Beijing 2008

[VolleyTX]

My impressions of some players:

Willoughby - I think she does have huge up potential... in terms of becoming a better volleyball player. I think she is an INCREDIBLE athelete... but still needs to learn more nuances of the game. I have only seen her play in three matches. I was impressed more with her athleticism than her overall volleyball abilities. All three matches were against top ranked teams. Sure she had 20+ kills.... but what good is that if your percentage is below 20%. (which is what it was in the matches I saw her in) I would love to see her dedicate herself to the national team. With a few years under toshi and a lot of international experience, she could really develop into an international superstar.

Oganna - Hitting and blocking... I already think she is at the international caliber. She also seems to always bring her best game to the big matches. Every big match I've seen her in, she has PERFORMED! I'll never forget her hitting over USC's block all match long in the NCAA final four. We got to see it again this olympics. She just needs more time to develop her passing and defense. Hopefully, John Dunning will let her play "all the way around" this season at Stanford.


Hochever - I would love to see her dedicate herself to setting. Four years from now, she could be the tall, blocking, ace-serving setter the US needs.

Bown - She needs some self-confidence. She is much better than she gives herself credit for. I think her poor performances are more due to a mental thing than her skills as a volleyball player.

Cassie - I would love to see her on the national team. Like willoughby, she is a very powerful athlete. Her senior year, I think she finally started turning into a volleyball player. I think she still has a lot of up potential.

Tom - She is still by far the best all-around volleyball player the US has right now. I hope she sticks around.

[sonofbarcelonabob]

USAFAN said:

I really enjoy your insight and I don't mean to disagree with you on every post, but I am curious to understand your logic. We'll start with Weaver. First off she brings a much better offensive game than Bown brings, and at this point I would say offensive production is more important. The offensive load that the Cubans Barros and Carillo have is pretty extensive, as well as the middle hitting of China and Brazil. Weaver has tremendous lateral speed and I think that she could become a great blocker. I also don't see how you can say that they don't have an upside. She is in better shape than I have ever seen with a USA volleyball athlete and has the physical ability that can't be taught. With Willoughby, I am almost on the verge of being astounded. Kim Willoughby has progressed tremendously every year that she was at UH, I think more noticeably than Ogonna Nnamani's change from year to year. Kim Willoughby, with a touch of 10'6'', has the physical hitting capability of Cubans. Besides that she has an international caliber jump serve and plays pretty good defense and passing. I once again don't understand how you can say she doesn't have much of an upside when she hasn't even stepped foot into Toshi's world of training. Kristee Porter is almost a mirror image of Willoughby in my mind. Has all the physical skills and a better all around game than Ogonna has at this point. I am curious to think why you feel they have no upside.
I think the USA needs to get the athletes that have the physical capability of being dominating. Logan Tom, while a great thinker and shot maker, isn't dominating physically. The only player whom the USA had who can be classified as physically dominating was Danielle Scott.

USAFAN,

I also enjoy reading your posts. You are one of the small group of regular contributors to this forum who can look at things objectively, without bias, and without believing the hype about alot of players/teams.

I had typed up a long response to your post, but it was so boring I put myself to sleep last night. LOL.

Anyway - short answer. I believe that Willoughby, Weaver, and Porter fall into the same category as people like Dee Sance, Allison Weston, and Natalie Williams (to name a few - I can probably pull up USAV archived info over the last 10 years and come up with 25+ more names) - volleyball players with tremendous athletic talent, and were collegiate superstars, who were below average to busts with the National Team. The sad thing is that I do agree in principle with alot of what is said here, in that they may very well be the best of the pool of available talent from which to form a squad for Beijing 2008. That points to major shortcomings in the system here in the USA.

[huskers]

Metcalf not consistent? Check out Montreux this summer when as I have read, "Toshi's love child" was injured. Led the team in hitting and points, #3 I believe overall? She always shows up to play unlike Haneef that hit .200 for Grand Prix and .193 for the Olympics! Toshi knows he's responsible for the result in Athens. He wanted Tayyiba to be something she's just not. The only way he will get the job is if no one else wants it.

