I think Llanusa will be the best guard we have had since Whitney, perhaps the best since Stacy. Maddie should have been, but her injuries limited her. I would love to see a breakout year for Maddie. But, let's look at the history that we have had.
We really haven't had the scoring guard that could take over a game. Whitney might have been it had she not been injured. Ellenberg had some streaks. DRob came in as a distributor, not a shooter. Maddie did come in as someone who could score, but was injured. But, we have lacked the player who shot 40% from three, 42 or 43% from two. In her best year, Peyton, who was supposed to be this great scoring guard, shot 41.04% (39.34% career), 34.36% from three(33.06% career), and 78.57% from the free throw line (75.89% career). Those are good numbers, but not those of a prolific scorer. She scored 12.64 ppg as a sophomore, 11.99 career.
Some criticized Maddie's shooting. But, last year, after two ACLs, she shot 42.43% from the field, 39.67% from three, and 80.0% from the free throw line, all better than that of Peyton in her best year. She also averaged 12.60 ppg, almost what Peyton averaged in her best year. She seemed to be improving as the year went along. With a healthy year, she could be more of the guard that we have needed.
I think Ana comes in with that scorer's capability and mentality. She can shoot from anywhere, but she can also create her shot. I think she and Maddie will be effective together in that role, both shooting better than the guards of last year.
I get the general impression that Shaina can shoot the three. But, what impressed me in the games that I watched was her ability to complete the play. She doesn't seem to throw up layups, only to miss half of them. She seems to get to the rim and score. She has a speed advantage, and it seems like she plays a lot taller than what she is. Speed can do that---McCarty, e.g. I think her speed will find a place very early in the lineup.
I just don't think Williams ever learned to shoot at the level of a D-1 guard, somewhat like Tiny. She also fails to realize when she is overmatched and throws up shots when guarded.
With Maddie and Ana, it is a bit more difficult to guard because they are about 6-2 and 6-1. They can shoot over some guards, something that Carter and Little could not do. Both are tall enough to score on a layup in a fairly crowded lane. Both are tall enough to hit a pull up ten to fifteen footer. They also handle the ball a lot better than Peyton and Gioya.
I just don't think anyone can keep Shaina on the bench, unless Rich is better than what we saw.
