2021 Atlanta Dream and WNBA Previews

[lethalweapon3]

More drama for your mama!

So, where to start? It probably goes back a ways, but simplify things by beginning with the Atlanta Dream's loss last Friday in Seattle.  Odyssey Sims made some key plays to help Atlanta narrow the Storm's fourth-quarter lead. With six minutes left and his team down by a couple scores, coach Mike Petersen subbed out second-year scoring guard Chennedy Carter and entered All-Star Courtney Williams into the fray.

The ploy almost worked. Scoring 11 points in the final five minutes, seemingly answering every one of Sue Bird's and Jewell Loyd's makes with one of her own, Williams' potential tying triple with two seconds to spare missed and allowed the Storm to escape at home with the 91-88 win. What could have been an encouraging sign of a team beginning to gel instead revealed one coming apart at the seams, in large part because Petersen didn't see fit to work Carter back into the mix for the closing six minutes.

Whatever went on behind the scenes as the Dream headed out to Las Vegas, with rumors of locker room strife between Carter and Williams, bubbled over early in the game versus the Aces. Chennedy started but was subbed out again midway through the opening period, and she took exception when Courtney, the sixth-year pro, sought her out. For her sophomoric sideline exercise, Carter was sent to the locker room and never returned.

The clearly distracted Dream (6-11, 2-8 after their 4-3 start) went on to allow the most points they've ever allowed, at least in regulation, in a 118-95 drubbing. With all respect due, it wasn't Carter's penetration-heavy offense that was sorely needed, not so much as the on-ball defensive effort that was lacking, in the absence of would-be leading scorer Tiffany Hayes. The ensuing days have been a recurring exercise in cryptic tweets from Chennedy, and shows of support for Courtney from longtime Dream veterans Hayes and Elizabeth Williams.

It's not so much a house divided, as it is an important new addition to the house sliding into the ground, due to the lack of a solid foundation. This is the only WNBA franchise that can boast of having a former star player literally shoot (and not a basketball) at a former teammate, and it has the kind of pockmarked history that shows, when it comes to players and/or coaches' internal relationships, you cannot spell "Malcontent" without A-T-L. "Stars going AWOL until coaches get fired" kind of vibes, around here, is nothing new.

What happened in Vegas didn't stay there. Carter is suspended, indefinitely, and thank goodness for the All-Star-plus-Olympic Break that begins after today's game in Connecticut (7 PM Eastern, CBS Sports Network) and Sunday's back home versus sad-sack Indiana, because a month ought to be enough time for cooler heads to prevail. Fans of WNBA teams with cap space are hoping the smoldering continues into August, elevating the pressure to gift a mopey Carter (14.2 PPG, a value marred by her exits in the prior two games) out of town to its logical height as that month's Trade Deadline approaches.

But many of the vets themselves are likely to move on in 2022 free agency, so the stage, as it once was for then-rookie Angel McCoughtry in 2009, belongs to Carter, however precariously, and to rookie backup Aari McDonald. It would help if the team had clear stewardship from the top on down. I only imagine VP Renee Montgomery now has just a little more time to be hands-on with internal matters over the coming weeks.

Until the Break, Petersen is left to help the rest of his charges snap out of their funk, and he can point directly at an Indiana team that just snapped their 12-game slide last week by beating Jonquel Jones, Brionna Jones and the Sun (12-6, 3rd in WNBA). The Sun's All-Star bigs got very little in the way of backcourt help from Jasmine Thomas and Briann January, and with their depth already poor even with Jonquel back from Bahamas duties, coach Curt Miller knows his collective needs a balanced offensive attack, four quarters strong, to fend off Atlanta.

After a strong start to the season, the Sun can't afford to set back into the rest of the WNBA pack right before the league break. Their visitors from Atlanta, meanwhile, just want the storylines to return their focus toward the activities on the court.

 

Let's Go Dream.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

In a dose of nice news, PIGTAIL POWER! Atlanta's first-ever first-round pick, Tamera Young announces her retirement from pro hoops.

~lw3

[Spud2nique]

15 minutes ago, lethalweapon3 said:

This is the only WNBA franchise that can boast of having a former star player literally shoot (and not a basketball) at a former teammate,

 I’m not gonna lie I’m a little scared. Gilbert Arenas didn’t even do this, or Javaris Crittenton? 

 

16 minutes ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Aari McDonald.

I like her, southpaw beauty stroke.

Nice preview lw3. 
 

So, Connecticut as a state gets the franchise? Are they they only WNBA franchise not belonging to a city? 
 

Go Dream!

[niremetal]

12 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

More drama for your mama!

