalia to look for a situation where she can compete for some kind of title. Would not be surprised to see her end up at Ohio State, Indiana or Maryland.
Are you now saying Iowa is pretty good at taking 2 pointers? You disliked the 2 pointer here on March 23rd, but today you post that Iowa is pretty good at it. So, which do you believe is the best shots for Iowa?
Did you read the post you quoted? Like at all? I said I don't like 2-point jumpers from more than a few feet away because they are one of the least efficient shots in basketball. You have to shoot them really well for them to be good shots. I also said that I like that Iowa doesn't shoot a ton of 2-point jumpers (from more than a few feet away) within the offense.
Today I said Iowa is really good at finishing around the basket as compared to Laila Phelia.
I missed the "from more than a few feet away". I also missed the "around the basket" you now added.
Braydon I take issue with using the NBA analytics as a yardstick for showing how inefficient 2 point jump shots compared to driving to the basket. The one glaring difference is that in the NBA or even in mens' college basketball, is the art of the dunk. Last time I checked dunking is not a part of the women's game. I certainly believe that 6'0 women players with repetitive practice can learn to pull up and hit 8-12 foot jump shots instead of driving to the lane and forcing shots against taller interior players. Between officiating many girls basketball games and watching a ton of womens' college games, I conclude that a woman player that can drive past their defender and shoot pull up jumpers are impossible to defend. Just my opinion.
Something about honoring your word/commitment.
But I get it that coaches don’t always do that either.
When I mentioned Phelia I talked about her finishing (because she's great at getting to the basket, but not at making shots in close). I then said in my next post that Iowa's players are generally better at finishing than Phelia. I've only ever heard the term finishing used in relation to shots around the basket. That's why I used "around the basket" in post 1,743.
In sum my positions are: 1) I think 2-point jumpers from more than a few feet away are inefficient shots unless taken by good 2-point shooters, 2) I'm happy that Iowa's offense doesn't feature a ton of 2-point jumpers, 3) Most of Iowa's starters shoot really well around the basket compared to other college players in general, and 4) Laila Phelia will be a star if she can learn to finish well around the basket.
I cited the NBA analytics because I'm not aware of equivalent studies done in women's basketball. If they exist, I would love to read them. If they say that 2-point jumpers are more valuable in women's basketball than in the NBA, I will gladly admit I'm wrong.
While I agree that dunks are nearly 100% shots and women really don't have the equivalent, I'm not sure it has quite the impact on shooting percentages you might think. For example: Monika Czinano has a higher career field goal percentage in college thank Shaq. In her last 3 seasons, Monika has shot between 66%-68%. Shaq in his three college seasons shot 61.5%, 62.8%, and 57.3%. Monika has obviously never dunked. Shaq did in college many times.
Kim Mulkey won COTY.....I mean for f*** sake, how?
This b**** needs to go away. Stop enabling her, NCAA and all the media services that award her for her bullsh**.
This b**** needs to go away. Stop enabling her, NCAA and all the media services that award her for her bullsh**.
I mean I absolutely hate using this cringe term, but Kim Mulkey is a toxic b**** that needs to go away. It's honestly that bad..........
wow exactly
great truth comments
scalia would could be a real deal 3rd scorer
it would make Hawks a top 4 team.
kate and gabbie awesome
mckenna crazy when shes on
scalia ,,, you kidding me
give her green light with caitlin and monica
we will never lose any shitty 74-68 games
or games we REGULARlY lose scoring under 75
Some of you are buying everything that looks good in the window! Remind me to never let you borrow my credit card. Me, I'm happy with the players that chose Iowa from the start and just won us a regular season and tournament championship.
Too, every time coach brings in a transfer, Bluder loses some trust of current players and future recruits.
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She is a b**** but she did take LSU from 9 wins to 26 and a runner up finish in the SEC in her 1st year. Her on court antics and wardrobe drives me nuts though. Should also mention she’s ugly as hell.
A clear case of winning curing all, and convincing people to turn a blind eye........
Hope this works. didn't know where else to post. Very good interview on Geno.
Grass is always greener on the other side of the portal.
I'm very proud of what the team accomplished this year. The game against Michigan was amazing. I'll cherish the memory of seeing them win a Big Ten title in a do or die game in front of a sold out crowd for the rest of my life. The Big Ten Tournament run was also great. As was the atmosphere at the NCAA Tournament.
I also think this team as currently constructed could make a Final Four. I'm just worried it might take some significant luck to make it happen.
Adding one of the portal options that have been mentioned could help us improve the current roster and make a Final Four more likely. I still think it is unlikely that Iowa adds a transfer. Of the options mentioned, Kampschroeder is probably the only realistic target based on her prior interest, the staff's familiarity with her, Clark's familiarity with her, and her potential.
If she works at shooting the 3 better, I think she can play the 3. and she will GO GET IT at both ends on the boards.
Finished watching both Final Four semis...depressingly impressive. None of the teams played great but the athleticism up and down each lineup is something out of our league. To stay in a game with one of these teams would require us to boost our agility, play without fear, and dramatically improve our techniques on boxing out and playing defense.
Michigan was a few possessions away from making the final four and we destroyed Michigan so keep your head up. It may not be as bad as it seems and we have significant upgrades in athleticism coming next year.
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