WNBA Basketball Shines in the Summertime

It is June, so naturally we shift our collective attention to basketball, as nine months of NBA action climaxes in a seven game series between the Pistons and Spurs. And, almost as frequently as a Tim Duncan bank shot, television audiences catch a glimpse of "We Got Next!" or "It's our game!" or whatever slogan the WNBA currently uses to attract a wider audience.

Unlike its male brethren, the WNBA hustles through a quick four month season, competing with the And 1 Mix-Tape Tour and pick-up games at Rucker Park for summer hoops supremacy. While most WNBA players lack the name recognition of Hot Sauce and Alimoe, and it offers no compelling reality show hook to soothe television viewers, the WNBA is an improved league offering better basketball than in past seasons.

WNBA discussions start with the Lauren Jackson/Lisa Leslie argument. For those unfamiliar with women's basketball, Leslie is a 6'5 C for the Los Angeles Sparks, an ESPN commentator and a model who once scored 100 points in a high school game and led the USA to the gold medal in Athens; Jackson is her blonde 6'5 Aussie nemesis, reigning MVP and WNBA champion who posed nude in an Australian book featuring Aussie athletes. Jackson and Leslie lead two of the top teams, are recognized as the top two players in the world and generally do not like each other, especially on the court.

The Jackson/Leslie rivalry is not the only reason to watch a WNBA game. This season, while parity remains, WNBA teams actually field complete line-ups; no longer are the Sacramento Monarchs a shooter away from being a legitimate contender, nor are the Sparks lacking a superstar complement to Leslie. In the Eastern Conference, the Connecticut Sun filled its whole in the middle with the all-time leading shot blocker, 7-2 Polish center Margo Dydek. Unlike the NBA, where the Spurs and Pistons ended the season exactly where almost everyone predicted they would be, the WNBA offers a league filled with eleven contenders plus San Antonio and Charlotte.

WEST
Sacramento
The Monarchs consistently sit on the edge of the championship series, never able to break through, much like their Arco Arena brothers, the Kings. However, last season, the Monarchs dispatched its Southern California nemesis, the Sparks, only to lose to the new kid on the block, the Seattle Storm, who went on to win the championship.

This should be the Monarchs' year. Star C Yolanda Griffith is hungry and desperate for an opportunity to play for a championship. While not in the Leslie/Jackson mix, her rebounding and inside presence is as tough as any player in the W. Ticha Penichero is always near the league lead in assists, and highlight reel passes, and she swears she returned from Europe with a better outside shot. In the off-season, the Monarchs got younger by adding SF Nicole Powell and rookie guards Chelsea Newton and Kristin Haynie. These players add youth, quickness, athleticism and shooting to the Monarchs' roster to complement the already tough inside game of Griffith, DeMaya Walker and Rebekah Brunson. If everyone stays healthy, and starting SG Kara Lawson is currently injured, the Monarchs have enough offense to complement its traditionally stingy defense and make a run for the elusive championship.

Los Angeles
Any team with Lisa Leslie is a force, but with the addition of Chamique Holdsclaw, the Sparks have the best 1-2 punch in the league, something Los Angeles has been lacking since Shaq left town. Los Angeles has a short bench and a new coach (Henry Bibby) who knows nothing about the WNBA, but it does have a tremendous starting five once Mawadi Mabika returns from injury and joins guards Tameka Dixon and Nikki Teasley. If Bibby learns quickly and the players respond to his system, Los Angeles has more talent than anyone and will be a force in the play-offs.

Seattle
So much for playing for a championship team; after winning the 2004 WNBA Championship, the Storm lost several key players. Fortunately, Lauren Jackson, Sue Bird and Betty Lennox remain, giving the Storm an inside-outside scoring combination rivaling anyone in the league, as well as a steady point guard to run the show. Janell Burse enters the starting line-up at C, while Iziane Castro Marques plays alongside Lennox and Bird in the backcourt. The Storm need productive minutes from rookie Tanisha Wright, a 5'11 slasher, to provide punch off the bench.

The Storm possess the tools for a repeat championship, though with a thinner bench, and more compete competitors, a repeat will be difficult.

