As it should be.
by SorinBasement (2018-06-13 18:39:53)

In reply to: Looks like Jordan and Abby will be going to Europe (link)  posted by Orangutan


At this point in their lives it makes more sense to focus on their college careers.


Disagree
by SB Jimbo  (2018-06-14 08:45:20)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

The U18 thing is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, whereas they'll have 4 years to focus on their college careers. Yes they'd miss some early practice & game experiences, but the returning team is pretty much set and not in need of significant minutes from Jordan or Abby.

I can't help but wonder if the U18 coach was someone other than Walz if we'd see the same decision.


the competition within the ND team will be much greater
by dbcsmith  (2018-06-14 15:12:30)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

than within the U18 team and against the teams they will play. So they should grow faster taking the ND trip and have even more fun


Euro trip is also once-in-a-lifetime
by Orangutan  (2018-06-14 09:54:02)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

And Abby has already played for USAB, so it isn't really even a "once-in-lifetime" thing for her.

I think Jordan could get significant minutes if she proves to be a quick study (like LA was). Muffet will want to get Marina off the ball sometimes like she did last year. Like last year, having Jackie run point is one option, but Jordan may be a more natural solution. Also, Jordan will come in handy as a ball-handling option if Marina is struggling with pressure defense.


Playing for your country always trumps all else
by SB Jimbo  (2018-06-14 10:09:13)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

At least in my opinion it does.

You make good points, but I'll always wave the flag first.


I agree for senior level events.
by NDBass  (2018-06-14 10:36:45)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

I don't for youth/young adult events. My only hope here is that the players opinion was truly taken into account and they weren't forced to make a decision they didn't want to make.


Agree With Point on the Players; Otherwise a Bit Conflicted
by dillon77  (2018-06-14 11:15:38)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

I'm hoping that Abby and Jordan were involved in this (these?) discussions and that they're all in on the decision.

But I'm a bit conflicted on this:

- USA Basketball had to have known about the ND European Trip ahead of schedule.
- It's a good idea to have top caliber-players compete for a team for a variety of reasons, ranging from seeing how individual and team skills are progressing for the player, to developing a talent pool for the US organization.
- UConn players (KLS and Collier) have gone to trials and not made them due to similar Husky trips (thanks UConn Cat for example).
- So, what was the deal here for this particular team?
- Was this accept and decline prearranged (if so, why not announce the change earlier?) or was a decision reached later?

As for the pro's and cons, I see both sides:
- U18 is kind of the final step for a HS player before stepping into the college jersey, literally and figuratively. I think it's a big deal to represent your country.
- Plus, they'll get good experience practicing against each other, playing with each other and going against international competition.
- And, it's not as if the ND season starts in late August. Yes, I know the ND team comes home from the trip and then goes into a bit of a hiatus until official practice, but there will be time to acclimate.

On the other hand....

- They did commit to ND and that's the primary focus, starting with the summer session. (But, if so, why go along with it up to now?)
- Good for overall team building and the various points many of you have made about positioning certain players at certain spots, primarily Jordan Nixon.

Lastly...
- MM, for whatever reasons, has not gotten involved in national team matters in a major way. That's her call. I wonder if this decision would've been different had she been involved at some point?

As I said, if Abby and Jordan are cool with the way it went down, so be it. But I don't think they'd really be missing that much if they went and something about the process seems a bit off....


Surprised, conflicted, and disappointed
by BabaGhanouj  (2018-06-15 16:20:06)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

The girls traveled to Colorado, competed for a spot on the team, made the team (depriving others of the thrill of making the top 12), and then left the team. As Dillon says, no schedule changes were made. All this was known ahead of time. I hope I don’t get another “ignore”, but UConn seems to have handled this situation much better, when everyone knew they were not going to play on the team, but participated in the trials.

Also, it is hard to believe the girls quit the team without a lot of pressure from the ND coaching staff. I just don’t know what to think at this point. Did Muffet miss all this with the approaching wedding?

I think I lean more toward feeling sorry for the girls who (had to) quit.


We can agree to disagree.
by SorinBasement  (2018-06-14 09:31:25)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

These girls have been doing the U-whatever-their-age-is thing since they were in elementary school. It's time to move on.

Women's College Basketball is arguably the pinnacle of a women's basketball career in many ways. I look at it like the World Baseball Classic. I suppose some view playing in that as a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I view it as taking players away from what they ought to be doing, and risking injury to boot.


This was Jordan Nixon's first Team USA opportunity and Abby
by MPG  (2018-06-14 10:55:03)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

Prohaska's second, so it is an uncommon opportunity. The tournament is a championship of the Americas which is less competitive than a world championship, such as the title that Sam Brunelle and company will pursue in July. I recall Diggins and McBride each played for USA teams at least once during their ND years. I believe that Loyd spent some summer time away from ND with USA basketball and Achonwa did the same with Team Canada. ND women's soccer player have missed regular season college games for USA soccer commitments.

I have linked an article from June 7th that makes it apparent that Jordan was ready to play on the U18 team. Muffet must have decided that she couldn't miss so much ND practice time this summer.

I agree with you that Jordan Nixon has a chance to earn serious playing time at ND in the upcoming season.


Bigger deal w/soccer as ND players have given up a season
by Domerduck  (2018-06-14 11:44:07)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

to play with their national team, even U23/U19 when they are competing in a world championship. US Team for BBall are pretty much all WNBA pros which is not the case in other countries which is why Ace and Kia Nurse prioritized their Canada team when they were younger. The younger US HS teams are just allstar teams and help them get to college. They are not feeder teams like soccer which uses the younger aged teams as testing ground for the National team.


Was This Actually USA Basketball Decision, I Was Under The
by savr27  (2018-06-14 09:23:14)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post

Impression that MM wanted them with the team on the European trip as they will better acclimate to the team play and gain valuable experience.


Incredible discussion. Critical for the future. **popcorn *
by Jon  (2018-06-14 14:37:23)     cannot delete  |  Edit  |  Return to Board  |  Ignore Poster   |   Highlight Poster  |   Reply to Post