Candace Parker and LA SPARKS

[01Neaggrad02]

I feel bad for Candace Parker and the LA Sparks. They played a great game today. Personally, I had a feeling they were going to lose when I saw Beard with the Ball. She really seems like a selfish player who wants to have the ball and take shots, even when she shouldn't. Reminds me of her Duke days.

However, I have to say I wish the camera crew did not show Candace crying in her mom's lap after the game. That takes away from how great a player she is, and what an amazing job she did today. I know it sucks to be knocked out of the playoffs... but cry in the locker room.

 

[MilfordHusky]

They forced Beard to her right. I liked the odds on that defensive strategy.

Parker was fabulous again. And lost again.

 

[EricLA]

I don't feel badly for LA at all. Never liked them, have never rooted for any of the LA teams, and I'm psyched Minny moves on. I'm really hoping for a Lynx-Sun finals. Minny had to take away from LA what they could. They limited Tolliver (especially in game 1), limited Ogwumike, and forced Beard to beat them, and she could not. 7-21 for Beard. LA might have been better off trying to get the ball into someone elses hands, but hindsight is always 20-20. Great win for Minny as I really do think LA was the 2nd best team in the WNBA this year...

 

[ucbart]

I feel bad for Candace Parker and the LA Sparks. They played a great game today. Personally, I had a feeling they were going to lose when I saw Beard with the Ball. She really seems like a selfish player who wants to have the ball and take shots, even when she shouldn't. Reminds me of her Duke days.

However, I have to say I wish the camera crew did not show Candace crying in her mom's lap after the game. That takes away from how great a player she is, and what an amazing job she did today. I know it sucks to be knocked out of the playoffs... but cry in the locker room.

That could be the worst description of Alana Beard I have ever seen. At Duke, everything went through her, as It should have. I think she fills her role perfectly with LA. Personally, they should have given the ball to Parker and let her create.

 

[Olde Coach]

So, Miss Maya goes to another Championship game.

Her two quick threes at the start of the 4th quarter brought Minny back into the game.And Whalen's two drives thru heavy traffic all the way to the basket.

I think Whalen is the most entertaining player in the WNBA. She consistently does the impossible!

 

[Kibitzer]

Like Olde Coach, I feel bad for Parker. She played her heart out and darned near carried her team to victory. Legendary performance.

For the record, I would say I feel badly only if I were wearing mittens or had I lost my sense of touch.

 

[VAMike23]

So, Miss Maya goes to another Championship game.

Her two quick threes at the start of the 4th quarter brought Minny back into the game.And Whalen's two drives thru heavy traffic all the way to the basket.

I think Whalen is the most entertaining player in the WNBA. She consistently does the impossible!

And don't forget she had another one just before, to close out the 3rd period..... but I agree, Whalen was really amazing. Back-breaking for the Sparks. Even with one bad hand she was slicing thru the lane and finishing with ease. Hockey player, indeed!

 

[stwainfan]

That could be the worst description of Alana Beard I have ever seen. At Duke, everything went through her, as It should have. I think she fills her role perfectly with LA. Personally, they should have given the ball to Parker and let her create.

I agree. Rember the quote from Geno about Parker "She does things no one else can do"

 

[Husky68]

I agree. Rember the quote from Geno about Parker "She does things no one else can do"

A good player, standout reserve on the Olympic Championship team although she has been unable to help her team get to the WNBA finals in 5 years. Some might even call her very good. She needs to learn how to make players around her better if she ever wants to advance to a league championship in the WNBA.

 

[MilfordHusky]

And don't forget she had another one just before, to close out the 3rd period..... but I agree, Whalen was really amazing. Back-breaking for the Sparks. Even with one bad hand she was slicing thru the lane and finishing with ease. Hockey player, indeed!

She made dashes from the blue line and angled acrobatic shots past the goalie with her back to the net.

 

[EricLA]

A good player, standout reserve on the Olympic Championship team although she has been unable to help her team get to the WNBA finals in 5 years. Some might even call her very good. She needs to learn how to make players around her better if she ever wants to advance to a league championship in the WNBA.

