Geno Surprised Sky Picked KLS.

[gophers1995]

What about joining Collier on the Lynx? Lynx desperately need 3 point shooting.

 

[CTBballfan243]

is the WNBA just like AAU basketball? If your parents aren’t happy with your playing time, or don’t like the coach, you just move to a new team. Maybe Lou needs to work harder in the off-season. Work on her first step quickness so she can create her own shot. Work on defending. Make the coach have no choice but to play her.

 

[CocoHusky]

is the WNBA just like AAU basketball? If your parents aren’t happy with your playing time, or don’t like the coach, you just move to a new team. Maybe Lou needs to work harder in the off-season. Work on her first step quickness so she can create her own shot. Work on defending. Make the coach have no choice but to play her.

My thoughts exactly. We seem to get one of these post every year: WNBA coach not utilizing former UCONN player correctly (KML, Saniya, Morgan, Azura.....and now KLS). KLS is struggling in her first year in the WNBA-BIG DEAL! She'll figure it out.

 

[Waquoit]

However, I think a natural scorer like KLS would be a better fit on the Aces.

A pretty jump shot isn't the same as being a natural scorer.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

Her mom is correct too. The coach looks like something not too pretty now.

He just won WNBA Coach of the Year, so he looks to be okay, from my vantage point.

Geno's statement only validates the coach not playing her more. It is critical of the GM who drafted her onto a team which really had no immediate need for her skill set. It only justifies the coaches actions, while placing the blame where it belongs- the GM who drafted her. Perhaps they expected to trade her and the deal never materialized. Maybe they can work out a deal for LA's Parker?

This as a marathon, not a sprint. Simply because a player does not have an impact in her first year that means the coach and/or GM should be blamed and the player should be traded?

Natasha Howard was drafted fifth overall. She struggled to adjust to the speed and physical nature of the game (she looked lost on the court at times in Indiana). Once she adjusted, she then earned more minutes. And while they were not available (in Minnesota, her second team), she signed in her fifth season with her third team (Seattle), winning MIP and becoming an All Star.

In the NBA, we see it all the time...teams pick for the future, based on potential/ceiling. Allie Quigley is 33 years old and an established SG (three-time All Star). She cannot play forever. Grooming KLS to adjust to the speed of the game, to bigger and more physical defenders, and to getting her shot off more quickly is something the coaching staff should be and likely is doing.


With all due, as I mentioned earlier, Quigley was an All Star in 2017, 2018, and 2019. For her career, she is shooting 45.6 percent from the floor and 39.9 percent from three. In the last three years, she has averaged 16.4 ppg (2017), 15.4 ppg (2018), and 13.8 ppg (2019) -- while shooting a combined 48.8 percent from the floor and 43.0 percent from three in those three years.

I believe her on-court performance more than justifies her starting position at shooting guard.

My thoughts exactly. We seem to get one of these post every year: WNBA coach not utilizing former UCONN player correctly (KML, Saniya, Morgan, Azura.....and now KLS). KLS is struggling in her first year in the WNBA-BIG DEAL! She'll figure it out.

What is interesting is how quickly people blame the coach, instead of recognizing that the WNBA is vastly different from college. College coaches have systems, with the great coaches plugging players into those systems and masking weaknesses. In the professional game, innate talent about ability wins out.

On the men's side, Christian Laettner was one of the greatest college basketball players in the history of the game. But in the NBA, he played 13 seasons and averaged 12.8 ppg and 6.7 rpg for his career, with one All Star nod. Laettner was not the most athletic player, nor was he the most physical (although, ironically, his game is tailor-made for today's NBA, with a premium on shooting from all positions and the ability of bigs to demonstrate expanded range and passing). Does that take away from his college career? Absolutely not.

In some cases, it turns out the system truly made the player even better than she was -- e.g., Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis. KML was an elite shooter in college -- truly elite. And Geno Auriemma was able to mask her limitations with his system. But her elite shooting and college accolades have not transferred into the same level of success in the pros. What she has found, after five years in the WNBA and three different head coaches, is her role with the Storm -- 12-14 minutes per game off the bench, averaging 5-5.5 points per game.

Is she equaling her collegiate performance and accolades in the pros? No. Is she a solid and vital cog on the Storm's bench? Absolutely.

