WNBA Action -5/31

#1

Amb3096

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#1
Didn't see the game, but Mercedes Russell had her best WNBA performance with 10 pts and 7 rbds in an easy win over Atlanta. She's making the most of available minutes from the Storm's injuries. She has the potential to be a very solid post player for them if she can remain consistent.
 
#2
#2
Didn't see the game, but Mercedes Russell had her best WNBA performance with 10 pts and 7 rbds in an easy win over Atlanta. She's making the most of available minutes from the Storm's injuries. She has the potential to be a very solid post player for them if she can remain consistent.
I saw the game and Mercedes transformation is amazing! Strong, fast and physical are three words I would use to describe her. IMO she should be starting over Langhorne. With more minutes she easily would have had a double double. Constantly moving, setting screens and rolling to the basket. If we had this Mercedes this season, we would make the final four no doubt!
 
#3
#3
I saw the game and Mercedes transformation is amazing! Strong, fast and physical are three words I would use to describe her. IMO she should be starting over Langhorne. With more minutes she easily would have had a double double. Constantly moving, setting screens and rolling to the basket. If we had this Mercedes this season, we would make the final four no doubt!

We missed out great opportunity with those players if we had a good coach.
 
#4
#4
Didn't see the game, but Mercedes Russell had her best WNBA performance with 10 pts and 7 rbds in an easy win over Atlanta. She's making the most of available minutes from the Storm's injuries. She has the potential to be a very solid post player for them if she can remain consistent.

I was worried about Mercedes after last season, but she must've really put in work overseas! I'm not exactly a Seattle fan but there's a few players on that team I enjoy seeing develop and she's one of them.

Phoenix had a much better showing last night than they did against Seattle last week, what an awesome game. Interesting the contrast between Phoenix's high starter productivity, vs the Aces' high bench productivity. A'ja Wilson playing unusually poorly, while Dearica Hamby is going for 6POY. I wonder what it'll take for them to get that ring.

What's funny is I never liked Minnesota until Odyssey Sims got there, and now that I'm enjoying their lineup it's a must-watch team for me.

DC vs ATL tonight will be important, both teams are pretty meh so far this year.
 
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#5
#5
I was worried about Mercedes after last season, but she must've really put in work overseas! I'm not exactly a Seattle fan but there's a few players on that team I enjoy seeing develop and she's one of them.

Phoenix had a much better showing last night than they did against Seattle last week, what an awesome game. Interesting the contrast between Phoenix's high starter productivity, vs the Aces' high bench productivity. A'ja Wilson playing unusually poorly, while Dearica Hamby is going for 6POY. I wonder what it'll take for them to get that ring.

What's funny is I never liked Minnesota until Odyssey Sims got there, and now that I'm enjoying their lineup it's a must-watch team for me.

DC vs ATL tonight will be important, both teams are pretty meh so far this year.
Vegas will be good. I've always thought Hamby would be a good WNBA player. She reminds me of Izzy. Once their pieces gel, they will be tough.

Minny to me was the UConn of the WNBA. Never a fan. I was always a Sparks and Fever fan.
 
#6
#6
Minny to me was the UConn of the WNBA. Never a fan. I was always a Sparks and Fever fan.

Yup! And you will never catch me rooting for the Sun. Screw the whole state of Connecticut as far as WBB goes, lol.

Now ironically my favorite (though not the best) team, Chicago, is full of UConn players. Catching up on tonight's game now; Diamond back in top form tonight and always a joy to watch, and Gabby ran point while Sloot and Quigley were on the bench and did really well! Seems like Jantel Lavender and the new head coach were some essential puzzle pieces for Chicago's (relative) success. Surprised to see KLS and Chloe Jackson benched, but hey, they won, so...

Also Mercedes is in fantastic shape this season, wow!
 
#7
#7
Yup! And you will never catch me rooting for the Sun. Screw the whole state of Connecticut as far as WBB goes, lol.

Now ironically my favorite (though not the best) team, Chicago, is full of UConn players. Catching up on tonight's game now; Diamond back in top form tonight and always a joy to watch, and Gabby ran point while Sloot and Quigley were on the bench and did really well! Seems like Jantel Lavender and the new head coach were some essential puzzle pieces for Chicago's (relative) success. Surprised to see KLS and Chloe Jackson benched, but hey, they won, so...

Also Mercedes is in fantastic shape this season, wow!
I was indifferent to the Sun, but they have had a few players that I like: Shekinna, Chiney, Alyssa Thomas and Rachel Banham come to mind.

