Who's That Knocking At The Door? -- THURSDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

JUNE BRINGS VISITORS

The month of June always seems to bring visitors to the UofL women's basketball program. We covered Shalia Beeler coming into town a couple of days ago in an article. We also hear that Dominique McBryde has left Purdue and spent some time on the UofL campus as well. 2018 guard prospect Morgan Jones was also in town checking out the situation. That's a lot of action for the new offices on Floyd. St. I wonder if they've put up a turnstile yet to count traffic flow. 

McBryde was the leading rebounder last year on a Boilermaker team that also has 6'6" Nora Kiesler. Believe it or not, I still get e-mails and comments from fans and such that Walz should have offered Nora a scholarship. (Maybe he should have offered to Kevin Durant and LeBron James as well...just so he had all his bases covered). I like McBryde's work ethic on the defensive side of things and on the boards but she's never really turned into the scorer many saw in her future. She'd have to sit a year, of course, and then would have two years to be a Cardinal if she chose to. 

McBryde can glide

Morgan Jones...(maybe one of the Jonesians...along with Briana and Jazmine)? has considerable game. She's a 6'2" guard that'll be a senior in the fall at Our Lady of Mercy High School in Jonesboro, GA. She's pretty good at dominating smaller guards, loves the transition game and is currently ranked 27th. in the 2018 class and #7 at her position...according to ESPNW. Her shot has gotten a lot better than it was in her sophomore season and she's a hot commodity these days...with a ton of D1 schools on her list....including the Cards, UCLA, NC State, Ohio St., Florida State and Auburn...just to name a few. 

Lots of things happening down there on Floyd Street. Yes, indeed. We expect there's much more to come.


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TRANSFERS...ARE WE TALKING ABOUT TRANSFERS? 

I happened to be talking with a women's basketball fan the other day and transfers came up. Weird, right? She mentioned that she'd like to see some kind of rule in place for head coaches transferring. Maybe make them sit a year before taking over the program. It is an interesting idea...to an extent...but a lot of coaches bring in new assistants and would they have to sit as well? In short, who runs the program if Bob...currently at City U. decides to accept the job at State U. after Kelly decides to retire. Or gets forced out? 

After all, players put a lot of investment time in a coach. You go through the recruiting dance and finally pick a partner. You learn the coaching style as a freshmen, continue to grow in the system as a sophomore, start seeing some more results as a junior and then...BOOM!...your coach leaves as you're becoming a senior and it's back to square one. Of course, that's not always the way it goes. Some players can barely suppress their glee when the skipper takes the job three states over. Sometimes, coaches and players both leave around the same time. 

For some players, I suppose it's the issue of "buying in". Accountability. You give your 'all' to this head coach for 2-3 (or less) years and then suddenly...they're a time zone away at another school. The old "believe in what I tell you if you want to be successful and ...by the way...I'm leaving and it's been nice to know you" scenario. Of course, if all cars and programs were the same...it'd be a very boring driving and athletic world.

Yes, players leaving programs create gaps and holes in line-ups and rotations. (Read what Sheri Coale thinks about that here). And fans get upset about transfers out...yet they get it excited about transfers in. Cards fans loved getting Briahanna Jackson but couldn't understand why Taja Cole left. 

It's all a circle. And I've probably spent way too much time on transfers over the last couple of days. I think fans do too...and also on following recruiting. Where did all the hub-hub that surrounded a 6'5" girl from Texas coming to Louisville go when she turned around and went back to the Lone Star State? Was it wasted chatter? A wasted recruiting effort? Lesson learned or mistake that could have been avoided by one of the two parties? Few remember that Elena Della Donne was actually very briefly at UConn before going home to Delaware. How would those Geno teams looked with her in the Huskies lineup? 

Maybe most importantly...let's not forget coaches are in a profession and student-athletes are just that. Students participating in athletics. Not raising a family, paying a mortgage or financing a car yet. Capitalism isn't dead in the coaching profession yet. Enough money can get anyone to change shirts and school colors...A few thousand more a week or month can make a difference in how the books balance. 

In the kaleidoscope of players, coaches, scenarios and stability...one thing remains constant:  

Be careful for what you wish for...you just might get it. 




paulie
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