Tan's Gone.....

nancgo · Mar 3, 2005

http://www.wnba.com/sting/news/Sting_Acquire_Tangela_Smith_.html

Sting Acquire Tangela Smith In Four-Player Deal

March 3, 2005 – The Charlotte Sting have acquired veteran forward Tangela Smith from the Sacramento Monarchs, it was announced today by general manager and head coach Trudi Lacey. Charlotte will also receive Sacramento’s second round pick in 2006 in exchange for Nicole Powell, Olympia Scott-Richardson and Erin Buescher.

“This move continues our commitment to building a team that will compete for the 2005 WNBA Championship,” said Lacey. “Tangela Smith solidifies our frontcourt and gives us another serious scoring and rebounding threat. She is an impact player who has been one of the WNBA’s top post players throughout her career.”

Smith posted 11.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks last season to help the Monarchs reach the 2004 Western Conference Finals. A 6-4 forward, Smith holds averages of 11.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 223 games over her seven-year WNBA career. She also ranks third among WNBA career leaders with 306 total blocks, seventh with 1,078 field goals made, eighth with 2,500 field goal attempts, 10th with 1.37 blocks per game, 12th with 1,118 total rebounds, 13th with 363 offensive rebounds, 15th with 755 defensive rebounds, 17th with 2,552 points and 19th with 6,133 minutes played.

Originally selected by the Monarchs with the 12th overall pick in the 1998 WNBA Draft, Smith has played in 193 consecutive games and is one of only 14 players in WNBA history to record over 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.

A 1998 graduate of the University of Iowa, Smith averaged 13.7 points and 7.4 rebounds over her four-year college career. She was named the Big Ten Player of the Year and an Associated Press Honorable Mention All-America selection as a senior. A native of Chicago, Smith’s professional career also includes stints in Italy, Spain, Korea, Turkey and Israel.

Powell, a 6-2 guard/forward, averaged 4.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in 31 games last year for Charlotte while shooting .413 (50-121) from the floor and .414 (24-58) from three-point range. Selected by the Sting with the third overall pick in the 2004 WNBA Draft, Powell finished her collegiate career at Stanford University as the school’s all-time leader in career rebounds (1,143) and third all-time leading scorer (2,062). A three-time All-American, she earned Pac-10 Player of the Year honors twice and was named the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year in 2001. Powell is currently playing for La Spezia in Italy.

Scott-Richardson, a 6-2 forward and six-year WNBA veteran, posted 2.1 points and 1.9 rebounds in 34 games in 2004. Signed by Charlotte as a free agent on March 16, 2004, Scott-Richardson has averaged 5.6 points and 3.7 rebounds in 166 career games with the Utah Starzz, Detroit Shock, Indiana Fever and Charlotte Sting. A 1998 graduate of Stanford University, she averaged 12.9 points and 6.4 rebounds over her four-year collegiate career. Scott-Richardson has spent this past offseason as a first-year head coach at William Smith College in Geneva, New York.

Buescher, a 6-2 forward, has averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds in 75 games over her three-year WNBA career. She spent two seasons with the Sting after beginning her career with the Minnesota Lynx in 2001. Buescher sat out the 2004 season for personal reasons and is currently playing overseas in Greece. A 2001 graduate of The Master’s College, Buescher averaged 17.6 points per game as a senior and was named the National Christian College Athletic Association’s Player of the Year. She spent her first three years of college at the University of California-Santa Barbara, where she earned Big West Player of the Year honors in 1998, 1999 and 2000.

“Nicole, Olympia and Erin all contributed to the Sting in positive ways,” said Lacey. “We wish them the very best as they continue their WNBA careers. The Charlotte Sting will open their ninth season on May 21 at the Charlotte Coliseum as they host the Washington Mystics at 6 p.m. Season ticket plans begin at just $102 and are available now by calling a ticket sales representative at (704) 424-WNBA. Fans can also download a full season schedule and further ticket information at www.charlottesting.com.

Wah wah wah....She's my favorite Monarch's player.....But....I do like Powell, so I think I can move on.....Olympia is foul prone and I don't know much or remember much about Buescher.....

So it goes.....a new look for the core......

Purple Reign · Mar 3, 2005

WOW!!!!

