Is There an Issue With Kristine Anigwe?

[azfan]

BobbyJ observed

" Griner didn’t do anything wrong initially. It was Anigwe who started by pulling down Griner’s arm and swinging it. She can’t help that she’s 6’8 and her arms are that high when she’s boxing out. This was started by Anigwe and she knew exactly what she was doing as evidenced by her running away after starting it"

To the extent BobbyJ is accurate in his description, there is a clear reflection of Anigwe's . . . approach to the game.

This certainly is the most attention Anigwe has received in a very disappointing initial season in the WNBA

 

[Geew1992]

More likely Anigwe was 'told' to get under Griner's skin any way she can. Not a bad trade to get Griner kicked out. Griner has to be smarter. She is so much more critical to the team than Anigwe

Pretty sure she pulled that shit in CT too. Griner got T’d up in the game while defending her. So I don’t think she was “told”, I think that’s who she is.

 

[azfan]

Based on seven years of watching her play I would agree with you.

 

[willtalk]

Yes. Nothing really that extreme with Anigwe play until that baby slap she layed on Griner at the end of the play. Now that was chicken sh!ttt. She slapped her and instantly started running. The pulling of the arm was a bit much but it was done in the process of untangling. They should have not have restrained Griner and just watched to see if she could have caught Anigwe who would have eventually had to run into the stands. We could have had the pleasure of watching an interesting chase. They could have even played Keystone Cops theme music in the background.

It appears that Griner does not have the ability to channel her anger into gameplay, so she reacts after the game is over. The great players you never want to get them mad because they will channel that anger into their play and elevate their game. Giner plays timid and does not get aggressive until the play is over like she exhibited in this game.

 

[Bigboote]

Anigwe is no Nolan Ryan.



Heck, she’s not even Robin Ventura.

 

[azfan]

The FarmFan writes over on the thread - Six ejected, including Brittney Griner, as fight breaks out between Mercury and Wings

I did find this quote striking from the CT Sun coachafter the trade:

Theresa gives us an experienced, young veteran presence who has a tremendous reputation across the league as a fantastic teammate and unifier in the locker room," Sun coach and general manager Curt Miller said in a statement.

As opposed to the player you just traded her for

This post speaks volumes about my view of Anigwe over the past 8 years of watching her presence on basketball teams.

 

[Striper69]

Britney needs to ignore the petty stuff. She should be unstoppable in the middle and lead the league in scoring. Blocked shots are over-rated IMO. She never has had the coaching she needs to be what she can be.

Kinda like what's happening to Gustafson right now.

 

[eebmg]

I thought BG has really been playing very well over the last half of the season. I think Anigwe must have added some language to the physical play to set her off like that but she has to let her play do the talking. Can't be baited out of the game.

 

[Alydar]

Completely agree. If this is the most notable moment of Anigwe's rookie season I wonder what it suggests for her career? That she is the designated enforcer? Hockey at one time had a similar requirement for a bench player.

The NBA too. The Celtics has a guy, Bill Loscutoff. He came in when someone needed to be put on the floor.

 

[Go/huskies]

The FarmFan writes over on the thread - Six ejected, including Brittney Griner, as fight breaks out between Mercury and Wings

I did find this quote striking from the CT Sun coachafter the trade:


As opposed to the player you just traded her for

This post speaks volumes about my view of Anigwe over the past 8 years of watching her presence on basketball teams.

Maybe he’s just giving one player who has a good reputation her props.

 

[CBus13]

Britney needs to ignore the petty stuff. She should be unstoppable in the middle and lead the league in scoring. Blocked shots are over-rated IMO. She never has had the coaching she needs to be what she can be.

Kinda like what's happening to Gustafson right now.

Griner is leading the league in scoring right now at 19.4 ppg.

 

[Rixxx]

Jungle Jim

 

[azfan]

And then there's this. In the clip of this Cal vs. WSU game, Anigwe literally chucked the ball right into a downed player's face. Totally unnecessary; typical Kristine keeping it klassy.

As I've observed in this thread my experience in watching Anigwe has left me completely unsurprised by this recent event. The other point I have made is that in seven years of watching her play I have a sense that she has both a attitude problem and Anigwe first focus. Her physical gifts in high school allowed her to continue to achieve at a relatively high level. Ultimately this me first focus in a team sport is deadly. I have seen Anigwe compared to Stephen Marbury and Russell Westbrook.....not in talent but in approach

 

[azfan]

Since returning from suspension Anigwe continues an unremarkable and undistinguished rookie season. Wondering what the future holds and if Anigwe has received the message that her attitude and play need to change.

