Hey All, Several people have asked me if I plan on selling my t-shirt. Now, here it is! You can even select your own size/color and style (even your own team colors). There is one for light colors (w black text) and one for dark colors (w white text). The default shirt style is a heather grey American Apparel Tee @ 24.95 (one of my faves!) However, you can choose a basic-tee starting @ 18.95 (plus S&H). Remember, these shirts don;t get made 'till you order them, so, they can take anywhere between 4 - 7 biz days to produce. The best part? All profits will be donated to the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund. Any ? Just ask!!
No Joke!!! Ok, feeling very upbeat after the pre-season win over Sacramento (Sorry Monarchs fans), I surfed on over to the Mercury page to check the box score. I noticed the headline "Taurasi takes the spelling bee challenge." I had no idea what to make of it. (What, Diana needed to kill time between two practices a day?) What I saw made me laugh so hard I nearly fell out of my chair. Maybe it was Dee's reactions. Maybe it was the automated voice saying "tentacle". For whatever reason, I found this to be extremely entertaining. This is why I love WNBA players; they are not afraid to have a sense of humor!
Hey Dee, that UCONN degree is comin' in handy, isn't it? :-)
Got to thinkin' after reading a post on the Rebkell message boards about new WNBA theme songs. So, put some random song ideas together with player pics in a video. Enjoy!!
Looks like new Mercury forward/center, Nicole Ohlde, will be out with a broken toe for a while. Seems it was an injury she got while playing overseas. Darn it! Well, better now than half way through the season. Check out "bright side of the sun" for more info.
Saturday morning I was enjoying coffee with two members of the Phoenix Mercury - Brooke Smith and newly acquired point guard Temeka Johnson, who I've been told likes to be referred to as "Meek" (as in Tem-"Meek"-ah). Temeka was nice enough to shoot me a message on twitter with the address of the coffee event, so I had to go down and say hi. I also had a chance to chat with Brooke, who enjoyed playing in Italy during the off season. Both were eager for the season to start. Ahh, great way to start the weekend!!
I also completed the t-shirt that I will be wearing on my trip. I'm having one made in grey, and another in navy blue. Look for me when I get to your town and say hi! At 6 foot 3, I'm pretty easy to spot. :-)
In this video blog, I get to show off my first sports injury, talk about a particular email I received, and 1/2 of my favorite WNBA twins gets a pink slip. Bummer :-(
Ok, I need to take a minute and shift my focus to my hometown team, the Phoenix Mercury. As most of you know, fans of Lauren Jackson have been on pins and needles for the past 4 months, anticipating which team she would choose to play for in 2009. The answer finally came yesterday, when news broke that she decided to re-signed with Seattle (for a mere 1 year deal…but I digress). For me, no surprise. She is the cornerstone of that club, not to mention adored by fans and teammates alike. C’mon, who would leave? Well, its over. She has decided. What’s done is done, right?
Not exactly…
When the news got out, I went to read fan reactions on the likes of message boards, twitter, and facebook. As I sifted through the grateful (and often gushing) Storm fan reactions, I came across many Mercury fan reactions that really surprised me. Yes, there was remorse, anger, and a hint of bitterness. That is to be expected. But, what I did not expect were the fans who had given up on the Mercury, as if without Lauren Jackson, we are nothing. Some of the quotes read “It isn’t looking good…” or “We’re fu***d” I was shocked! (Detroit pun not intended) Is this the loyal voice of the X-factor that I have come to know and love for their undying support of their beloved Mercury? Say it isn’t so!
Can we, just for a minute, put down the hari kari dagger and step away from the ledge, please? Before anyone can throw in the towel on the Mercury, let me remind you where we’ve come from, what we’ve accomplished, and where we can go from here. (And no, I have nothing bad to say about Lauren Jackson. Yes, I was a bit irritated by how long she took, but I’m over it.) By the time we arrived at the 2007 season, no one was giving us a shot. Very few outside the loyal X – factor fans believed the Mercury would end that season with a championship. That season was not only amazing for the Mercury, but we accomplished several things – most notably – sweeping the playoffs and taking the title on the road. Faith of the fans held strong though that entire season; we were unbreakable!
2008 was a transition year, and we didn’t find our groove. Yes, we lost Penny, and Westhead. Yes, we missed the playoffs. But I want to look at the positive things. LaCoe Willingham was a new acquisition who didn’t put in many minutes for her previous team, the Connecticut Sun. Upon her arrival in Phoenix she was quickly in the running for most improved player. Dee and Cappie were also leading the league in scoring, not half bad either. Bottom line; the fans still did not give up.
I want to take you back to the final home game of the season. It was a glorious win of 99-74 over Houston. But more importantly, the playing was absolutely beautiful. No hesitation offense, rock solid defense, and cohesive teamwork. It was reflective of a season of trying to find a groove; that night, they found it.
Now, we stand at the crossroads, looking to 2009 for strength, focus and possibly…redemption. We have several things this season that we were missing last year. For once, a training camp with almost every player in attendance. No, Cappie and Diana will not be stepping off the plane and on to the court. Also, we have a few new acquisitions, in Nicole Ohlde, a 6’5” center, and Temeka Johnson, a sharp shooting guard. Lets not forget our 5th draft pick, DeWanna Bonner. She’s a 6’4” guard, who’s young, fast and without injuries. With our returning players, I believe and Ann Myers-Drysdale and Coach Gaines can put together a team worthy of a championship run. Allow me to reiterate the first part of that statement. I Believe! We need to stop focusing on what could have been, and to what we have; right here, right now. If you are still feeling let down because a certain 6’5” Aussie went back to Seattle, then ask yourself one question –
Are you a Lauren Jackson fan, or a Mercury fan?
I don’t know about you, but I’m a Mercury fan. I believe. I believe in our team, I believe in the fans, and I believe that we can make greatness happen this year.
Hey All! The WNBA just created a new page over at WNBA.com - it has all the player blogs, as well as their facebook pages and more! It is nice to have all that in one spot. Check out the lower right hand corner; the WNBA has featured my journey for this summer. A BIG thanks goes out to the staff at the WNBA for helping me get the word out. You guys rock! Now get out there and buy your game tickets. 2009 is the season that is not to be missed!
