The Seattle Sports Commission is hosting the 75th annual Seattle Sports Star of the Year Awards presented by MTR Western on Jan. 19, 2010. Storm forward Swin Cash has been nominated for the newly created Professional Sports Star of the Year and has a chance to join Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson, both past Seattle Sports Star of the Year winners. Fan voting will help decide the winner. Click here to cast your vote for Swin and be sure to vote for the other categories!
Archive for December, 2009
Vote for Cash
Wednesday, December 9th, 2009Monarchs Dispersal Draft Set for Dec. 14
Tuesday, December 8th, 2009The WNBA announced today that the league was unable to secure prospective ownership in the Bay Area in time for the Sacramento Monarchs to move there for the 2010 season. While the WNBA works to add an expansion team in the Bay for 2011, the former Monarchs will be reallocated through a Dispersal Draft, set for next Monday.
The Storm will pick 10th in the Dispersal Draft, meaning there is no guarantee any players will still be available. As unrestricted free agents, guards Kara Lawson and Ticha Penicheiro and forward Hamchetou Maiga-Ba are not eligible, leaving eight current players to be dispersed.
Guards
Kristin Haynie
Chelsea Newton
Scholanda Robinson
Forwards
Rebekkah Brunson
Nicole Powell
DeMya Walker
Centers
Laura Harper
Courtney Paris
The Dispersal Draft will also include players to whom the Monarchs have rights, presumably including Australian guard Renae Camino, drafted by Sacramento from Houston in last year’s Dispersal Draft. Teams will have the option of passing, as the Storm did last year, when two players – Tamecka Dixon and Shannon Johnson – went unselected. Because teams selecting in the Dispersal Draft inherit the player’s current contract, it is sometimes preferable to allow them to become a free agent, as the Storm did before signing Johnson.
With the available talent and team needs not entirely matching up at the top of the draft (New York and Minnesota will pick first and second, followed by Connecticut) I’d expect to see some trades that could shake up the WNBA landscape.
http://www.wnba.com/news/monarchs_dispersal_draft_901208.html
European Play + Roundup
Friday, December 4th, 2009Ho hum. Another week, another victory in Euroleague play for Wisla Can-Pack Krakow, who continues to dominate Group B. Wisla defeated its biggest rival in the group, Halcon Avenida, by a 62-58 final on Wednesday. Trailing 56-54 with 2:47 to play, Wisla got a free throw from Marta Fernandez, the go-ahead bucket from Iziane Castro Marques, a three from Liron Cohen and a jumper from Janell Burse for an 8-0 run over the ensuing two and a half minutes. By the time Avenida finally got on the scoreboard again, eight seconds remained and the game was decided.
Burse came up big for Wisla once again, finishing with 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting, 12 rebounds and four assists. Fernandez added 19 points. Atlanta All-Star Sancho Lyttle had 12 points and eight boards for Avenida, who is 4-0 against everyone else but has dropped both matchups with Wisla. Beretta Famila Schio is also 4-2, with Wisla leading Group B by two games.
K.V. Imperial AEL saw its undefeated run in the EuroCup come to an end Thursday, losing 78-54 to Municipal Targoviste. Camille Little had 14 points and seven rebounds, but just one other Imperial player (Biljana Pesovic, who had 18) scored double-figures. Tanisha Wright could never find a rhythm, scoring three points on 1-of-5 shooting. She handed out five assists. Shay Doron led Targoviste with 21 points. The two teams are tied atop Group H at 3-1, having split two head-to-head matchups.
Elsewhere …
- We’ve posted a really fun video recap of last month’s Goodwill Glitter Gala, in which Storm center Ashley Robinson modeled. Check out this neat look at Robinson and others on the catwalk.
- Congratulations to Anne Donovan, the former head coach of the Storm, who has been promoted to the same position in New York. Donovan took over the Liberty midway through last season in an interim role.
- Lastly, the WNBA announced today two rules changes for the 2010 season expanding the use of instant replay. Referees will now have the opportunity to use replay on possible 24-second violations as well as to determine possession on out-of-bounds plays in the final minute of regulation or any overtime period. As has been the case in the past, these changes align WNBA replay rules with what is newly being used in the NBA this season.
Tuesday Odds and Ends
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009A few overseas notes since yesterday’s post:
- In Israeli D-I action last night, Maccabi Ashdod survived an upset bid by Maccabi Tel Kabir, which entered the game 1-5 on the season. Ashdod’s lead was just one point with a minute to play before the team scored the game’s final five points, starting with a three assisted by Ashley Walker, to win 78-72. The Storm forward had four assists to go along with 14 points and six boards in the game. Teammate Courtney Paris contributed 25 points and 22 rebounds.
Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE/Getty Images
- Looks like Lauren Jackson’s return to game action will have to wait until the weekend of Dec. 12-13, as Jackson will apparently not play for the Canberra TransAct Capitals this weekend at Bendigo.
- The WNBL has named Suzy Batkovic-Brown the league Player of the Week for last weekend’s slate of games. In a win over Jackson’s Capitals, Batkovic-Brown had 31 points and 12 rebounds. It’s the second straight week she’s been named the WNBL’s top player.
“I’d be happy if I didn’t score a point and we won,” said Batkovic-Brown, “so getting a road win and putting up some decent numbers is even better. We’re coming together as a team and that makes my job easier.”
The WNBA is all about voting right now:
- The Storm’s photo of the year, featuring guard Sue Bird celebrating a big play at New York (at right), has advanced to the quarterfinals in WNBA.com’s Photo of the Year contest. The current vote features a photo with Storm ties – the collection of UConn players, including Bird and Swin Cash, with their former Head Coach Geno Auriemma at the 2009 WNBA All-Star Game.
- The new Tulsa frachise is inviting fans to help choose its name from among three options: Shock, Fire and Tempo. Cast your vote here.
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