So, where to start? It probably goes back a ways, but simplify things by beginning with the Atlanta Dream's loss last Friday in Seattle.  Odyssey Sims made some key plays to help Atlanta narrow the Storm's fourth-quarter lead. With six minutes left and his team down by a couple scores, coach Mike Petersen subbed out second-year scoring guard Chennedy Carter and entered All-Star Courtney Williams into the fray.

The ploy almost worked. Scoring 11 points in the final five minutes, seemingly answering every one of Sue Bird's and Jewell Loyd's makes with one of her own, Williams' potential tying triple with two seconds to spare missed and allowed the Storm to escape at home with the 91-88 win. What could have been an encouraging sign of a team beginning to gel instead revealed one coming apart at the seams, in large part because Petersen didn't see fit to work Carter back into the mix for the closing six minutes.

Whatever went on behind the scenes as the Dream headed out to Las Vegas, with rumors of locker room strife between Carter and Williams, bubbled over early in the game versus the Aces. Chennedy started but was subbed out again midway through the opening period, and she took exception when Courtney, the sixth-year pro, sought her out. For her sophomoric sideline exercise, Carter was sent to the locker room and never returned.

The clearly distracted Dream (6-11, 2-8 after their 4-3 start) went on to allow the most points they've ever allowed, at least in regulation, in a 118-95 drubbing. With all respect due, it wasn't Carter's penetration-heavy offense that was sorely needed, not so much as the on-ball defensive effort that was lacking, in the absence of would-be leading scorer Tiffany Hayes. The ensuing days have been a recurring exercise in cryptic tweets from Chennedy, and shows of support for Courtney from longtime Dream veterans Hayes and Elizabeth Williams.

It's not so much a house divided, as it is an important new addition to the house sliding into the ground, due to the lack of a solid foundation. This is the only WNBA franchise that can boast of having a former star player literally shoot (and not a basketball) at a former teammate, and it has the kind of pockmarked history that shows, when it comes to players and/or coaches' internal relationships, you cannot spell "Malcontent" without A-T-L. "Stars going AWOL until coaches get fired" kind of vibes, around here, is nothing new.

What happened in Vegas didn't stay there. Carter is suspended, indefinitely, and thank goodness for the All-Star-plus-Olympic Break that begins after today's game in Connecticut (7 PM Eastern, CBS Sports Network) and Sunday's back home versus sad-sack Indiana, because a month ought to be enough time for cooler heads to prevail. Fans of WNBA teams with cap space are hoping the smoldering continues into August, elevating the pressure to gift a mopey Carter (14.2 PPG, a value marred by her exits in the prior two games) out of town to its logical height as that month's Trade Deadline approaches.

But many of the vets themselves are likely to move on in 2022 free agency, so the stage, as it once was for then-rookie Angel McCoughtry in 2009, belongs to Carter, however precariously, and to rookie backup Aari McDonald. It would help if the team had clear stewardship from the top on down. I only imagine VP Renee Montgomery now has just a little more time to be hands-on with internal matters over the coming weeks.

Until the Break, Petersen is left to help the rest of his charges snap out of their funk, and he can point directly at an Indiana team that just snapped their 12-game slide last week by beating Jonquel Jones, Brionna Jones and the Sun (12-6, 3rd in WNBA). The Sun's All-Star bigs got very little in the way of backcourt help from Jasmine Thomas and Briann January, and with their depth already poor even with Jonquel back from Bahamas duties, coach Curt Miller knows his collective needs a balanced offensive attack, four quarters strong, to fend off Atlanta.

After a strong start to the season, the Sun can't afford to set back into the rest of the WNBA pack right before the league break. Their visitors from Atlanta, meanwhile, just want the storylines to return their focus toward the activities on the court.

 

Let's Go Dream.

~lw3

A few things here...first, LW3, you're a hell of a writer on this stuff. You literally just shed more light on why Carter got suspended than every national sports news outlet combined. Thanks, because I was baffled as to what happened with Carter. Also, did not know anything about the shooting you referenced...definitely didn't know that Chamique Holdsclaw did something like that. Damn.

You should seriously look into starting a blog. WNBA is taking off--not just saying that because this is the first year I've followed it closely. Ratings are way up.

Confession, though: The Storm are my #1 team. I moved out to the Pacific NW a few years back and started getting into WNBA ball this past year since my daughter started getting into hoops and I wanted her to see that girls and women play at a high level too. The Dream weren't around when I was a kid, so my WNBA loyalties were not yet spoken-for, and I went local. I also like the Mystics a lot, mainly because I think EDD is the GOAT...even bought her Nike UNVRS kicks, though in red so they double as my Hawks gameday shoes. Pissed that they've seemingly discontinued them.

