May 2024 WNBA Thread, part II

[WBBTakeover]

Noted.

Criticisms of all coaches even the greats often have a basis in fact. I will say however there would be very few merc fans who would not take the last 3 years of Sandy over the two plus that have ensued since she was politely shown the door. That is she is so so much better than the high school coach, Blue, or the million dollar coach. She was also earning considerably less than a million.

This is clearly an indictment of the malpractice of the administrative side of the organization as well as the new owner.

Based on what I've seen over the last three coaching regimes I would take Sandy back in a New York minute.

But having escaped the dumpster fire in Phoenix there's no way she would return...... Unless she were offered a salary comparable to the million dollar coach?

To paraphrase loophole Lloyd Bentsen

"I rooted for Sandy Bondello, Nate you are no Sandy Brondello.

Apologies, it may be an insult to Dan Quayle to compare him to the million dollar coach

We're approaching the halfway point and the Mercury can't achieve a record better than 0.500 once they reach said point. I'm THIS close to saying that we need to see what Kristi Toliver can do instead.

 

[azfan]

We're approaching the halfway point and the Mercury can't achieve a record better than 0.500 once they reach said point. I'm THIS close to saying that we need to see what Kristi Toliver can do instead.

Absolutely! Given her, intimate knowledge of the women's game, experience, and interactions with fellow players there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that she would be a better option now and most certainly a long run.

In addition to NBA coaching experience and her work with the Mercury her participation on two WNBA championship squads and three All-Star appearances reflect her skill and experience working and successful organizations in the women's game.

If Nate is worth a million dollars a year Kristi is easily worth twice that. More importantly I think it's pretty clear now that the million dollar coach has the chops to continue mediocrity in the valley of the Sun but no indication of any other leadership skill.

Noelle Quinn continues to lead her squad to success and now is above .500 as a coach. It appears that Nate is headed in the opposite direction.

Edit: given the nature of the Merc performance on the road, that is they are a horrible road team, I would anticipate .500 is dream long past. One thing's clear I'm not sure how rested the GOAT will be upon return from Paris. Her performance through the first half of the season has exceeded expectations, one wonders if there will be regression to the mean in the second half or will her 42-year-old body continue to defy mother time.

 

[JellyBean]

That brings the roster down to 10. Will they need to do continual 7-day contracts for the rest of the season?

Probably. I thought they did 10 day contracts?

 

[nwhoopfan]

Lib outscored Lynx 18-8 in Q4 to take a 9 point win.

Chilly shooting for Stewie and Sabrina, 12-40 combined. How did they still win? Nice bounce back game for JJ.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Sky beat the Dream. 19 rebounds for Reese (Stewie had 17 in the aforementioned game). 26 points for Chennedy.

 

[cancontent]

This should be fun.

 

[jdote33]

https://twitter.com/IsabelleMM2/status/1808309563403182471

Quick rant. So happy for Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese becoming all stars. Can't express it enough. Two players with about as much scrutiny as any two rookies in W history. And they've balled out. Im such a fan of the game, so I'm a fan of them two. Ppl can make storylines, I get it. They both r millionaires, happy for them, I get it. Super stars. But they r both true to the game. Sounds superficial or fluffy but it's the best I can do with words. Im talking about the essence of the game, showing up and competing to win like there's something on the line. Both super competitive and want to win, and care. I could go on and on about this. But in this nil era and just how much money and fanfare that athletes attract, u wonder how much the game matters. I mean professional sports sometimes seem scripted and so casual. Not fo these two. That's y I admire Angel Reese, embrace her flaws, cuz that switch from Barbie to dog is just not normal. What Caitlin Clark has done this season, adjusting and making the most of her current skill set is not normal. To me they both represent a lot of what's good about women's basketball, despite having the allure and the pull of all the hoopla and money

 

[MilfordHusky]

Lib outscored Lynx 18-8 in Q4 to take a 9 point win.

Chilly shooting for Stewie and Sabrina, 12-40 combined. How did they still win? Nice bounce back game for JJ.

I was at the game. It was a good crowd, nearly 11,000. The intensity level was generally high. Both teams shot about 38%. Stewie’s shot was off again, but her FT shooting was good, as was her rebounding. Jonquel and Sabrina played well, as did Phee and KMac.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Sky beat the Dream. 19 rebounds for Reese (Stewie had 17 in the aforementioned game). 26 points for Chennedy.

How many of Angel’s rebounds come from her wild misses?

 

[nwhoopfan]

How many of Angel’s rebounds come from her wild misses?

Not that many tonight, I think only 4 or 5 O boards. But yeah, usually quite a few of them are off her own misses.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Okay...Kelsey Plum brought it tonight. Outscored Indiana by herself in Q4. Turned a tight game into a run away. Season high 34, crossed the 3000 point career mark.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Wilson was magnificent in the first half, went quiet for a while, then picked it up again down the stretch. 28 points, missed a double double by 1 rebound, also 5 blocks.

