Spring Break
Delle Donne did right thing by leaving
Kevin Meacham
Issue date: 8/27/08 Section: Sports
Elena Delle Donne, UConn basketball star.
Now that those words have been written for the last time in this publication, it's time to write the epitaph for a duo - the freshman phenom and the prominent basketball factory - that seemed so perfectly matched.
Delle Donne, the national player of the year and former UConn commit, announced at a press conference Monday that she would walk on to the volleyball team at the University of Delaware. The announcement ended roughly six years of speculation and intrigue which reached an unprecedented level for women's basketball.
And it's clear that warning signs have existed for almost as long.
The 6-foot-4 talent has been considered the jewel of the class of 2008 more or less since she turned 12. Through a quirk in Delaware's system, Delle Donne played on Ursuline Academy's varsity basketball team beginning in eighth grade.
By the time she graduated from the Wilmington, Del., school five years later, she had been named the consensus best player in the country, won every major individual award and had scored the most points of any basketball player of either gender in state history.
Naturally, some of the nation's best programs were interested. When it came to a final decision, Delle Donne's list came down to UConn and Tennessee, as well as nearby Villanova and Middle Tennessee State (where her brother is a quarterback on the football team).
Last summer, Delle Donne requested a break from the relentless media attention as she took the summer to make her final decision. This lasted about a month, until she gave a verbal agreement to come to Storrs a year ago this week.
Upon graduating Ursuline in June, Delle Donne moved right onto campus. Her stay here lasted about 36 hours, before she turned around and left UConn, presumably when she asked head coach Geno Auriemma to release her from her letter of intent earlier this month.
In between all that, Delle Donne had been watched, prodded, and pursued by reporters, zealous fans and middle-aged recruiting gurus all over the country, looking to find out which college the Larry Bird of women's basketball would call home.
Her senior year was derailed somewhat by a bout of mono, but it did not stop her fame from being used - exploited, you might say - to sell tickets to neutral-site games. Ursuline's team became a traveling circus centered around the superstar 18-year-old. Promotions like this happen all the time in men's basketball - and increasingly so in the women's game - yet, marketing and promoting high school athletes seems to be a very unclean, uncomfortable business.
Regardless, some people simply can handle that type of spotlight, turning all of the stress created by both media and competition and turning it into positive energy. Many cannot, but still love the game enough to wade through all the nonsense and play.
Delle Donne's comments to reporters Monday made it clear she could not continue, saying she was burnt out on the game, on the workouts and on the amount of effort needed to give to play at the highest level.
Predictably, the vocal, obscene and anonymous Internet pundits were on the case immediately afterward. One commenter on the Hartford Courant Web site referred to the college freshman as "weak," while others scolded her for her immaturity, or for not appreciating a college scholarship.
Did it occur to anyone that, perhaps, the irresponsible thing to do would be to waste four years of scholarship money getting yelled at by coaches and teammates for giving less than her top effort?
It takes a hell of a lot of courage for someone to quit what they are good at in order to get away from a bad situation. If anything, Delle Donne should have reached this conclusion months ago.
When she (and her Ursuline team) played Manchester High School at Chase Arena at the University of Hartford last February - one of those promotional games designed to draw out the Gampel Pavilion superfans, in addition to yours truly - Delle Donne effortlessly scored 30 points. But she looked listless and unenthused, even as she dominated the opposition.
Knowing what we know now, it would have been a courtesy to Auriemma and UConn to speak up about her fatigue before summer sessions started in June. But what is done is done, and the Huskies will go on only slightly less loaded with talent.
All reports are that Delle Donne is happy in a Blue Hen volleyball uniform. Good for her. Perhaps one day she will feel refreshed enough to don a basketball uniform once again.
But perhaps her story can serve as a reminder that when you're dealing with young adults, the perfect match - the best talent with the best team - isn't always so perfect after all.
Kevin.Meacham@UConn.edu
Now that those words have been written for the last time in this publication, it's time to write the epitaph for a duo - the freshman phenom and the prominent basketball factory - that seemed so perfectly matched.