[lethalweapon3]

11 hours ago, niremetal said:

A few things here...first, LW3, you're a hell of a writer on this stuff. You literally just shed more light on why Carter got suspended than every national sports news outlet combined. Thanks, because I was baffled as to what happened with Carter. Also, did not know anything about the shooting you referenced...definitely didn't know that Chamique Holdsclaw did something like that. Damn.

You should seriously look into starting a blog. WNBA is taking off--not just saying that because this is the first year I've followed it closely. Ratings are way up.

Confession, though: The Storm are my #1 team. I moved out to the Pacific NW a few years back and started getting into WNBA ball this past year since my daughter started getting into hoops and I wanted her to see that girls and women play at a high level too. The Dream weren't around when I was a kid, so my WNBA loyalties were not yet spoken-for, and I went local. I also like the Mystics a lot, mainly because I think EDD is the GOAT...even bought her Nike UNVRS kicks, though in red so they double as my Hawks gameday shoes. Pissed that they've seemingly discontinued them.

After Dream games like last night, Storm games like last night's fun loss in Phoenix are like a palate cleanser. So good to see the ball not sticking, and a multitude of capable shooters! Seattle doesn't always do everything right (see Dupree, Candice) but when they do, they're as fun to watch as anybody, and they make the in-game experience great for kids. It always helps, when you're not a good team, to get a top-pick and hit it out of the park, something Seattle's now done four times (three of them still together thanks to Sue... how I miss Lauren Jackson) while Atlanta's still waiting for just one to pan out, post-Angel.

Hopefully we'll see EDD after the Olympic Break! In the meantime, the uninitiated are about to fall in love with Jewell Loyd's play in Tokyo.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Last chance for a W today for awhile!

You won't be surprised to know it won't be easy for our dear Atlanta Dream. The Indiana Fever have won two straight home games after starting out 1-16 and dumping 2020's #3 pick Lauren Cox. That includes the Dub last Saturday over Atlanta's most recent conqueror, Connecticut, and over New York on Friday.

As Marianne Stanley coaches for her job, her Fever are eager to notch the first road win of their once-treacherous WNBA season, at interim coach Mike Petersen's expense. In both wins over the past seven days, Indy had tight rim protection courtesy of sixth-woman Teaira McCowan (if any lights are on, over at Dream Inc,, someone should note the center is available before the Trade Deadline), and they forced opposing guards into tough shots along the perimeter.

The Fever don't have anyone, though, to skirt the mid-range brilliance of Courtney Williams, and they possess the limited ability to get back in transition. If Atlanta gets out and converts on the run, they should have enough firepower to temper the Fever today, even in the aftermath of the Chennedy Carter fiasco.

A three-game Western road trip kicks off the schedule after Atlanta's return from the Olympic Break. By the time they return to Gateway Center Arena for a homestand on August 21, they're going to need to see their own fans in a pleasant mood, and teammates in a much better one. A home win today is a good way to get started.

 

Let's Go Dream!

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

The Dream aren't planning to make any additions to its roster.

But, the Earth is!

Congrats to Cheyenne and her fam!

~lw3

[Dnice]

Just taking a lil peep at this  WNBA  vs  USA women.

[lethalweapon3]

"Bring on Argentina!"

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

After a couple of last-minute appeals, it appears one Atlanta Dream member will be making her Olympic dreams come true... with Nigeria!

CORRECTION: I may have spoken to soon...

... nonetheless, she and the Ogwumikes are on the Nigeria "Select Team" at least, and they're now suited up to face a Team USA squad that's reeling after losing consecutive warmups with WNBA All-Stars and Australia.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

File under "Thoroughly Predictable Events": "Watch Ya Head (Coach)!"

Here's to a full-fledged recovery from all that ails him. But the risk of burnout was high from the moment his boss took off for Texas.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Offseason practice resumes! While the remake of Get Carter doesn't seem to be going terribly well...

...some veteran reinforcement is on the way!

https://www.ajc.com/sports/dream-sign-seven-time-all-star-candice-dupree/CFVTBU75KRCLPKMH6R2BG5BM54/

Quote

 

She is the only active player with more than 6,800 points and 3,000 rebounds, and one of only three players in league history (along with Tina Thompson and Tamika Catchings) to reach both milestones. She also holds the WNBA record for career two-point field goals made with 2,779 – over 300 more than the second ranked player.

Her 6,822 career points ranks fourth in WNBA history and second among all active players in the league. She has 2,809 career made field goals – the second most in WNBA history – and her 3,111 total career rebounds stands as the sixth-most recorded by any player in league history. She has played in 484 career games, the fourth-most of any WNBA player.

 

"CanDu is SO old..."

