Rantings of an Insane Platypus - 21st Feb 2004

Saturday 21 February 2004

This is later than I would have liked but the site has been involved in a server move and as you can see, we have a new domain name!

The Mystics saga continues

#1 The Mystics front office must be disconnected from reality. Couldn't they see that a big gamble at a time like this WOULDN'T be appreciated? Then again, they apparently didn't know about Marianne Stanley's controversial past either until AFTER they hired her.

(Yes, I am aware they probably DID know and that this is an excuse but either way, it makes them look incompetent)

#2 When "intangibles" like loyalty and ties to area are mentioned as key reasons for hiring, there is the distinct feeling of clutching at straws...

#3 It's been mentioned by some that an ex-NBA player is better than hiring a "re-run". Well there ARE other options out there - like good WNBA assistants. Kevin Cook of the Comets, Cheryl Reeve of the Sting or even Carrie Graf of the Mercury (though she is almost a shoe-in for the Mercury head coaching job). There are a lot of good coaches out there with solid credentials - even ex-NBA players with better credentials than Michael Adams.

#4 The real cancer in the Mystics is not the players or even the coaches - it's the front office.

Holland-Corn trade/Merlakia Jones signing

* This trade benefits both teams but I like it a lot better for Detroit. Detroit sacrifice their bench offence but gain a solid young player who probably fits Detroit's youth movement better. Also apparently Kedra wanted to leave so this is a no-brainer for them. Short-term loss for a long-term gain.

* Chancellor says here that he believes Holland-Corn can play the point but she never has for any significant period of time in the pros and I don't think she's about to start now. If he acquired her for that purpose, he's acquired her for the wrong reason.

* Did the Comets overpay for Holland-Corn? It's possible. Holland-Corn is ideally a bench guard as she is a very streaky shooter and would not be effective in certain matchups due to her size. It's also likely that this current time is the peak of Holland-Corn's abilities. I think that the Comets could have picked up someone with better potential in the draft. Of course it's very possible the Comets could have fluffed the pick but I wouldn't trade picks because I am afraid of stuffing it up.

* It's obvious that the Comets are deferring the rebuilding process and are looking to make another championship push now. This is fair enough as most of their core players (with the exception of Michelle Snow) are at least in their late 20s. However I think the moves the Comets have made aren't enough to make a serious push at the championship. They may do some more wheeling and dealing but they don't have much to wheel and deal now. I'd still rank them behind Los Angeles and Sacramento in the West and most of the other western teams are not far behind them.

* Merlakia Jones is a good pickup for Detroit. Unless she rediscovers her shot, she's not going to replace Holland-Corn's bench offence but she can still do everything else ok and maybe Detroit won't need much scoring from her anyways.

WNBL grand final on today!

Yes, today is the apex of the WNBL season. It features defence, rebounding and depth (Dandenong) hosting offence and finals experience (Sydney).

If Sydney want to reverse the results of their previous four meetings, they have to be more dynamic on offence and not just settle into "pass the ball around the perimeter and jack up low percentage shot with 2 to go on the shot clock" routine. They also have to box out and be more aggressive on perimeter defence. Leaving Caitlin Ryan and Jessica Bibby open on the perimeter is just asking for trouble.

I'm going to cheat here and make two sets of predictions. My head is saying one thing (Dandenong *have* beaten Sydney four times this season already!) but as a Flames fan, I believe they can do this.

Head: Dandenong by 10
Heart: Sydney by 5