I really hate to see Tangela go. She is absolutely the best. Class, and every other wonderful adjective. BUT I LIKE THIS DEAL!!!! Nicole Powell!!!! She could be the small forward the Monarchs need. Big Ups to Whisnant and the front office. First Christie, then Chris and Tangela

ReinadelosReys · Mar 3, 2005

Wow...change is definetly the word in Sacramento these days...

But I like this trade.

While its sad to see Tan go, I like Powell.

This is going to be such a different team, whether it will be good or bad, we'll just have to wait and see.

DWalkfan22 · Mar 3, 2005

Tangela, I am going to miss you soo much . I could handle Edna, Lady, and Ruthie not returning to the Monarchs, but you are another story. You ma gurl, whether you a Monarch or not I'm goin to miss you, but I'll see you when u come to Sac.
luv ya,
Talisa

raybrun · Mar 3, 2005

Powell- my dream is fufilled! Or are they?

I write this with mixed emotions. For 4 years, I drove all around (and even flew once) to watch Nicole, and I fantasized about her being a Monarch. In college she was a regular triple double waiting to happen, and could play any position on the court.She had to be the greatest rebounding point guard in the college game ever as a sophmore. She was the one whose hands you want the ball in no matter what position she played in crunch time. However, now that she is in the WNBA, she looks like she has the Stanford jinx, so far anyway. Why is it that Tara's women are so good in college and then suck in the pros?

On pure talent, Nicole should be a steal in this deal. Tell me why I am wondering if we got enough for a good player like Tan. Is this just a salary dump? Is this a move to free time to develop Becca at her best position PF?

Luv13fan · Mar 3, 2005

Junk Trade

While there is an upside to getting Nicole Powell, the rest of this trade is pure junk.

We Clearly didn't get enough in this trade. So if they are just dumping salaries, then the next trade should be to use one of those bigs to get Anna DeForge. Phoenix is hot and bothered about getting bigger.

Since he has talent to burn now. Lots of young players that are not big salary hits. Minny is the only team that doesn't have a point guard anymore, and they are not drafting high enough to get one of Impact caliber, I say dump Ticha's salary too.

Get Vanessa Hayden or Svetlana Abrosimova and a 2nd rounder and eat the rest of the cap money. I am still not sold on Miss Fei Fei yet and would rather see the money spent on Svetlana. At least I know she can score in the WNBA.

I guess my real question is why bother to core Ticha. He should have cored Tangie to begin with if all he was gonna do is trade her. I am Disappointed in this but maybe there is more to this story than meets the eye.

Maybe Tangie wanted out. It would explain the talent gap in the trade.

You are the Bomb Tangie and you will be missed

Thank you for 7 wonderful years.

slugking50 · Mar 4, 2005

This was definately a doozy last night when I heard this on KingsTalk last night.

Good Luck Tang.

6th · Mar 4, 2005

I will miss you, Tangela.

Good luck!!

Purple Reign · Mar 4, 2005

This is not about salary, but age and skill

ReinadelosReys said:

Right now the core group (and their age) for this squad is:

C - Griffith (35), Anderson (24)
PF - Walker (27), Brunson (23)
SF - Powell (22), Maiga (25)
SG - Lawson (24), Mendiola (23)
PG - Penichero (30)

GONE - Bolton (37, 38 when season starts)
Campbell (36)
Grooms (34)
Smith (28 when season starts)

I clearly think that the Monarchs had to get younger with more skill. I think they have done that. This is more about perimeter skill and age more than salary I have been a proponent for trading Ticha. But if Powell can reach her potential, I would much rather keep Ticha here.
Can someone with a wealth of WNBA and Women's Basketball experience tell me why someone of Powell's skills did not do much in Charlotte? And why is was available?

Monty'sBiggestFan · Mar 4, 2005

This is a very nice trade. Powell is a very solid young player I may need to digest it a little more but I've come to the realization that somebody had to move for this team to get pieces that it needs. If I thought we'd see the Tangela we saw for 4 games of the post season last year, then I might be hesitant to pull the trigger on this. But I think like Ticha, she's been just as much an enigma in terms of why she can't play to the level she is capable of playing for a full season and not show flashes of it for a string of games.