Other than LA, I think I watched the Sky the most last season...mainly for Diamond. Looks like they are going with a double post and sending Gabby to the bench, which probably makes them a better team. Lavender and Dolson take up space inside, but also have versatile offensive games. If they can learn to play team defense, they can be pretty good.
 
#8
#8
What is up with Atlanta this season? Same squad that made the playoffs but they look terrible.

Indiana on the other hand might make it out of the bottom four this year, definitely rooting for them. The Mitchells have been excellent, with Tiffany especially shining so far.

LA looks like it's figuring out what to do with Chiney. Can't wait til Candace comes back (bet they can't either).
 
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#9
#9
What is up with Atlanta this season? Same squad that made the playoffs but they look terrible.

Indiana on the other hand might make it out of the bottom four this year, definitely rooting for them. The Mitchells have been excellent, with Tiffany especially shining so far.

LA looks like it's figuring out what to do with Chiney. Can't wait til Candace comes back (bet they can't either).
I think all WNBA teams look rough for most if June because players come straight from overseas play, they are tired, and it shows. You won't be gaining any new fans with this plethora of <40% team shooting. Three Liberty players went something like 0-17 vs. Indiana. Speaking of, I agree that the Fever will be much improved. Too bad Vivians is out for the season. They would be almost a playoff shoe-in if she could go.

I fully expect CP to play wing, Nneke at PF and Chiney at C. I guess that's what happens when you're three best players all play best at the same position. I think Chiney is a better 5 than Candace is a 3, though...
 
#10
#10
The Aces will need an experienced back court if they want a championship. They should try for Vandersloot and Quigley (they're married, it would have to be a package deal), a relatively cheap option, and consider trading out a couple of their younger guards.
 
#11
#11
The Aces will need an experienced back court if they want a championship. They should try for Vandersloot and Quigley (they're married, it would have to be a package deal), a relatively cheap option, and consider trading out a couple of their younger guards.

I have a hard time understanding how a backcourt of Plum and McBride is not championship-caliber. Both of them have more upside than Sloot/Allie.

Wilson/Cambage should be such a difficult matchup that the only thing the guards should need to do on offense is lob the ball to either of the posts and hit open shots. On defense, even if they can't stop penetration, at least direct them towards one of the bigs. This is the pros. If they can't do that, they have no business complaining about their paychecks.
 
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#12
#12
I have a hard time understanding how a backcourt of Plum and McBride is not championship-caliber. Both of them have more upside than Sloot/Allie.

Wilson/Cambage should be such a difficult matchup that the only thing the guards should need to do on offense is lob the ball to either of the posts and hit open shots. On defense, even if they can't stop penetration, at least direct them towards one of the bigs. This is the pros. If they can't do that, they have no business complaining about their paychecks.

I'm thinking the problem is at the 1 rather than the 2, not so much McBride but an inexperienced Plum. Vandersloot is a master of the double double, and can get the ball where it needs to go. Being on a team like Chicago that hasn't been noteworthy since the Delle Donne days underrates Sloot and Quigley, imo.

Now I agree with you about Wilson and Cambage. In theory those two should be able to shut down any penetration, and I think we'll see their chemistry grow as the season goes on and as Cambage gets more minutes that overlap with Wilson.
 
#13
#13
I'm thinking the problem is at the 1 rather than the 2, not so much McBride but an inexperienced Plum. Vandersloot is a master of the double double, and can get the ball where it needs to go. Being on a team like Chicago that hasn't been noteworthy since the Delle Donne days underrates Sloot and Quigley, imo.

Now I agree with you about Wilson and Cambage. In theory those two should be able to shut down any penetration, and I think we'll see their chemistry grow as the season goes on and as Cambage gets more minutes that overlap with Wilson.

Don't get me wrong...I think that Sloot is the best playmaking PG in the league. She is so good at creating for others as well as herself. Allie was seriously underrated by a lot of teams and she's making them pay. I don't expect Kelsey Plum to be as good of a PG as Sloot, but she can be a more dangerous scoring guard who can get assists by feeding the post all day. Sloot doesn't have that luxury because Chicago doesn't have the same kind of dominant post players that Vegas has. If Kelsey can't get it done, then she has no place in the league as a PG because the Aces are pretty much the easiest kind of team to run an offense: pound it inside and wait for the ball to come back. Teams can't collapse on the posts, because there will be 3 players just itching to hit the open 3 point shot. The fact they lost the last 2 games...I don't know what to make of it.
 
