The End of the Storm Season

I wasn't able to see the last few games of the playoffs so it's a little weird for me to be doing this. It seems almost unreal that it has ended and there's going to another long offseason to live through. I hate the offseason. It takes me a while to warm up to the Storm team the coaches have assembled and the end of the season comes too quickly for me. I know that, in a few months, big changes will be made and the Storm team I had lived and died with would be changed.

Contracts and the Storm Roster

On the Storm website, they have listed the contract status of our players from this year. Under contract for next year are Lauren, Betty, Wendy, Ashley, Barb and Tanisha.

Unrestricted free agents (meaning they can go to any team they choose to) are Janell Burse and Tiffani Johnson.

Restricted free agents (the Storm has the right to match any offer another team gives them) are Sue Bird, Iziane Castro Marques and Shaun Gortman.

Edwige is apparently a reserved player (which is something I've never heard of before), which means she can only negotiate with the Storm.

Out of all the people under contract, Tanisha seems to be the only one that might not be in a Storm uniform next year. Obviously, LJ, Betty, Wendy and Barb, provided they are healthy, will be there. Ashley should be there, given how much AD loves making post players better. She might also be useful considering JB and LJ want to play through their injuries during the WNBA offseason which makes it more likely that they'll be injured sometime during next season.

On the other hand, Tanisha, who is in her second year with the Storm, has been a nonfactor in most games. She'll kill minutes on the floor the moment either Sue or Betty need a rest, but she'll also make some bad turnovers. I can't remember how many times she's run the point, hold the ball forever, then try and drive to the basket. Most of the time, she loses the ball or gets called for the offensive foul. While I would like to give her another chance, I just think that that roster spot should go to someone else who can be more productive for us. Who knows, really. If she comes to training camp next year and significantly improves her game and her decision making, she could still get on. If she plays the way she has this year, however, I don't see her making the roster and I don't see her deserving a spot on the roster.

I've already posted about the need to re-sign JB so I won't go into details on this. Other teams' fans are giddy about the chance for JB to play for them. In recent articles, JB gave the expected answer of how she wants to stay in Seattle but she knows her agent is going to ship her around (or something like that). Frankly, I would hate it if she goes to another team, comes back to face us and kills us with the post moves she learned under OUR coach. I know this is an unfair way to think and she should really do what is best for her financially. However, it's something that I just can't help thinking about. I don't know much about our salary situation and if we can even afford to keep her but in recent comments by Anne Donovan, she seems to know that paying JB the max is something that is important.

As for Tiffani Johnson, I'm kind of torn. On one hand, I cringed and complained during the regular season whenever she'd play. Too many "I don't know what I'm doing" moments. All of a sudden, in the playoffs, she goes out there and becomes a consistent and threatening player. What on earth? I guess her experience really did matter because she stepped it up when it mattered the most. My question now is which is the real Tiff? Which one can we expect to see? Another issue is that she's been in the league for a really long time so she might command a higher salary than someone else fulfilling her role with less experience. The thing is, if she plays like she did during the regular season, then that extra money might not be worth it and we should just get a rookie or a second year player play that spot. I'm split on this one. I really don't know what's the right thing to do or what should be done.

Now on to the restricted free agents. Sue will most likely re-sign with the team. In fact, I don't see a reason why she won't be with the Storm next year. It's a scary thought, however, when you allow yourself to think about it. I mean, we can't even secure a back-up point guard. If she ever decides to leave the Storm then we'd start who exactly? Anyway, I don't think there's much of an issue here.

As for Izi, I'd be surprised if Anne doesn't offer her another contract. She's been inconsistent at times this year, but she's been incredible at other times. She split some of the starting time this season with Barb Turner and I actually liked what I saw. Izi is this fast player who can get those wide open shots and layups. This is great for a momentum push. When we need to get more physical, however, we can insert Barb into the line-up and have her push and post up. I think that re-signing Izi will give us great flexibility in that position. Also, you never know how Barb will turn out next year (See Tanisha Wright). If she regresses at any point and we don't have Izi, it will be ugly. Izi has said that she just wants to play in a place where she'll get her minutes. According to an article I read, she's been known to get frustrated when she doesn't get her minutes. Anne pulled her out of the starting line-up for awhile but then she regained it by the end of the year. I'm not sure what part this will play in her decision to come back or not. Last year, everyone was so high on Barb Turner so this may affect the decision on whether to offer Izi another contract. I mean, if they have so much faith in Barb and feel that she can start on a regular basis next year, they may just decide to let her go.