"HOW!" "OLD!" "IS SHE???"

Quote

Dupree starred at Temple under [SC and Team USA] coach Dawn Staley – and [current Dream interim coach] Taylor as an assistant– and later joined Staley in 2006 as the only coach-player duo ever to compete against each other in the WNBA.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Well, at least SHE's back!

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

And down the stretch they go! Hopefully for the sake of Atlanta fans, they’ll continue to head down!

As it stands, the Dream are in a potato sack race with Atlanta United, to see which local team can rummage through head coaches the fastest. With thirteen games remaining on the docket, let’s peek at the ups and downs of the 2021 season to date.

WHAT’S WORKED?

This ought to be short.

Courtney Williams is enjoying the multifaceted season we all were expecting in her return to Georgia in 2020, before the entire (sports) world went haywire. Her career-best averages of 16.3 PPG and 4.1 APG are accompanied by a solid 6.2 RPG (not bad at all for a 135-pounder) and a reasonably low 1.7 TOs/game while logging nearly 35 minutes per night.

Topping all of that was her All-Star turn at the midseason “WNBA vs. Team USA” exhibition in Vegas. 15 points, including a floater that sealed the deal, and an amazing crunch-time block of reigning MVP A’ja Wilson, nearly stole the show.

There was a moment early in the season when it appeared the wheels were not, in fact, about to fall off for Atlanta. Williams and Tiffany Hayes were hitting clutch shots, rebounding and generally taking the scoring pressure off of Chennedy Carter. Once Hayes returned from overseas duty and protocols, she, Carter and Williams guided the Dream to a nifty 4-2 start to the season.

Then came some tough losses during road-game pairs at Minnesota and Seattle, and amid a subsequent split of a two-game series with Washington, Hayes tore an MCL in her knee. Atlanta’s leading scorer would miss the next six weeks, the timing beneficial primarily in the sense that the Dream would be idle over the Olympic break. But the 1-7 free-fall for Atlanta (6-13, tied-10^th in WNBA standings) would begin in earnest upon Hayes’ injury departure.

To the extent that there has been a bright side during this slide, Odyssey Sims and Crystal Bradford have each had moments to shine while stepping up their activity in Hayes’ absence. Monique Billings has taken the place of Elizabeth Williams as the team’s most reliable interior rebounder (6.1 RPG), despite not having logged a single start this season. Aari McDonald has been used sparingly in her rookie year, but she has made 32 of 34 foul shots to kick off her WNBA career, an encouraging sign that could pay dividends with higher usage going forward.

 

WHAT'S SUCKED?

For the sake of my own sanity, I wish I could keep this short as well.

There’s no telling when the rift between the new All-Star, Williams, and Atlanta’s second-year star Carter began. Perhaps it was during the latter’s rookie season, or after Chennedy returned in 2021 to feel treated like a rookie by the veterans on the squad. Maybe the pressure of having to share ballhandling tasks more, with the momentary introduction of Hayes to the starting lineup, was beginning to fray nerves for 2020’s WNBA usage leader.

Whatever the source, the mutinous reactions by Carter added an unnecessary layer to the sticky baklava of the WNBA’s most unstable franchise, which is saying a lot given Indiana is sitting right there. Undesirous of managing a head coach job full-time, and left feeling like Danny Glover in the Lethal Weapon cinematic universe as it pertained to age and management fitness, interim head coach and longtime assistant Mike Petersen grabbed his Playbill and skedaddled during the schedule break.

Petersen intends to stick around as a consultant to the team on matters pertinent to actual basketball. But the shifting sands of ownership and management, coupled with the catfighting drama among players that seeped out onto the sidelines, was understandably too hot to handle, too cold to hold. His former fellow assistant, Darius Taylor will do his best to try getting these busters in control.

The fits and starts were problematic before even the fits began. The biggest offseason free agent addition, Cheyenne Parker had declined to get vaccinated until catching a rough case of You Know What. She’s fully vaxxed now, but her on-floor absence was sorely felt during tumultuous training camp preparations and the initial games of the season. Fourth in scoring on the team, Parker will sit out the balance of 2021 due to pregnancy, as she announced last month in The Players’ Tribune.

I can only assume that this was by design, specifically Petersen’s, but Elizabeth Williams’ near-abdication of defensive rebounding duties (2.8 per game, lowest in her career as a starter) has been especially stark for 2020’s All-Defensive First-Teamer. At the other end, Queen E sets good screens but parks outside the paint as plays unfold, unable to assist as a reliable pick-and-pop option in an offense that, aside from C-Will’s mid-rangers, relies heavily on paint scoring. Were you to literally paint the paint before tipoffs, you’d have trouble finding her footprints at games’ ends.

