A Special Treat In A Lynx Loss

Friday night’s Lynx game versus the Sacramento Monarchs at Williams Arena was a special treat for me. Although I was in attendance last season for the team’s preseason game at the Pavillion, this was my first game at “The Barn.” I had always heard of the history and character in the building and was able to experience it firsthand for the first time.

Upon arriving, I felt as if I was given the seat of honor, as I sat center court straight across from the Lynx PA announcer. With the media seating lowered and the court raised, the court was at about chest level for me, so this was definitely a new experience and one that I will enjoy for a long time…even though the game ended up in a loss for the Lynx.

In my article for Downtown Journal (www.downtown journal.com) this past Monday, I wrote the following…

“The biggest change that needs to be made is to shift rookie Noelle Quinn from the point guard position to the shooting guard. Quinn has looked lost for a majority of the season and you can almost see her thinking when she’s on the court, rather then just being, just playing. Having the benefit of a veteran such as Amber Jacobs on the bench--who has been getting more playing time--the Lynx can now afford to play around with defining what the role players roles will be.

Noelle Quinn does possess some amazing passing skills, but with her confusion on the court to this point in the season, it may be better to take some of the playmaking pressure off of her shoulders. Because Lindsey Harding is playing a lion’s share of the minutes at the point guard position, Amber Jacobs should be used as her primary backup. By sliding Quinn over to the two or three position--with fellow rookie Shay Murphy playing the other position--the Lynx would have a much more balanced attack or, to be accurate, Quinn’s passing from a position outside the point would change up the attack.”

For anyone in attendance last night, it was evident that Amber Jacobs was the main reason for the comeback after the Monarchs had stretched their lead coming out of halftime. She was making beautiful cuts, hitting open shots, distributing the ball in the open court, playing great defense and generally “running the show” with a veteran’s presence.

Although Noelle Quinn was able to dish out some beautiful assists in the game, she did so when she was on the wing, rather then from the lead guard position. Quinn struggles to keep up with smaller and faster point guards, even though her speed is adequate to stay with shooting guards and small forwards.

It may seem as if I do not have faith in Quinn, which is not true. I have seen enough from her this season to believe quite strongly that she will be a more then solid WNBA player. The problem is that, to this point, Coach Zierden and his staff are not placing Quinn in a situation in which she is able to succeed. As the coaches continue to play with substitutions and rotations, they continue to stubbornly try to turn Quinn into a point guard. For this, I do not blame Quinn as she is doing her best with the situation in which she has been placed.

Coach Zierden has spoken countless times about how this year is an evaluation for the future of the team. Fans can certainly accept that optimism as long as they are evaluating each player fairly. Amber Jacobs has more to offer this team then she has been allowed, while Noelle Quinn is not being used in the correct manner.

Both players are valuable and should be a part of the future of this team, if the coaches can give them the chance to succeed.

Svet Checks In

SL: In the past six games (prior to Tuesday night’s loss), the starting five has scored 85% of the team’s points.

SA: Did Seimone score 70%?

SL: Almost, but not quite. Anyway, is that an indication that the chemistry is growing between that lineup and you’re starting to understand each other on the court?

SA: Definitely chemistry. When the coach lets you play and we do play a lot of minutes--maybe not all at once all five players, but definitely four players. We’re all playing about 30 minutes a game. When you play that much, each game is a new situation. You’re winning games, you’re losing games, but, of course, we’re getting that experience together. I feel like we’re passing the ball better and we’re helping people a lot better. We still need a lot of work on a lot of things, but in terms of the starting lineup, it’s established now. We have one and I feel like we’re ready for every game. Before, people didn’t really know what was going to happen. I feel like we still need to work on the rotation because we’re trying to get more people involved, but I feel like the coaches are doing a great job. You can see it in the winning. You know, we’re winning games, so obviously, it’s working. I’m pretty happy about that right now.