#14
#14
Don't get me wrong...I think that Sloot is the best playmaking PG in the league. She is so good at creating for others as well as herself. Allie was seriously underrated by a lot of teams and she's making them pay. I don't expect Kelsey Plum to be as good of a PG as Sloot, but she can be a more dangerous scoring guard who can get assists by feeding the post all day. Sloot doesn't have that luxury because Chicago doesn't have the same kind of dominant post players that Vegas has. If Kelsey can't get it done, then she has no place in the league as a PG because the Aces are pretty much the easiest kind of team to run an offense: pound it inside and wait for the ball to come back. Teams can't collapse on the posts, because there will be 3 players just itching to hit the open 3 point shot. The fact they lost the last 2 games...I don't know what to make of it.
Plum can't hit a shot a lot of games. She's highly inconsistent and has been to start the season. I still think the Aces will be the best team by the end...right now Cambage is playing very low minutes, but they should increase. Young should also look to score, but again she's getting pretty low minutes. She made back to back threes against Phoenix but was pulled early. The Aces have a lot of players to play.
Conn has been a huge surprise to me. Their roster seemed depleted but they've won some big games.
 
#15
#15
Plum can't hit a shot a lot of games. She's highly inconsistent and has been to start the season. I still think the Aces will be the best team by the end...right now Cambage is playing very low minutes, but they should increase. Young should also look to score, but again she's getting pretty low minutes. She made back to back threes against Phoenix but was pulled early. The Aces have a lot of players to play.
Conn has been a huge surprise to me. Their roster seemed depleted but they've won some big games.
Plum was a pure scorer in college who could create her own shot. I thought she'd struggle against bigger WNBA players, but not struggle to hit open jumpers with her feet set and shoulders squared.

The Sun lost Chiney, but had Jonquel off the bench...who could start on any team. I'm not surprised they are decent, but they will probably stay middle of the pack. Shekinna had a nice game...hit 4 triples. She must be the most invisible starter in the league. She quietly goes about her business.
 
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#16
#16
Plum was a pure scorer in college who could create her own shot. I thought she'd struggle against bigger WNBA players, but not struggle to hit open jumpers with her feet set and shoulders squared.

The Sun lost Chiney, but had Jonquel off the bench...who could start on any team. I'm not surprised they are decent, but they will probably stay middle of the pack. Shekinna had a nice game...hit 4 triples. She must be the most invisible starter in the league. She quietly goes about her business.
Her shot looks good every time, but they don't fall like they should. I do believe she can be a great player, and I think her overseas/Olympic experience has gone better. I think she played in the top Russian league this year.
 
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#17
#17
NY vs LA, 45 seconds left, with NY down by 3 and Tina Charles is the one that takes the shot? When you've got clutch snipers like Nurse and Durr, why would you not run a play that gets one of them the ball? Respect for Katie Smith, but she gotta go. Props to LA's defense today, but the Liberty lost this game because of X's and O's.
 
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#19
#19
NY vs LA, 45 seconds left, with NY down by 3 and Tina Charles is the one that takes the shot? When you've got clutch snipers like Nurse and Durr, why would you not run a play that gets one of them the ball? Respect for Katie Smith, but she gotta go. Props to LA's defense today, but the Liberty lost this game because of X's and O's.

Kinda sad that LA let NY hang around and make it this close.

I actually agree with Smith's playcalling here. 45 seconds is a lot of time...too early to be going for 3. Go for 2 points as quick as you can and trust your defense to get you the ball back for the last possession. Even if LA ran the clock, if NY got the stop and the rebound, they would have 21 seconds to play for the win. Tina is far and away their best player. I would have trusted her too.
 
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#20
#20
Kinda sad that LA let NY hang around and make it this close.

I actually agree with Smith's playcalling here. 45 seconds is a lot of time...too early to be going for 3. Go for 2 points as quick as you can and trust your defense to get you the ball back for the last possession. Even if LA ran the clock, if NY got the stop and the rebound, they would have 21 seconds to play for the win. Tina is far and away their best player. I would have trusted her too.
Tina went for the 3 and missed, which led to an LA field goal! She's carried the team on her back so long, I think she's forgotten what it's like to kick out to the perimeter.
 
#21
#21
Tina went for the 3 and missed, which led to an LA field goal! She's carried the team on her back so long, I think she's forgotten what it's like to kick out to the perimeter.

She hasn't had much perimeter help in quite some time. I find it mind boggling how so many players seem to forget how to hit an open jumpshot once they join the WNBA.
 
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