Averaging a shade under six points and five boards per game as the starting, I guess, center, E-Will’s notoriety as a slow starter at the outset of WNBA seasons slogged into the schedule break, and it has become untenable when contrasted with the production of so many uber-talented persons of size scattered everywhere else across the league.

Tianna Hawkins couldn’t buy a made jumper in the first many games of the season, but she has come around as a stretch-big option of late, and she returns as the only remaining viable big to alleviate E-Will for a spell. Forced into playing upfront, due to her girth, out of necessity, Shekinna Stricklen (nine rebounds in 13 games, 6-for-33 3FGs) has been borderline unplayable for a while. The mighty-moused C-Will has long proven capable at picking up a bunch of the rebounding slack, but neither she nor bench-woman Billings should bear the burden of catching most of it.

The net effects of a lack of paint presence and struggles to thwart dribble penetration show up in a league-worst 106.8 defensive rating. Only Derek Fisher’s Sparks, who are finally getting star reinforcements for the home stretch, collect fewer defensive rebounds per game (22.7) than Atlanta (23.2; 9^th in WNBA with a 70.2 D-Reb%), and no other teams grab under 25. That D-Rating includes Atlanta’s league-high 9.8 team steals per game. While Atlanta is aggressive on the ball, when opponents get by their assigned woman, with or without the rock, it has been steal-or-bust for the Atlanta defense.

Being merely subpar as a three-point-shooting club (33.3 team 3FG%, 9^th and not far from 7^th in WNBA, so 1 out of 3 ain’t bad) is mildly encouraging and somewhat expected. But reverting to their historic ways of sapping the fun out of fundamentals, Atlanta is dead-last in the league with a 73.5 team FT%, as no other squad shoots freebies below a 75 percent clip. The Williams Not-Sisters, C-Will (57.5 FT%, lowest since her rookie season) and E-Will (career-low 55.9 FT%; how’s she drawing fouls, anyway) are the most glaring culprits, followed by the scrappy Billings (69.6 FT%) and Crystal Bradford (51.6 FT%) off the bench. The collective points they leave on the table dampen the more solid shooting by Hawkins, Hayes, Carter and McDonald, and make the holes the Dream struggle to climb out from unnecessarily steep.

 

WHY MIGHT WE BE TANKFUL FOR ALL OF THAT?

In part due to historic mismanagement during the team’s down-cycles, Atlanta has not been able to draft a first-overall pick since Angel McCoughtry came on board in 2009, the franchise’s second season of existence. In the ensuing 12 years, eight of the W’s other 11 clubs have had first dibs at least once, including Connecticut twice (Tina Charles, the runaway leader for Comeback Player of the Year, was the #1 pick in the year after Angel’s) and the entire Western Conference, inclusive of emerging Dallas this year.

Beneficiaries of first-overalls Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson in the early Aughts to plant their WNBA flag, Seattle was able to dip into Lake Lottery and fished out Jewell Loyd and Breanna Stewart, again in consecutive drafts. The current Aces franchise then got three straight swings at-bat, knocking it out of the park with A’ja Wilson while hitting ground-rule doubles with Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young. She hasn’t played in years, yet the lasting impact of The ATL’s Maya Moore, drafted the year after Tina, on Minnesota’s sustainability can’t be measured.

Striking out on the dirigible Shoni Schimmel with the 8^th pick in 2014, Atlanta has not been able to acquire a fan-draw draftee comparable to New York’s Sabrina Ionescu, a collegiate standout whose national reputation precedes her before she ever suits up for a pro game. This has impacted the ability of this team to get off the ground, gaining consumer confidence and consumers along the way as they sought to build upon the early string of Eastern Conference success in their first half-decade.

Through 2019, the highest draft selection for Atlanta since Angel, 2017’s 7^th pick Brittney Sykes, was serviceable but neither a household name nor a superstar in the making. The subsequent selections of Carter (4^th in 2020) and McDonald (3^rd in 2021) yielded encouraging results. But as it stands, particularly with Chennedy’s unsteady status, it is unclear whether a prospective future All-NBA 1^st Teamer and title contending star currently puts on an Atlanta Dream jersey.

The pending WNBA Trade Deadline next week (8 PM Eastern on Saturday) would come as good news for Atlanta fans if they had a sense of who’s fielding and making the calls at the Marietta Street headquarters. Hayes, Sims, and The Williams Not-Sisters are all unrestricted free agents after the season ends. A savvy GM, in theory, would be using their expiring deals, and their incremental potential to nudge teams ahead in 2021 playoff contention, as wagers for future-draft and prospect capital.

