Introducing: Elena Delle Donne

I have to confess this before I get to saying anything else. I wasn't going to write this profile until I read an interesting piece on one of my favorite blogs, Rethinking Basketball. I will say what I can about this fantastic player, but I am going to digress and go off on a loosely related tangent.

That being said, for those of you who haven't heard of her, take note of Elena Delle Donne, the 6'4" wing from the Ursuline Academy in Delaware. She is Hoopgurlz's #1 rated recruit for the upcoming 2008 women's college basketball season, lauded by many as the hottest recruit since Candace Parker, and UConn's Geno Auriemma was plenty happy to take her commitment as soon as he could possibly get it. In fact I'm sure he may have wet himself a little knowing that he, and not Pat Summitt, would have Delle Donne on his team.

I'll let this video do much of the talking for me:



I don't think her positional classification as wing, a combination of the shooting guard and small forward positions, could be better applied to anyone since Parker. She has the size to play in the paint, the agility to play off the ball, and the range to drain quick threes seemingly at will. I provided much hype regarding 2009's #1 recruit, Brittney Griner, in a past post. While Griner has unbelievable physical tools, you have to be equally excited about Delle Donne's polish and the completeness of her game. All she needs is experience in the college ranks under the guidance of Auriemma and she'll be well on her way to a successful professional career.

Here's where I take a hard turn left.

The problem, and it has many UConn faithful sweating bullets, is that Delle Donne may not report to Connecticut to play this season. She may not set foot on a basketball court. The star recruit attended summer sessions for two days at Connecticut before abruptly turning around and heading back home.

"I loved the campus, I loved the girls and working with [coach Geno Auriemma]. I'm taking a personal break for different reasons."

She has since further insisted that she and her family are working on her own personal issues, and the public at large does not seem to be privy to any further details. Bad for the national media, nerve-wracking for UConn, but good for Elena.

As far as can be assumed, Elena cracked. She's been under pressure from recruiters since before high school, speculation for years that she could start in the WNBA without even going to college. And please, stop yourself right now before you make a smart remark to yourself about a lack of mental toughness being the problem with the women's game. Lebron handled the same hype and more, true. But he had mentors. Men's high school athletes have been subject to recruiting and scouting, like
this absolute monstrosity, for years. There are other athletes out there to form a support system, beyond their own families, to advise, counsel and mentor these young men. It's just not out there for women. Not until very recently, perhaps as recently as Candace Parker and Maya Moore, has this kind of spotlight been shined on female athletes. You, me, or anyone else can't blame her for wilting under the pressure. I only hope that the young lady is able to straighten herself out and come back to lead a successful career.

This story drew my interest particularly after I read Q's analysis of the WNBA's age requirement. To make it short and sweet, the league's strict policy requires women to be 22 years old, the expected age of a student's college graduation, before she may enter the league. Q does a good job of looking at the argument from many perspectives, and I was particularly struck by the section on gender equity (hint, hint -- give it a read).

On one hand, these young ladies, as the argument goes for male athletes, should have a right to make their own career decisions as they feel are appropriate. I do, however, strongly support the idea that athletes of both genders do have some maturing to do at the collegiate level before they enter the world of professional sports. Idealistically, it's a bit of a head-scratcher as to why the WNBA, a NBA affiliate organization, should have different rules than men. While there is an unbelievable income difference between the two leagues -- your average women's player will make less in a year than most men will make during their summer league stints -- it is nonetheless condescending to believe that there is something fundamentally different about women that implies that they need to finish their degrees or require more time to develop physically and mentally.

For the record, I believe that it is great for these women to serve as role models for young girls by finishing their degrees and being successful at the college ranks. It is great for their careers that they can develop in college, and I do not believe that there is an individual out there -- regardless how big their sneaker contract -- who could not benefit from the experience and knowledge gained through their time at a university. However, this is about equality, and a difference in rules such as this is essentially the same as the NBA directly admitting that they view the WNBA as inferior in every way. I wouldn't be surprised if, with the emergence of talents like Parker, Moore, Griner and Delle Donne, the NBA is soon enough either institutionally forced to reconsider its position, or hit with an EEO lawsuit big enough to make their heads spin.