Olympic Controversy Redux

[Fairfield Fan]

I am astonished by the nastiness of these posts. In no other sport would two of the finest players in the country, perhaps the two finest front court players in the country, get left of the Olympic team, and it would not generate controversy.

I think that it is because it implies that, perhaps, the deity that is Geno Auriemma made a decision that might not have been perfect that posters here have lost their collective mind.

That would account for the fury with which posters here have reacted to what would normally be a perfectly rational question, and a perfectly rational issue.

But to those who are not blinded by their worshipful view of UConn's coach, these players just demonstrated by winning the pro league championship that they deserved to be not only on the Olympic team, but probably starters on the Olympic team.

You might raise all sorts of bizarre questions- Parker isn't a team player, she won't play defense; Ogwumike is lacking in some strange, mystical, unspecified way- as to why they were passed over.

But the simple truth is that that decision looks curiouser and curiouser. And it calls into question the judgement of the Olympic committee, and their entire selection process.

Amen.

 

[Bill Slattery]

Last night, Candace Parker scored 28 points, and Nneka Ogwumike added 12, as the LA Sparks defeated Minnesota for the WNBA championship.

Neither Parker nor Ogwumike was selected to represent the United States on the Olympic basketball team. Parker was rumored to not be a team player. Yet she managed to lead her team to the WNBA championship.Ogwumike was voted the MVP of the league. So why were they left off of the Olympic team?

Yes, Team USA went undefeated, and blew through the opposition. But we have to question again why those two players were deemed not good enough for the Olympics. Ogwumike was voted MVP over Tina Charles, who was selected for the team. If Ogwumike was better than Charles in the WNBA (and let's keep in mind that the season was half over when the Olympics began), why was the decision made to leave her off?

What really happened? Why were both of those players left off the Olympic team?

Some might ask who should have been left off to make room for Parker and Ogwumike. The answer, it appears, would be Sylvia Fowles, who was outplayed by both in the championship series, and Tamika Catchings.

Should Coach Auriemma or the USOC explain why they made the choices they did? Seems as though those two players were so good, and their omission so glaring, that an explanation would be in order.

 

[j66kicker]

But the simple truth is that that decision looks curiouser and curiouser. And it calls into question the judgement of the Olympic committee, and their entire selection process.

Ya - THAT didn't work.....

 

[bags27]

Hey Fairfield Fan, I think you miss the main point, which isn't bashing Candice or defending Geno or vice-versa. We're really trying to say that we don't think this is a "live" issue anymore. Everyone knew how great Candice was last spring, and nothing that she did in game 5 changes folks' admiration for her play. But everything else about why someone did or did not get chosen and who did the choosing for something else 6 months ago is mere speculation, and revisiting it creates a false issue, since what people accomplish subsequently shouldn't reflect back on previous decisions.

 

[msf22b]

Is this for real? I mean haters have to hate I guess... coming here and posting stuff trying to create conflict.

Wasn't there a committee who decided who was on the team? And if there was a committee who decided why is Geno being blamed?

Which players would you have replaced? Fowles? Stewart? Charles? EDD? There were a set number of players and now to say that these two Sparks players should be on the team because the won the championship is absurd. It was not like they won in three quick games. This went to five games. It is not like they crushed Maya, Simone, Lindsey, and Sylvia.... they won the last game by a point.

Stop trying to look for trouble. USA had a Gold Winning Team! That is all that matters when it comes to the Olympics... players who cared more about winning the title than individual acknowledgements.

I don't know if it's me you're speaking of but:

1. I'm certainly not a hater; love Woman's BB, a great (though not uncritical) fan of Geno and the team.
2. I never mentioned Geno in my submission
3. I'm not particularly interested in playing the replacement game (although it's pretty widely accepted that Tamika (whom I adore), was chosen for (essentially) sentimental reasons...even before the season started, it was clear that Candace was a more proficient player at that stage of her career
4. My main point...it's pretty astonishing that the team made up of four Olympians was played evenly by a team with none...Can you picture that occurring in any sport or country (US mens' BB aside because so many of the superstars demurred).
5. The point of boards like this is to have intelligent discourse on subjects that from time to time result in a bit of controversy ...Some have questioned my qualifications in that regard...but I enjoy the ride

An excellent and appropriate redux in my view, considering the series we were all able to enjoy in the past weeks.

 

[Justavisitor]

It shows that coaching is everything. Under Geno, Olympians perform flawlessly. Under other coaches, Olympians may even lose to non-Olympians.

This only emphasized Geno's ability to get players to play together selflessly and define team work. All pieces are equally important. If a player is not selected, she didn't fit in the team, no matter who she is.

I believe a prominent NBA coach in San Antonio has the same philosophy.

Pretty easy to perform "flawlessly" against that level of competition in the Olympics. Even Anne Donavan coached the US to gold.

