Kiah Stokes Double - Double

[UcMiami]

I guess, but the Liberty is only a very strong team on defense, and she is the best defensive player in the league on the best defensive team by far. So I think she is earning her Win Shares, and it's more a case of the Liberty living off her prowess around the hoop. The Liberty is a poor 9th out of the 12 teams in offensive rating, but still have a +4.7 overall rating differential simply because the defense is so terrific.

If the Liberty win the WNBA championship this year, it will not be because they're great at putting the ball in the basket but rather because they're great at keeping the opponents from putting the ball in the basket, and their rookie center is the major part of the reason the balls are not going in for the teams the Liberty play.

I mean it more as a comparison to the rookies on the Seattle team for example - they have so few wins that the 'win shares' are hard to come by on either end!

I still find it slightly amusing that everyone is touting this new version of Kiah when if you look at stats it is so similar to Kiah in a Uconn uniform. She is a defensive specialist who blocks shots, rebounds, and occasionally scores. She is playing really well and helping her team win games. Just a little comparison:
2014 Uconn - minutes per game 18.3, points 4.5, rebounds 6.8, blocks 3.8, shooting: .570/.500/.750
2015 Liberty- minutes per game 24.6, points 5.9, rebounds 6.3, blocks 2.1, shooting: .568/---/.651

She is playing 33% more minutes and scoring almost 33% more points while rebound and blocking shots at a slightly lower rate, and her shooting from the field is almost identical while she struggles a little more from the charity stripe.
She has certainly moved up in competition but that was never her issue at Uconn - she delivered some of her best games against the toughest front lines as a Uconn player (players she is now seeing in the WNBA) - she has always been a spectacular physical specimen so her physical traits are still exceptional even with that move up in class.
Bottom line is she is delivering what her team needs most this year as she did last year and that continues to be mostly defense and rebounding.

 

[Rixxx]

Every night, I am rooting for Kiah. And every game she does something that really shows her BB IQ, like running the break and being rewarded.

My biggest frustration with Kiah is her hands. Fielding passes, going for lobs into the post, and going for loose balls, she will fumble it seems five balls a game. I'm not saying she's costing the Liberty 10 points a night, but I have never had a close up of her hands. Does she have small hands for her stature?