New Dishin & Swishin Podcast: Anne Donovan & Fred Williams on their teams' drafts & moves

[DishNSwish]

On today’s Dishin & Swishin we have two guests that were both front and center as the action went down Monday night, Anne Donovan and Fred Williams, the head coaches of the Connecticut Sun and Tulsa Shock, respectively.

Topics covered with Donovan include:

What went wrong last season, and the trading of Kara Lawson and Tina Charles
The rookies, the expectations, and goals for each
What the addition of Ogwumike means to the roster
The addition of Katie Douglas, and what that means to the team
Will this be the year Spanish star Alba Torrens comes to play in the WNBA?
What needs to be done to make the roster this season for the returning players, including last year’s first round pick Kelly Faris
Expectations for the 2014 season

Topics covered with Williams include:

The addition of Sims, what she brings to the team, and what expectations are for her rookie year
Year two for Skylar Diggins, playing with Sims, and expected development
Will Elizabeth Cambage return to the WNBA season?
Planning around the uncertainty each season that goes with Cambage
Roles expected for Riquna Williams, Angel Goodrich, Courtney Paris and the rest of the returning Shock players
Expectations for the 2014 season

http://j.mp/1kFm7X0

 

[Striper69]

I've gotta hear what the Tulsa Shock were thinking...

 

[Replicant]

Was disappointing to repeatedly hear Donovan smear Tina's integrity and call Tina and/or her agent liars. I hope in the interest of balanced reporting and fairness, that you'll be reaching out to Tina and getting her side of the story in the near future.

After Donovan opened up the segment suggesting that the Liberty had made them an offer they couldn't refuse (and it really appears a win/win for all), why then, the need to take the low road and trash Tina? That comes off as petty and spiteful.

 

[DishNSwish]

Tina held a press conference and publicly "answered" those claims, saying her conversations would remain private. Not sure what else she could give me for answers.

I don't look at it as saying they lied either; I think legitimately Tina and her people told the Sun to try to improve the team, she was interesting in winning (this is what the Sun said). Then she decided she wanted to be traded and go home to NY.

If you were bound to one team at the time (the Sun), wouldn't you tell them to try to improve as long as you are a part of it? The Sun signed Douglas and was going to add Chiney, but that was never a guarantee or was there a statement from Tina "I'm staying." Now if the Sun took Tina's "get better" and considered it a sign she was staying and read it differently, then yes they probably would consider themselves blindsided.

But I don't think honestly anyone lied or is accused of lying, and I don't see how Tina's integrity is smeared by the comments Donovan made.

Just my opinion, trying to stay neutral on the whole thins.

 

[Striper69]

I thought it was a great conversation and thanks for posting it.

What happened with the Sun and Tina Charles happened. She seemed to have changed her mind and wanted to leave and that's what happened. Both sides came out good.

I'm curious to see what the Shock do this season. Sims will give them the dynamic scorer that they really needed last year. Skylar and Angel will help her and they have Riquana to come off the bench when Sims needs a rest.

Jordan Hooper should fill out the forward position when they need to kick the ball out for threes.

I see that they don't know what Cambage is going to do yet though. LOL!

 

[DishNSwish]

I thought it was a great conversation and thanks for posting it.

What happened with the Sun and Tina Charles happened. She seemed to have changed her mind and wanted to leave and that's what happened. Both sides came out good.

I'm curious to see what the Shock do this season. Sims will give them the dynamic scorer that they really needed last year. Skylar and Angel will help her and they have Riquana to come off the bench when Sims needs a rest.

Jordan Hooper should fill out the forward position when they need to kick the ball out for threes.

I see that they don't know what Cambage is going to do yet though. LOL!

Thank you for the kind words.

Is that unreal about Cambage or what? The fact Fred said they're talking to the Australian National team to try to figure it out is mind boggling to me; girl, it's time to grow up and make some big girl decisions about life!

Re: Tulsa at the 3, Hooper and Powell is kind of an iffy defensive combo, I'm guessing they may go three guards and two long posts (ie GloJo and Lacy) a lot this year.

 

[Replicant]

Tina held a press conference and publicly "answered" those claims, saying her conversations would remain private. Not sure what else she could give me for answers.

I don't look at it as saying they lied either; I think legitimately Tina and her people told the Sun to try to improve the team, she was interesting in winning (this is what the Sun said). Then she decided she wanted to be traded and go home to NY.

If you were bound to one team at the time (the Sun), wouldn't you tell them to try to improve as long as you are a part of it? The Sun signed Douglas and was going to add Chiney, but that was never a guarantee or was there a statement from Tina "I'm staying." Now if the Sun took Tina's "get better" and considered it a sign she was staying and read it differently, then yes they probably would consider themselves blindsided.

But I don't think honestly anyone lied or is accused of lying, and I don't see how Tina's integrity is smeared by the comments Donovan made.

Just my opinion, trying to stay neutral on the whole thins.

