If You're Tulsa, Phoenix, Washington would you trade for Angel?

[Wbbfan1]

If you're Tulsa, Phoenix, Washington or NY would you trade this years #1 Pick for Angel? If you did then you're no longer in the Griner/EDD/Diggins lottery. Of course there's no guarantee that a team win the lottery or come in 2nd to get Griner or EDD. While Griner will end up a better player then Angel, will EDD?

 

[Wonkster]

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I'd consider it if she was willing to undergo an extensive psychological examination. I mean, what am I getting for my money, anyway?

No franchise needs a flake with a duffel bag of problems. Will she play every night or sulk somewhere?

 

[Coler]

I'd consider EDD a better player then Angel in some ways even now. She's certainly a much better teammate then Angel is.

 

[Outside Shot]

Wacky situation. Does anyone believe EDD will have a long WNBA career? Is she willing to go far from home to play overseas and in the WNBA? As crazy as Angel may be, she is immensely talented and she shows up.

 

[PacoSwede]

If you are Atlanta, would you give up Angel for the chance to get Griner, with the odds one in 3 (or however many are in the lottery -- I don't know) with the booby prizes being EDD or Diggins or whoever?

I don't like those odds, and wouldn't gamble away Angel despite the potential of Griner, who in fact COULD be a flop, as doubtful as that may be. The booby prizes wouldn't be much compensation, in my book. Just a sop.*

* If there were a guarantee EDD would commit to playing for the long term, she MIGHT be a decent trade for Angel... Still, Angel is WNBA-proven, EDD ain't.

 

[UcMiami]

If you are Atlanta, would you give up Angel for the chance to get Griner, with the odds one in 3 (or however many are in the lottery -- I don't know) with the booby prizes being EDD or Diggins or whoever?

I don't like those odds, and wouldn't gamble away Angel despite the potential of Griner, who in fact COULD be a flop, as doubtful as that may be. The booby prizes wouldn't be much compensation, in my book. Just a sop.*

* If there were a guarantee EDD would commit to playing for the long term, she MIGHT be a decent trade for Angel... Still, Angel is WNBA-proven, EDD ain't.

Absolutely agree - Angel is a very complete player who shows up almost every game (no one is perfect) and is a force on both ends of the floor and has proven over two seasons to have staying power.
Griner is a phenom and should be a great pro, but ... 1. She will be playing daily against very strong and talented centers who are more used to playing against tall players, and 2. I do not want this to sound negative, but I do not think she is yet very mature. I think she is young emotionally for her age which is why she has only just dipped her toe into USA basketball. I believe she will have a harder emotional transition to the pro ranks, though I do not in any way question her skill.
As for EDD - same question in terms of emotional transition. And for her, I think the transition in her game will be more difficult in learning to play team ball with other great players.
As for Diggins - would not make that trade - she should be a very good pro, but I doubt she is going to be as impactful as Angel who could well be the MVP one of these years.
Given the above - in a lottery no way I make that trade.

 

[VAUConnFan]

Angel has missed exactly one game in her previous three years in the league. Exactly one.
Please explain how she has gotten this repuation now for being crazy, flaky, sulking? And how are these accusations/observations/opinions/diagnoses/analyses being bantered about without knowing one single fact about what is going on with Angel?

 

[jdubct]

If I had the rights to Griner, I wouldn't trade her for any one player in the world. If I were Atlanta, I would only consider trading Angel for only a few WNBA players and would trade her for the rights for EDD or Diggins.

 

[Scotter]

What do you mean by "team ball"? Offensively EDD has always played team ball. It is what made her a super great fit for UConn as a basketball player. While she has always been the primary scorer, she scores within the context of the offense. The ways she scores keeps her teammates involved and she is a willing and unselfish passer. Offensively she is exceptionally well built to play with other great players. She sets screens, she spaces the floor, she passes, etc.

I do agree there are areas, particularly on defense, where she has been taught to conserve energy that will change in the NBA and where she will have to learn to fulfill her responsibilities as a teammate on the floor.

As for EDD - same question in terms of emotional transition. And for her, I think the transition in her game will be more difficult in learning to play team ball with other great players.

 

[UcMiami]

Angel has missed exactly one game in her previous three years in the league. Exactly one.
Please explain how she has gotten this repuation now for being crazy, flaky, sulking? And how are these accusations/observations/opinions/diagnoses/analyses being bantered about without knowing one single fact about what is going on with Angel?

Thanks for posting that! I agree completely. This was one of the 'great' coaching jobs that Jeff did - the story was that when he took over Louisville he had the video guy put together a tape of Angel's reacting during games - pouts, looks of disgust, etc. He sat down with her and showed her the tape and said 'how do you think your teammates react to this'. From that day forward it is something she worked on constantly and has really changed. She has an interesting face that in rest is not exactly cheerful, she still wears her emotions on her sleeve, but her interaction with her teammates and her deportment on the court has become much more positive. This is not something that is a simple change for people, and that she succeeded is a great credit to her.
As you say she has been a great pro who has been very durable and a really good teammate. Her play for USA this year was great, and she embraced her role coming off the bench in a way that no one can complain about. Her obvious joy in the success of team and in her teammates success was very clear. And her contributions were very valuable to the team's success.
She does not have the warm fuzzy personality of some of our favorites, or the personality of a Diana, but she is an asset for every team she has played for and one that any coach would want. And I doubt any of her teammates would be happy to lose her to another team.