Houston
The Comets are an aging team, but they remain very talented, with Sheryl Swoopes, Tina Thompson, Michelle Snow and Janeth Arcain. The Comets' bench includes WNBA veterans Adrienne Goodson and Tar Phillips, but the team lacks a true point guard. Dominique Canty should have a big role in the backcourt, but this is still the Thompson and Swoopes show, and the Comets will go only as far as the dynamic duo can take them.

Phoenix
The Diana Taurasi show is supposed to take-off in year two, as the Mercury has added pieces to the proverbial puzzle. Last season, the Mercury were more competitive than most anticipated behind DT, Aussie import Penny Taylor and the emergence of Anna DeForge as the other guard. With the addition of former Strom C Kamila Vodichkova and rookie Sandora Irvin, the inside game is supposed to catch up to the outside game and give the Mercury a chance to make the play-offs. However, Vodichkova has yet to play and Taylor is off to a slow start after reporting late, and the Mercury are in an early hole, which may be too much to overcome in the short WNBA season, despite Tarausi's brilliance.

Minnesota
Katie Smith is the best shooter in the WNBA and Nicole Ohlde and Vanessa Hayden form a nice young post tandem, but the Lynx do not have enough to challenge the top teams for a play-off spot, though they are light-years ahead of San Antonio.

San Antonio
Let the Seimone Augustus watch begin. San Antonio is not a very good team and rookie Kendra Wecker's season-ending injury pretty much ended any and all hope for the season. SG Marie Ferdinand is among the league's most exciting players.

EAST
Detroit
Detroit won the 2003 WNBA Championship and struggled last season to defend the title. The Shock is back in 2005, with most of the same pieces as 2003 and a new hunger. Coach/General Manager Bill Laimbeer took the gamble on Kara Braxton, a talented 6'5 center who would have been the #1 pick in the draft had she not been kicked off her college team and given birth to a baby shortly before training camp, and the gamble seems to be paying off.

The Shock is led by guards Elaine Powell, a steady point guard, exciting SG Deanna Nolan, F Swin Cash and Cherly Ford (Karl Malone's daughter) and C Ruth Riley, all starters in 2003. 2004 pick Chandi Jones and veteran Andrea Stinson provide scoring off the bench.

The Shock match the Monarchs with the most balanced, talented roster, as they have post players, point guards, wings and a bench, which should prove enough to earn a position in the 2005 Finals.

Connecticut
The Sun aims for a return trip to the WNBA Finals and provide the only real obstacle in the East for the Shock. Lindsay Whalen is an exciting, Steve Nash-like point guard, and Katie Douglas is a defensive stopper and shooter at the 2. Nykesha Sales is a scorer and leader on the wing; Dydek is a defensive force in the middle of the paint and Taj McWilliams-Franklin is a tough inside scorer.

The Sun is a tough defensive team and Mike Thibault is a very good coach. The Sun has the talent to beat anyone and will contend for the Eastern Conference championship.

Washington
Washington made headlines over the summer when it traded Chamique Holdsclaw. Then, Head Coach Michael Adams resigned right before the WNBA Draft. However, the Mystics have enough talent to finish third in the Eastern Conference behind Delisha Milton-Jones (acquired in the Holdclaw deal) and Alana Beard. While the depth of talent does not extend too much further, rookie Temeka Johnson is a capable floor general, and Beard and Milton-Jones are Olympic-level performers.

Indiana
Tamika Catchings and the ageless Natalie Williams should be enough to propel Indiana into the play-offs despite its inconsistent backcourt play. If rookie Tan White plays as advertised and adds a new scoring dimension, the Fever has a chance for third in the East. However, Indiana lacks the depth of talent of the top two teams and Brian Winters is not going to get them to overachieve.

New York
New York is tough to figure out and poorly managed, but Becky Hammon provides some outside shooting, along with Vickie Johnson, and Belgian Ann Wauters is a good post player, which alone should be enough to finish ahead of the anemic Sting, but just miss the play-offs.

Charlotte
Charlotte has Dawn Staley and Alison Feaster in the backcourt and acquired Tangela Smith from the Monarchs, yet they cannot score and will not win many games. They will be locked in a race for the #1 pick and Seimone Augustus.

In the end the Monarchs should eliminate the Sparks again, while the Shock upend the Sun. Sacramento against Detroit would be a hard fought, physical finals series, but Griffith's hunger and determination to win a championship before she retires should lead the Monarchs past the more athletic Shock.