I don't know if I think that the rest of the pieces in the deal are junk, OSR might be a much more effective post player than Anderson is at the moment. And she will board. Buescher last I saw of her can shoot. I don't know what her story was after she left Minny, but I'm willing to take a look. It seems that Powell's problem in Charlotte may have been the same as Anderson's problem here under Maura. She's not in a system where the coach likes to play a lot of young players.

Still JD · Mar 4, 2005

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

OK, that is just my first, purely emotional reaction. I really thought we were keeping Tan and dealing Ticha. I can't even even think of this team without Tan after all the years she has been here. This is the first season we are losing players who have been like family to us for all these years and it is very hard. I can't even think about if it is a good trade or bad trade for the team, right now it is just a SAD trade.

RoyalDiva · Mar 4, 2005

Yikes. Yet another player leaving, I've become numb to it now though! I dn't konw much about Powell, but I trust the M's organization.

Rockmeister · Mar 4, 2005

RoyalDiva said:

I'm not a Monarch's fan, however, I have watched Nicole Powell at Stanford and believe me, you will be very pleased. She's a very talented basketball player.

Monty'sBiggestFan · Mar 4, 2005

I think folks are on to Ticha's weaknesses, I think its going to be hard to move her without adding another piece to any deal. Since I'd rather see Mendiola and Lawson play the SG spot for their minutes, we'd need to get another legitimate ballhandling point guard for me to feel like dealing Ticha. But if Whiz has a deal on the table for her, I wouldn't cry. I want to load up on backcourt offense so I don't see the long scoreless stretches we've seen waaaaaaaaay too much the last couple of seasons. It's time to see how teams that play defense AND score live for a change....

hoopsfan · Mar 4, 2005

"Shoot, Ticha, shoot!!"

BJax24 · Mar 4, 2005

Monty'sBiggestFan said:

I am right there with you. But if Powell can be the Powell from Stanford, I think her and Kara's talent, can cover a multitude of Ticha's sins, and now the defense can not play off of her and drop into the paint. If they do, Ticha can now create with a number of options available.

slugking50 · Mar 5, 2005

hoopsfan said:

Hey! Watch it! Leave her alone

Rockmeister said:

I heard Koz say she averaged a near Triple Double in College? Id think I wouldve heard that before.

6th · Mar 5, 2005

hoopsfan said:

Hey, watch out or I'll have to smack you.

Luv13fan · Mar 5, 2005

I am Soooooo Cunfused.

Powell Was a Very talented college player with alot of skills. She handled the ball alot for Stanford, but was killed when legitimate ball handlers played against her. She is a good pick up, and can indeed make a solid 3 guard for us. But it makes me wonder, why get Fei Fei if Powell is in the works. I am not much of a Tara Van Der Veer fan but Powell has some real skills. She does rebound, and she can shoot well.

And someone brought up Maiga. Damn she is really getting caught up in the wash in all of this. There are alot of folks competing at the small forward position now.

There are a whole lot of folks coming in camp so far, without that clear PG in the mix. If you chose to keep Ticha, are we picking high enough to get a good point guard in the draft as a back up.

I guess the other question I have is, are we building to compete or building to rebuild. Cause at the rate we are going if I am Yo I want off the ship. I see a whole lot of people coming in but I don't really see the direction we are headed.

We knew there was going to be a shake up at the guard position. But there has to be some continuity.

I think he needs to trade some of the folks he has and narrow the competition somewhat.

guards (5)

Maio, Ticha, Giuliana and Kara and the One of the Aussies(?)

3 guards (5)
Fei Fei, Powell, Maiga, the other Aussie(?), the other girl from Charolette

Posts (5)
Scott-Richardson, Chantelle, Bekkah,Yo, Demya,

And 3 draft picks.
This team is new and needs to spend more time learning how to play together, and less competing for roster spots.

But that is just my opinion.

Can't wait to see how it turns out.

hoopsfan · Mar 5, 2005

6th said:

haha...you know I love her.

RDub21 · Mar 5, 2005

Hmm...although I'm very sad to see Tan go, I'm excited to see Powell coming to the Monarchs. I definitely think that she can bring a new look to the team. Just looking at her college days, she has the ability to rebound and then bring the ball up the court. While she's not the greatest ballhandler, I think she has can relief some of the pressure from Ticha. She also has a nice 3 point shot and can post up smaller defenders.