The interesting thing is that next year, LA won't be any better (in theory). They obviously will have a draft pick, but it won't be a game changer like Nneka was. Minny, on the other hand, will hopefully have a healthy Adair and Harris (but probably lose Taj). Phx will add Griner, and hopefully have a healthy Taylor, etc. back. Seattle may be healthy for the whole year.

My point is, if LA were going to win it all, it seems this year would be their best shot. Of course teams can make trades and you never know who might be injured on other teams, but LA might well be fighting SA for the 4th playoff spot next season. The West is going to be ridiculously competitive.

 

[easttexastrash]

Glad to see Parker get some props here. She's been called a heartless, selfish player by some, which I never bought into.

And why is crying in public a bad thing? She was emotional and you can't always decide when you are going to cry. I'm glad it was a public display, it showed how much she cared and wanted to win.

 

[easttexastrash]

A good player, standout reserve on the Olympic Championship team although she has been unable to help her team get to the WNBA finals in 5 years. Some might even call her very good. She needs to learn how to make players around her better if she ever wants to advance to a league championship in the WNBA.

Parker is a great player, not merely a good or very good player. She is top 5 in the world. I'm curious how you feel that she can make those around her better. Nneka was Rookie of the Year and I assume some of that was Parker's influence.

 

[Icebear]

Parker is a great player, not merely a good or very good player. She is top 5 in the world. I'm curious how you feel that she can make those around her better. Nneka was Rookie of the Year and I assume some of that was Parker's influence.

Parker is a great talent and tremendous player, in college she was brilliant enough to carry a team on her back, but in the pros where teams have breadth of talent and excellent skills at every position she is not the type of player to bring out the best in others which is essential at the pro level. There are players that take over a game when it must be taken over (see Diana, Sue, Maya) but who consistently elevate teams with them and most often wins championships consistently.

 

[VAUConnFan]

The interesting thing is that next year, LA won't be any better (in theory). They obviously will have a draft pick, but it won't be a game changer like Nneka was. Minny, on the other hand, will hopefully have a healthy Adair and Harris (but probably lose Taj). Phx will add Griner, and hopefully have a healthy Taylor, etc. back. Seattle may be healthy for the whole year.

My point is, if LA were going to win it all, it seems this year would be their best shot. Of course teams can make trades and you never know who might be injured on other teams, but LA might well be fighting SA for the 4th playoff spot next season. The West is going to be ridiculously competitive.

I do not buy it.
However, I do agree that the West is going to be ridiculoulsy competitive. My feeling is that the last playoff spot will be faceoff between Seattle and San Antonio.

 

[Phil]

Nneka was Rookie of the Year and I assume some of that was Parker's influence.

Could be, but you can't make that leap from the award. The last five #1 picks (going back to Parker) have gone on to be Rookie-of-the-year, so it seems like a usual occurrence, rather than a "nurtured by Parker" consequence.

 

[alexrgct]

Yeah, no disrespect intended towards Parker, but Nneka was a mortal lock to be the #1 pick and considered the only elite prospect in the draft. It would have been an upset for her not to win RoY.

Now, one could argue she's played even better than expected as a rookie, and perhaps Parker had something to do with that. Without knowing the inner-workings of the team, I couldn't say.

 

[VAMike23]

It's certainly a fair point to bring up the fact that great players also need to elevate others in order for a team to win championships. People will have their own opinion on Parker in this regard. I personally don't see this as a big reason why they haven't won yet. There are lots of factors to look at. Also, this type of quality is more often (not always--see Maya Moore) associated with great guards than it is other players on the floor. Does anyone doubt that one of Geno's all-time favorites, Tamika Catchings, does not provide great leadership and does not elevate the play of those around her? Yet she does not have a ring in the pros. Jordan made everyone better even early in his career but he needed the right pieces on his team.