Not counting for 2022 restricted agents Billings and Bradford, the bones that are left of the Dream roster for next season are McDonald, Parker, Hawkins and Carter. The latter of whom, at the risk of belaboring the point, may or may not be seeking an escape hatch despite being under contract through next season. A savvy GM, again in theory, could seek to use the oncoming cap space to woo bigger free agent prizes than Parker into the fold.

But in the current configuration, there is but a shadow of a doubt that Dream management is but a shadow in nature. The one foreseeable path to getting a game-changing talent is by going first in the WNBA Draft(s). For next year, Atlanta will have its best odds at doing just that. But they’ll still need some help.

The Lisa Borders Legacy, as we know, was the rule designed to stop the double- and triple-dipping schemes of the Storm and Aces via draft lotteries. The two most-recent seasons combined now set the tone for teams’ lottery odds. Indiana (10-32 in past two seasons) was a literal grease fire before rattling off three straight wins to go into the Break, including a pasting of Atlanta (13-28) in College Park on July 11.

It’s not beyond the realm of possibility that the Dream, whose schedule resumes with a West Coast swing through Phoenix and L.A. before returning home to meet Phoenix here, could “catch” GM Tamika Catchings’ Fever for top lottery odds over these final games. After blazing through a mostly Eastern schedule for Commissioner’s Cup purposes, nine of the final 13 Dream games are versus Western foes, from the conference that continues to dominate the league.

But then, there’s New York. The Liberty are the only other team presently with a worse two-season mark (12-31) than either Indy or Atlanta, a product of sinking to the abyss at 2-20 once Ionescu got hurt in the Wubble. But they are a 6^th-seed in the hunt for the playoffs. On a two-game slide from the end of the front half of the season, the Libs have Phoenix, Washington, Dallas and, presumably, Los Angeles (no missed playoffs since 2011 for the Sparks) nipping at their heels. The Dream ought to be able to “catch” New York, but it’s hopeful they won’t have to.

What awaits in 2022’s Draft? Oodles and oodles of noodle-y tall talent, featuring frontcourt future stars comfortably surpassing six feet in height. Super-scoring swing woman and Chattanooga native Rhyne Howard leads the pack as the two-time SEC Player of the Year out of Kentucky. Also out of that conference, at Miss State, is 6-foot-5 Georgia native Jessika Carter, who is neck-and-neck with Ole Miss’ 6-foot-5 Shakira Austin in mock drafts.

If that’s not tall enough for you, among the trees is Oregon’s 6-foot-7 pivot Sedona Prince. Alternatively, there are top-flight power forwards like NaLyssa Smith, now under Nicki Collen’s tutelage at Baylor, or Naz Hillmon out of Michigan. Whatever the choice, and no matter who is around to make it, things would sure fare better for Atlanta if they didn’t have to settle for sloppy thirds and fourths over the next season or two.

The return of Hayes, a hopefully brokered peace between Carter and the vets, and the arrival of longtime WNBA vet Candice Dupree (4^th all-time in scoring, 6^th all-time in rebounds) ought to result in more competitive finishes, unless the team elects to bring out the hoses for a fire sale over the coming week. With or without the current configuration, should the Dream play their cards right, over the course of the final 13 games, a dwindling and exhausted local fanbase might be able to look up and say aloud, “Tanks a Million!”

 

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Midseason WNBA Power Poll time!

 

Seattle Storm (16-5) – The Commissioner’s Cup champs are here! Sue Bird, Jewell Loyd and Breanna Stewart collected a gold medal, a sweet trophy, and some spending cash over the past ten days. From Dan Hughes to Gary Kloppenburg to Hughes again, the Storm has weathered coach transitions quite well. Noelle Quinn’s task for the stretch run is to ramp up positive production from Katie Lou Samuelson, Jordin Canada and the supporting rank-and-file. Rest assured, Seattle’s Big Three want more hardware.

Las Vegas Aces (15-6) – As has been said, this season is all about Storm versus Aces, and the only reason this isn’t already a two-horse race is the season-long injury absence of Angel McCoughtry for Vegas (90.7 team PPG). A’ja Wilson averages nearly 20-and-10, Liz Cambage does the same per-36, Chelsea Gray’s 6.1 APG ranks second in the league, and Kelsey Plum, Riquna Williams, Dearica Hamby and Jackie Young are thriving in their roles. Even without Angel, does coach Bill Laimbeer finally have a full hand?

Minnesota Lynx (12-7) – Don’t cry for coach Cheryl Reeve! She went into Tokyo and the Break with the W’s hottest team, winners of seven straight. Second in the league in steals, blocks, and defensive rebounds, it’s not a matter of whether Sylvia Fowles will get her votes for DPOY, but whether enough voters will recognize how strong her candidacy is for MVP, especially when teamed with team scoring leader Napheesa Collier and a red-hot Kayla McBride. Turnovers are the Lynx’s one remaining bugaboo.