Boston and Mitchell with good games for Indiana. Caitlin did some stat sheet stuffing but didn't shoot well. Same for Jackie Young.

 

[nwhoopfan]

This should be fun.

Those non-Olympians would probably take Silver in the Olympics.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Some lopsided 4th quarters today. NY 18-8 over Minny. LV 23-10 against Indy. And Washington clobbering LA in the 4th, might steal this one after trailing the whole way.

 

[nwhoopfan]

There you go. Mystics outscore Sparks 30-16 in Q4 to take a 2 point win.

Washington has been winning after a terrible start. Hard to believe Dallas won't start winning at some point. I think LA is a near lock for the cellar.

 

[nwhoopfan]

No Hayes for the Aces. Don't remember hearing about an injury.

 

[hoopsnloops32]

How many of Angel’s rebounds come from her wild misses?

Does it matter? They are wildly impressive either way. She had 14 defensive rebounds tonight’s, none of which came from her own misses.

 

[GCKSFN4L]

No Hayes for the Aces. Don't remember hearing about an injury.

She was out for personal reasons. Hopefully everything is ok.

 

[WBBTakeover]

How many of Angel’s rebounds come from her wild misses?

16%, which is a very low percentage.

 

[WBBTakeover]

Last night's Fever/Aces game seemed electric due to the crowd and the players involved, so that's a plus.

As for the actual basketball, meh. The Fever are who they are (awful defensively), so players of a certain caliber are going to light them up. NaLyssa Smith is terrible defensively (like most of that team outside of a select few), but you all know that.

I just hope the Aces can blow out the Mystics on July 4. A 20+ point win at home would be great.

 

[visitingcock]

16%, which is a very low percentage.

The internet Clarkistas assert that tipping her missed shots is the only way Angel scores.

16% is not bad. It's a fun rookie fan rivalry,

 

[JellyBean]

My beloved Lynx had a chance to make a huge statement last night and just could not do it. New York looked really good out there. Sabrina is rounding into her Oregon days. She is comfortable and confident. Great game overall. Hopefully Minnesota can bounce back from this L and refine their focus.

 

[GamecockFam]

Last night's Fever/Aces game seemed electric due to the crowd and the players involved, so that's a plus.

As for the actual basketball, meh. The Fever are who they are (awful defensively), so players of a certain caliber are going to light them up. NaLyssa Smith is terrible defensively (like most of that team outside of a select few), but you all know that.

I just hope the Aces can blow out the Mystics on July 4. A 20+ point win at home would be great.

I have a feeling the Fever are going to be a hot item this off-season. I think they should be able to grab a veteran guard who is a defensive specialist that also can be at the minimum a 3-point threat. I don't know who that will be but I feel like that is the missing piece to this team being able to compete with the top half of the league. As bad as NaLyssa Smith is at defense, the guards are much worse IMO. They badly need a noteworthy shut-down defender at the guard position.

 

[bballnut90]

I have a feeling the Fever are going to be a hot item this off-season. I think they should be able to grab a veteran guard who is a defensive specialist that also can be at the minimum a 3-point threat. I don't know who that will be but I feel like that is the missing piece to this team being able to compete with the top half of the league. As bad as NaLyssa Smith is at defense, the guards are much worse IMO. They badly need a noteworthy shut-down defender at the guard position.

With how much attention Clark commands, players are getting wide open looks possession after possession but are just missing shots. Last night was painful at times--Clark easily should've had 15 assists if not for several blown layups and horrendous 3pt shooting despite wide opens looks. Over the Olympic break, I hope Smith/Boston/Fagbenle work exclusively on taking jumpers from the high post, or work on drives to the basket from there. Every time Clark is blitzed, she flips the ball to them and they are wide open from 15-17 feet and should be feasting on those jumpers like A'ja Wilson does.

Looking ahead, they off load Wheeler's contract and will need to resign Fagbenle at a much higher rate. I'd look for them to try and trade away Nalyssa Smith, who sometimes plays quite well and other times just looks lost. Wallace isn't doing it either and KLS is too streaky. I think they should build their core around Clark, Boston, Mitchell and Fagbenle. As you said, adding in a defensive minded guard who can hit open 3s would do wonders for Indiana.

And not that they should tank, but if they end up in the lottery, they have a strong chance to land the #1 or #2 overall pick. I think Bueckers/Clark/Boston would be an insane trio to build around in a similar mold to Vegas getting 3 straight #1 picks and establishing a dynasty. Even if they don't land Paige, getting someone like Iriafen or Morrow would be a big boost in the front court.