I'm feeling that in order for this trade to work out, either Olympia or Erin need to make the roster. Just from what I know about both, I'd think Oylmpia has a better shot since she can rebound and play aggressively getting bench minutes behind Yo and Demya.

Rockmeister · Mar 5, 2005

slugking50 said:

I watched about 5 or 6 games and she nearly averaged a triple double in those games. In fact, 2 of those games, she did.

Monty'sBiggestFan · Mar 6, 2005

We don't even know if Fei Fei will make the team so I don't think this negates her presence. Since Whiz has been known to play 10 deep on his bench a multitude of players in one position doesn't really phase him - except his acknowledgement that this team isn't going to beat a lot of teams consistently without more backcourt scoring.

Maiga I think is also going to benefit by this move. Powell's versatility means the two of them can likely play on the floor together. One of them can log minutes at the 2 guard spot while the other is at the SF. Both I think have that versatility to be effective. Moving Tangela gave Whiz about 30 minutes or so to divvy up between anybody capable of playing at the wing spot. I doubt Maiga gets squeezed out of playing more minutes.

Re: Vanderveer players? I just came home from watching Stanford play in person this year @ the Pac-10 tournament. The one thing that struck me that didn't quite hit me the times I've seen them on TV this year - this is a much much quicker Stanford team and some of the youngsters she has are just downright athletic both characteristics in ways different from the prototypical Stanford players who don't seem to be able to play more than a supporting cast role in the WNBA, if even that. Even the Stanford post play is more dynamic now that it seemed to be in the past. Powell has legitimate talent. I think she lodged somewhere between 4-6 triple doubles in college. I've seen her be clutch, and we need more players willing to take that last shot or at least who want the ball in their hands to do something with when the game is on the line.

I'd like to think that Yo can see what happened in the WCF last year and see this as a move in the right direction. Heck, I would hope everybody on that team sees that. But I take a step back beyond what happened in games 2 & 3. If Phoenix does not collapse, we are worrying about who to draft in the 4th or 5th spot right about now instead of figuring out if we have enough scoring from the backcourt and SF position to make a difference against more high powered offenses in a short series. If Vodichkova doesn't get hurt and Seattle falls out of their playoff spot the year before we're finding minutes for another lottery pick too. So I guess I don't feel the same level of comfort about returning everybody because we're on the verge of winning something because the last two years we barely eeked into a playoff spot with what we had. I was ready to retool this team after I saw them play in Charlotte last season. I think the retooling makes the team better because the post players became very defensible when there was no backcourt players scoring. Does Yo want to have to continue to take the beating she takes when that happens? And I'm not just talking about Ticha and her no scoring self here too.

Luv13fan · Mar 6, 2005

Monty'sBiggestFan said:

We don't even know if Fei Fei will make the team so I don't think this negates her presence. Since Whiz has been known to play 10 deep on his bench a multitude of players in one position doesn't really phase him - except his acknowledgement that this team isn't going to beat a lot of teams consistently without more backcourt scoring.

Maiga I think is also going to benefit by this move. Powell's versatility means the two of them can likely play on the floor together. One of them can log minutes at the 2 guard spot while the other is at the SF. Both I think have that versatility to be effective. Moving Tangela gave Whiz about 30 minutes or so to divvy up between anybody capable of playing at the wing spot. I doubt Maiga gets squeezed out of playing more minutes.

Re: Vanderveer players? I just came home from watching Stanford play in person this year @ the Pac-10 tournament. The one thing that struck me that didn't quite hit me the times I've seen them on TV this year - this is a much much quicker Stanford team and some of the youngsters she has are just downright athletic both characteristics in ways different from the prototypical Stanford players who don't seem to be able to play more than a supporting cast role in the WNBA, if even that. Even the Stanford post play is more dynamic now that it seemed to be in the past. Powell has legitimate talent. I think she lodged somewhere between 4-6 triple doubles in college. I've seen her be clutch, and we need more players willing to take that last shot or at least who want the ball in their hands to do something with when the game is on the line.