Connecticut Sun (14-6) – No depth? No problem! Sun fans won’t be made to love somebody else, not if The Jones Girls, MVP finalist Jonquel and fellow All-Star big Brionna, keep on crashing the glass the way they do. All but assured of avoiding a first-round elimination game, and too strong at home (8-1, unbeaten w/ Jonquel) to be at risk of missing the semifinals, the only question is whether they’ll have enough firepower to trip up the Aces and/or Storm. This week, Seattle showed they won’t make it easy.

Chicago Sky (10-10) – After suffering an ankle injury in Atlanta, Candace Parker’s new team went on a 1-7 slide. The Sky opened back up to close out June, winning eight of nine. But they’ve got a tough slate of eight Western opponents sandwiched around Parker’s revisit to The A on August 24. Fortunately, Chicago’s got Team USA 3x3 champ Stef Dolson back in the fold along with sixth-woman Allie Quigley, who reminded everyone at the All-Star Game why she remains the greatest gunner in the business.

Washington Mystics (8-10) – Wait a minute… is that Elena Delle Donne’s music? Never mind the crashing noise, nor the growing unlikelihood that Emma Meesseman will return this season. The story of the season is the re-ascension of Tina Charles, whose 26.3 PPG could be a league record. Her usage will have to transform if and when Delle Donne returns, but the “if” factor is tied to whether, and how soon, Mike Thibault’s unhealthy team can sew up a playoff position without their superstar.

Phoenix Mercury (9-10) – Sternum and hip injuries slowed warrior Diana Taurasi in the first half. But there is ample scoring, from WNBA guard-scoring leader Skylar Diggins-Smith and Brittney Griner, and defensive imposition from Griner and Brianna Turner, to reserve Taurasi’s energies for crunch time in the playoffs. It’s on head coach Sandy Brondello to pull the club together, get some of the bench contributors going more consistently in the rotation, and ensure the playoffs actually happen.

New York Liberty (10-11) – The 5-10 ebb following a 5-1 run out of the gates is reflected in the wearing down of Sabrina Ionescu, hounded by opponents as her teammates aside from Betnijah Laney can’t seem to execute without her. Laney’s 4.1 TOs/game lead the WNBA’s most turnover-prone club. The long-awaited return of Natasha Howard will help in the rebounding and interior scoring departments, but the Liberty won’t stop giving away their playoff chances if they don’t quit giving the ball away.

Los Angeles Sparks (6-13) – Despite going 2-10 in their past dozen games, including six straight defeats, and shooting a league-worst 39.5 team FG%, it’s been unfair to blame coach Derek Fisher for the on-court play. The Ogwumike sisters have been unavailable due to injuries, and 2021 free agents Candace Parker and Chelsea Gray were not adequately replaced. But the return of Nneka, seemingly motivated by her Team USA snub, and guard Kristi Toliver will lead to a more formidable playoff charge.

Dallas Wings (9-12) – Atlanta’s Courtney Williams helped close the deal for Team WNBA, but Arike Ogunbowale took home All-Star Game MVP honors. Arike and Team USA’s 3x3 gold medalist Allisha Gray will hope to build on that to end Dallas’ three-game skid and secure a playoff spot. That will require better shot selection and shot making from Ogunbowale, whose 38.0 FG% is the lowest among the league top scorers.

Indiana Fever (4-16) – Teaira McCowan finally got inserted back into the starting lineup of a hopeless collective, and – whaddya know? The Fever rattled off their third straight victory following a dreadful 1-16 start, the longest win streak in five years. Few expect prosperity to continue given a Western-heavy close to the schedule. But if the younger talent, the ones they haven’t moved on from, show growth in this closing stretch, the coach and GM may get to stick around after all.

ATLANTA DREAM (6-13) – Whoever is pulling the strings personnel-wise, at Dream Inc., must assess whether there is a core worth trying to carry over into 2022. That sobering question includes veterans like Courtney Williams, Tiffany Hayes and Elizabeth Williams, who will be unrestricted free agents ahead of next season, as the Trade Deadline nears. It’s not all about whether Chennedy Carter and Aari McDonald – or Carter and anybody around here – can co-exist.

 

~lw3

[Spud2nique]

1 hour ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Indiana Fever (4-16) –

I like Kysre Gondrezick. She went a pick after our McDonald! Hmm.

[lethalweapon3]

Has anybody seen Marie Gulich around lately?