And she has a WNBA championship to show for it.

If you look at Phoenix this year, there were three rookies -- Alanna Smith, Sophie Cunningham, and Brianna Turner. Turner made the All-Rookie team. When she was inserted as a starter due to injuries, she was able to adjust and defend really well at the four. Coach Sandy Brondello put her on Elena Delle Donne for large stretches. While EDD was able to score, you can watch the replay and see Turner elevating with a hand in EDD's face. The defense was incredible; the offense was just better. Turner started slow, but averaged 6.9 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.21 blocks in her final 14 games.

Now, Cunningham and Smith were not nearly as successful. But as Coach Brondello repeatedly stated, this was about getting the rookies experience -- and doing so on the biggest stages and in meaningful games. Phoenix was an older team this year, with Bonner, January, Taurasi, Little, Lytle, Carson, and Mitchell all at least 32 years old -- and Yvonne Turner turning 32 in October. Given they will not play forever, it is important to groom and develop players, while allowing them to do so.

In Phoenix's case, injuries to the veterans allowed the rookies to have more playing time. In Chicago's case, it did not. Adjusting to the pros means adjusting to the speed of the game, to new teammates (though there were a few familiar faces for KLS), etc. There is grooming in practice, as well as in games.

KLS was injured for 1/3 of the season. But she played in 20 games and averaged 7.7 minutes per contest. Alanna Smith, who was also injured, played in 18 games and averaged 7.2 minutes, while Sophie Cunningham got 12.2 minutes in 32 games (and that was with Taurasi missing most of the season, plus other backcourt injuries and players missing time because of overseas national team commitments). Yet Mercury fans, for the most part, recognize the need to think long-term. Again, it is a marathon, not a sprint.

KLS has plenty of time to figure things out and to find her role with the Sky (or, if traded, another team). But jumping all over the coach/GM based on the minutes of one season (a season in which KLS was injured for one-third of it) seems a bit out of place to me in the professional game, especially since this coach/GM just led his team to the league's third-best record (and an improvement of seven wins over last year), led the team to its third-best record in the 14-year history of the franchise, and won this year's WNBA Coach of the Year award

 

[ochoopsfan]

KLS has plenty of time to figure things out and to find her role with the Sky (or, if traded, another team). But jumping all over the coach/GM based on the minutes of one season (a season in which KLS was injured for one-third of it) seems a bit out of place to me in the professional game, especially since this coach/GM just led his team to the league's third-best record (and an improvement of seven wins over last year), led the team to its third-best record in the 14-year history of the franchise, and won this year's WNBA Coach of the Year award

Mother Jones tweet from August 14th
It was never about the minutes played.

 

[Shmermerer]

A pretty jump shot isn't the same as being a natural scorer.

Ok let me fix that. She’s a great 3pt shooter. With her and McBride on the floor, it would create space down low for Cambage and Wilson to go to work. KLS is a better option to do that than both Youngs.

When it comes to Chicago, KLS is not as good as Diamond and Quigley.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

Mother Jones tweet from August 14th
It was never about the minutes played.

Actually, the exact wording of that Tweet references colleges and minutes. Mother Jones also has tweeted to USA Basketball to correct box scores regarding her daughter (and has done so on multiple occasions)

I also think that is part of the problem -- a professional athlete's parent publicly (and frequently) complaining on Twitter about the coach/GM.
https://twitter.com/Motherjones38/status/1178121756898254854
If the player has an issue, fine. It is between the player and the coach, though that spills out over social media.

But a parent going on multiple rants about the coach -- who led the team to the third-best record in the 14-year history of the franchise and who won WNBA Coach of the Year -- comes across as "sour grapes" and a feeling of entitlement to minutes, playing time, and professional success for her daughter. Whether intended or not, it comes across that way. As others have noted, this is not AAU or high school basketball; this is professional sports.

It also risks creating an alienation of the player and discord with her teammates, who, as noted above, played much better across the board this year as a team and had a very successful season.

