Monarchs Mid Season Anaylsis

[Purple Reign]

Man.... I can not believe the WNBA season is at the halfway point. With the Monarchs at 11-6, we can only be thankful that right now July 3, they are in first place in the West with one major and one minor East/Midwest Coast trips in front of them. Here are my Team Midseason Awards, Team Grades, All Star Team Prognostication, Positives/Negative and what has to happen to win the WNBA championship:

TEAM AWARDS

Most Valuable Player - Rebekkah Brunson
This is a no brainer. Rebekkah has been sensational to say the least. Everything that we as fans have hoped for in regards to this player, we are now seeing. She is playing with an unbelievable confidence and poise that can only carry us through the rest of the season. She has picked up the slack with the absence of DeMya Walker and then some.

Most Improved Player - Scholanda Robinson
"Showtime's" game is improving as each game progresses. The biggest improvement in her game is her aggressiveness in going to the basket and finishing. Last year she depended on that mid-range jump shot. Now she is slashing to the basket off of the dribble at will. Her defensive energy and ability to steal the ball is outstanding. She still has to be conscious about her turnovers. But the energy she brings off of the bench is electric.

Defensive MVP - (tie) Ticha Penichiero and Yolanda Griffith
These ladies anchor the vaunted "white line defense" with their play up the middle of the court. In any sport whether it is baseball, football or basketball excellence in the middle is crucial. Although Griffith has lost a step on offense, defensively the Monarchs are not the same when she is on the sideline. It seems that there is this big giant hole in the middle when Yo is not on the floor. Ticha has done a good job keeping opposing point guards in front of her all season. When these veterans are on the floor, the defensive intensity of the team seems to rise.

Honorable Mention goes to Nicole Powell. Her defense especially her rebounding has dramatically improved.

Most Inspirational Player - Kara Lawson
She is without question the heart of this team. On 12 other teams in this league, Kara probably would start. But she has always accepted her role with grace, and she is by far the most encouraging player on the team. The best part about Kara to me is that she wears her heart on her sleeve. When she is happy you see it. When she is mad, you see that. When she is hurt....you guessed it. I LOVE THAT. I hope that her national visability combined with her great play on the court will lead to her first All Star appearance, considering she is by far the best bench player in the "W".

Most Likely to Succeed - Nicole Powell
When it is all said and done, this season will rise because of the second half play of "Nikki P". She is in my view the most talented player on the squad. There is nothing she can't do. She has now become a very effective post player and really gets her hands dirty rebounding with desire and purpose. With all of that added skill in the post, Nicole is still one of the top outside shooters in the game. Her play against Minny on Sunday was her best game of the season. If Nicole can ramp it up a taste, we will win.

 

[Purple Reign]

TEAM GRADES

Nicole Powell (B+) SEE ABOVE

Rebekkah Brunson (A) SEE ABOVE

Yolanda Griffith (C+) I believe we can get more out of Yo than we have seen. She is still by far the leader of this organization.

Ticha Penichiero (B) Boucek has convinced Ticha to be more aggressive. She has been very solid. Her 2-14 against Chicago was very deceiving. She controlled tempo better than ever. Good first half.

Chelsea Newton (C) Chelsea is playing through bumps and bruises. She started out great, has fallen off lately especially on the defensive side. I understand she has had very tough defensive assignments, but she needs to get healthy.

Kara Lawson (B+) Best sub in the league. SEE ABOVE

Scholanda Robinson (A-) SEE ABOVE

Adrian Williams (C) A very solid addition. Sweet girl, but a little too sweet!!! Offensively she is getting it done around the basket. Defensively is another story....a huge liability. Seems to be out of position a lot. Has hands of stone. Looking for some improvement in the second half.

Kristen Haynie (D+) She has taken a big step back this year. She seems to be lost more than found. Her shot is coming around, but she does not shoot it enough. Starting to look a little more comfortable, but needs to get back to last year's Kristen that was our MVP in the finals.

Linda Frolich (inc) I think she can help. I saw glimpses of a player against Chicago.

LaTangela Atkinson (C) So young, so talented, so inexperienced. She is part of the future of this team I hope. Tangie has mad skills!!! Needs to grow though.

Kim Smith (inc) Has not played one single minute this season

DeMya Walker ( ) Of course hurt but still a huge part of this team and franchise. Just seeeing Mother and daughter on the sidelines brings a smile to my face.

Coach Boucek (A-/B+) I have to give Jenny a lot of credit for letting this veteran team coach itself. That alone gives her high marks. Her rotation is very solid. I know some people do not like the predictability of it, but it allows the players to know their roles. I believe the stagnation of the offese is not coaching but more execution and falls upon the shoulders of the players. I would like to see more movement, but I don't know if that is coaching or players.

Here are my five keys for the Second Half leading to a Championship:

1. TURNOVERS, TURNOVERS, TURNOVERS
The Monarchs are losing valuable possession by not taking care of the ball. I will say that over the last two games versus Chicago and Minny, that it was better. But this offense can not afford to relinquish 17, 18, 19 and 20 possessions a game. We are not that good. Williams, Griffith and Brunson combine for 5.76 TO per game. Throw in Haynie's 2.24 and you are officially kicking the ball all over the gym. One less turnover per game from each would help. The wing players particularly can not continue forcing passes into the middle of the zone which brings me to the next key......

