Posts by Collier

Quote from jt1267

Congrats to the team, the staff and their fans!

I've always been neutral to Team USA but Jordan Larson has become one of my fav players to watch/learn from.

Fun fact: I hated her back in london quad when she was "weaker" and she made me want to punch her with her "cocky" gum-chewing face (sorry!)

It was a pleasure to watch her develop and become one of the best OHs in the world.

Congrats on the MVP!

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While gum-chewing indeed gives someone a cocky aura, she's actually one of the most approachable players together with Akin, Koshe and Thaisa during fan interactions.

Karch surviving cancer explains his zen-like calmness to his approach to the girls. Relaxation skills are valuable in sustaining cancer recovery.

Garay played horribly this final match, but she still deserve one of the OH awards based on stats. Her attacking % was a cut above the rest and she's 3rd in scoring in the whole competition.

Also, Carol da Silva over Carol G for one of the MB awards. She's #1 in blocks-per-set and had better attack efficiency. But Carol G wasn't far behind and surely worked hard for it so it's not that bad.

Boskovic and JWO deserved theirs.

Though I knew from the start the this match is the USA's, Ze lost any chance Brazil had by being stubborn:

1. Replacing Rosa instead of Garay who was visibly struggling
2. Not changing the starters in the 3rd set

But then again, grit can only take a team so far against a team that's just physically stronger. Still, a silver is an overachievement.

Congrats USA for a well deserved gold!

ROC-USA would have made a more entertaining finals.

Quote from beri

I liked her at the league, I remember she didn't do so well in VNL I think but still surprised she didn't receive a call at all

Lorenne is injured

Roberta should've started the 3rd. They need to change what hasn't worked in the 1st two.

Brazil was stuck. They had to sub Rosa with Natalia in the opposite early on, losing a backup to the struggling Garay. They're undermanned.

Quote from USAvolleyfan

Also can I ask you a fair question? How are Serbia and Italy considered being The Big 3, but USA and Brazil are not..

Not trying to take anything away from Serbia, they’ve done great things and have accomplished so much. Such a small country, from the Balkans, producing world class athletes, not only in volleyball, but in every single sport.. that stuff’s incredible. Also if we compare the conditions and opportunities those players have, with someone the likes of USA, China, it’s even more impressive. They’ve been investing for a long time, and since coming to the international scene have had some good matches/tournaments and made sone fuss. However their real success on the international scene has been these last what 4-5 years, when they’ve won the WCH and silver in Rio. With some of their veterans retiring I don’t see such a bright future for them.. sure they have many talents, and I’m convinced they’ll stay competitive and win some competitions here and there, but won’t be no where dominant as they’ve been until now.. So how is a team that has had success that has lasted for roughly one quadrennial considered A Big 3 member, but teams like USA, being in the F4 in the Olympics for 4th straight time.. that means 13 years, and Brazil who we’ve watched play in the finals even in 2004 are not? My point is it’s sports, and winners and placements change depending on many factors, but lasting for so many years, being in the top, surely means something..

If you base the "Big 3" on historic success, it will include Cuba and it won't seem right.

WCH '18 was the last competition where all teams brought their A-teams, so it's fair to say that the top 3 teams in that competition are considered the "Big 3". So far, we're seeing a new "Big 3" after this Olympics. And we may see a new "Big 3" after WCH '22.

Quote from Sisko

I don’t think the pandemic is the reason for any team underperforming. It’s a mixture of stars declining/getting injured, poor preparation, poor coaching decisions and just having some bad days.

The pandemic has to have had an impact, maybe not physically, but more on mentally. All the reasons you mentioned are normal factors to teams' conditions but the general decline in the level of play is pretty evident to just be attributed to these.

If the bench will spell the difference, Brazil may be at a disadvantage given that they have BIa as their lone backup MB.

Some people are saying that USA and Brazil were able to play at a high level despite the pandemic. Let's also remember that these nations were 2 of the worst hit countries by the pandemic.

If Brazil will be able to take it to the 5th set with the USA, they can win the match. In the VNL finals, they were neck-and-neck (even leading) with the USA up until the 15th point or so of the sets after which USA pulls away. OTOH, I'm afraid the veterans no longer have the stamina to sustain their energies to that point. But then again, this game would be their most important game in 5 years, so adrenaline should be high up.

If both USA and Brazil play at their best, USA will win.

One key for Brazil to win is to destroy USA's reception with tough serves like they did in London. But we know that this is a tough task considering that USA's receivers top the stats (compared to in 2012 where Davis and young Larson/Hodge had shaky reception). It will be difficult for Brazil to determine who to direct their serves at. Best they can do is load them serves up.

If they can also figure out how to neutralize Thompson (VNL 2019), Drew (VNL 2021) and MBH (VNL 2021), maybe they'll have a chance at at least equalizing the game.

Brazil's lineup with the new opposite hasn't been tested against top teams. OTOH, this may bring positive changes that may surprise the other team.

Hoping for a grand end to the games from these 2 teams.

Quote from beri

Any predictions?

Ever since I was a little girl Brazil was my favorite team. They always had this special something, so I'm always biased for them.

However IMO this time it's USA's to take. I've been saying it for a couple matches now and even jinx can't stop them.

After seeing the VNL finals, I've always thought Tokyo is USA's game to lose. They're not only physically stronger but they also have a good system.

But I want a surprise.