Delle Donne, the national player of the year and former UConn commit, announced at a press conference Monday that she would walk on to the volleyball team at the University of Delaware. The announcement ended roughly six years of speculation and intrigue which reached an unprecedented level for women's basketball.
And it's clear that warning signs have existed for almost as long.
The 6-foot-4 talent has been considered the jewel of the class of 2008 more or less since she turned 12. Through a quirk in Delaware's system, Delle Donne played on Ursuline Academy's varsity basketball team beginning in eighth grade.
By the time she graduated from the Wilmington, Del., school five years later, she had been named the consensus best player in the country, won every major individual award and had scored the most points of any basketball player of either gender in state history.
Naturally, some of the nation's best programs were interested. When it came to a final decision, Delle Donne's list came down to UConn and Tennessee, as well as nearby Villanova and Middle Tennessee State (where her brother is a quarterback on the football team).
Last summer, Delle Donne requested a break from the relentless media attention as she took the summer to make her final decision. This lasted about a month, until she gave a verbal agreement to come to Storrs a year ago this week.
Upon graduating Ursuline in June, Delle Donne moved right onto campus. Her stay here lasted about 36 hours, before she turned around and left UConn, presumably when she asked head coach Geno Auriemma to release her from her letter of intent earlier this month.
In between all that, Delle Donne had been watched, prodded, and pursued by reporters, zealous fans and middle-aged recruiting gurus all over the country, looking to find out which college the Larry Bird of women's basketball would call home.
Her senior year was derailed somewhat by a bout of mono, but it did not stop her fame from being used - exploited, you might say - to sell tickets to neutral-site games. Ursuline's team became a traveling circus centered around the superstar 18-year-old. Promotions like this happen all the time in men's basketball - and increasingly so in the women's game - yet, marketing and promoting high school athletes seems to be a very unclean, uncomfortable business.
Regardless, some people simply can handle that type of spotlight, turning all of the stress created by both media and competition and turning it into positive energy. Many cannot, but still love the game enough to wade through all the nonsense and play.
Delle Donne's comments to reporters Monday made it clear she could not continue, saying she was burnt out on the game, on the workouts and on the amount of effort needed to give to play at the highest level.
Predictably, the vocal, obscene and anonymous Internet pundits were on the case immediately afterward. One commenter on the Hartford Courant Web site referred to the college freshman as "weak," while others scolded her for her immaturity, or for not appreciating a college scholarship.
Did it occur to anyone that, perhaps, the irresponsible thing to do would be to waste four years of scholarship money getting yelled at by coaches and teammates for giving less than her top effort?
It takes a hell of a lot of courage for someone to quit what they are good at in order to get away from a bad situation. If anything, Delle Donne should have reached this conclusion months ago.
When she (and her Ursuline team) played Manchester High School at Chase Arena at the University of Hartford last February - one of those promotional games designed to draw out the Gampel Pavilion superfans, in addition to yours truly - Delle Donne effortlessly scored 30 points. But she looked listless and unenthused, even as she dominated the opposition.
Knowing what we know now, it would have been a courtesy to Auriemma and UConn to speak up about her fatigue before summer sessions started in June. But what is done is done, and the Huskies will go on only slightly less loaded with talent.
All reports are that Delle Donne is happy in a Blue Hen volleyball uniform. Good for her. Perhaps one day she will feel refreshed enough to don a basketball uniform once again.
But perhaps her story can serve as a reminder that when you're dealing with young adults, the perfect match - the best talent with the best team - isn't always so perfect after all.
Kevin.Meacham@UConn.edu
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Tomv
posted 8/27/08 @ 8:44 AM EST
She just should have recognized it earlier. She is 18 not 12 yrs old she knew right away hence the 36 hour departure time. She knew BEFORE that.
I'm glad she is happy it's most important. (Continued…)
D.A.O.
posted 8/27/08 @ 9:36 PM EST
Meacham, this column went the opposite way that I expected it to go.
It was the angle that I think that clown who wrote columns last year would have taken. (Continued…)
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