RebKell's Junkie Boards

[Bob Lamm]

[root_thing]

Are these sources reliable? Not that I'd be surprised if Wright were sitting out, but I don't see anything on the Liberty website or their social media. Nor are there comments from other Liberty players.

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You can always do something else.

[J-Spoon]

The less suspicious theory is that management couldn't get any kind of assurance from Wright that she was going sign with the Liberty in 2017, so they thought she might leave and cored her, when the truth was she was considering sitting out, but simply didn't want to make the final decision until closer to the season.

The more suspicious theory would be that Wright wanted to go somewhere else specific, NY cored her to prevent that from happening. A deal with that other destination didn't work out, so Wright decided to rest instead of playing in NY this upcoming season.

#1 seem much more likely

[J-Spoon]

On a different note in the SA thread there was a short conversation about a trade of Zellous for Currie, any opinions? (NY could also throw in the #14 pick if that made the difference.) I know some have suggested Currie before in this thread as solution for our lack of true SFs.

[root_thing]

[J-Spoon]

[root_thing]

[Bob Lamm]

[Bob Lamm]

[Richyyy]

Something like Zellous-Currie certainly makes sense for New York, but I'm not sure if it's of huge benefit to San Antonio. Zellous is the younger player, who you'd expect to have more left, but after her injury issues in Indiana she's been pretty awful the last two years. It probably ends up depending on character, and who San Antonio think would be of more help in aiding the development of their young core (Jefferson, McBride, and whoever they draft this year - quite possible DeShields). I don't know enough about Zellous or Currie to know if either would be significantly better in that respect.

Potentially more interesting than the 3 - I actually like Rebecca Allen, and think Laimbeer being forced to play her more could be a good thing - is what New York are going to do at the point. With Wright out, and question marks continuing over Boyd, is Hartley the next option? Laimbeer's never looked all that interested in using Prince as a point guard, and she's not even playing it in Europe at the moment (she's basically the 2 next to Anna Cruz's PG for Kursk). Does the Schimmel experiment get another year? It's almost like San Antonio's post situation - let's just bring in a crapload of options and hope one or two of them work out well enough.

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[toad455]

This is where I wish the Liberty signed Rachel Jarry. Rodgers, Zellous & Prince could of split time at SG with Allen & Jarry splitting time at SF. Prince still starts at PG. Now we're left with a big hole at SF, especially if Allen doesn't work out.

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LET'S GO LIBERTY!!!!!!

Twitter: @TBRBWAY

[root_thing]

Prince has actually played a good amount of PG in the last couple of games I've watched. However, it leads to a walk-it-up-the-court and then have someone go one-on-one offense. That won't work in New York. There's also the question of how well Prince can defend against quick PGs. The coaches have a lot to figure out, but my guess is that Prince still gets first crack at the starting job, followed by Boyd. I do believe that Hartley was brought in to be a third option. She's the fall-back plan if Prince is too slow and Boyd can't shoot.

_________________
You can always do something else.

[NYL_WNBA_FAN]

Now that we know Wright is not returning, all the other moves make sense. I think starting PG is Piph's job to lose because you want that opportunity to have multiple scorers on the floor. Perhaps on defense Sugar will guard PGs to save Piph from being the first defender on the ball.

But it seems very clear what we have. Rodgers will get a deserved chance to play major minutes. We will have a "big 3" offensively for the first time in the Laimbeer era, which is exciting. We also know Allen was not 100% physically last year, so maybe this year she has more to give.

Extremely different team this year. Definitely better offensively. Defense and rebounding to be determined. This may just be our group. Wright not returning clears the logjam of guards, and it explains the Hartley acquisition.

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The poster formerly known as LibWNBAFan.

[Queenie]

I wonder if this is why Bill was saying lead guard was the position of need during the holiday party... though that would imply the Libs have had some idea of this since December.

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Ardent believer in the separation of church and stadium.

[toad455]

I have to imagine Wright's done. If she were to return in 2018, she'll be 35. She wasn't exactly in her prime last season, so would the Liberty be willing to give her a one year deal in 2018? Would Laimbeer & Co. bring her back similar to what the Liberty did in 2016 with Cash?

_________________
LET'S GO LIBERTY!!!!!!

Twitter: @TBRBWAY

[NYL_WNBA_FAN]

Watching Piph's last game and she looks fantastic. The mobility is there. Cruz is the primary PG for Kursk but Piph's creativity was on display both scoring and passing from both the 2 and 1 spots. We know a Laimbeer offense doesn't really require a pure PG so I don't really expect it to be an issue on offense. And to me most importantly Piph appears 100% healthy. As long as that continues she'll be fine for the Libs in 2017.

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The poster formerly known as LibWNBAFan.

[Bob Lamm]

[NYL_WNBA_FAN]

I feel like Z is a nice scoring option off the bench and Hartley gives an outside shooting dimension that Boyd doesn't have. So I'm not really worried from an offensive standpoint.

I do feel, however, that there will be drastic changes in terms of team defense, physicality and rebounding. The defense will likely be at least ok, but it's definitely going to be different. Subtracting Wright, Cash and Swords may not seem like a big deal, but they provided the only physical and/or size advantages that the team had. While the team will be talented offensively, I'm wondering how they're not going to take a hit on the defensive end.

And we haven't even discussed the leadership angle. The only vocal veteran on the team is Zellous and she's in just her second year on the team and is not a facilitator. So who steps in and helps in that role? That's a pretty big deal.

All this said, the Libs have the look of a potent offensive team. One that can finally get 3 or 4 scorers on the floor simultaneously. That's all important and I think they'll be good. But championship caliber is my goal. In my opinion for that to happen one of Zahui B or Kiah will have to significantly improve and they'll have to find more leadership from somewhere.

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The poster formerly known as LibWNBAFan.

[Bob Lamm]

[Nerd2]

[Bob Lamm]

[myrtle]

I don't think being a leader is Tina's 'thing'. Some players are just that way- kinda bossy and noisy - and others are the quieter, do-my-own-thing type. I think she's more of the latter. Someone else will need to take on that role if in fact it is needed.

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For there is always light,
if only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it.
- Amanda Gorman

[canadaball]

[Michelle89]

People keep whining about Clarks lack of rebounding but then say that Mo Curry is the solution at SF for the Liberty.

Clark had 3,7 rebounds per game last season in 27,6 min and Mo Curry (who is taller) had 4,4 rebounds in 25,5 min. Year before that Clark had 3,7 in 23,1 min while Curry had 3,2 rebounds in 21,3 min. But we never hear anything about Curry being a weak rebounder?

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"Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson were and are the dynamic duo. They're the one-two punch. They're all the clich�s possible to describe people that perfectly complement each other, who make each other better and also bring out the best in the team." �Karen Bryant

[canadaball]