RebKell's Junkie Boards

[Stormeo]

Welp, looks like the Libs in fact are trying to get a victory for their home crowd

[pilight]

The Sun have come unglued since the techs

_________________
I'm a lonely frog
I ain't got a home

[toad455]

Sun go on a run to end the third. Sun up 67-61.

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LET'S GO LIBERTY!!!!!!

Twitter: @TBRBWAY

[toad455]

Han Xu 2-2 from 3pt tonight!!

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

Twitter: @TBRBWAY

[Silky Johnson]

[RI_Sun_Fan]

With the win, the Sun can finish no worse than third.

[Luuuc]

Predictable outcome but happy to finally see some extended Han Xu action.

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Thanks for calling. I wait all night for calls like these.

[toad455]

Thought we'd get blown out in this out, especially with Charles resting. glad it was a close game and Johannes had another big game and Han Xu had a career-high.

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

Twitter: @TBRBWAY

[Bob Lamm]

Johannes: 27 minutes, 8-14 from the field, 4-8 on three-pointers, five rebounds, six assists, 21 points. Should I rant one more time about Katie Smith's ridiculous, erratic use of Johannes since that game where Johannes was 6-6?

[toad455]

[Bob Lamm]

[Richyyy]

We saw some of Johannes's fun passing skills tonight as well. You don't see many gunners who can throw the ball around like that to their teammates; it's usually one or the other. I really hope she keeps coming back to this league. The WNBA style may actually suit her better than typical FIBA basketball.

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Independent WNBA coverage: http://www.wnbalien.com/

[NYL_WNBA_FAN]

[ChiSky54]

Johannes made her WNBA debut against the Sky in Chicago. In light of the anticipation Liberty fans had, I wondered if she was going to live up to the hype.

In 16 minutes, she scored ten points, had one rebound, three assists and one turnover. I chalked it up to great instincts because she clearly couldn't have learned the playbook that quickly! The fact that her effectiveness plummeted within the next few games made me think that was a coaching issue. So I am glad to hear she had a great game this evening.

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There is nothing new under the sun.

[root_thing]

[NYL_WNBA_FAN]

Numerous interesting takes from this game. First off, given the freedom and spacing to work within an offense not geared toward Tina, Johannes played great. Not only the 21 points but 6 assists and 5 rebounds. Besides that, she made several quick passes that flat-out surprised teammates who are obviously not used to receiving passes the second they are open. I think it demonstrates a few things. First, there are clearly ways to emphasize Tina without OVERemphasizing her. I think quarters 1, 2 and 4 also showed how dire the Libs' interior defense situation has been...and I would say it was even worse without Tina. Tina is not a help defender of any magnitude but is still a pretty good one-on-one defender most of the time. Without her last night I'd say Nayo was the only defensive spark.

Which leads me to something else. Playing freely and easily, Nayo demonstrated moves and quickness that we have seen in the past. When you see players like Johannes and Nayo do well with increased role and opportunity that is befitting of their talent, it's maddening that they are not provided those opportunities more often.

Also maddening was to see the Liberty flying around and playing really hard on defense in the third quarter but not seeing it in the other 3 quarters. It goes back to the issue of wondering why there doesn't seem to be accountability when the defensive energy isn't there at a WNBA level.

Without a defensive force in the middle, this team was never going to be a great defensive team. But when you see last night's performance and look at the talent that IS here, there's just no doubt that there is more talent than a 9-win group.

Hopefully Johannes returns to the Libs next year. Good to see Han get some run in a game where a win meant nothing. She showed flashes of great promise and some obvious areas that will need improvement. But all-in-all a nice showing for a young and very raw player. Her innocent enthusiasm seems like it can be infectious.

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The poster formerly known as LibWNBAFan.

[PUmatty]

So, here's my question: Would Tina have interest in ring-chasing? She is getting to the later stages of her career, and it's not going to happen in NY.

Also, would NY be open to making a big move away from Tina? Would, say, Chicago, be able to package something that would make NY pull the trigger?

It seems to me that a move like that would be the best for all involved at this point.

[toad455]

Tina's not leaving anytime soon. As long as the thought of her playing in her backyard is present, she's not leaving the Liberty.

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

Twitter: @TBRBWAY

[PUmatty]

[toad455]

[Bob Lamm]

Tina Charles has never said publicly--or, presumably, to any of us on this board--that she won't leave New York.

But Liberty fans have offered detailed discussions of Tina Charles's family ties to New York and all the professional reasons (in terms of her filmmaking and other interests) why there's great value for her in staying here.

[PUmatty]

[Bob Lamm]