Sporting News and their list of Top 10 players to watch

[DefenseBB]

MSN

WARNING-I normally try to quell the storm of umbridge by my fellow UConn posters who love everything about UConn and detest or think conspiracy when other players are given accolades, however in this article, I find the author less than an expert in the game. So while I can "sort of" understand why she has Paige at #3, her logic is less than sound on her discussions of Clark, Reese and the fact she completely omitted Aaliyah Edwards and Azzi Fudd. But especially Edwards who is better than #7 Pili, #10 Jackson, #6 Holmes, #5 Kitley and #9 Cardoso as forwards and much better than #8 Van Lithe who is a guard.

Now add this to the evidence: "Clark took the world by storm during Iowa's national championship game run last season." Um, no, she didn't, those of us paying attention notice Caitlin back when she was a freshman. To wit, here are her three years of stats,
Freshman 26.6 pts per game, 7 assists, 5.9 rebounds, 40.6% 3-pt pct, Sweet 16 appearance
Sophomore 27.0 pts per game, 8 assists, 8 rebounds, 33.2% 3-pt pct, 2nd round (loss to Creighton)
Junior 27.8 pts per game, 7.1 assists, 7.1 rebounds, 38.9% 3-pt pct and Finals appearance.

so what exactly is new last year that wasn't exhibited before?

Now add in that "Bayou Barbie" reference....REALLY? No, just, no.

Again my real irritation is Aaliyah is totally being slighted by her omission. Azzi was arguably the best player in the country before her injury last year so now to omit her and put Van Lithe? Come on, man.....

 

[PhillyCoach]

MSN

WARNING-I normally try to quell the storm of umbridge by my fellow UConn posters who love everything about UConn and detest or think conspiracy when other players are given accolades, however in this article, I find the author less than an expert in the game. So while I can "sort of" understand why she has Paige at #3, her logic is less than sound on her discussions of Clark, Reese and the fact she completely omitted Aaliyah Edwards and Azzi Fudd. But especially Edwards who is better than #7 Pili, #10 Jackson, #6 Holmes, #5 Kitley and #9 Cardoso as forwards and much better than #8 Van Lithe who is a guard.

Now add this to the evidence: "Clark took the world by storm during Iowa's national championship game run last season." Um, no, she didn't, those of us paying attention notice Caitlin back when she was a freshman. To wit, here are her three years of stats,
Freshman 26.6 pts per game, 7 assists, 5.9 rebounds, 40.6% 3-pt pct, Sweet 16 appearance
Sophomore 27.0 pts per game, 8 assists, 8 rebounds, 33.2% 3-pt pct, 2nd round (loss to Creighton)
Junior 27.8 pts per game, 7.1 assists, 7.1 rebounds, 38.9% 3-pt pct and Finals appearance.

so what exactly is new last year that wasn't exhibited before?

Now add in that "Bayou Barbie" reference....REALLY? No, just, no.

Again my real irritation is Aaliyah is totally being slighted by her omission. Azzi was arguably the best player in the country before her injury last year so now to omit her and put Van Lithe? Come on, man.....

Good post as usual. Thanks for informing us about WBB articles. Sad to say-- too many pundits, so called journalists and observers from afar, spout their "opinions" without real inside information.

 

[From France]

Shy as she seems to be, perhaps is it better for Azzi to be under the radar

We know that she can be AA

 

[huskeynut]

Many of these types of articles are a waste of time. Lack of research, lack of knowledge of the game contribute to poor writing.

I do agree that Aaliyah should be on that list.

 

[sun]

According to Sporting News the author is an "editiorial intern."

Emily Dozier is an editorial intern at The Sporting News. Based in Atlanta, she graduated in August from the University of Georgia with a bachelor’s degree in journalism. Most recently, Emily covered the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup for the Associated Press.

Emily Dozier

www.sportingnews.com

Here's an extensive list of her articles.

https://muckrack.com/emily-dozier/articles

 

[oldhusky]

You know for a moment I thought a long treasured sports publication had come back to life! Sporting News was a significant part of my life for many years.

 

[maple]

Now add this to the evidence: "Clark took the world by storm during Iowa's national championship game run last season."

You’d think it was CC & Iowa who won the Natty and not Angel Reese & LSU the way the media acts.

Stuff like this is just great bulletin board material.

 

[JellyBean]

The writer would have been better off just saying "These are my Top-10 Players to Watch". Hailey Van Lith is a decent player but there are quite a few other players that could replace her on this list.

 

[The deacon]

MSN

WARNING-I normally try to quell the storm of umbridge by my fellow UConn posters who love everything about UConn and detest or think conspiracy when other players are given accolades, however in this article, I find the author less than an expert in the game. So while I can "sort of" understand why she has Paige at #3, her logic is less than sound on her discussions of Clark, Reese and the fact she completely omitted Aaliyah Edwards and Azzi Fudd. But especially Edwards who is better than #7 Pili, #10 Jackson, #6 Holmes, #5 Kitley and #9 Cardoso as forwards and much better than #8 Van Lithe who is a guard.

