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johnjohnW
Joined: 11 Aug 2020
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 Posted: 05/22/22 3:47 pm ::: Star Power |
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Watching this Chicago/Washington game has me thinking about the amount of star power the league is going to lose in the next few years. We know this Bird and Fowles (and January's) last year. Very likely DT retires this year next year. I can't imagine we will get more than 3 years from Parker or EDD at this point. You never know when Cambage will skip town. Griner's situation is heartbreaking and unknown.
I just hope Aja and Stewie develop a compelling rivalry as the league is in their hands.
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myrtle
Joined: 02 May 2008
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| Posted: 05/22/22 4:03 pm ::: |
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JJ is right in there with Stewie and A'ja.
There are others with fabulous skills, but not clear yet if they will have the personalities to go with their skills.
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WfanFrJmp
Joined: 24 May 2016
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| Posted: 05/22/22 4:14 pm ::: |
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Indeed, it is sad to think about all of the greats that will be retiring soon. They have truly upheld the standard well and helped push the league forward!
Along with JJ, A'ja and Stewie, it may be early but right now it looks like Rhyne and Shakira may indeed help carry torch. Those ladies have stepped in looking comfortable and seemingly without intimidation. Wings: Kah, Diamond, Atkins (I don't think she's interested in the stardom though) ...On the 1-2 guard side, shucks, I'm not sure... So many of the really good, proven guards are near retirement or mid career... and it is hard to say what will translate from college. The next few years will definitely be interesting!
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johnjohnW
Joined: 11 Aug 2020
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| Posted: 05/22/22 4:29 pm ::: |
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| There are obviously stand outs in the players that have only been in the league 5 years but the majority of the players seem to lack individuality that makes a player compelling. When I look at these rookie heavy rosters like NY, Atlanta and Dallas, the majority of the players feel like the "build a player" generic templates.
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WfanFrJmp
Joined: 24 May 2016
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J-Spoon
Joined: 31 Jan 2009
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| Posted: 05/22/22 6:08 pm ::: |
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I am not sure we are going to see anyone in the next few years have the on the court off the court impact of Bird, Parker or Taurasi. Parker is killing it on NBA TV and TBS, Bird is in a bunch of commercials, is now considered the OG goat and is part of a couple that has pushed her even further into the public eye, and DT has been a legend pretty much since she stepped on the scene at UConn in a way that comes along very rarely for athletes of any gender.
Yes on the court Stewart, Wilson and J. Jones are going to carry the league into and through the 2020s but none of them are going to rise to the level of fame or notoriety of the previous three, nor do they have to really, there are many star athletes who don't become parts of pop culture. Diggins-Smith seemed on her way to be bigger pop culture profile than anyone else from her generation but that seems to have flattened out recently, the pandemic probably through this generations stars off a bit as well.
I could see Arike step into that role slightly more than the ones above because her style of play has an "it" factor to it that gets you on ESPN highlights and her final four buzzer beaters transcended the usual coverage of the women's game and she seems to be making moves outside of the court that could pay off in bigger ways. (Carter has similar flash to her game but TBH I can't remember the last time I saw her interviewed and she hasn't made any mark in terms of commercials or social media that I am aware of). It seems like the league and maybe some Hollywood types are pinning some hopes to Ionescu as she has been very hyped, and has already made a number of high visiblity commercials and appearances, but the pandemic, her injury and the lack of success for the Liberty in her short tenure have really slowed that train. Buekers seems like the next up and coming star who could transcend as she is already hyped in a way you don't see women basketball players hyped too often, and she has a personality that should garner both some positive and negative attention and that seems to propel players to greater status outside of the game. It would probably help Paige if UConn started to dominate again, win an NCAA championship and maximize her coverage. (Probably wouldn't hurt if they could amp up a rivalry between her and Clark as well). Boston will be an on the court star for her whole career but she gives me a Tim Duncan kind of vibe. Maybe a little too calm or humble, but she already has a NCAA title, might repeat, will probably be an all-star and maybe even an Olympian so she will get her chance.
In this new day and age of social media we might also start to see players who aren't as big of stars on the court break through in other ways. I am thinking about someone like Didi Richards who has a pretty strong social media presence, or N. Cloud. There are definitely new opportunities for players to make an impact.
I realize I kind of took the term star power in a different direction but this is what it got me thinking about
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mercfan
Joined: 08 May 2013
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| Posted: 05/22/22 9:38 pm ::: |
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If Clark steps on to the scene with a game that translates immediately, she will quickly be the most polarizing player in the league. Everyone will hate her unless you are rooting for the team she is dropping 25 a night for.
Other than that, not much in terms of media stardom.
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root_thing
Joined: 28 Apr 2007
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| Posted: 05/22/22 11:27 pm ::: |
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| If NIL money is any indication, supposedly the top two by a wide margin are Paige Bueckers and Haley Van Lith.
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Aladyyn
Joined: 23 Jul 2017
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| Posted: 05/23/22 2:33 am ::: |
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| WfanFrJmp wrote: |
Indeed, it is sad to think about all of the greats that will be retiring soon. They have truly upheld the standard well and helped push the league forward!
