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WNBA Eastern Conference Recap: Sun Lose Ashja Jones as Indiana and Atlanta Surge to the Fore
By Jim Clark
Correspondent
Photo Caption: Chamique Holdsclaw has been a difference-maker in the East this season, leading her young team to second-place in the conference standings after they won only two games in all of their inaugural season last year.
Photo Credit: Courtesy NBAE/Getty Images/Scott Cunningham
Perhaps more than in any other major sport, a single player can make the difference between failure and success in women’s hoops.
In the Eastern Conference this year, one of those players has been Chamique Holdsclaw of the Atlanta Dream. Not only has Holdsclaw led her team in points most of the season, but she has provided leadership to a generally young team which is out-performing any preseason expectations. With Saturday’s 88–79 victory over Seattle, Atlanta took over second place in the conference last week with a record of 13-11.
The Dream won just four games in its inaugural season, before coach Marynell Meadors enticed Holdsclaw out of retirement last winter. Meadors has assembled a young team who can both score and rebound, and who have beaten Indiana, Phoenix, and Seattle already this season. Of course, Atlanta also lost three out of four to lowly New York, the league’s second worst team. The team has won six of its last seven games though, and has a favorable schedule remaining—two games each against West bottom-feeders Los Angeles and Sacramento, and just three games in conference. Only Indiana has a better record over the last 10 games. In just its second season, Atlanta appears destined for the playoffs, with a real chance to avoid Indiana in the first round.
At the same time, the loss of a single player can have devastating results on a given team. For Connecticut, that player could prove to be Asjha Jones, who, the Sun announced yesterday, will be out for two weeks due to soreness in her left Achilles tendon. Jones, who is averaging a team-high 16.7 points per game and who recently set a team record with 18 consecutive games in double figures, has by far been the most reliable weapon in Connecticut’s arsenal this season. Jones just put up a team-high 23 points in the Sun’s 91-89 double-overtime loss to Washington on Saturday, playing more than 32 minutes. But Jones hasn’t seen a full practice in “several weeks,” according to Connecticut coach Mike Thibault, and now the team is sitting her out of all basketball activities while she undergoes therapy for the next 10-12 days. There’s never a good time to lose your key player to injury, but with the Sun currently in third place in the East with a record of just 12-11 and two other teams—Chicago at 13-12 and Washington at 12-12—very much in the hunt, there couldn’t be a worse time for Connecticut to see Jones sidelined.
Here’s how the Eastern Conference stacks up with less than four weeks left in the regular season:
1. Indiana (19-5)
Won 2: @Minnesota (91 – 81); v. Detroit (82 – 59). Lost 1: @Los Angeles (63 – 75).
Lisa Leslie sparked Los Angeles with 21 points and 11 rebounds to register a rare defeat on Indiana’s record. Leslie became the first WNBA player to score 6000 points, with a jump shot in the first half. Leslie also leads the WNBA with 3214 rebounds.(Trivia note: Leslie, teammate Tina Thompson, Indiana’s Tameka Dixon, and San Antonio’s Vickie Johnson are the only remaining players from the WNBA’s first season.)
The Fever, usually among the league’s best defenses, allowed Los Angeles to shoot 51 percent for the game. Indiana quickly rebounded from the loss with two definitive victories later in the week. In the latter of those, the Fever overcame a double-digit deficit against Detroit for the second time this season, to finish with a 23-point margin of victory. On the week, Katie Douglas improved her claim to this year’s MVP honors by scoring 19, 18, and 16 points, respectively, although she shot just 37 percent overall. Indiana now has the WNBA’s best record, with two more wins and three fewer losses than Western Conference leader Phoenix.
Up this week: @ Sacramento (Thursday, August 20); @ Seattle (Saturday, August 22).
2. Atlanta (13-11)
Won 2: Detroit (80–75); Seattle (88–79). Lost 0.