Again my real irritation is Aaliyah is totally being slighted by her omission. Azzi was arguably the best player in the country before her injury last year so now to omit her and put Van Lithe? Come on, man.....

Interesting take, DefenseBB.

I'd wholly agree Aaliyah deserves Top 10 inclusion at this point, although I'd not necessarily say she's better, maybe rather right with than Pili, Kitley and Holmes, all of whom are seriously excellent players. I would have her ahead of Jackson and that Van Lith is on that list is incredulous. Trusting good health, I'm confident Aaliyah will be first- or second-team All-American this season.

I would agree with you that Azzi started last season really strong as a scorer, but her all-around credentials paled compared to Caitlin, even when Azzi was at her best. She just didn't rebound or assist much at all.

I'd also remind you about Maddie Siegrist, who was scoring quite a bit more and also rebounding at a nearly 10 per game clip.

As I wrote today on another thread, Azzi might wind up the season on a Top 10 list, but she's not there yet... let's hope, okay?

 

[nwhoopfan]

You’d think it was CC & Iowa who won the Natty and not Angel Reese & LSU the way the media acts.

Stuff like this is just great bulletin board material.

Clark was by far the best player in the Tourney. It wasn't even close. Reese had several big games, but she also had several clunkers where her teammates carried her.

 

[MilfordHusky]

I'd have Clark, Paige, and Brink at the top of the list. I'm not so sure about the others. After watching last night's game, I think the number of players better than Liya is very small. And Azzi does everything well. She'll find her shot, especially her deadly mid-range game.

 

[JellyBean]

You know for a moment I thought a long treasured sports publication had come back to life! Sporting News was a significant part of my life for many years.

YES! Same here. I could not wait to get a copy of SN especially during baseball season. OMG! The level of stats from SN on baseball and basketball were incredible.

 

[maple]

Clark was by far the best player in the Tourney. It wasn't even close. Reese had several big games, but she also had several clunkers where her teammates carried her.

That wasn’t really my point of debate. I’m talking about the way the media lauds her as if she actually won. She didn’t.

 

[nwhoopfan]

That wasn’t really my point of debate. I’m talking about the way the media lauds her as if she actually won. She didn’t.

It seems to me that Reese has been getting plenty of media attention.

 

[maple]

It seems to me that Reese has been getting plenty of media attention.

Sure, but half of it is negative.

Look, I am fan of neither players, so this is much less of a defense of Reese/LSU and more of a complaint about the biases in sports media.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Sure, but half of it is negative.

Look, I am fan of neither players, so this is much less of a defense of Reese/LSU and more of a complaint about the biases in sports media.

I got ya. If there wasn't bias in sports media, what would people complain about?

 

[DefenseBB]

Sure, but half of it is negative.

Look, I am fan of neither players, so this is much less of a defense of Reese/LSU and more of a complaint about the biases in sports media.

America loves a gracious winner and loathes boorish behavior and for as much as I think Angel's stats warranted her winning POY, her behavior has been less than exemplary. I will be curious to see how she handles the pressure of being the "hunted" vs. the "hunter" this year and what she says after losses. Losing and complaining when being coached by Brenda is one thing, but losing and trying to complain under Kim is completely another. She is still a very talented player who I think excels when she has "a chip on her shoulder".

I would also add that Clark constantly complains about fouls on every play either called against her or that she feels should have been called for her on her shooting. That incessant complaining was apparent last night against Virgnia Tech and frankly is why she EARNED that technical against LSU that the NCAA changed the rule to a Team violation in the off-season so sadly, I think you have a point about the bias.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

Now add this to the evidence: "Clark took the world by storm during Iowa's national championship game run last season." Um, no, she didn't, those of us paying attention notice Caitlin back when she was a freshman.

@DefenseBB , I have to respectfully disagree.
The national championship game was the most-viewed NCAA women’s basketball game on record, with 9.9 million viewers on ABC and ESPN2.

Those who have been paying attention for Clark's entire career are part of the WBB world, but this was the first time the broader sports landscape paid attention. Bill Simmons had a podcast with Ryen Russillo doing a complete breakdown of the offensive and defensive schemes (Simmons' podcast is the #4 in terms of listeners for sports podcasts on Apple and #6 on Spotify; Russillo's podcast is #6 on Apple and #13 on Spotify in terms of sports podcasts). And there was constant media coverage for several days afterward.

While Clark did not take the WBB by storm in the national championship game, as the WBB world was very, very familiar with her, she certainly took the broader sports landscape and non-WBB sports world by storm.