 

[Zanzman]

Wow petty mother jones

 

[ochoopsfan]

Actually, the exact wording of that Tweet references colleges and minutes. Mother Jones also has tweeted to USA Basketball to correct box scores regarding her daughter (and has done so on multiple occasions)

I also think that is part of the problem -- a professional athlete's parent publicly (and frequently) complaining on Twitter about the coach/GM.

If the player has an issue, fine. It is between the player and the coach, though that spills out over social media.

But a parent going on multiple rants about the coach -- who led the team to the third-best record in the 14-year history of the franchise and who won WNBA Coach of the Year -- comes across as "sour grapes" and a feeling of entitlement to minutes, playing time, and professional success for her daughter. Whether intended or not, it comes across that way. As others have noted, this is not AAU or high school basketball; this is professional sports.

It also risks creating an alienation of the player and discord with her teammates, who, as noted above, played much better across the board this year as a team and had a very successful season.

There is so much more behind this that isnt public and that I wont speak about either. Also, on August 14th, the day of the tweet posted, Coach Wade had not won the most games in franchise history and had not won coach of the year either. The team was 14-10, This is not sour grapes.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

There is so much more behind this that isnt public and that I wont speak about either. Also, on August 14th, the day of the tweet posted, Coach Wade had not won the most games in franchise history and had not won coach of the year either. The team was 14-10, This is not sour grapes.

And yet, at 14-10 as of August 14, the team was solidly in the playoffs and a top-five team at that. Also, as I mentioned above, the exact wording of that Tweet references colleges and minutes, not refuting any argument about the WNBA and minutes.

Also, with 14 wins in 24 games, Wade surpassed the two previous seasons' win totals -- 12-22 record in 2017, 13-21 record in 2018 -- with ten games to go in the regular season. That is the very definition of improvement and the road to a successful season. And, as of August 14, Wade was the leading candidate for WNBA Coach of the Year (which he won).

But my point still stands that this part of the problem -- a professional athlete's parent publicly (and frequently) complaining on Twitter about the coach/GM.

As a correction to your post, I never stated that Wade won the most games in franchise history. In my post above, I clearly stated, "third-best record in the 14-year history of the franchise" (emphasis added). But this year's Sky team had the most wins without having Elena Delle Donne on the team (which she was for 2013 and 2015, in which the team won 24 and 21 games, respectively) and Sylvia Fowles (who played for the Sky in 2015, but sat out the 2015 season to force a trade).

 

[Dokey]

Wade played it conservatively, which is no a bad thing given how Sky finished last couple of years. The starting five worked okay together but to get better changes need to be made. That means, among other things, another consistent 15-20 point scorer. That could well be KLS.

 

[Huskee11]

Lou was the heart and soul of UConn WBB for the last three seasons. She fought like a warrior through injury, illness, and opponents whacking her in the head repeatedly to lead the Huskies to numerous wins and only five losses, three in the Final Four and NONE at home. I had the opportunity to see her (and Napheesa) play for UConn at least 40 times in person and consider myself very lucky to have had that privilege.

She played well in the Americup and I am sure that she will do well in Europe. I see a bright future for her in the WNBA as well. It is rare that anyone playing sports has a career that follows a straight line trajectory upward. There are oftentimes bumps in the road. The silver lining is that Lou is probably as healthy as she has been in years. She has also shown a willingness and ability to expand her game. Keep in mind, she was fairly young for even her college class and is only 22.

I am not privy to precisely what ochoopsfan is referring to but I have no doubt that it is important.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

Wade played it conservatively, which is no a bad thing given how Sky finished last couple of years. The starting five worked okay together but to get better changes need to be made. That means, among other things, another consistent 15-20 point scorer. That could well be KLS.

In terms of advanced statistics...

The Vandersloot/Quigley/DeShields/Dolson/Lavender lineup (23 games played together at the same time) had an OFFRTG (offensive rating; points scored per 100 possessions) of 104.6, while its DEFRTG (defensive rating; points allowed per 100 possessions) was 95.4.

In terms of all teams and all lineups that played at least 75 minutes together in the regular season, this lineup for Chicago ranked 7th overall in the entire WNBA.

When Lavender was injured (and in prior games when she was on the bench), the Vandersloot/Quigley/DeShields/Dolson/Ndour lineup (14 games played together at the same time) had an OFFRTG of 107.4 and a defensive rating of 98.8.