SL: With the improved play as of late, does it help the team’s confidence to know that a majority of the wins that you do have are at the expense of some of the best teams in the league?

SA: In past years what would happen was that we would be playing good and then people would figure out how to play against us. Then, the whole thing would just go down. Mentally, that was very hard because we thought we did ok in the beginning, but then we started thinking that we couldn’t really win. This year, it was the opposite. We didn’t know what we were doing at the beginning and we were trying to figure it out, but now, we just need a little more time and we’re going to be ok. We’ve slowly been getting there. You know, we’re winning more then we’re losing lately and our record is good against the Western Conference. We lost to Chicago, we lost to New York, but against the Western Conference, we’re good. We’re right there. Getting a win in San Antonio, getting a win against Phoenix at their home, that was great. We need to win games on the road and that’s our biggest thing right now.

SL: In what areas do you think the team has made the most progress this year and what areas still need work?

SA: I feel like defensively we can get much better. We’re trying to not let people beat us one-on-one and help each other on defense. I feel that individually we can get better at that, but offensively, I feel we’ve improved a lot. There’s so many plays in our system, but I feel like right now, we actually know what the coach is going to run and we’re ok with that. There was a time when we weren’t comfortable with what he was calling, but now, we know the stuff and it has become natural, you know? I think that’s the biggest improvement. We just needed two training camps to be ready.

SL: I was looking at your stats today and your field goal and three-point percentage are both at career high levels.

SA: Oh really? I won’t take one shot again!

SL: No, you’ve got to shoot! Anyway, is that something that you were consciously trying to improve or did it just happen, since you weren’t even aware of it?

SA: One thing you can always improve is your shooting percentage. You take more shots, you work on your form and in this system it’s easier for me because I don’t get that many chance to shoot. When I do shoot, I’m usually wide open. Seimone attracts a lot of attention, so when she kicks it out, I’m open and they’re pretty easy shots to make. As long as I keep making them, I’m happy with that because they’re not high-difficulty shots, but I’ve still been working on that.

SL: I asked you this in the preseason, but feel the need to revisit this topic. Have you seen enough improvement from the team this season that you would like to stay here in Minnesota past this season?

SA: Well, the season is not over yet. I’m happy with the chemistry right now. The chemistry and how the coaching staff is working with us. It is definitely better then previous years because we’re all on the same page, but I can’t think about next year right now. I’m only going to think about this year.

SL: I looked at the standings today…

SA: …and we are still right there…

SL: Right. Are you confident that this team will be able to continue to fight and make a push for that final playoff berth?

SA: I don’t want to be in a situation where we still have 10 games left and we’re out of the playoffs. That’s the worst for players to play in that. That’s what we’re here for…you want to play for a championship. I feel like, at this point, we need to get even better right now. We need to start winning games. If we don’t do it before the All-Star break, right after the break it might be too late. Now is the time to start getting really urgent about it. We need to win home games, all home games. We need to win on the road, at least 50%. Now is the time.

Apologies For The Delay

********7:30 PM UPDATE---I AM WORKING ON THE

INTERVIEW RIGHT NOW. WILL BE UP SHORTLY.*********

I apologize that I will not be able to post the Svetlana Abrosimova article tonight. After celebrating the fourth with my wife and children, I am utterly exhausted. I am off to rest before returning to work tomorrow.

Article will be posted as soon as possible tomorrow.

Interview with Abrosimova Coming Soon

Hey all,

Just wanted to keep you updated that I will be posting on last night's game at some point today. Between working some OT and the holiday, I'm kind of out of the loop today.

Interviewed Svetlana before yesterday's game and she gave me some interesting answers. Check back later tonight for that interview.

Happy Fourth of July!

The Lynx Are Changing Their Culture

Lost in all the Timberwolves talk during their off-season is the fact that there’s another team in town playing some quality basketball as of late.

More…
http://www.downtownjournal.com/index.php?publication=downtown&story=8806&page=65&category=57