We've all heard that the staff put a high premium on recruiting players with the right mind-set and fit for the program expectations. If we truly care about these young ladies and don't just regard them as we might professional athletes going to the highest bidder, we need to give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to effort and cooperation with team and coaches. They're the ones who get the perks, yes, but they're also the ones who are targets of criticism, speculation, insults, etc. when things get rough.
If these were our sisters./daughters, we'd (I hope) be encouraging them that things will get better. They're having to adjust to new teammates AND new expectations. It's natural for some to have some doubts about diminished roles from what they were expecting with more experienced players coming in to assume those minutes. It's also natural for some of the new "stars" to either be reluctant to take charge from those who have been here and, conversely, to think that they have to take charge when things become stagnant. That's where the coaching staff has to try to keep them together...a tricky balance. Maybe the coaches just need to start fresh with running sets repeatedly and plugging in players until it becomes second nature where they are to be on the court in running a motion/screening/cutting offense and restricting the one-on-one plays, insisting on a certain number of screens/passes/cuts until a player comes open. That will initially create turnovers as bad passes are made or players get trapped with no outlet, but that's the painful part of the process. Eventually, they should learn to come to help teammates, to set (and use) screens, to find the best open option, etc. Having to focus on the common goal and working hard blocks out the noise; getting comfortable with each other reduces the "thinking too much" problem when open shooters pass up shots. They have to know that rebounders will be in place, that help defense will come, that teammates will call switches when necessary while not getting lazy and relying too much on help defense. They have to have confidence in each other and themselves, and that can only come through repetition.
Personally, while I agree with a lot of the questions posters have raised about offensive systems and game coaching, I think that most of the current problems are a result of too heavy an influence from the portal. One or two players added are easier to absorb both on and off the court; more than that, and you're basically starting over with a new team both on and off the court. I hope that we see a remarkable turnaround resulting in a memorable season; regardless, the problems with portal recruiting will continue if it becomes a mainstay rather than an addition.
