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Post being replied to

Point on "Bigs" Well Taken by dillon77

We don't seem to have a lot of them and this year don't seem to be going after any beyond Nat Marshall.

Muffet said in an interview awhile back that it's hard to find traditional posts these days because everyone wants to face the basket, step out of the paint and shoot the jumper, even the three pointer. (See Elena Della Donne, Emma Meesseman and Stewie are primne pro examples and with the Irish Erin Boley, Danielle Cosgrove).

I think MM can still get forwards/wings who can venture out on offense and play tough underneath, with players like Kat Westbeld, Sam Brunelle and possibly Maddy Westbeld. But I agree, finding the post element is hard and will have to be addressed in next year's recruiting because who knows if Mik Vaughn takes that extra year or not.

Speaking of Maddy, btw, she initially defined herself as a wing, but she seems to be growing in the "forward" aspects of the position:

Mark Lewis, of Blue Star Media, wrote about this following her appearance in Washington, D.C. this summer:

"Madeline Westbeld – 2020 – 6-2 – Forward – Sports City U – Reaching a new level…Depth to her game is exceptional…Combination of size, strength, refined skills and awareness…Challenges defenders inside and out…Touch and range require closing out on the catch…Physically holding her own with posts carrying much more bulk…Contains her emotions on both good and bad plays…Stays focused when challenged…Confidence only magnifies the advance in her game."

So, I think she could handle the forward element (based on Lewis' report, and I trust his judgement), but we do need to find the bigs who can anchor the "waaay down" aspects of the paint. We already knew this, but Turners and Shepards are not a dime a dozen. I'd say that might be an area to look beyond U.S. borders -- not all Euros are three-point houds. Think of Emese Hof at Miami.