I appreciate you've got a fine line to walk attempting to remain impartial. Unfortunately I did not catch Tina's presser, but from what you've said, her answer sounds like the appropriate and professional tack to take in this situation. One I think Donovan should also have followed. Regarding the lying accusation, listen to your show again from the 5:30 to 6:30 mark. I paraphrase, "We were blind sided", "gotta take your marque player's and her agent's word for it", et al. The words liar or lying were of course never used, but there's no other inference to take away from her comments.

I enjoy your work BTW.

 

[DishNSwish]

Thanks for responding. I see the "gotta take your marquee's and her agent's word for it" is what I mean Tina said "get better, I want to win" and I think the Sun misread that as "get better, I want to stay." Probably that's what they wanted to hear, and heard it that way.

The whole thing is a mess, from the Thibault firing, to Tina's reaction on and off the court last year, to this conclusion. I think it's good for both to move on, and having talked several times with Ogwumike and Thomas on prior occasions. I think Connecticut fans will really like their game and their personalities if given time. I haven't talked to Bone other than at last year's draft, and she seemed like a pretty cool personality too.

 

[Replicant]

The whole thing is a mess....I think it's good for both to move on, and having talked several times with Ogwumike and Thomas on prior occasions. I think Connecticut fans will really like their game and their personalities if given time. I haven't talked to Bone other than at last year's draft, and she seemed like a pretty cool personality too.

Agreed. This deal really looks good for both sides. I'm finally looking forward to watching a few Liberty games now and the Sun have got an incredibly exciting collection of young stars.

 

[DishNSwish]

Agreed. This deal really looks good for both sides. I'm finally looking forward to watching a few Liberty games now and the Sun have got an incredibly exciting collection of young stars.

Now I'm bummed! I wish they could work out a deal that MSG network can show Liberty games on DirecTV and they're not blacked out. I forgot about that!

 

[Striper69]

The teams in the league need to step up on tv coverage. They show LA Sparks games on NBA TV that originate from a FOX network channel. I wish the Mystics would work out something like the Nationals and Wizards have locally so I can see more games.

I'm seriously considering getting the Mystics "Flex" ticket plan this season. You can go to ten games at a discount in a good seat. I have to call them about how it works. When Shoni Schimmel, Skylar/Goodrich, Griner and Candace Parker come to town I'm getting courtside seats.

 

[Striper69]

Thank you for the kind words.

Is that unreal about Cambage or what? The fact Fred said they're talking to the Australian National team to try to figure it out is mind boggling to me; girl, it's time to grow up and make some big girl decisions about life!

Re: Tulsa at the 3, Hooper and Powell is kind of an iffy defensive combo, I'm guessing they may go three guards and two long posts (ie GloJo and Lacy) a lot this year.

Cambage lives a long way from the U.S. so that probably makes it hard for her. It sounds like she doesn't need the money since her mother's well off and she makes a lot in China. Hope she comes back though.
They signed Courtney Paris again so she'll probably play center a lot if Liz doesn't come back. Paris is another one who needs to lose weight/diet and maybe hit the weight room more.
Sims would probably work well with Cambage. I can see a killer pick and roll developing there. Don't know why Skylar and Cambage didn't seem to get that going last year.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

Is that unreal about Cambage or what? The fact Fred said they're talking to the Australian National team to try to figure it out is mind boggling to me; girl, it's time to grow up and make some big girl decisions about life!

I understand Tulsa's frustration. But the reality is, she is not coming back there, and, if she does, it will be Stepanova in 2005. Actually, Stepanova is a great comparison.

Cambage is still really young. She has a ton of upside and trade value. The key is finding the right trading partner. Phoenix has the Australian connection and a more extensive history of Aussies than any other team (including Seattle). And Brondello is in charge.

Candice Dupree and the 2015 pick for Cambage?

Now, the better questions are whether Cambage and Griner can play together, run high/low sets, have good chemistry, and complement each other. But that is something I would love to find out...

 

[jdubct]

Now, the better questions are whether Cambage and Griner can play together, run high/low sets, have good chemistry, and complement each other. But that is something I would love to find out...[/quote]
I wonder whether Cambage would even consider playing with a better player like Griner. Maybe when she matures more.

 

[UcMiami]

The real problem with international players is that every two years they end up with summer conflicts between the WNBA and national team preparations for the WC or the Olympics. Other national teams usually build up to those events with months of practice - the US team is forced to do it with only weeks. It will be interesting in the future if the USA loses a few international competitions if changes get made. It happened with the men, it will happen with the women at some point in the future.
Those national teams are important to players, and they tend to be unforgiving to even the stars if they are not available for all the team's activities in the lead-up to the big competitions.
Add to that Tulsa competing with the Sun for probably the two least cosmopolitan home locales and one can understand an international player being less tempted by the WNBA. It will be interesting this year in the WNBA if some of the foreign players end up leaving early or disappearing for some games in the middle of the season.
It will also be interesting to see what happens at Uconn in the fall with the possibility of two and maybe even three players heading off to Turkey for a few weeks.

 

[Striper69]

Don't see Tulsa trading Cambage to the Mercury...