Eastern Conference playoffs first round preview
Thursday 28 August 2003
(1) Detroit vs (4) Cleveland
I would love to see Cleveland take this series out... but it's very unlikely. They haven't beaten Detroit all year (preseason win doesn't really count) and while the first two games were close, the last two have been comfortable wins for the Shock. Cleveland generally play good solid D but are sporadic on the offensive end. On the other hand, the Shock have a high octane offense and their D is quite underrated (second in opponents FG%, best in opponents three point percentage). They have their weaknesses such as being turnover prone and being relatively inexperienced but Cleveland simply are not good enough talent-wise or coaching-wise to take advantage of it. Detroit sweeps in two.
Matchup to watch: Swin Cash vs Penny Taylor. They're the best all-round players for their respective teams and have had some tough tussles this year. Taylor must contain Cash and get some points up herself if Cleveland want to have any chance of winning this series.
(2) Charlotte vs (3) Connecticut
Hardest series to pick with both teams being so closely matched. Charlotte have the experienced backcourt in Staley and Stinson while wing combo Katie Douglas and Nykesha Sales have come on strong late in the season for Connecticut. Connecticut are more explosively offensively but despite having good athletes, their D is nothing to rave about. Charlotte play at a slower tempo and are generally successful at making their opponents play that way as well. Another issue will be point guard play which will talked about a bit more below but to sum it up, Dawn Staley has it all over Shannon Johnson. Connecticut will keep the series tight and considering Charlotte's inconsistency they could pull it off but I'll stick with Charlotte's experience and homecourt advantage (13-4 home record). Charlotte wins, 2-1.
Matchup to watch: Dawn Staley vs Shannon Johnson. This is interesting because it's likely both will end up on the Olympics team (if Staley wants to continue) and could fight for playing time there. Johnson's athletic but lacks smarts and hasn't showed up much in the second half the season. Staley is as smart as ever and has outplayed Johnson in their last couple of meetings. Johnson has to show up (especially on the offensive end) and smarten up, otherwise the Sun are fighting an uphill battle.