The ouster of GM Chris Sienko by the new Atlanta brass seemed harsh. But if there was a personnel-movement evaluation behind the decision to cut Sienko loose, mere months after ownership took over and days after the 2021 Draft, one would rightly ask him what was the point of giving up their low 1st-round draft pick in 2019 for what became 30 light bench games by Gulich, a 2018 draftee by the Phoenix Mercury.

Compounding that error, Sienko attached Brittney Sykes with Gulich in a deal with Los Angeles. The return on that trade was Kalani Brown, who the Dream would cut just days into this season and, barring massive conditioning changes, won't likely see a WNBA floor anytime soon.

While both Gulich and Brown are now toiling in Europe, that 2019 draft pick, selected by Atlanta and acquired by Phoenix, shared All-WNBA Defensive First Team honors in 2020 with Atlanta's Elizabeth Williams. Brianna Turner gets to grace the floor with the Mercury today (6:00 PM Eastern) and show defensively deficient Atlanta just what they're missing out on.

Phoenix's starting power forward, Turner averages 8.6 RPG and 1.5 BPG, for a team that, with Brittney Griner upfront, can treat Turner as a luxury. Balancing the defensive skills of Turner and Griner with the highest-scoring WNBA duo (Skylar Diggins-Smith and Griner), then having all-time WNBA scorer Diana Taurasi getting healthy, ought to be a luxury for coach Sandy Brondello. The Mercury (9-10) have had disappointing regular-season finishes papered over by encouraging playoff advances in elimination games over the past few seasons, but a failure to reach the postseason, with two Olympians in tow, would not bode well for Brondello going forward.

GM Jim Pitman and Phoenix's management haven't been perfect, either, in crafting a team capable of navigating the regular season and securing a high playoff seed. In 2016, the Merc traded their low 1st-round pick, and more, to Connecticut for a run by All-Star center Kelsey Bone that was more eventful before games than during them.

That low-first-rounder was Courtney Williams. Now with the Dream after starring in 2019's WNBA Playoffs for the Sun, C-Will has asserted herself just fine in showing up, to the All-Star Game, and showing out. Her scoring today, with Chennedy Carter (still suspended by the team) and Tiffany Hayes (deferred return from her MCL tear recovery) will be essential for Atlanta (6-13) to keep up with the multifaceted Phoenix offense.

 

Let's Go Dream!

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

A quick turnaround.

At least, thanks to Angel McCoughtry's public advocacy, nobody's doing back-to-backs anymore, that made no sense.

Speaking of Angel (AUDIBLE COUGH), the W announced they will be doing a W25 vote and reveal next month. Plus, there'll be a fan vote for a GOAT.

https://www.wnba.com/news/wnbas-w25-platform-will-honor-25-greatest-players-of-all-time-and-give-fans-an-opportunity-to-vote-for-the-goat/
 

Quote

 

...fans will vote for their GOAT by calling out their pick with the hashtag #WNBAGoatVote on Twitter, on WNBA.com or on the WNBA App...

The selection of the league’s 25 greatest and most influential players will begin with a list of nearly 75 nominees selected based on factors such as on-court performance and ability, leadership, sportsmanship and community service, and contributions to team success and the overall growth of women’s basketball.

A select panel composed of media members and women’s basketball pioneers and advocates will then cast the votes that will determine “The W25,” which will be unveiled on Sunday, Sept. 5, during the ABC broadcast of the Las Vegas Aces at Chicago Sky game (3 p.m. ET)...

Beginning on Sept. 5 immediately following the announcement of “The W25,” fans will have an opportunity to vote for the member of that esteemed group that they believe is the greatest WNBA player of all time through the “Vote for the GOAT.” program. Fan voting will conclude at 11:59 p.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 19. The GOAT will then be unveiled during the WNBA Finals 2021 presented by YouTube TV.

 

~lw3

[Spud2nique]

7 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

A quick turnaround.

At least, thanks to Angel McCoughtry's public advocacy, nobody's doing back-to-backs anymore, that made no sense.

Speaking of Angel (AUDIBLE COUGH), the W announced they will be doing a W25 vote and reveal next month. Plus, there'll be a fan vote for a GOAT.

https://www.wnba.com/news/wnbas-w25-platform-will-honor-25-greatest-players-of-all-time-and-give-fans-an-opportunity-to-vote-for-the-goat/
 

~lw3

I thought Courtney Williams had the win with that jumper, 4 seconds left but Sparks hit a 2 to tie.

OT.. what a game! Go Dream.

Court average was 17 points a night she has 4 with that last shot but was huge. 
 

Here we go. 
 

Lw3, what have you done to me. I’m 365 now lol.

[Spud2nique]

Oh God, big red head (Zahui) is taking over. Is Courtney Williams the Dream’s best player? I dig her style.