2. BREAKING THAT ZONE and 3/4 COURT PRESSURE
The league as a whole knows that the Monarchs can not handle zone defense and 3/4 pressure up the floor. The Sparks have defeated the Monarchs twice now with that 3/4 pressure where they pick the ball up between the top of the key and halfcourt and pressure the ball handler into turnovers. Many teams do not have the personnel like the Sparks to play that way. But the zone is another issue. Every team will play that zone until Nicole Powell and Chelsea Newton consistantly drop bombs over that zone in the first quarter. Many teams will play that zone early, get comfortable, make adjustments and then we are in trouble. But if Powell and Newton can shoot them out early, then we have a chance to keep teams honest and open up the inside. The perimeter players must consistantly hit open shots.

3. YOLANDA GRIFFITH and NICOLE POWELL
Both players are crucial on both ends of the floor to determining the success of this team. In my humble opinion this is for sure Yo's last season (at least as a starter). So I am sure she is going to leave it all out on the floor. 10-12 points, 6-8 rebounds, 25-30 minutes a game, and all she has on the defensive end and I will be thrilled. Nicole has to be consistent with her long range shooting. If that happens, I believe we will see better offense from the rest of the team.

4. CHELSEA NEWTON VERSUS OTHER "TWO" GUARDS
Newton was brought here to defend the other team's best perimeter player. This year we have seen the other teams's best player scortch us. Players such as Gia Perkins, Marta Fernandez and Sidney Spencer have had career nights at our expense. THAT HAS GOT TO STOP. And I know that it is not all Newton, but so me, she sets the defensive tone that other guards like Robinson picks up on and continues off of the bench. I want to see Newton get healthy and push for a better second half defensively.

5. GET HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
I know that HCA does not guarantee victory, but the Monarchs are playing well at home, and if they can secure HCA at least through the West, they can avoid some of the tough places such as Seattle, Los Angeles and Phoenix.

ALL STAR PROGNOSTICATION

West All Stars
F - Jackson, Seattle
F - Taurasi, Phoenix
C - McWilliams-Franklin, Los Angeles
G - Bird, Seattle
G - Hammon, San Antonio

Bench - Augustus, Young (Sophia), Thompson, Brunson, Lawson,Taylor

East All Stars
F - Ford, Detroit
F - Catchings, Indiana
C - Sutton Brown, Indiana
G - Nolan, Detroit
G - Smith, Detroit

Bench - Dupree, Jones (Ashja), Cash, Beard, Douglas, Christon

 

[Sirius]

I agree completely concerning Griffith. She has actually made the other team's opposing post player a non factor in most of the games so far this year. She may not score like she used to, but she still does a lot of things that do not show up in the stat sheet.
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[Equity]

During the last game in NY, Newton was on NY's point, Loree Moore. Then she dove onto the floor like it was water instead of hardwood, wiped herself out, and ended up on the bench for most of the game.

That's not the first time she did that to herself. Several games before that she ran into a large post player with her shoulder, knocked the post right over like the post was a duck pin, and ended up walking around feeling her shoulder as if it wasn't in the right place anymore.

Several games before that she did the crazy dive into the stands and tried to bust seats with her head. I like Newton a lot as a player, but she can be very self-destructive. If she keeps doing this stuff I think she's going to end up leaving her career on the floor, literally.

However, in all fairness, on defense I thought that Newton and Ticha usually tag-team the point and the three, with Newton starting out on the point. It takes a lot of energy to disrupt the other team's point player, Newton and Ticha are the only ones who are really good at that, and having Newton on the point takes that load off Ticha.

I thought the people who are getting off on us like Perkins and Nolan have been playing the two, but maybe I'm missing something.

 

[Den-Den]

I thought the people who are getting off on us like Perkins and Nolan have been playing the two, but maybe I'm missing something.

Welcome to the board, Equity! I agree that in general it is the number two player that goes off on us. However, it is usually the two that is the great perimeter shooter for the other team. Ticha does usually guard this player when she is in. We have our best defensive stopper on their best shooting guard, and Chelsea on the point, hoping to disrupt distribution.

Quite honestly, NO ONE in the entire league can STOP DeAnna Nolan. She is, IMHO the most athletic shooting guard in the WNBA. Her elevation, shot selection, etc. are fantastic. The best that a team can hope to do is 1) try to keep the ball out of her hands, and 2) try to limit her points. Truthfully, I think if a team is able to keep Nolan below 20 pts a game, they have a better chance of beating Detroit. But stopping her--not going to happen. When Nolan does worse than that, it is usually because she is beating herself.

As for Perkins, well, every so often, someone just goes off. Perkins had defenders all over her when the Monarchs played Chicago, but sometimes, no matter what, someone finds the "magic" and is unstoppable.

 

[Equity]

Hi DenDen - Thanks for the feedback.

I can't watch the games very often, but trying to think about this season a little, I can't help but wonder if Powell having to move into more of a post role has messed up the overall defensive rotations more than people realize.

Of course there's not much to be done about it right now, but I'd sure like to see a real banger brought in to help out in the post next year. Yeah, I know, dream on....

 

[Purple Reign]

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