RebKell's Junkie Boards

[Keegan]

I got this idea from emailing with Cam but who do you think is not realising their full potential, not because they're lazy but because they don't realise how awesome they can be.

My one is Penny Taylor. Penny has it all - in offense, she can drive, pull-up, shoot from the outside and even bang in the middle for a bit. She is one of the hardest working defenders I've ever seen and and she has great instincts. We've seen flashes of it like in the 3rd quarter of the gold medal game and a couple of times in the WNBA but she's never really brought her game up to the next level and I really think she can.

My theory is that Aussie girls tend to be a bit too nice on court. Even LJ, who has a more developed killer instinct than most, is prone to this. Though looking at the next generation (Erin Phillips, Renae Camino), this is slowly changing.

Thoughts on similar players?

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[threefrom60]

Sometimes it's so hard to tell if it's the player who doesn't know how good she is, or the coach. (ie Christon last night) Great question though, should be some interesting answers.

[pilight]

Janell Burse. Has all the tools to be a dominating force in the paint but seems content to be half of a platoon, last year with Vodichkova this year with Batkovic.

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[Keegan]

[threefrom60]

To reply to both pilight and Keegan :

I think as far as JB last year, she was extremely hurt, so we can throw that performance out. She was really on one leg and hip the whole year. This year, she was really coming in to her own when Suzy got here. Now, with LJ, Suzy, and JB, they've got to be a sort of platoon, because Suzy has got to get some minutes. She didn't come here to rot on the bench. AD wanted to get all of them 25 minutes a night, with the 3 post lineup, but since that's been shot down so much and unavailable because of LJ's lack of consistant 3 point shooting, it's almost impossible. JB and Suzy, now if you morphed them in to one player, oh my god watch out. Janell is a monster rebounder and shot blocker. She's definitely improved her shot, and her FT shooting, wow! Last night what was she, 7 for 7?? That right there will get her more minutes in crunch time, knocking down FT's. That was a big problem of hers last year.

Suzy definitely needs some post moves. It's a shame she'll probably always get to camp late, because a preseason camp with AD could really help out her post game. If she could do even half as much with Suzy's inside game as she did with LJ's, that would be awesome.


I like Janell for this question though. A little confidence from herself and her coaching staff will and has gone a long way towards her understanding that's she's a much better player than the one that sat on the bench alot in Minnesota.

[Keegan]

Janell and Suzy complement each other nicely. Burse does need to extend her range a bit - there were a few awkward moments yesterday when she was open from 15 feet beyond when she should have just taken the shot (one resulting in a 3 second violation for LJ).

Suzy's just got to get out of Euro mode and into Olympic biatch mode. You can bang with the best Suze. Remember you're the Mac Truck and everybody's just potential roadkill

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[Slovydal]

I'd say, Kelly Schumacher.

Once in a while, she shows what she's got, but never for an entire game - and now she doesn't start...

It's like she just isn't focused.

She COULD be worthy of that starting position she lost.

[threefrom60]

Michelle Snow.

Although she's getting better this year, it's still taken her a damn lot of years to get even this consistant.

[Keegan]

[threefrom60]

Maybe it's the coaching staff? Like how Van can't coach guards.

[Slovydal]

My theory that she couldn't coach the posts was shot to hell when Maria arrived.

[threefrom60]

[Alepp03]

Sometimes I wonder if Tina Thompson knew how good she was in the post. I wonder if she knew that she was a banger-extrordinaire. Her play the last few seasons suggests that she wants to be a perimeter player, and hey, far be it from me to argue with her results, and to be honest, with our current post collection, I think I'd prefer Tina as a perimeter player, but I just wonder if she understand the waves she made down low. I just miss the days of her as an imposing rebounder who would tough the ball to the basket against bigger posts, stop some of the best bigs in the biz on the other end, then pop her 3 as a dagger to the heart moments later. I just miss the banging from that gal so much.

I mean seriously, can you imagine the lineup of Canty, Sheryl, Tina, Tari, and Snow with a bench of Edwige, Janeth, Goodie, Sancho and Roneeka. I mean GOSH!

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[Slovydal]

[bullsky]

Kara Braxton comes to mind. In a few years, maybe even one, she could put up huge numbers night in night out. But this year, shes been inconsistant. 20 points one night, 2 points the other. Shes only a rookie, I know. But she could be huge, FAST!

[pilight]

[el_barrio_96_125]

Deanna Nolan

Betty Lennox - Sure she's arrogant as hell, but she doesn't realize how good she could be if she played under control more often.

Nikki Teasley - She's a 6 footer with an automatic advantage and great vision but plays like she's 5'8, blind and slow of foot in addition to her inability to keep it simple when it matters most. See her bonehead carrying violation in the closing minutes of the game vs. the Libs with the Sparks making a late push.

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[bullsky]

Cheryl Ford. Enough said.

[pilight]

[bullsky]

[mercfan3]

Sue Bird- I know I know, All Star, all everything...but like you said, it's not because she's lazy, she just has so much potential there. Amazing Shooter, but yet shoots 5-8 times per game..Sometimes she plays like she's hiding. Sue has the capability of being..hands down..the best point guard in the league, and she's not right now.

Penny Taylor- Although, she is showing signs of how good she can be, she has..what I call..Ann Strother disorder . She isn't "nice" she's gritty, she does a lot of things that are somewhat unnoticed. However, she can be unneccessarily "quiet" and sometimes she just sits and shoots threes, when you know there is so much more there (a la Ann STrother) And she also, does something that Ann used to do when Diana played at Uconn..She sometimes plays second fiddle to Diana. It's like she's thinking "When Diana's on the court, it's her team, she's the star..I'll be in the background..(I watched Ann Strother do this for two years..before attempting to do it to a freshman last year) But it seems to me, that when Diana is out of the game..Penny takes over, but almost always returns the reigns to Diana when she comes back in..(Sorry if I offended anyone by comparing Ann Strother to Penny Taylor, However, I see a lot of similarities between there games..except Penny is a lot more advanced) I do not think that it is a coincidence that Penny's highscoring game of the year, was the game Diana did not play in..

Iciss Tillis- Although she isn't in the league this year (I think) She seemed like she had it all, but her talent was wasted..although I remember reading somewhere that she eventually wanted to become a Victoria Secrets model..Lord Knows she'd be making more money that way..

[Keegan]

I can see the Penny/Ann Strother thing but Penny has *a lot* more guts and toughness than Strother. If they were on a continuum, Penny is near the good end while Ann is near the bad end.

As for Sue, I've noticed she is a bit less aggressive scoring wise but I'll take that as a nice tradeoff for her improving leadership skills. If Seattle can continue to surround her with good options, it won't be much of an issue.

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[threefrom60]

But her average points per game when LJ doesn't play is much, much higher. I think she went off for 20+ two of those three games last year that Lauren missed. She'd pick up the scoring slack immediately if she had to.

[Keegan]

[threefrom60]

I agree about the dribble penetration, but I wish she could take a layup without falling to the ground. I understand she's trying to draw fouls but still. When she drives and kicks out, that's a thing of beauty, but I cringe every time she drives and shoots, because she always ends up sprawled on her backside on the court.