I'd like to think that Yo can see what happened in the WCF last year and see this as a move in the right direction. Heck, I would hope everybody on that team sees that. But I take a step back beyond what happened in games 2 & 3. If Phoenix does not collapse, we are worrying about who to draft in the 4th or 5th spot right about now instead of figuring out if we have enough scoring from the backcourt and SF position to make a difference against more high powered offenses in a short series. If Vodichkova doesn't get hurt and Seattle falls out of their playoff spot the year before we're finding minutes for another lottery pick too. So I guess I don't feel the same level of comfort about returning everybody because we're on the verge of winning something because the last two years we barely eeked into a playoff spot with what we had. I was ready to retool this team after I saw them play in Charlotte last season. I think the retooling makes the team better because the post players became very defensible when there was no backcourt players scoring. Does Yo want to have to continue to take the beating she takes when that happens? And I'm not just talking about Ticha and her no scoring self here too.

Good point...

BTW I never said anything about the players that came out of the program themselves.

I am not a Van Der Ver fan... period. Just dont like her.

To be honest there are a few players that I wonder why they didn't catch on somewhere. I thought Jamila Wideman would fair better. Rachel Hemmer and Olymia, I thought would play a far more significant role in the W. I guess it is all about finding the right team to fit with.

The Retool is fine. Not a problem with the retool. But I think it is safe to say he addressed the other issues on the team. It seems Whiz is gonna keep Ticha, and lord know she has got the lions share of the blame. So all we can do now is send her love and hope she can hold serve.

Monty'sBiggestFan · Mar 6, 2005

I like Tara, but I think Stanford, Tennessee and UConn all had the same knock against them in terms of sending players who lived up to their college hype to the pros until their most recent graduating classes. In the case of Stanford I do believe it is the type of player who fits Tara's system that makes a difference.

I hope Ticha does emerge this year and at least maybe takes 2-3 more shots a game than usual but I'm not going to hold my breath. I agree with the notion that a revitalized Powell and a healthy Lawson can do wonders to mitigate Ticha's liabilities on the offensive end of the floor. And that's where the one of the big dice rolls is with this trade. Between Maiga, Brunson, Powell and maybe one more role player - we should at the very least match the production we got from Tangela. For this deal to be deemed a success in my mind, those players will have to exceed Tangela's production in their additional minutes. I just don't think the plan was to have Powell herself replace Tangela's #s. If she does, that's gravy to me.

Still JD · Mar 6, 2005

Luv13fan said:

To be honest there are a few players that I wonder why they didn't catch on somewhere. I thought Jamila Wideman would fair better. Rachel Hemmer and Olymia, I thought would play a far more significant role in the W. I guess it is all about finding the right team to fit with.

::cough:: Kate Starbird

Luv13fan · Mar 6, 2005

opps...

Still JD said:

Yeah I forgot about Kate...
She seemed a bit small is stature IMO to compete but she was a tremendous talent out of Stanford and I am suprised that she didn't do better.

Have I forgotten anyone else???

nancgo · Mar 6, 2005

Jen Azzi did pretty well, but she was definitely the exception to the rule.....

Monty'sBiggestFan · Mar 6, 2005

Our other K.S. Katy Steding, and the never played a minute Molly Goodenbour.

Folkl and Nygaard were solid, as I think Olympia Scott-Richardson is too and will be here.

Luv13fan · Mar 7, 2005

Katy Steding was a terrific Person as well but I think we are Dipping into the ABL/WNBA transition. That is why I think alot of that particular crew didn't get the attention they deserved.

Jennifer Azzi was just simply great. Great Leader, Great Player, Great Person. That is the Stanford Crew I really had a deep appreciation for.
Molly G, a real shame she didn't take off in the W.
Sonja Henning(?) I know she played and was even a player Rep, but didn't really hear much in terms of her career. She was one of the smartest players and people I ever met.

The crew after 92 seemed to go a little Hollywood. Got caught up in their own success. But that is my opinion. Nygaard, never really impressed me,

But Kristen Folkl... She was Stanford's Answer to Natalie Williams. Boy if she didn't have the Knee Problems earlier in her career... She was a very Special athlete.

Now that we have had our Trip Down Stanford Memory Lane...

Olympia could be a really good pick-up. She is aggresive on the boards, and can give some nice minutes. Nicole should be fine. I am still a little stung about Tangie, cause I think it was a high price to pay. But I have had some time to digest it. It could work.

Quite frankly, if Powell gives us half the productivity she gave at Stanford, we are in good shape. I think Yo and crew can handle the rest.

I feel a little optimism Brewing here

Tan's Gone.....

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