Along with JJ, A'ja and Stewie, it may be early but right now it looks like Rhyne and Shakira may indeed help carry torch. Those ladies have stepped in looking comfortable and seemingly without intimidation. Wings: Kah, Diamond, Atkins (I don't think she's interested in the stardom though) ...On the 1-2 guard side, shucks, I'm not sure... So many of the really good, proven guards are near retirement or mid career... and it is hard to say what will translate from college. The next few years will definitely be interesting! |
Plum is probably the safest bet
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pilight
Joined: 23 Sep 2004
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| Posted: 05/23/22 6:54 am ::: |
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| root_thing wrote: |
| If NIL money is any indication, supposedly the top two by a wide margin are Paige Bueckers and Haley Van Lith. |
It pays to be blonde
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Iluvacc
Joined: 11 Jun 2005
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| Posted: 05/23/22 8:11 am ::: |
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| mercfan wrote: |
If Clark steps on to the scene with a game that translates immediately, she will quickly be the most polarizing player in the league. Everyone will hate her unless you are rooting for the team she is dropping 25 a night for.
Other than that, not much in terms of media stardom. |
Yep, stardom is not guaranteed. I for sure thought Sabrina would be a superstar by now, although she was looking pretty goo before that ankle injury in the wubble.
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Iluvacc
Joined: 11 Jun 2005
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| Posted: 05/23/22 8:13 am ::: |
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| pilight wrote: |
| root_thing wrote: |
| If NIL money is any indication, supposedly the top two by a wide margin are Paige Bueckers and Haley Van Lith. |
It pays to be blonde |
Indeed it does! I would put my money more on Paige than Haley though.
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ucbart
Joined: 21 Nov 2004
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| Posted: 05/23/22 10:01 am ::: |
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| Iluvacc wrote: |
| mercfan wrote: |
If Clark steps on to the scene with a game that translates immediately, she will quickly be the most polarizing player in the league. Everyone will hate her unless you are rooting for the team she is dropping 25 a night for.
Other than that, not much in terms of media stardom. |
Yep, stardom is not guaranteed. I for sure thought Sabrina would be a superstar by now, although she was looking pretty goo before that ankle injury in the wubble. |
Well, I've noticed, and not sure anyone else has, but once SDS made those statements last year about the NYL only hyping one player(and alluding to the fact that they were doing it because she's white) that Sabrina coverage was cut in half. ESPN never covered a college player like her, IMO. And now that she's a pro, she's hardly talked about.
Now-some of it is injuries and because her team stinks, but, I really think the Jazmin Jones / SDS Twitter exchange has something to do with it.
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root_thing
Joined: 28 Apr 2007
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| Posted: 05/23/22 10:39 am ::: |
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| SDS essentially accused the Liberty of only promoting Ionescu, which wasn't true. Most of the attention for Sabrina was coming from ESPN and other outside sources -- including commercial opportunities generated by Sabrina and her advisors. The Liberty organization itself spent more time promoting Kia Nurse. She was not only their returning All-Star but also immensely likable and funny. They had Kia host an offseason podcast interviewing other Liberty players. Then, during the season, Nurse with roommates Stokes and Zahui B. produced a couple of episodes of The Lounge, a comic show where they mock feuded. If you followed Liberty social media or went on their website that Spring, Ionescu was certainly visible, but not as much as Nurse.
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readyAIMfire53
Joined: 20 Nov 2004
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| Posted: 05/23/22 12:19 pm ::: |
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| mercfan wrote: |
If Clark steps on to the scene with a game that translates immediately, she will quickly be the most polarizing player in the league. Everyone will hate her unless you are rooting for the team she is dropping 25 a night for.
Other than that, not much in terms of media stardom. |
The Boston/Clark debates for this year’s MVP were passionate. Clark has the explosive game and extremely passionate fans. Boston has the game that will immediately translate into the W. She’s extremely personable, funny and a hard worker. Add in Bueckers into that convo next season and that’s a trio of future WNBA stars. Only question is will a dark horse emerge to enter the MVP race? Will Bueckers or Clark enter the draft early? Will NIL begin to dictate who gets noticed more than their actual play in games?
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MuneravenMN
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Joined: 01 Jun 2008
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| Posted: 05/23/22 12:42 pm ::: |
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| There is a particular mix of outstanding talent and "character" that a player in any sport needs to be a star league-wide. It's tricky.
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ucbart
Joined: 21 Nov 2004
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| Posted: 05/23/22 1:02 pm ::: |
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| readyAIMfire53 wrote: |
| mercfan wrote: |
If Clark steps on to the scene with a game that translates immediately, she will quickly be the most polarizing player in the league. Everyone will hate her unless you are rooting for the team she is dropping 25 a night for.
Other than that, not much in terms of media stardom. |
The Boston/Clark debates for this year’s MVP were passionate. Clark has the explosive game and extremely passionate fans. Boston has the game that will immediately translate into the W. She’s extremely personable, funny and a hard worker. Add in Bueckers into that convo next season and that’s a trio of future WNBA stars. Only question is will a dark horse emerge to enter the MVP race? Will Bueckers or Clark enter the draft early? Will NIL begin to dictate who gets noticed more than their actual play in games? |
You think Boston's game immediately translates? Alliyah is a great college player, but she seems a step slow to me and I think she might have a problem with the speed and athleticism of the pros for a while. SC is just bigger and more physical than everyone else. Her offense comes from backing down post players and offensive rebounds. That will just not work against WNBA front lines.
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BamaEd
Joined: 11 May 2014
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| Posted: 05/23/22 1:34 pm ::: |
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| To me, star power (these days) isn't about who the team promotes or who is the best team. It's about who is promoted outside of the league: ESPN, endorsements, etc. It's about who is promoted during the game, whether their game warrants it or not. I wish it were just about the game, but we know how it goes. I was happy to see Jonquel in the State Farm commercial during the game. I hope ESPN, advertisers, and the league branch out with whom they are promoting as the face of the league.
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