[Charlie]

huskers said:

Toshi knows he's responsible for the result in Athens. He wanted Tayyiba to be something she's just not. The only way he will get the job is if no one else wants it.

There are other people who want the job, and at least one, someone I know and respect a lot, would be dynamite. But I'm guessing that if Toshi wants to come back, they'll keep him.

From what I read on this board, USAV should just hire a couple of you pundits because you've got it all figure out, all the time.

[VBCOACH]

Here's a name for you: Emily Adams. But at rightside, not middle. She played rightside two years ago at the USAV Nationals in Minneapolis (for the USA National Training Team.) I was surprised at how well she did at a position she hadn't played before. Hitting and blocking...very good. AND, actually very good in the back row!

She's a senior this year, so that would give her four years to train for playing rightside.

[sonofbarcelonabob]

VBCOACH said:

Here's a name for you: Emily Adams. But at rightside, not middle. She played rightside two years ago at the USAV Nationals in Minneapolis (for the USA National Training Team.) I was surprised at how well she did at a position she hadn't played before. Hitting and blocking...very good. AND, actually very good in the back row!

She's a senior this year, so that would give her four years to train for playing rightside.

So, we would trade a tall, lanky OPP player with a noodle arm and slow feet for another tall, lanky OPP player with a noodle arm and slow feet? Makes no sense to me.

But, I guess Adams would be an upgrade as a blocker, I'm assuming. I've never really seen her play, but I know she's a MB for USC so I think that would be a correct assumption on the blocking part.

[IdahoBoy]

SonofBarcelonaBob said:

But, I guess Adams would be an upgrade as a blocker, I'm assuming. I've never really seen her play, but I know he's a MB for USC so I think that would be a correct assumption on the blocking part.

So... USC MB's are great blockers? I don't understand that connection.

[USAFAN]

That's the one thing that Sarah Noriega really stood out in. She could shut hitters down. I think the USA needs to find a good blocking opposite, problem is I can't really think of one. Cassie Busse was a good jump serving and attacking opposite, but for being 6'2'' she didn't shut down hitters like Noriega.

[sonofbarcelonabob]

USAFAN said:

That's the one thing that Sarah Noriega really stood out in. She could shut hitters down. I think the USA needs to find a good blocking opposite, problem is I can't really think of one. Cassie Busse was a good jump serving and attacking opposite, but for being 6'2'' she didn't shut down hitters like Noriega.

Paula Weishoff. Somebody ask her how much time she needs to get back into playing shape. Shouldn't be too long.

[sonofbarcelonabob]

IdahoBoy® said:

So... USC MB's are great blockers? I don't understand that connection.

It's okay. We here all know there's alot you don't understand.

[IdahoBoy]

SonofBarcelonaBob said:

It's okay. We here all know there's alot you don't understand.

Maybe you can share some secrets to aging ungracefully for me to understand how not to become bitter?

[sonofbarcelonabob]

IdahoBoy® said:

Maybe you can share some secrets to aging ungracefully for me to understand how not to become bitter?

I thought you were just planning on spending the rest of your life on Lower Campus following around the UH Wahine volleyball players. Although, when you get to your mid-40's, it's gonna look a little bit creepy....

[IdahoBoy]

SonofBarcelonaBob said:

Although, when you get to your mid-40's, it's gonna look a little bit creepy....

Is this experience speaking? Did somebody finally tell you that it's getting creepy that you're following us around?

[sonofbarcelonabob]

IdahoBoy® said:

Is this experience speaking? Did somebody finally tell you that it's getting creepy that you're following us around?

I'm not in my mid-40's. LOL.

Besides, there's just too many soccer moms out there. Why would I want to follow around some post-teen drama queens who play volleyball?

[VBCOACH]

SonofBarcelonaBob said:

I've never really seen her play...........

....but you know that she has slow feet and a noodle arm?


WOW, you're GOOD!