# The 2005 WNBA All-Stars: Playing isn't necessary for selection!



## secant (May 30, 2005)

Well, the starters for the 2005 WNBA All-Star Game have been announced, and it's probable that nine of them will actually be able to play! As a Connecticut Sun fan, I'm feeling rather aggrieved at the moment. No Taj, no Whalen, no Sales, no Dydek, no Douglas...no Sun players at all made the East team. However, Swin Cash did. ? Evidently her not playing this season due to injury was more impressive than the play of every other forward actually participating in the league to this point in the season. Isn't an All-Star selection supposed to be a reward for playing well in a particular season? Part of the problem I suppose is that the season is so short and All-Star fan voting started so early. I could understand people early on in the season who had yet to see a game just voting for their favorite players, like Swin. But it's harder to understand why Swin wouldn't be overtaken in the voting as the season progressed. What was the point of voting for someone who probably would not be healthy enough to play in the game even if selected? At least this should give Swin a bit of a boost of confidence now that she's coming back -- that's the only good of it. But I feel she was a very bad choice for the All-Star team this season. I really don't think the East team really represents the best the East has to offer; does anyone here think these All-Stars (all 4 of them, that is!) would be likely to defeat the Sun starting lineup? 

All isn't rosy out west, either. The league's top scorer, Chamique Holdsclaw, didn't make the team. This isn't quite the travesty that the Swin selection is because the forwards that were voted in are pretty good; nonetheless, Chamique would've been a no-brainer pick for me if I was selecting a West All-Star team for this season. She's looked awesome in the Sparks' games I've seen. 

All in all, I'm not too pleased with either team at this point, but things should look better after the reserves are selected by the coaches. As of right now, I'm not sure I'd want to even watch the game. Maybe just to cheer on Diana if I had nothing else to do...but it wouldn't be something I'd feel excited about watching. Both teams really could've been better, I think.


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## 4ever_bball_fan (Aug 5, 2004)

Welcome to the board, secant.

Did you not get to a WNBA game during the month of June so you could vote for the Claw? I went and took ballots home with me to vote for the two starting forwards for the West...Swoopes and Jackson. If Mique had stayed in the East, she might have been a shoo-in, but in the West, it is just too danged tough to get the starting nod. I love LJ to death, but if Tina Thompson had been available to vote for, I would have definitely been torn. The starting forwards in the West should be there.

Now the Eastern Conference is indeed another story. I have posted repeatedly on different boards that the East may as well just start the Connecticut Sun as the All-Star team...they are indeed playing that well. And for none of those players to get one single starter is really sad, while a player that has yet to suit up is easily voted in as a starter...I say that is really pathetic.

Hopefully Taj and Lindsay at least will get in, but that leaves no love for Sales, who should also be there. 

secant...do watch the game. It is always a lot of fun, at least if Bird and LJ are on the floor. They will probably both end up in Coach Donovan's dog house if they pull something off this year the way they did two years ago. The Birdy between the legs pass on a fast break to a trailing Lauren Jackson for the lay in...play of the year!!! I now understand that Michelle Snow has been named as a reserve and you know what that means???? A possible dunk in the works...I can just see Bird feeding her now...throwin' it down on Riley or Wauters!!!

So, yeah...there are a lot of reasons to watch the game next Saturday night.


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## Cometsbiggestfan (May 14, 2003)

4ever_bball_fan said:


> Welcome to the board, secant.
> 
> So, yeah...there are a lot of reasons to watch the game next Saturday night.


Exactly. Not to mention the fact that the West WILL prevail in a blow-out. i guarantee it. :clap:


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## 4ever_bball_fan (Aug 5, 2004)

The West should definitely prevail and I will be looking for Snow to DUNK that punkin'!!!

I have been having visions of Sue Bird setting her up and BAM...right on Ruth Riley's head!!! Whoo---hoo!

Coach Donovan will just shake her head and "maybe" grin a little.


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## secant (May 30, 2005)

As I expected, the All-Star teams do look a lot better now that the coaches have made their selections. I'll be torn between supporting the East whenever Taj and Nykesha and Cheryl are on the court and supporting the West the rest of the time...they really have fielded the better team this time around. I have to admit I don't get as excited about all-star games in general as many people do...I know they have a unique atmosphere and they do bring (theoretically) the best players together, but when an all-star game is finished it's really, really finished. It doesn't have any impact on who will be the champions; at most, it might lift the spirits of some struggling superstars. So I'll just have to sit back and enjoy basketball for basketball's sake this afternoon, without too much concern for winners or losers...there's nothing wrong with that!

Last I heard, Swin Cash WILL be playing in the game. This surprised me...I know I wouldn't want to be an "illegitimate" All-Star fresh off an injury, though I understand why she might want to be there just as a way of thanking her fans who unjustifiably voted for her. I expect Swin's minutes will be limited, but she'll have a chance to justify her selection. 

Of course, I'm really glad that the coaches did such a nice job of filling out the teams. Dydek and Whalen could easily have made the East team as well, but I can settle with just having Taj (my favorite player) and Nykesha there to represent the Sun. Chamique will have a chance to play too...incidentally, her not getting into the game in the voting phase definitely had nothing to do with my NOT voting for her(does that qualify as a double negative? I really need to review my grammar...)! I suppose I could have supported her and my other favorite players by voting everyday on the web site, which I didn't...but I felt strange voting early on in the season, not knowing who would really come out and shine. Deanna Nolan was another surprising oversight by the voters, I thought; she's not only played well, but I thought she was getting hyped quite a bit by the media. Another thing which surprised me a little about the voters' initial selections is that Lisa Leslie didn't make the West team. I agree with the voters here, since Lisa is having a good but unspectacular season...she may just be the third best center in the West right now, which is kind of shocking to say/write. But Lisa is one of the most visible female basketball players of the past decade; if Swin can make it in the East without playing, why couldn't Lisa make it by playing decently? It may have something to do with popularity or something to do with those apparently knowledgeable fans in the western United States...


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## secant (May 30, 2005)

Well, the West did prevail comfortably as was predicted on this thread...but it was a pretty interesting and enjoyable game. The East started off very nicely...it was neck-and-neck for much of the first half. Hammon was shooting beautifully, Catchings was hustling and scoring, Staley was distributing well. The West struck back strongly but when Sales began scoring at will to start the second half it really seemed like the game could go either way. Until Katie Smith hit those back-to-back three pointers, at least... The game was an excellent offensive showcase for the league: lots of great shooting, good inside play, good passing, good movement. Sure, it might've been a bit closer if the East had played more aggressive defense, but would we have had a 221 point game?! 4ever_bball_fan, what did you think of the dunk? It couldn't have been more scripted but I still got chills from watching Leslie make it... However, I think the play of the game was Taurasi's miss-and-hit play some seconds before the dunk. I'm too sleepy to write anything more now, but I'll post my thoughts on individual performances tomorrow if my organic chemistry textbook gives me a moment to spare!


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