Hope? Expectations?
Since we haven't seen some of the key people, and most of the others will be sophomores, it is really presumptuous to advance any ideas of what the team will be like. I tend to look for this.
At first, I don't know that Lampkin will know enough to be able to handle starting. I tend to look for EJ to start at first. She is an athlete. Can she learn enough and develop enough self-confidence to be productive this year? We keep hoping that some people will show signs of developing. She did seem to gather some confidence on the defensive end late last year, and her rebounding wasn't bad. She may be able to get us six or seven boards a game. In a rotation with Lampkin, both may flower. EJ seemed to be better as an athlete rather than a back to the basket post.
I think Sherri sees Lampkin as the type of post she would rather have going forward (the recruitment of Kennedy Brown might seem to contradict that). Claire Bloom is also kind of a mobile power forward/post type. Lampkin is kind of the power forward that I've always preferred: tall enough to contend defensively, strong enough to push her way to the rim, and fast enough to break. She is exciting. Hopefully, she is college ready and is as good as a few of us think she may be.. Sherri seems to be very high on her. She can move for someone her size. I have no clue as to her shooting ability. Seems she was good in a rather weak league (may be wrong): good rebounder and scorer.
I have no clue about Williston. She isn't as slow as I had envisioned, and there is life in her. Left-handers can block shots. Broken Bow wasn't big school training.
Madi Williams: can she shoot? I have seen nothing that indicates that she has a shot. She can score because she gets to the rim. Even in the McDonald's and Jordan's games, she got to the rim. She is also effective on the boards. The thing that impressed me the most was in the Jordan''s game when she was guarding Chrystyne Williams. Isn't she headed to UConn? She demonstrated that she can score, almost at will. But, Madi was guarding her at the three point line, and Chrystyne simply couldn't drive around her. Madi was quicker than she was. Every move that she made trying to get away from Madi was countered.
In highschool, Madi had always been a really good rebounder. I think she may be able to get 8-9 boards a game in college just because of her hustle and strength. She may be comfortable guarding a 6-3 forward. She did in the Jordan game. She gives us someone inside that they have to contend with on both ends. The word was that she was a relentless driver, just went through and over people. I saw nothing to dispute that. Here's hoping.
Sherri has been wanting Tatum in charge of the offense for a couple of years now, at least. Every report that I have seen, highschool or AAU, indicates that she is the floor leader. We really haven't had that since DRob. She also hits threes and short jump shots. I saw her getting rebounds. I didn't really see her play defense. But, she does love the break. If she is half of what Sherri thinks she is, we have a point.
We have the Big Twelve freshman of the year, and two big twelve first team freshmen team, and we haven't mentioned them yet. If Shaina and Ana have some pressure taken off of them by Madi, Tatum, and Taylor, do you think they might just explode? Ana is a much better shooter than she demonstrated last year, or she was when I saw her in highschool. She could hit everything then.
Ana just as a flow that I didn't see much of last year. When she is in that flow, every shot is in motion, and you know why she shot it. She just relaxed the ball into the basket. Last year, she did everything right sometimes, and the ball bounced off the rim. She was also a very good rebounder and defender in highschool. Wonder if she had freshmen nerves. But, she did have some games in which she showed what she can do. She hit 27 twice and finished the year by scoring 17 and 13 in the Big Twelve and NCAA games.
I envision Ana as breaking out a little because she doesn't have the pressure of being the go-to scorer if we also have Madi, Shaina, and Tatum.
Shaina had seven games last year in which she scored twenty points or more. She shot 49.24% from the field, very good for a guard. Not all were layups. She did have a short jumper. Never hit a three (shot three). I think Sherri said she was working on a three.
It is almost impossible for some teams to stop her from driving. She is quick. If she has Madi creating some open lanes, she may be impossible to stop. With her quickness, I'm a little disappointed that she never had three steals in a game. She should be a terror. But, her quickness is in her feet. She can step to block someone from driving around her.
I'm tired, and I've only covered the starters.