 

[UcMiami]

What do you mean by "team ball"? Offensively EDD has always played team ball. It is what made her a super great fit for UConn as a basketball player. While she has always been the primary scorer, she scores within the context of the offense. The ways she scores keeps her teammates involved and she is a willing and unselfish passer. Offensively she is exceptionally well built to play with other great players. She sets screens, she spaces the floor, she passes, etc.

I do agree there are areas, particularly on defense, where she has been taught to conserve energy that will change in the NBA and where she will have to learn to fulfill her responsibilities as a teammate on the floor.

I think I was referring mostly to defense, but I do think there will also be a transition on offense as well. I think the same was true for Maya both with the Lynx and with USA basketball and it is not as easy as it may look going from being option #1 to being the second, third, or fourth option in offensive sets. For Maya she had at least been playing with a few other AAs on her college teams, for EDD she hasn't had that four years of experience.

 

[EricLA]

It's an interesting question - mainly because it's elicited a bunch of responses. My answer would be three fold. First, no team is going to make a trade not knowing which position in the draft they are likely to get. Obviously there will be 4 teams wanting the top 3 spots since Griner, EDD, and Skylar should be the first 3 taken. I have no idea at this point who #4 will be, but Atlanta would be nuts to trade for the #4 pick.

Secondly, why would Atlanta want to trade Angel? She's a superstar who was one of the key players on the US national team and was often 1st or 2nd off the bench. At this point, the only player of the big 3 i'd even consider trading Angel for would be Griner. Part of what makes Angel great is her defense, which is light years better than even any potential EDD has.

Third, Harding is their 1 and Price is their 2. Both are terrific and average over 9 PPG. They also have Hayes who has shown that she's a terrific guard as well. I'm not sure where Skylar would fit in, and certainly trading Angel for her would be a huge downgrade, and give them a player who plays a position they already have 3 really good players to cover.

 

[Scotter]

There's going to be a transition as their was for Maya to being guard by much better athletes on an every game basis, but I don't think there will be any significant transition to playing with better teammates on offense. And I don't think that transition will be any harder for EDD than it was for Maya.

I think I was referring mostly to defense, but I do think there will also be a transition on offense as well. I think the same was true for Maya both with the Lynx and with USA basketball and it is not as easy as it may look going from being option #1 to being the second, third, or fourth option in offensive sets. For Maya she had at least been playing with a few other AAs on her college teams, for EDD she hasn't had that four years of experience.

 

[rocky rococo]

The "transition" that's going to be a problem for EDD at the pro level is "transition" meaning getting up and down the court, particularly getting back on defense. There's a reason ultimate college superstar Courtney Paris is not a star, or a starter, in fact is barely roster marginal, at the WNBA level, it's footspeed, and EDD's footspeed is in roughly the same category. Courtney could at least do something about her footspeed by following her sister's and Jessica Adair's example in terms of conditioning. EDD's conditioning isn't too bad, she is just plain slow. I watched plenty of her games this year on the UDel streaming as well as the NCAA games, and I'm left to wonder if she has the capacity to run at anything more than a jog or trot at all. I have yet to see it if she does, and it is indispensable to success at the WNBA level. How is she going to cover WNBA 4s her own size like Parker and Lyttle if she can't run?

 

[Coler]

The "transition" that's going to be a problem for EDD at the pro level is "transition" meaning getting up and down the court, particularly getting back on defense. There's a reason ultimate college superstar Courtney Paris is not a star, or a starter, in fact is barely roster marginal, at the WNBA level, it's footspeed, and EDD's footspeed is in roughly the same category. Courtney could at least do something about her footspeed by following her sister's and Jessica Adair's example in terms of conditioning. EDD's conditioning isn't too bad, she is just plain slow. I watched plenty of her games this year on the UDel streaming as well as the NCAA games, and I'm left to wonder if she has the capacity to run at anything more than a jog or trot at all. I have yet to see it if she does, and it is indispensable to success at the WNBA level. How is she going to cover WNBA 4s her own size like Parker and Lyttle if she can't run?

I've come to think that she has learn to conserve her energy. I think she knows there's going to be alot asked of her, and she's going to be playing alot of minutes, taking alot of shots, etc. We'll see if it improves in the WNBA. But I wouldn't compare her to CP.

 

[VAUConnFan]

There's going to be a transition as their was for Maya to being guard by much better athletes on an every game basis, but I don't think there will be any significant transition to playing with better teammates on offense. And I don't think that transition will be any harder for EDD than it was for Maya.

I will disagree only because Ms Della Donne has never played the same level of comepetition, nor has she played on the big stages.

 

[rocky rococo]

I've come to think that she has learn to conserve her energy. I think she knows there's going to be alot asked of her, and she's going to be playing alot of minutes, taking alot of shots, etc. We'll see if it improves in the WNBA. But I wouldn't compare her to CP.

That used to be my opinion as well. It's just that the more I watched, the more striking the fact that I never once have seen her actually run stands out to me. It makes a very fundamental question--can she run at all?--an open one in my mind.

 

[jdubct]

I think EDD will succeed at the next level probably playing a hybrid small forward/power forward hybrid position where speed will not be so much of a requirement.

I have a question. Would Atlanta be willing to trade Angel for Cambage if Tulsa won the rights to Griner?

 

[UcMiami]

I am not actually questioning EDDs skill to play pro ball - all I had posed was that her transition will not be completely easy as she has had less experience playing on teams where she is not the undisputed #1 option, and with players with equal skills to her own. She has never played ball (except short stints with USA) where part of her 'job' wasn't to conserve her energy and stay out of foul trouble because the team needed her on the court all the time.