Anyone looking objectively at what is holding the Sparks back should first ask if they have the right pieces. I don't think they do. They could use a true point guard or at least some more consistent leadership from somewhere on the perimeter. I'm certainly not alone in this. We could restrict the source of these discussions to just the BY itself and there would still be plenty of posts to choose from.

The other huge thing with L.A. is team defense, especially at crunch time. Again, plenty of material here on the BY that I don't need to rehash.

Rather than calling on the more amorphous concept of 'making other players around you better' next year, I think it's more specific: Parker needs to take ownership of L.A.'s team defense. She made comments after Game 1 about how the Sparks didn't know what they were doing on defense, didn't know how they were going to guard the pick and roll, didn't know if they were switching, etc. etc. etc. That's where she and the team need to start next year. First the GM has to decide if the current players are capable of great team defense and if not, maybe some moves need to be made. Then the coaches have to make it a priority. And then Candace Parker - the leader on the floor - has to be the one to take ownership of it.

Some are now smirking because "Candace doesn't play defense." This is an exaggeration but there are good reasons that CP and the team have the 'no-defense' label, so it's up to them to make the change. Thing is, she can do a lot at the defensive end, as she showed last night. (And not just rebounding.)

Augustus was a stellar offensive player who at Cheryl Reeve's behest made a true commitment on the defensive end in 2011. CP can do the same thing.

 

[ThisJustIn]

"Making others better" seems to me to be a lazy cop out analysis, especially if it's not followed up by specific examples of how or where or when the player did or didn't do it. Much less of an analysis of the players AROUND said players.

In this game, Parker had a double-double in the first half, shot over 50%, including 50% from beyond the arc. She played all 40 minutes. She had 5 assists. Toliver shot 50%. Nneka shot over 50%. They holy carp stat? Her bench played 27 minutes and shot o-for-3.

Beard was the "weak link "THIS game - if you look at her turnovers and shooting %. But, if you've followed her pro career, you know what an amazing season she's had.

Minny was one point better than LA -- that's a combo of youth, skill and bench play, and not necessarily superior defense throughout the game: LA shot 46.7% and Minny 47.1% - The difference was their defense on Beard that last play -- and it was great defense.

LA needs better bench folks. We'll see if Ross can dig some up...

I still think the Tulsa coach K was the COY.

 

[Kibitzer]

The discussion about great players who "make others better" or not never ends and never finds unanimity of opinion.

Many great, HoF players never got a championship. Names that leap to mind are Ted Williams, Ernie Banks and Dan Marino. There were dozens of others in all sports.

The question is, did they come up short because they didn't elevate the play of their teammates.

Let's stick to basketball because alone of major sports (ok, hockey too) players must play offense and defense and interact with teammates on the fly.

Arguably, the player who most elevated others had to be Bill Russell. Certainly Jordan and Magic are right up there but there is a reason that Russ has more rings than both of them -- combined! He actually inspired his teammates.

At the other extreme is Oscar Robertson. He had an illustrious career, averaging (per game) 42+ minutes, 25.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 9.5 assists. Yet he played on only one championship team.

The greatness of Parker and Catchings cannot be questioned, yet both are still chasing their first WNBA ring. Other players of comparable or even lesser skills seem to reel them in. (We know some quite well heh heh.)

The argument -- who elevates the play of their teammates, or fails to do so --will forever outlast "last call" at bars and exhaust callers to talk shows and posters on message boards.

Have at it.

 

[Icebear]

The discussion about great players who "make others better" or not never ends and never finds unanimity of opinion.

Many great, HoF players never got a championship. Names that leap to mind are Ted Williams, Ernie Banks and Dan Marino. There were dozens of others in all sports.

The question is, did they come up short because they didn't elevate the play of their teammates.

Let's stick to basketball because alone of major sports (ok, hockey too) players must play offense and defense and interact with teammates on the fly.

Arguably, the player who most elevated others had to be Bill Russell. Certainly Jordan and Magic are right up there but there is a reason that Russ has more rings than both of them -- combined! He actually inspired his teammates.

