Gabby Williams on Playing for the French Team - ESPN

[BlueSkyGLW]

Gabby Williams doesn't mind doesn't mind missing the WNBA season one bit, very happy to be playing for France.

Williams: Olympics 'where I'm supposed to be'

Gabby Williams, who was traded to the Sparks after being suspended for the season by Chicago, said that playing for the French national team at the Tokyo Olympics is "exactly where I'm supposed to be."

www.espn.com

 

[eebmg]

Gabby Williams doesn't mind doesn't mind missing the WNBA season one bit, very happy to be playing for France.

Williams: Olympics 'where I'm supposed to be'

Gabby Williams, who was traded to the Sparks after being suspended for the season by Chicago, said that playing for the French national team at the Tokyo Olympics is "exactly where I'm supposed to be."

www.espn.com

I think that analysis is a bit too strong.

Based on the article, it is more. "I would have liked to have been able to do both but if I had to choose (which in fact I was forced to) I am very glad I chose to play for the French National team"

 

[JellyBean]

Good article. Thanks for sharing. Gabby sounds happy playing for Team France and enjoying the game more. Messed up that her situation in Chicago was the way it ended up but that could be a blessing for the Sparks next year. Should be a really great match up between Team USA and Team France.

 

[BlueSkyGLW]

I think that analysis is a bit too strong.

Based on the article, it is more. "I would have liked to have been able to do both but if I had to choose (which in fact I was forced to) I am very glad I chose to play for the French National team"

Really? Three things:

1.
"The second I put on the French jersey for the first time, it was completely worth it," Williams said. "I'm so close with my mother, and this has been something really cool for me to learn more about her side of the family, since I grew up in the States.

"I am half-French, and to actually spend time in France and see my family there has been awesome. I know my mom and her side of the family have always been proud of me. But now they can say I'm playing for Les Bleues."

This alone would be enough.

2.
Williams said she found out about the suspension "basically through social media," and it surprised her, as she thought they had an understanding.

"It was extremely shocking, to say the least," Williams said. "It was a complicated situation with me having to miss so many games, but I thought from the get-go there was never an expectation for me to be at [WNBA] training camp."

She was the one who requested the trade.

3. Swiss Army Knife was an accommodation to team first mind set. That attitude remains but with the French team, they have her concentrate on being a 2 guard/wing (if the same role as in Hungary, then a playmaker at that position which led to her first team All-EuroLeague status at the end of the season)

But she also appreciates the opportunity with France to focus on shooting guard/wing, where she is most comfortable. That's also what she's done with her overseas team in Hungary.

"It's always been my mindset to put the team first; 'OK, where do you need me? I'll be the missing puzzle piece,'" Williams said. "And it's a way to keep a job in the WNBA, because there are so few spots. A way to keep myself useful.

"But the thing about playing different positions is that I never really got great at anything, I just got really good at a lot of different things. It has for sure helped me -- I'm not saying it's a bad thing -- but now I'm ready to take the next step in my career."

And so, she says:

"I feel like I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be, and going in the direction I've always wanted to go in," Williams said from Tokyo. "I'm giving my all into what I want to give my all into.

"I'm finally happy playing basketball again. Really just enjoying myself; basketball is fun for me. And I feel like I'm becoming the player I've always wanted to strive to be."

And now, she finds herself given a path to be greater than she was as a Swiss Army Knife.....under less time pressure (of rushing back to the Sky).....and, for sure, continue working on this path after the Olympics in preparation for the EuroLeague AND the WNBA next season.

Too strong an analysis? (That tinge of regret was likely for the loss of WNBA income, which will now be partially offset by whatever she will earn in France before returning to her Hungarian team.)

 

[EdSaid]

Wish we had another lock down defender like her or KN.

 

[BlueSkyGLW]

Christyn will be better this coming year.....two things she hopefully has been working on: quicker with her feet for positioning and faster read of the opponent's offense in order to react correctly and in time.....she learned to work hard on defense late last year but now she has to do it the whole season.

Nika works harder but last year was a new one for her in the read, react and concatenate on defense so that they all move as if controlled by a string.

Hopefully, Evina is fully healthy now - she was a little slow when they were switching but that was understandable since she was playing while trying to get healthy as well as getting rid of the rust.....

They did get better defensively towards the end of the year after Arkansas......until against Arizona.

 

[willtalk]

Really? Three things:

1.
"The second I put on the French jersey for the first time, it was completely worth it," Williams said. "I'm so close with my mother, and this has been something really cool for me to learn more about her side of the family, since I grew up in the States.



3. Swiss Army Knife was an accommodation to team first mind set. That attitude remains but with the French team, they have her concentrate on being a 2 guard/wing (if the same role as in Hungary, then a playmaker at that position which led to her first team All-EuroLeague status at the end of the season)

If she is a Swiss Army Knife , shouldn't she be playing for the Swiss team?

 

[BlueSkyGLW]

Olympics? Too complicated, was French citizen at birth and US, too.

Must have crossed the border to Switzerland from France as a girl to learn how to be Swiss Army Knife a few times though?

 

[Fairfield Fan]

Whoa!!! Didn't realize that Chicago management gave her a raw deal. I think Boneyard understood that a "suspension" was automatic for players who were on Olympic teams. Apparently not! What a bad move for Chicago!!

 

[UConnCat]

 

[Carnac]

Wish we had another lock down defender like her (Gabby) or Kia Nurse.

Ed, I've been singing THAT song for the last 3 months, with an emphasis on the "LOCK-DOWN." At some point during the regular season, you're going to need a lock-down defender to keep an opponent's best scorer in check. It may only be for a game or two. But in March, you can't afford a loss. THAT is when having a lock down defender pays BIG dividends, and will help a team "survive and advance." You're playing the best teams in the country in March, that's why they're there. Most teams in the tournament will not be intimidated by UConn. They see UConn as nothing more than a "speed bump" on the way to the championship round of play. Ask Arizona what their mindset was going into the game with UConn. They led practically the entire game. I believe UConn had a 1 point lead briefly in the 3rd quarter.