Paige Bueckers, coach Geno Auriemma and the rest of the Huskies are favored by many to reclaim the NCAA national title in Bueckers’s senior year. Despite Geno Auriemma’s success over the years and the potential success he could have this year, fans on the internet are wondering if Auriemma’s traditional coaching style is beneficial or detrimental to Bueckers.
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Several of them have voiced their opinion on the matter in the comments section of a YouTube video by former NBA 2KTV host Rachel Demita titled, “Is Geno RUINING Paige Bueckers’ Career?”
“Geno is just too full of himself. Then, he’s got a brain and mouth on him that diminishes those he represents. He has single handedly turned Uconn into a team people root against. Not because of Paige or any other players, but because of himself. It’s sad for a historically great coach to go out this way,” a user said in the comments.
“Auriemma just signed a five year contract extension. His players love him and Paige is probably his favorite player. If he’s criticizing her publicly, I wouldn’t take it too seriously. If he has any real criticism of her, he’s going to do that in his office or during practice,” a user said in defense of the 11-time national champion coach.
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A user posted regarding Auriemma.
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“Caitlin Clark was fortunate to play for Iowa where she was far and away the best player on the team. Paige is not much more than another cog in the wheel at UConn. Paige is surrounded by the highest level gifted teammates and a coach that is happy to utilize them over Paige. It is the same issue for players at South Carolina,” a user commented.
A user posted on the Caitlin Clark-Paige Bueckers comparison.“When Caitlin went to Iowa, coach Lisa Bluter said, ‘We had to change things when Caitlin came.’ They let her play the way she wanted to play. Geno is old school and has to worry about his reputation. If Paige had gone with a coach like Bluter, she would have had more success,” a fan wrote.
“Caitlin is really lucky that UCONN did not recruit her. Geno would have ruined her confidence and game,” one fan commented.
Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark (22) controls the ball against Connecticut Huskies guard Paige Bueckers (5) in the fourth quarter in the semifinals of the Final Four of the womens 2024 NCAA Tournament – Source: Imagn
Rachel Demita says Paige Bueckers’s coach Geno Auriemma will have to adapt to modern times
Coach Geno Auriemma and Paige Bueckers – Source: Imagn
Geno Auriemma has amassed an almost untouchable 11 national championships and a record 1222 wins in his 40-year head coaching tenure at UConn. But, his last title came almost a decade ago in 2016 and he has not won another title since despite several deep runs in March since then.
According to Demita, Auriemma may not need to be too tough or push his players too hard to bring the best out of them.
“Sometimes, being so tough on a player, sometimes throwing them under the bus… doesn’t press the right buttons that you’re hoping that it would,” Demita said. “I think that he might need to change his tune a little bit and adapt a little bit to the new age style of women’s basketball.”
Since 2016, Geno Auriemma and the Huskies have fallen short of the title and have had varying degrees of success including , one runner-up finish, several Final Four appearances and one Sweet Sixteen finish. A couple of modern tweaks in Auriemma’s coaching style be enough for the Huskies and Paige Bueckers to be on top of the landscape once again.