Although Holdsclaw is indisputably the young team’s leader, the Dream have had balanced scoring all season, and this week’s victories were no exception. Rookie-of-the-Year Angel McCoughtry (she’s got my vote, as she really is more productive than DeWanna Bonner, in fewer minutes played) scored 11, then 16 points for the week. Erika de Souza followed a 15-point, 13-rebound game with 13 points and 12 boards in the week’s second contest. Sancho Lyttle added to her Most-Improved-Player credentials registering a 30/20 week, earning her first Player-of-the-Week honor. Both Atlanta (36.75 rebounds per game) and de Souza (9.1 rebounds per game) lead the league in rebounding.
Up this week: v. San Antonio (Thursday, August 20); v. Los Angeles (Sunday, August 23).
3. Connecticut (12 – 11)
Won 1: v. Seattle (64-53). Lost 1: Washington (89-71, 2 OT).
Connecticut dropped from second to third-place in the East last week, and the free-fall may have “only just begun,” in the words of the ballad. A week that began with a dominating performance over Seattle ended with a dispiriting loss in double overtime to Washington, then a possibly fatal blow to the Sun when, on Monday, the team announced that leading scorer and post defender Asjha Jones would miss the next two weeks “due to soreness in her Achilles’ tendon.” Jones has been the Rock upon which the Sun has rested, and without her in the post, the undeveloped Chante Black will become an important part of the equation for Connecticut. This is not a hopeful sign. The other option is Tamika Whitmore, but she is still being nursed back from her own knee surgery, and Connecticut is unlikely to push her minutes anytime soon.
 | Photo Caption: Asjha Jones has also been a difference maker for her team, the Sun, but she’s out for two weeks with an Achilles injury, and her loss, at this critical juncture, may make “all of the difference,” in the words of Robert Frost. | Photo Credit: Courtesy SPMSportspage.com/Larry Morgenweck |
As bad as the Jones news is, there are some encouraging signs elsewhere on the Sun. Sandrine Gruda continued to mature as a center, Coach Mike Thibault finally saw a complete game from the Sun, including a rare contribution of 19 points from his bench, and Connecticut’s defense was nearly flawless in the final 36 minutes against the Storm.
But that defense could not control Washington’s Crystal Langhorne, who set career highs in points and rebounds in 50 minutes of exhausting basketball Friday night. If there was any consolation in the loss to Washington, it was another decent day for the bench with six reserves combining to score 31 points. Erin Phillips was especially effective on the week, both in general as a substitute at the point, and also in particular as a scorer against Washington, where she contributed 13 points off the bench. Nonetheless, the loss of a conference game, even a close one, and the season series, to Washington leaves the Sun in shaky territory for the postseason, especially now with the loss of Jones.
Up this week: v. New York (Wednesday, August 19); @New York (Friday, August 21); v. Minnesota (Saturday, August 22).
4. Chicago (13-12)
Won 2: @New York (88 – 77); v. Minnesota (79 – 76). Lost 0.
Chicago’s two victories last week mask a dangerous tendency. After jumping out to a 28-point lead against the Liberty, the Sky were outscored by 17 in the second half, as the Liberty threatened the season’s second come-from-behind win over Chicago. Sylvia Fowles’s 22 points and Candice Dupree’s 20 kept that from happening.
But against Minnesota, Chicago was once again outscored in the fourth quarter, and just barely held on for a three-point victory. Erin Thorne played a season-high 27 minutes and scored 17 points against the the Lynx, and every point was needed. Chicago has won three of four, however, and remains solidly in the playoff picture. With two games each against New York and Detroit, the Sky largely hold their playoff fate in their own hands.
Up this week: v. Phoenix (Tuesday, August 18); v. Detroit (Saturday, August 22).
5. Washington (12 – 12)
Won 1: v. Connecticut (91–89, 2 OT). Lost 2: v. Detroit (77 – 81); v. New York (59 – 60).
Conversely, Washington dropped a notch last week, a week that saw the Mystics lose to both Eastern Conference cellar-dwellers. But Washington still hovers in fifth place, very much part of the Eastern Conference play-off picture.
In the two losses, Washington surrendered leads late in the game: The Mystics were outscored 35–22 in the fourth quarter against Detroit, then gave up an “ugly” three–point play to Janel McCarville of the Liberty with just nine seconds remaining in that game.