 

[ClifSpliffy]

even great players get fed up with punks. deeds, not words. clocked some 'forgotten by history' no-name chump right in the mug.

 

[azfan]

Anigwe's personal foul followed by technical at 5:33 mark of the fourth quarter destroy Wing comeback momentum.

 

[eebmg]

Anigwe's personal foul followed by technical at 5:33 mark of the fourth quarter destroy Wing comeback momentum.

Yes, Anigwe had some issues including a poor offensive play at games end but the TF did not stop the wing's momentum. The technical gave the Dream a 69-64 lead but the wings got the game tied at 71 long after. And Anigwe is strong on the boards (4 O / 5D in 17 minutes) and a pest (maybe overzellous) on defense and she will need to continue to play that way to stay in the league.

 

[Triad]

If I remember correctly, Geno was double-teaming her for the whole first half of the Cal game. When they didn't she was able to out muscle Collier. So she's probably not that over-rated.

So ---you are saying She IS OVER RATED, now we are discussing the degree of over-rating. Is that what you meant?

 

[azfan]

Yes, Anigwe had some issues including a poor offensive play at games end but the TF did not stop the wing's momentum. The technical gave the Dream a 69-64 lead but the wings got the game tied at 71 long after. And Anigwe is strong on the boards (4 O / 5D in 17 minutes) and a pest (maybe overzellous) on defense and she will need to continue to play that way to stay in the league.

This is one of the things I really enjoy about sports discussions. Reasonable people can look at the game in general and games in particular and civilly have a disagreement about what they've seen. In the game in question AO scored 6 points in a row to draw the Wing within four. It seemed there was a palpable swing in momentum and energy to her team. After Anigwe's personal foul and technical the Wings in my view seem to lose that momentum that allowed them to draw so close. Finally with 40 seconds left in a two-point game Anigwee again plays a large part in the outcome by turning the ball over. I will admit I do have bias based on experience and viewing her game over 7 years, perhaps in some similar way to the strong view Husky fans have of AO. In another thread another BYer speculated that I'm an AO fan. In my reply I tried to share that I'm a big fan of women's basketball. While my primary allegiance is to the ASU Sun Devils, University of Connecticut Huskies and the Phoenix Mercury. I do enjoy women's sports in general.

 

[azfan]

In last night's game a big road win by the Wing over the Sky we see a tale of two rookies. AO has another phenomenal game while Anigwe totals more fouls than points four to three and shows why some statistics are extraordinary deceptive as she's +8 on the floor

 

[tazmaz]

Why draft her then? I wish she would’ve went higher or lower to a better situation. The pick didn’t make since and at the time they also had Chiney which really didn’t make since. Lou to Chicago also bothers me, I wish she would’ve gone lower to a team with a good coach. Chicago is just all over the place.

James Wade has surprised a lot of people

 

[azfan]

Anigwe fans got to see her performance with extended minutes in the Wings latest loss. Megan Gustafson was far more effective.

 

[JoePgh]

Anigwe fans got to see her performance with extended minutes in the Wings latest loss. Megan Gustafson was far more effective.

What we also got to see (those of us Sun fans who attended the game) is that Theresa Plaisance (whom the Sun got in exchange for Anigwe so that they would have more experience and more of a 3-point threat as the backup to Jonquel Jones) was not dressed for the game. Apparently she has had back problems all season, and it sounds like her minutes in the playoffs may be quite limited for that reason. I wonder if her back problems were disclosed before the trade. If she continues to be unavailable, then the trade will have been quite bad for the Sun, who will now have to rely on Brionna Jones as the backup center.

The trade was apparently viewed by Curt Miller an the Sun as a consciously Faustian bargain -- go for broke in 2019 to win a championship even if it meant parting with a young player with significant potential. If the player that they got can't contribute in 2019, then they really traded for zilch.

Maybe the league will determine that Plaisance's back problems weren't adequately disclosed, and that the Sun are therefore entitled to additional compensation. Maybe they could get Azura Stevens as the "real" quid pro quo for Anigwe?

 

[azfan]

There may well have been additional reasons to trade Anigwe. As her 26 minutes revealed, more personal fouls than rebounds or made baskets, the former Cal Bear found little success against the weak Sun bigs. I would suspect Agler has a short fuse for Anigwe's Stephan Marbury character.

 

[LoTrader]

I saw Anigwe play in the PAC-12 for 4 years. In her Junior Year, she had a couple crazy games where she had some suspicious fainting spells. Would come out of the game, and, then go back in the game, come out of the game again....just crazy. I hope whatever is holding her back, she gets addressed.