Contact CU Independent Sports Editor Sam Routhier at samuel.routhier@colorado.edu and follow him on Twitter @samrouthier.
If you’re looking for a youth movement, look no further than the depth chart for guards on the University of Colorado women’s basketball team. There you’ll find a sophomore, two freshmen and a lone upperclassman whose area of expertise is long-range shooting.
The 2014-15 iteration of this team left primary ball-handling duties to now-departed senior Lexy Kresl, who started next to Jasmine Sborov and Jen Reese (who was admittedly a forward) — two players who were also capable ball-handlers but are now also graduated. With so much of last year’s dribbling done by players who have left, maybe we shouldn’t put too much weight on the issue of turnovers which plagued this team last year to the tune of 17.0 turnovers per game, or nearly two more turnovers than assists every game.
Some might counter with the assumption that this number will get even worse with point guard duties being inherited by sophomore guard Brecca Thomas and freshman guard Kennedy Leonard. But inexperience may not be a death sentence for this talented group.
As Kresl’s primary backup last year, Thomas showed that she is comfortable with the ball in her hands — in 32 appearances for Colorado, at that. She also showed an ability to create off the dribble and penetrate – one that will be useful if she can do it effectively and open up opportunities beyond the arc. She’s a capable 3-point shooter as well. Being the shortest player on the team, Thomas will naturally draw comparison to NBA players like Nate Robinson. But the more apt comparison is certainly the Boston Celtics’ Isaiah Thomas, whose uncanny ability to get to the hoop in a myriad of ways is a solid blueprint for Thomas’ progression for more reasons than just both players’ diminutive statures.
Whether Leonard will be Thomas’ counterpart or her alternate as point guard on the court is not yet set in stone. But what is clear is that Leonard will be a factor on this Colorado team. At Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas, Leonard set a school record with 921 career assists. She showcased that deft touch in the Buffaloes’ exhibition win over USC-Aiken with eight assists, and also showed she can fill out a stat sheet with 14 points, three rebounds, two blocks, and three steals.
Leonard’s fellow freshman Alexis Robinson also comes to CU-Boulder with a record-setting high school career as the all-time leader in assists, with 643, and steals, with 300, at Paul G. Blazer High School in Ashland, Kentucky. Along with Leonard and senior center Jamee Swan, Robinson was one of only three players to reach double-digit points in Colorado’s win over USC-Aiken, and her 13 points came along with four rebounds and four assists in an efficient 21 minutes played. Whereas Leonard fits more of a lead ball-handler role, Robinson projects as a potential two-way threat for Colorado as more of a shooting guard.
As for the elder statesman of the backcourt, Lauren Huggins is, has been, and will be the queen of the three-point shot. All four of these players are capable of hitting pay dirt from beyond the arc, but last year Huggins did it at an exceptional 38 percent clip while coming off of the bunch. A challenge for Huggins this season will be whether she can take her game inside the arc and begin attacking the rim more, as last year she attempted only seven field goals that weren’t three-pointers the entire season. Huggins and Head Coach Linda Lappe both emphasized at media day last month that Huggins has stepped into a vocal leadership role, something that seems to both fit her personality and also is a matter of necessity seeing as Huggins is one of the only upperclassman players in the locker room.
Within a corps of guards that will certainly experience some growing pains throughout this season as two freshmen and a sophomore attempt to navigate the waters of the elite Pac-12 conference, it will be imperative for Huggins to provide leadership and guidance when the inevitable tribulations happen.
Colorado tips off its regular season at home this Saturday against Loyola Marymount at 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast via University of Colorado online live stream.