 

[topogigio]

You gotta' give Clark her props, love or hate her! She is/has been the head and shoulders over everyone else in college basketball right now, and has been for the pas two years. Now, that doesn't mean some of our UConn women can be on par or better, but as of today, and over the past 2 years, Clark is the beast! (It does hurt writing that, but it is the truth)

 

[maple]

You gotta' give Clark her props, love or hate her! She is/has been the head and shoulders over everyone else in college basketball right now, and has been for the pas two years. Now, that doesn't mean some of our UConn women can be on par or better, but as of today, and over the past 2 years, Clark is the beast! (It does hurt writing that, but it is the truth)

It’s funny because if CC played at UConn, SCar, LSU or elsewhere where she was not the only really great player on her team, I wonder if she’d be such a media darling and if her stats would be so shiny. Because in those scenarios she wouldn’t be scoring 30 or more points every game because she wouldn’t have to.

 

[Alydar]

Clark beat SCar. largely on her own. Reese lost to Scar. and looked mediocre doing it.

That's what the media saw.

 

[bballnut90]

It’s funny because if CC played at UConn, SCar, LSU or elsewhere where she was not the only really great player on her team, I wonder if she’d be such a media darling and if her stats would be so shiny. Because in those scenarios she wouldn’t be scoring 30 or more points every game because she wouldn’t have to.

It’s not just stats. She took a team that didn’t have a ton of talent to the national championship game and upset the undefeated defending national champions in the Final Four and dominated the tournament last year, plus drew in more fans than ever before. She’s the reigning consensus national player of the year. Of course she’s going to be #1 on these lists. Based on the tone of these posts you’d think the whole article was about Caitlin Clark rather than just a player summary that acknowledges her impact and ability. The article highlights ten players and Clark happens to be one of them. People are blowing this up to be a much bigger deal than it actually is.

 

[bballnut90]

MSN

WARNING-I normally try to quell the storm of umbridge by my fellow UConn posters who love everything about UConn and detest or think conspiracy when other players are given accolades, however in this article, I find the author less than an expert in the game. So while I can "sort of" understand why she has Paige at #3, her logic is less than sound on her discussions of Clark, Reese and the fact she completely omitted Aaliyah Edwards and Azzi Fudd. But especially Edwards who is better than #7 Pili, #10 Jackson, #6 Holmes, #5 Kitley and #9 Cardoso as forwards and much better than #8 Van Lithe who is a guard.

Now add this to the evidence: "Clark took the world by storm during Iowa's national championship game run last season." Um, no, she didn't, those of us paying attention notice Caitlin back when she was a freshman. To wit, here are her three years of stats,
Freshman 26.6 pts per game, 7 assists, 5.9 rebounds, 40.6% 3-pt pct, Sweet 16 appearance
Sophomore 27.0 pts per game, 8 assists, 8 rebounds, 33.2% 3-pt pct, 2nd round (loss to Creighton)
Junior 27.8 pts per game, 7.1 assists, 7.1 rebounds, 38.9% 3-pt pct and Finals appearance.

so what exactly is new last year that wasn't exhibited before?

Now add in that "Bayou Barbie" reference....REALLY? No, just, no.

Again my real irritation is Aaliyah is totally being slighted by her omission. Azzi was arguably the best player in the country before her injury last year so now to omit her and put Van Lithe? Come on, man.....

What makes you “sort of” understand where Paige is ranked? Where would you put her if she isn’t 3rd?

I agree Edwards deserves to be on this list but Pili, Kitley and Holmes are more proven commodities than Edwards is. All were 1st or 2nd team All Americans last year, Edwards was 3rd team. No quarrel from me about her deserving to be on the list over Van Lith, though I do think Cardoso deserves a spot despite having less than great stats a year ago. She was great in all of the big games. Regardless, I think Edwards deserves be in the 8-10 range to start the year.

Fudd had a great 6 game stretch to start the 2022-23 season, but it doesn’t justify her being ranked over a lot of players who were consistent All American caliber players a year ago. She could blossom into an All American with a strong year, but I’d put others like Jacy Sheldon, Cotie McMahon or Georgia Amoore over her right now.

And why is it bad to reference Reese as “The Bayou Barbie?” It’s how a lot of fans know her and she’s become the biggest social media star in women’s basketball.

 

[Zarathustra]

That wasn’t really my point of debate. I’m talking about the way the media lauds her as if she actually won. She didn’t.

But, IMO, it was not "as if" she was not the best player in the tournament... the numbers (stats) speak for
themselves...(I know, double negative is a Positive... and, I'm positive!!). Also consider that Caitlin just about took down the # 1 seed by herself (with much help from her law
firm ..."C & C") and the great game plan from Lisa Bruder

I got ya. If there wasn't bias in sports media, what would people complain about?

Turn, turn, turn.... or as they say now " SPIN, SPIN, ... SPIN"!!
.

 

[fomalhaut]

Shy as she seems to be, perhaps is it better for Azzi to be under the radar

We know that she can be AA

I think Fudd may be in the running for National Player of the Year.