Crystal Langhorne set career marks in points (22), rebounds (16), and minutes played (41:10) as the Mystics defeated Connecticut in double overtime Friday. The game featured 16 lead changes and 14 ties before Langhorne’s leg bucket finally won it. That win dropped Washington a half game behind Connecticut in the play-off race, even though they Mystics, at 9-9 maintain a better conference record than the Sun, who are just 7-9 in conference play. The win also gave Washington the season-series tie breaker between the two teams.
Langhorne had a breakthrough week despite the two losses, scoring 43 points and grabbing 27 rebounds in the three games. Alana Beard continued her outstanding play, scoring 26, 17, and 18 points over the course of the week’s contests.
Up this week: Road trip! @ Los Angeles (Tuesday, August 18); @Phoenix (Friday, August 21); @Sacramento (Saturday, August 22).
6. Detroit (9-13)
Lost 2: @Atlanta (75-80); @Indiana (59-82).
After winning three of five in early August, Detroit looked ready to challenge the rest of the conference. Then came last week, which proved that the Shock are, at best, like most of the rest of the conference, only ready to play .500 ball. Given their current deficit, that will obviously not be enough to put them in the playoffs. With a miserable 4-11 conference record, Detroit will need to win most of its seven remaining conference games in order to have any chance of pulling into the top four in the East.
Katie Smith and Deanna Nolan continued to provide solid performances, sometimes helped by Cheryl Ford. Taj McWilliams has been the professional everyone expects, but she has logged a huge number of minutes, and has been known to tire at the end of seasons in the past. Shavonte Zellous has provided a regular spark off the bench. But the remainder of the Shock have been inconsistent or missing in action entirely. Kara Braxton continues to be Kara Braxton, and the remaining players are essentially useless. Alexis Hornbuckle has been a complete disappointment this season, providing neither scoring nor her former defensive presence.
The Detroit front office has obviously come to a similar conclusion, as it moved to upgrade the roster, swapping guard Kristin Haynie (2.2 points, 1.3 boards, 0.6 assistants, .50 turnovers, in 8.1 minutes per game this season) in return for Sacramento reserve forward Crystal Kelly (4.3 points, 1.7 rebounds, 12.3 minutes per game this season) on Monday, then picking up guard Nikki Teasley (waived by Atlanta earlier this season) after Barbara Farris’s seven-day contract expired today. Neither of these acquisitions appears to be much of a game-changer, much less a season-changer, at this point in their careers. It will require a surge of victories which are probably beyond the abilities of this team to get Detroit into the post season.
Up this week: v. Seattle (Tuesday, August 18); @Chicago (Saturday, August 22).
7. New York: (9-15)
Won 2: @ Los Angeles (65-61); @Washington (60–59). Lost 1: v. Chicago (77–88).
A conference record of 6-8 is not too bad for a team with just nine victories, but the Liberty are mired in the basement of the Eastern Conference, and likely to remain so as long as Janelle McCarville and Shameka Christon are the only consistent contributors on offense. Although Essence Carson and Cathryn Kraayeveld average 9.3 and 8.8 points, respectively, each is shooting just .375 from the field on the season. Carson’s defense continues to be fine, but Kraayeveld looks like a player whose time has passed. Contributions from anyone else are sporadic and minimal.
When the threes are falling, as they did against Washington, the Liberty have a chance for a victory, in that case by a single point. But far too often, New York’s defense cannot control high-scoring teams like Chicago. Games played in the 80s are nearly certain losses for this over-matched squad. Eight of New York’s remaining games are in conference, and they will need to win most of those to have any chance at the playoffs. That result would be a true miracle.
Up this week: @Connecticut (Wednesday, August 19); v. Connecticut (Friday, August 21); v. Minnesota (Sunday, August 23).
Reader Discussion
Pardon my effrontery, but shouldn’t that be four games that the Dream won in its inaugural season instead of two? Hey, winning those four games was difficult enough!
Thanks for the catch Petrel! You’re absolutely right and we corrected it elsewhere.