Ranting of an Insane Platypus - 20th April 2004 (post-draft edition #1)
Tuesday 20 April 2004
The Minnesota/Connecticut/Whalen saga
The histronics (Whalen is being held HOSTAGE by the Sun) and bullshit posturing by both sides in the media was amusing for a brief moment but it's now just tiresome. Maybe the Sun really do think Whalen is the saviour and I'm not surprised they're not willing to give her up easily especially when you consider the fact she's meant to be their point guard and the replacement for Shannon Johnson. So Lynx fans should bide their time and if Whalen flops in Connecticut, the Sun may be willing to be more reasonable. Or maybe the Lynx can sign Whalen as a FA down the road but who knows after a significant period of time - Whalen may not want to go to the Lynx and the "Whalen effect" could be just a distant memory in the minds of Minnesota sports fans.
If Whalen was in Minnesota, how would her fans react to her being given bench minutes? She's not going to start at the point over Edwards and Darling and Katie Smith will take most of the minutes at the 2 (though Smith can also play some minutes at the 3). Some of Whalen's rabid fan base may turn on the Lynx administration and it could get ugly (and if you don't think that could happen, just read this laughable article).
Would Whalen at Minnesota provide long term attendance gains? I doubt it - I find it hard to believe that Minnesotans will suddenly abandon their summer plans and attend Lynx games solely because of Lindsay Whalen. There would be a big short term attendance spike and the Lynx could possibly have some long term gains from that but over the long term, on-court success is the major factor that draws and retains attendance.
Would Whalen contribute to on-court success? She'd be a useful player on any team but the Lynx have more pressing needs to fulfil. The Lynx need interior depth which they got in the draft and they need a bigger perimeter player to either complement or replace the erratic Svetana Abrosimova. The Lynx are fine at both guard positions for the moment and Whalen would only earn bench minutes at best.
There may be a lot of hand wringing, wailing and gnashing of teeth in the short term but I think they'll be fine in the long term. Some people have said though that the Lynx *need* Whalen to survive. If a franchise is so weak that it needs a particular player to survive, I think it should be relocated to a more desirable location. Is Minnesota like this? I hope not.
Tales of the undrafted
Also known as all roads lead to L.A. What is L.A doing to attract these players? Is it the nice climate? The "glamour" of the city? The shallow bench providing opportunities? (I think we have a winner) "Pin the tail on the Lisa" competitions? (Ok that was low ;)
Mendiola is not happy. That's fine I guess but I wonder if she realises why she wasn't drafted. She's got the talent but she really needs better conditioning. Also I wonder if it's clicked in her head that she's got a fairly decent shot at making the Seattle squad if she can get in shape because they'll be needing guards with Brondello likely to be out.
The platypuses recommend Sara Nord and Le'Coe Willingham as good players not drafted who deserve a good look in a camp. Yeah they're a bit on the short side but they're tough and have skills.
My mock draft performance
First round - I got 12 out of 13 first rounders (only missed out on Tillis - like most others, had Mazz going to Sac) and ten of those within one spot of where they were actually drafted. Nailed six picks exactly (top four plus Jones and Wright). Much better than my effort last year.
Second round - I got 8 out of 13 second rounders which was pretty good.
Third round - I got 3 out of 12 third rounders. One of my third rounders actually went in the second (Butts) but pretty much missed the rest of them.
Comments
Why do undrafted players go to LA? Because LA has had more undrafted players make their roster than drafted ones over the last four years...
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