On the gym walls of the UConn Huskies Women’s basketball team, banners hang for every All-American and national player of the year. The Huskies have seven players with the prestigious Naismith Award and nine with the AP National Player of the Year award. All won a national title. Maya Moore won two, Diana Taurasi won three and Breanna Stewart won four. Except one.

Try to put yourself into the shoes of that lone player. Surely, you’re feeling the pressure to rise to a certain level, no? So does Paige Bueckers. Those banners continuously remind her of something that has eluded her ever: a national championship. Last year, in the Final Four, UConn lost against Caitlin Clark’s Iowa. With that, the drought between national titles for UConn expanded to 8 years — must have been painful for a program that owns a record 11 championships. Bueckers, in her fourth season, third NCAA Tournament, and third trip to the Final Four, didn’t lift a trophy. The Huskies started once again.

Bueckers came back to the 2024-25 season, her fifth year at UConn and likely be the last in Storrs. She can opt to return for a 6th but she has indicated she’ll enter the WNBA Draft. It comes back to the fact that this is likely her last shot at a national title. Add to that the projected No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA and continuous comparison to Caitlin Clark. If this is not pressure, then what else? Coach Geno Auriemma knows it well.

“I think it scares her to leave here and be the best player ever to play at UConn without winning a national championship — that it affects your legacy a little bit. I’ve never said that, and I don’t believe that, but I’ve gotta believe she thinks that, that she needs that to validate who she is. … I don’t believe that that’s the ultimate identifier of what true success is,” Auriemma said. Well, Paige herself says, she looks “pressure as a privilege.” But one former basketball player believes that this so-called privilege might have become just too much for her.

Rachel Annamarie DeMita took to her YouTube Channel after the Huskies crashed out against the Tennessee Lady Volunteers 80-76 and stated that this two-pronged pressure of a national championship and Caitlin Clark comparison has brought Bueckers down. She said, “It’s been such the perfect storm of media narratives. From what I’m seeing it might have gotten to Paige. The fact is when we went into this season the whole narrative was Paige Bueckers JuJu Watkins, those were the two superstars, those were the ones that you had to watch out for”

“Media was comparing these two players to Caitlin Clark and so every fan’s expectations going in and watching these two players, the expectation for Paige was that Paige Bueckers was the Caitlin Clark before Caitlin Clark. How many media people have you heard say that that was the narrative” DeMita did not stop there. She also indicated how the national championship pressure is killing the star.

“It was oh this is Paige’s final year, she’s going to win a championship this year, like it’s pretty much guaranteed it’s UConn’s year. Paige is going to get a championship before she goes to the WNBA draft and then she’s going to be the number one pick, this has all been mapped out since the beginning of the season,” DeMita said. She even took a dig at the media also for the narrative.

“You’ve compared Paige to Caitlin so much, you have fans thinking that when they watch Paige they’re going to get the same thing as what they saw Caitlin do and I think that’s so unfair to her. Paige is a great player she’s not playing bad but you have her at such a level that now we think Paige Beckers is playing bad when she has 14 points and eight assists in a game where they were double-teaming her and Geno saying well when she gets double teamed she doesn’t want to keep the ball. Who wants to keep the ball when they’re getting double-teamed?” she argued. DeMita felt CC never had the media-built story that Paige has to prove, and it’s getting the worst out of her.

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Paige sees her role different than a Clarke roll! She is uns3lfish in finding some teamate that might have...more

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Interestingly, DeMita also pointed out something that all too many athletes can relate to—burnout. “I honestly feel like she might be getting burnt out; her joy seems to be fading from the game of basketball, and that’s sad. I’ve been in that position before.” 

Paige’s performance in the Tennessee game seemed to back up these concerns. She provided 8 assists and 4 rebounds while making only 5 out of 16 field goal attempts during the game. That’s a red flag for someone known for her sharpshooting. Again, a media built pressure? Or is it time up for Bueckers? Geno Auriemma wasn’t afraid to express his frustration with the ‘Youth Olympic gold medalist in 3×3 basketball’ play in the Tennessee game. It’s not just the fans who are putting pressure on her to perform; her coach is as well.

UConn faces crucial test as Auriemma criticizes Paige Bueckers

Following UConn’s defeat against Tennessee Geno Auriemma openly expressed his frustration during the post-game interview. His comments about Paige Bueckers have sparked a lot of debates. Known for his honesty, Auriemma expressed frustration with Bueckers’ inconsistency, especially during big moments of the game. He stated, “Paige wants the ball in her hands all the time, then when they trap her, she doesn’t want the ball in her hands. So we try to move her from one thing to another, get her moving without the ball.”

Understandably, Auriemma is frustrated, as he expected Paige Bueckers to have a big year. The criticism comes at an important time for Paige, who confirmed she will enter the 2025 WNBA Draft. The pressure of being a top draft pick and leading UConn to a title, along with her coach’s scrutiny, could heavily impact her mindset and performance.

UConn and Bueckers will have the chance to bounce back in their next game against Providence. The big question is how the 23-year-old will respond. Will the criticism be the spark that persuades her to play better and prove her critics wrong? Or it will burden her with that immense pressure, making it even worse? This next game is going to be a critical moment in Bueckers’ season, and maybe her career, regardless of the outcome.