In terms of all teams and all lineups that played at least 75 minutes together in the regular season, this lineup for Chicago ranked 6th overall in the entire WNBA.

In terms of team OFFRTG for the season, Washington was far and away the best (112.9), but Chicago finished 2nd in the WNBA (101.6). And compare the defensive rating starting lineup for Chicago (with Lavender) -- 95.4 -- with the overall marks. Only one team (Las Vegas) had a better mark for the season than that Chicago lineup (Chicago, overall, had a defensive rating of 100.1.

I disagree that Coach James Wade played it "conservatively" or that the starting lineup for Chicago was just "okay." The starting lineup was incredibly good. Chicago needs to develop its bench, for one. In addition, the young players -- specifically, Diamond DeShields, KLS, and Gabby Williams -- need to improve their overall shooting, especially from three. But it appears the franchise has turned a corner, from the near-cellar-dwelling days of former HC Amber Stocks.

 

[maccca3232]

In terms of advanced statistics...

The Vandersloot/Quigley/DeShields/Dolson/Lavender lineup (23 games played together at the same time) had an OFFRTG (offensive rating; points scored per 100 possessions) of 104.6, while its DEFRTG (defensive rating; points allowed per 100 possessions) was 95.4.

In terms of all teams and all lineups that played at least 75 minutes together in the regular season, this lineup for Chicago ranked 7th overall in the entire WNBA.

When Lavender was injured (and in prior games when she was on the bench), the Vandersloot/Quigley/DeShields/Dolson/Ndour lineup (14 games played together at the same time) had an OFFRTG of 107.4 and a defensive rating of 98.8.

In terms of all teams and all lineups that played at least 75 minutes together in the regular season, this lineup for Chicago ranked 6th overall in the entire WNBA.

There are only 28 combinations that meet your criteria (min.75 mins). The ranks you provide are for offense. Offense is only half the game, if you look at net rating they are 11th and 14th.

I did find that their 5 most common lineups had the same 3 guards (no surprise) with different combination of 4 forwards.

The average lineup was Dolson with anyone (Parker, Lavender or Ndour all between +8.6 and +11.1).
The worst was Parker and Lavender (-26.1)
The best was Parker and Ndour (+28.6)

 

[RockyMTblue2]

Actually, the exact wording of that Tweet references colleges and minutes. Mother Jones also has tweeted to USA Basketball to correct box scores regarding her daughter (and has done so on multiple occasions)

I also think that is part of the problem -- a professional athlete's parent publicly (and frequently) complaining on Twitter about the coach/GM.

If the player has an issue, fine. It is between the player and the coach, though that spills out over social media.

But a parent going on multiple rants about the coach -- who led the team to the third-best record in the 14-year history of the franchise and who won WNBA Coach of the Year -- comes across as "sour grapes" and a feeling of entitlement to minutes, playing time, and professional success for her daughter. Whether intended or not, it comes across that way. As others have noted, this is not AAU or high school basketball; this is professional sports.

It also risks creating an alienation of the player and discord with her teammates, who, as noted above, played much better across the board this year as a team and had a very successful season.

I'll add to this polemic/diatribe/sermon. and good eating later!

 

[Orangutan]

And, you know, an all-star and one of the best pure shooters in basketball.

 

[Orangutan]

So you're saying she could start for a team that made the semis when she couldn't get off the bench for an inferior team?

I don't know about "inferior". It took a major braincramp from Vandersloot and a 40-footer prayer from Hamby for Vegas to beat Chicago in the playoff game and Vegas was at home.

 

[Orangutan]

is the WNBA just like AAU basketball? If your parents aren’t happy with your playing time, or don’t like the coach, you just move to a new team. Maybe Lou needs to work harder in the off-season. Work on her first step quickness so she can create her own shot. Work on defending. Make the coach have no choice but to play her.

That's the thing - all this trade talk is wishful thinking. Chicago has no incentive to trade her at this point. They're very unlikely to get fair value after she played so little as a rookie.

Yes, players have forced trades in the WNBA before but people like Charles and Delle Donne who have forced trades were able to do so because they had leverage. Even if Lou holds out (and I doubt she would do that), Chicago has no incentive to cave and trade her.