At the other extreme is Oscar Robertson. He had an illustrious career, averaging (per game) 42+ minutes, 25.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 9.5 assists. Yet he played on only one championship team.

The greatness of Parker and Catchings cannot be questioned, yet both are still chasing their first WNBA ring. Other players of comparable or even lesser skills seem to reel them in. (We know some quite well heh heh.)

The argument -- who elevates the play of their teammates, or fails to do so --will forever outlast "last call" at bars and exhaust callers to talk shows and posters on message boards.

Have at it.

Well said, Kib. Baseball is an awkward sport to address the issue from because within the team concept so much of the game is complex set of one on one interactions. Football can have impact players on either side of the ball who help make teammates better but basketball is probably the sport where this characteristic is most fully revealed for the reasons you note. A player can make other players better by demonstrating they are willing to do all the little things besides the star things; boxing out on the boards, setting picks and screens, executing both ends of the pick and roll, providing defensive help, taking the assist instead of the basket when someone else has a quality shot. All these and more of how you show leadership and inspire others to the highest level of effort and performance they can attain.

 

[UcMiami]

I think Parker is a great player but I think LA is just not as good a team as MN. Last year and this year MN has proved to have really good chemistry and a really good bench to go with a starting five that is fabulous. Whalen, Augustus, Moore and Brunson are all phenominal players - three of them were on the USA team, and the fourth probably should have been. That is not something you can say about any other team in the WNBA

 

[wire chief]

It amazes me that a one point victory becomes grounds for extensive text on what's wrong with LA.
Alana makes that shot and suddenly we'd have nothimg to say about that topic.

As a sidebar, I was really irritated at the lovefest the announcers went on ad nauseum about Parker's play.
Surely they could have spared some accolades for Whalen.

 

[VAMike23]

The interesting thing is that next year, LA won't be any better (in theory). They obviously will have a draft pick, but it won't be a game changer like Nneka was. Minny, on the other hand, will hopefully have a healthy Adair and Harris (but probably lose Taj). Phx will add Griner, and hopefully have a healthy Taylor, etc. back. Seattle may be healthy for the whole year.

This is the big question mark for Minny next year.

Taj has been a bit up and down in the post season, but in numerous games her contributions have been priceless. Last year, Adair was really starting to play well and was a force off the bench. Amber is always a little more of a question mark but despite limited minutes she has been fairly effective of late. Dev is good but does not have the length to bother the top forwards like Parker, who is 6'4".

Adair *has* to return to form next year for the Lynx to be a contender because I am pretty sure Taj is gone, as you pointed out. Even then Taj's departure is a huge loss. If Amber can figure some things out and play with more fire on the defensive end, then Minny will have as good a shot as anyone next year. She just needs to do more of the basics: boxing out, hands up for rebounds, hands up to block shots, etc. Battle for putbacks and finish. Unfortunately (as far as Minny's team needs are concerned) she looks like she would rather try to be the next DeWanna Bonner ...

 

[EricLA]

This is the big question mark for Minny next year.

Taj has been a bit up and down in the post season, but in numerous games her contributions have been priceless. Last year, Adair was really starting to play well and was a force off the bench. Amber is always a little more of a question mark but despite limited minutes she has been fairly effective of late. Dev is good but does not have the length to bother the top forwards like Parker, who is 6'4".

Adair *has* to return to form next year for the Lynx to be a contender because I am pretty sure Taj is gone, as you pointed out. Even then Taj's departure is a huge loss. If Amber can figure some things out and play with more fire on the defensive end, then Minny will have as good a shot as anyone next year. She just needs to do more of the basics: boxing out, hands up for rebounds, hands up to block shots, etc. Battle for putbacks and finish. Unfortunately (as far as Minny's team needs are concerned) she looks like she would rather try to be the next DeWanna Bonner ...

Excellent comments and much better than just saying "i don't buy it". The W is going to be crazy next year. Will be very interesting to see how the top 3 fare once they are drafted and if any other times can find diamonds in the rest of the draft.