 

[Justavisitor]

There is no controversy except in the minds of disgruntled fans whose favorite player(s) did not make the Olympic team. The USOC made their choices for the team, the team won the gold medal, end of story.
To point out the accomplishments of certain players months AFTER the Olympic trials as some kind of proof that they should have been included on the team is a non sequitur.

Actually, this isn't true. It's not just disgruntled fans. I saw some tweets from WNBA players last night (not from Stanford and not from TN) that were making fun of the Olympic team decisions. There are several in the WNBA that are none too pleased with the slights. When other PROFESSIONALS in the sport of women's basketball start taking note of these things, it's much bigger than a bunch of disgruntled fans.

As far as trials go, it was Candace that had led Team USA in the fall prior to the selections. She was the only player to post a triple double.

 

[Plebe]

I am astonished by the nastiness of these posts. In no other sport would two of the finest players in the country, perhaps the two finest front court players in the country, get left of the Olympic team, and it would not generate controversy.

I think that it is because it implies that, perhaps, the deity that is Geno Auriemma made a decision that might not have been perfect that posters here have lost their collective mind.

That would account for the fury with which posters here have reacted to what would normally be a perfectly rational question, and a perfectly rational issue.

But to those who are not blinded by their worshipful view of UConn's coach, these players just demonstrated by winning the pro league championship that they deserved to be not only on the Olympic team, but probably starters on the Olympic team.

You might raise all sorts of bizarre questions- Parker isn't a team player, she won't play defense; Ogwumike is lacking in some strange, mystical, unspecified way- as to why they were passed over.

But the simple truth is that that decision looks curiouser and curiouser. And it calls into question the judgement of the Olympic committee, and their entire selection process.

Amen.

The testy edge of some of the replies (I wouldn't go so far as to call them "nasty") is an understandable response to the venomous rancor persistently spewed by other parties toward the selection process and, most acutely, toward Geno.

We don't — and can't possibly — know exactly why Parker, or Ogwumike, or anyone else for that matter, wasn't selected. Nor can we possibly know to what extent Geno influenced the selection process. We can speculate on these questions, and so many people have (often trying to pass off their speculation as undeniable fact), but we truly don't and can't know. Inevitably, each person's speculation merely serves to confirm their preexisting biases and assumptions.

Geno did say in a midsummer interview that the selection process (which takes place entirely before the WNBA season starts) was somewhat hampered by an inability to predict how the upcoming WNBA season would go. No one was predicting before the season that Nneka would have the historical MVP season she ended up having. Last year she wasn't even named first or second team all-WNBA.

Again, it comes largely down to trust. If any entity in the sports world has earned, by virtue of its track record, the right to be trusted, it's the USA Basketball women's national program under the leadership of Carol Callan. She took the disappointing results of 1992 Olympics and 1994 World Championships and turned them into the dynasty we know today.

In view of the fact that this year's Olympic team was notable for its perhaps best-ever performance and chemistry, I'd say that once again the selection process has acquitted itself very nicely. To those who scoff at this by saying that any warm-bodied coach could've dominated with any random roster selection from among the 25 finalists, I say nonsense: look at the last USA team coached by someone other than Geno, a team that settled for bronze at the 2006 World Championships. So, clearly, if victory is no foregone conclusion, dominance certainly isn't.

 

[Justavisitor]

In view of the fact that this year's Olympic team was notable for its perhaps best-ever performance and chemistry, I'd say that once again the selection process has acquitted itself very nicely. To those who scoff at this by saying that any warm-bodied coach could've dominated with any random roster selection from among the 25 finalists, I say nonsense: look at the last USA team coached by someone other than Geno, a team that settled for bronze at the 2006 World Championships. So, clearly, if victory is no foregone conclusion, dominance certainly isn't.

I know some want to refer to it as best-ever, but the competition at this year's Olympics was worse than I can recall. Teams like Russia and Australia have been the teams in previous years that could give the USA some fits, but those teams aren't what they used to be.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Are we talking about Game 4 Candace or Game 5 Candace? The concern, I think, was that Game 4 Candace would have been the selectee.

 

[Plebe]

I know some want to refer to it as best-ever, but the competition at this year's Olympics was worse than I can recall. Teams like Russia and Australia have been the teams in previous years that could give the USA some fits, but those teams aren't what they used to be.

Hence my use of the word "perhaps": a question open to debate with reasoned opinions falling on both sides.

 

[Wally East]

Geno did say in a midsummer interview that the selection process (which takes place entirely before the WNBA season starts) was somewhat hampered by an inability to predict how the upcoming WNBA season would go. No one was predicting at the start of the season that Nneka would have the historical MVP season she had. Last year she wasn't even named first or second team all-WNBA.

That really can't be emphasized enough and serves to separate Parker's non-selection from Nneka's. They're definitely not the same issue and conflating them does a disservice to the discussion.