Shaun Gortman wasn't exactly a major player on the team last year when she was playing. But, boy, you really saw her importance when she went down. Different people just kept going off on us offensively. As she has stated, her best asset is her defense and this is something sorely lacking from the Storm team through the years. I'm not sure how much Shaun would get (based on years played, etc) so this may very well dictate whether she will be on the roster next year. I hope she recovers quickly from her ACL injury and gets back to her aggressive defense. If she can and she doesn't cost too much, I can see her on the roster next year.

I think Edwige will be on the team next year. She brings stability at the back-up point and may just be the answer to our cringe-filled prayers. Depending on the amount of good quality and low priced point guards available on the market next year, Edwige has the best chance of everyone on the bubble of getting on the roster by virtue of the fact that she's a true point guard who can actually shoot and make good decisions on the floor. On a personal note, I really really like Edwige and I wish to see her in a Storm uni.

On another note, Lauren Jackson is, in my opinion, making a very curious decision that could very well mean that she won't be playing next year in the WNBA. She's going to Korea to fulfill her supposedly million dollar contract there. It's a short season, I think. I just read that she's also looking to go to Russia after that and play until the middle of Storm training camp. Oh yeah, and there's the world championships squeezed in there where she'll probably be on the floor every minute of the game. I understand everything she has in plan except for that weird part about playing in Russia. Umm.....what happened to her injured shins and plantar fascitis? She's getting a very good deal in Korea which will give her the money she needs really. Of course, Russia has money as well, but she's putting herself at a very BIG RISK. She'll be playing year round now? This leads me to believe that she may be skipping next season. Let's face it. She's paid absolutely nothing to play in the WNBA. I hope not because then I wouldn't get to follow her play as much. Also, I hope she's not pushing herself too much. She just has to be cautious about her health.

Players' Offseason Plans

Again, this is courtesy of the official Storm website, which is absolutely, incredibly loaded with information. It's seriously the best team site I've ever seen.

Birdy's going to play in the World Championships where she'll be the starting point guard (YES!) and lead USA to another gold medal. I hope she racks up a lot of points and assists (as long as they aren't passes to Lisa Leslie....I wonder if we could somehow talk her into doing that). After that, she'll probably playing in Russia if she gets a passport (or something like that).

JB is going back to Prague instead of rehabbing her shoulder which bugs me to no end. It bugs me even more that I can see where she's coming from. She played really well there last year so I think she's gonna be a stud on that team.

Izi is also going to the World Championships and then she'll probably play in Europe as well. With as many players going to Europe, maybe I should backpack around Europe to see them play. It shouldn't be too hard, right?

Shaun is going to spend her offseason rehabbing her knee. I hope everything goes well with it.

Lauren is going to the World Championships, where she will absolutely school Lisa Leslie (okay, I added that part). I'm a little conflicted here. I'd like to see LJ get gold for Australia, finally. On the other hand, I don't want Sue to lose her first tournament as the starting PG. She'd be crucified for it, I have no doubt. Anyway, I'm leaning towards cheering for the US just because I became a Birdy fan before I became an LJ fan. It's a loyalty thing although I switch allegiances every few minutes. After that, she's going to Korea and then, apparently, Russia. Russia?? Sigh...I don't understand at all.

Tiff is also playing overseas but she doesn't know where yet.

Edwige, to my great surprise, turned down the French National team to rest up after years of all year basketball. I kinda thought we'd have four Storm players there but I guess not. She'll be in Russia soon enough though, playing for Samara.

Betty is playing overseas in a league with a short season. I should really do my research and see which leagues these are.

Wendy is gonna be rehabbing and she might be coaching again but it depends on her rehab. I'm sooo excited to have her for all 34 games next year instead of the five this season. I still think she was that one injury that really prevented us from getting further.

Ashley is playing in Kazan, Russia.

Barb is also playing overseas, although, as with most players, she's unsure of what team she'll join.

Tanisha is going to Israel.

Now that everyone is going their separate ways, I guess it's time to officially say good bye to the 2006 Storm Season. It's been a rollercoaster ride for sure that made me cheer and weep at practically the same time. Although this is the second year we've made an exit in the first round, I'm proud of the Storm and all that they've accomplished this season. In fact, I'm even prouder to be a Storm fan. Right now, I'm filled with sadness as I look at the long offseason and I think of the changes that are going to be made to the team. I've said that I've grown to love everyone that's put on a Storm uniform. Even if I know that some people really shouldn't be on the team next year, I'd still feel sad. On the other hand, I'm excited about next season and I know that it's going to be another great season.

2006 SEATTLE STORM
SEEING IS BELIEVING.

Now on to the 2007 Season.

GO STORM!