Nneka's first four seasons are remarkably consistent. She was an above-average but not outstanding player all four seasons. Scoring went from 14.0 as a rookie to 15.8 in her 3rd and 4th seasons. Rebounding went from 7.5 her rookie season to 7.0 her 4th season. Assists from 1.2 to 2.1.

There's literally no indication that she would have a break-out season in her 5th year. Her scoring jumped 25%. Rebounding up 29%. Assists up 48%. Nothing predicted that. How was the committee to know before the season that she would take a significant leap?

 

[Justavisitor]

Are we talking about Game 4 Candace or Game 5 Candace? The concern, I think, was that Game 4 Candace would have been the selectee.

You mean like Game 3 Maya and Game 4 Maya. As someone else tried to excuse the selections and say it was based on previous performances because there's no way to know the future, you could also reference 2015 Game 5 Maya with 5 points on 1 of 8 shooting.

See, we can all play that game.

 

[Justavisitor]

That really can't be emphasized enough and serves to separate Parker's non-selection from Nneka's. They're definitely not the same issue and conflating them does a disservice to the discussion.

Nneka's first four seasons are remarkably consistent. She was an above-average but not outstanding player all four seasons. Scoring went from 14.0 as a rookie to 15.8 in her 3rd and 4th seasons. Rebounding went from 7.5 her rookie season to 7.0 her 4th season. Assists from 1.2 to 2.1.

There's literally no indication that she would have a break-out season in her 5th year. Her scoring jumped 25%. Rebounding up 29%. Assists up 48%. Nothing predicted that. How was the committee to know before the season that she would take a significant leap?

Nneka was in the MVP running during the 2015 season and dropped late in the season. She battled an injury throughout the season that really hindered her performance during the playoffs. In addition, I recall there were some very upset in 2012 when she wasn't selected, so this was no surprise.

 

[CocoHusky]

In view of the fact that this year's Olympic team was notable for its perhaps best-ever performance and chemistry,

The 1996 team had pretty good chemistry-enough to inspire A League of Their Own-pun intended.

 

[CocoHusky]

You are hired.

 

[CocoHusky]

Hmmmm.... I am going to have run right over there and check it out-NOT.

 

[Wally East]

Nneka was in the MVP running during the 2015 season and dropped late in the season. She battled an injury throughout the season that really hindered her performance during the playoffs. In addition, I recall there were some very upset in 2012 when she wasn't selected, so this was no surprise.

I just went through her boxscores for 2015 because you had me curious. After doing that, I'd be surprised if she was seriously consider a favorite for the MVP. Even at her peak, she was at 18 ppg and 10 rbg.

She missed the first four games of the season. Then, she missed seven games at the end of the season. She did not have two consecutive games where she scored over 20 points. To be fair, she did have a 3-game stretch of 27, 19, and 26. But, she also had a 3-game stretch of 6, 8, and 13. She had just five games with double-digit rebounds with the last of those coming in the Sparks's 12th game. From the 13th game on, she averaged just 4.6 rpg.

Looking at her boxscores from last year, there's still no reason to believe she'd make such the jump that she did. Further, having a lingering injury gives even more doubt to the selection committee.

 

[rvwsleep]

Actually, this isn't true. It's not just disgruntled fans. I saw some tweets from WNBA players last night (not from Stanford and not from TN) that were making fun of the Olympic team decisions. There are several in the WNBA that are none too pleased with the slights. When other PROFESSIONALS in the sport of women's basketball start taking note of these things, it's much bigger than a bunch of disgruntled fans.

As far as trials go, it was Candace that had led Team USA in the fall prior to the selections. She was the only player to post a triple double.

"Some tweets" = controversy ?
You have a low threshold of what constitutes controversy.
CP participated in the Olympic trials and didn't make the team. End of story.
This reminds me of the baseball all star game and the annual event of kvetching by the fans of players who didn't make the team. Get over it.

 

[Justavisitor]

"Some tweets" = controversy ?
You have a low threshold of what constitutes controversy.
CP participated in the Olympic trials and didn't make the team. End of story.
This reminds me of the baseball all star game and the annual event of kvetching by the fans of players who didn't make the team. Get over it.

As Magic said, Candace (like me) got over it when she lifted that trophy last night.

 

[DaddyChoc]

I guess Maya Whalen and Augustus shouldn't have been on the Olympic team... cause they didn't win the WNBA title. Now we're into predicting the future smh. If the Sparks didn't win the title I guess it would have been ok that those 2 were left off smh

 

[rvwsleep]

As Magic said, Candace (like me) got over it when she lifted that trophy last night.

Evidently not. You didn't get over it last night or you wouldn't be on this forum posting today.

 

[CL82]

Team USA went undefeated, and blew through the opposition. But we have to question again why those two players were deemed not good enough for the Olympics.

Do we? Do we really?