Storm Dominates Preseason Opener
Posted on May 7, 11 p.m.

The first thing that jumps out at me is how far ahead Seattle this year from last year. In retrospect, last year really was a rebuilding campaign. The Storm played five inexperienced players and this year Barbara Turner will be the only one. The team looks together. The roles are already defined. The rotation is close to established.

Speaking of rotation, the versatility that Anne Donovan will have with this year�s club is fantastic. Shaunzinski Gortman brings an element that the Storm have never had with the ability to play all three wing positions and, more importantly, defend all three wing positions.

If this year�s slogan is Seeing is Believing, tonight would be "seeing is a good reminder." In other words, we were reminded what fantastic players Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson are. Over the off-season it is easy to forget how great they are. Tonight was the reminder.

The new 24-second clock may put an increased onus on Bird and that can only be a good thing for Seattle. There aren�t many teams that have a point guard with the offensive capability of Bird. There aren�t a lot of players in the league that can just beat someone to get their own shot and those players that can will be incredibly valuable.

Defensively, the Storm was much improved, but it will take some time before we can tell how much of that was the Storm and how much was the Liberty's lack of talent.

One of our new features this year as part of the expanded coverage at storm.wnba.com is that Elise Woodward and I will record a postgame audio recap after each game this season. Check out our first edition after tonight's game.

The Development of JB
Posted on May 5, 8 p.m.

today�s audio blog

Last season, Burse should have won the league�s Most Improved Player. Instead, a former #3 pick of the draft, Nicole Powell of Sacramento, won. She should have won the most misused award by Charlotte, her original team, but that is a sidenote.

How do you respond to being edged out as the Most Improved Player? How about winning it the next year? Thus far in camp, Burse looks like she is on the verge of taking another jump in her career. Another sidenote - this is not unprecedented with a post player. Check out the two jumps Michelle Snow's game has made over the past three seasons.

Last season, Burse's shooting percentage went up nearly 10%. That is unfathomable. Her points per game doubled and her rebounds nearly did the same. Most importantly, she started all 34 games for the team.

The change in Burse�s game came from her work with Head Coach Anne Donovan. She simplified her post moves. She became increasingly more confident with each outing. Most impressively, the league adapted to her game midway through the year and then she altered her approach in the post to counter how the defense was playing her.

This year, Burse has looked even better. Her play may be the key to the season. With Lauren Jackson limited in her minutes per game due to her problematic shins, Burse will need to combine with Wendy Palmer to carry a larger load.

In camp the Storm has been really accentuating early post-up opportunities for Burse and she has embraced it. Sprinting down the floor Burse is able to get deep in the lane and her left-handed post moves have been deadly. She has been equally good out of each block and her balance is dramatically better then it once was when she is making her post moves.

Two plays in practice have stood out the most. One was a post move where she was bumped by the guy who was guarding her and she was able to muster enough strength to stay with the play. The other was on a post move from the right block she spun into the middle looking for her left-hand shot, but it was taken away and she passed out to a shooter. I am not sure she had the ability to make the pass out of the post like that the last few seasons.

Both of these plays are representative of improved balance and that will make JB vastly improved.

The Bird is in the House
Posted on May 4, 4 p.m.

Bird�s presence gives Anne Donovan a reference point for every other guard in practice. For the past weeks, everything has been words to the younger players and now with Bird in practice Donovan can say, "Did you see that?"

That is exactly what happened when Bird took the perfect angle coming off a pick in the pick-and-roll game and Donovan stopped the practice to show how if you do it correctly like Bird did, then either you will be open or the defense has to react and leave another player open.

For more on the little things that Bird does and another insane day from Barbara Turner click here for the audio blog.

If you ever wondered how much Bird cares about winning and the Storm this story will tell you. During this off-season, Donovan was at her computer when she received an e-mail from Bird. This is not uncommon. Bird is a bit notorious for her texting and e-mailing the coaches during drafts and free agency or at any other big moments in the franchise.

This time it was different. It was February and Bird was still thinking about the loss to the Comets and it was stewing. Bird e-mailed Donovan to find out what she had to do to make sure this never happened again. What did she need to do? Unlike a lot of players, she wasn�t looking to place the blame elsewhere; she was going to change things herself.

It built into a nice dialogue with the main point that Bird could be more assertive and aggressive with the team both on and off the floor. This is all part of the building process for Bird. It will also be part of what Donovan needs from Bird on the 2008 Olympic Team.

There are two main stories here. First, the Seattle Storm is on the forefront of Bird�s mind 12 months a year. Most importantly, this women is obsessed with success and winning and what happened to close the 2005 season was something she will work every day she can to avoid ever experiencing again.

If initial impressions are worth anything, Bird seemed incredibly optimistic about where the team stands as she arrives. She admitted that last year everyone was overly worried about all the new pieces and how young they were.

This year, she can tell that the veteran influence of Wendy Palmer has already had an impact. Moreover, there is a comfort level amongst this group that was built last year.

Storm season can begin. There is a bird in the house and her name is Sue.

The Storm also made two cuts to the roster today, requesting waivers on Toccara Williams and Dalila Eshe. The Williams cut might surprise some people. However, having been at practice, I made up a word to characterize Williams play: �inevident.� It might be self-explanatory, but the comment means that it was never evident if she was on the floor or off the floor. She had no impact on plays and she was not evident in the flow of practice. If I hadn�t been watching her to see if she could fill the backup role, I could have left the gym and wondered if she had played.

The other side is that Shaunzinski Gortman has played well and shown an ability to play the point guard. During Tuesday�s practice, one the guys on the practice squad was on fire. Call him Dude 1. Dude 1 was killing people. He was driving through the paint and hitting jumpers. It was Dude 1�s world. Dude 1 was a small forward type. Donovan stopped practice and put Gortman at the point and had her cross-match onto Dude 1. Dude 1 quickly became very quiet.

Also, Tanisha Wright can assist Gortman with the ball-handling duties as the backup point guard.

I am not sure this necessarily closes the book on the point guard battle. Waiver wires can do crazy things and there may be a player or two down the line whom Donovan deems appropriate to bring into camp.

Awaiting Sue's Return
Posted on May 3, 3 p.m.

check out today�s audio file

Sunday we all get to see it in person with the first preseason game against the New York Liberty ). In all honesty, the camp needs Sue to arrive. Everyone has pushed their talents to the maximum, but it is time for someone to come in and run the show. It is time for players see how the offense runs at its optimum with a natural point guard.

The last two cuts of Erin Grant and Lindsey Yamasaki were not surprising from watching practice. Grant�s lack of size and strength was too much for her to overcome.

The most interesting moment of practice from Tuesday took place after practice when Donovan took rookie Barbara Turner aside. Donovan shared with use her huge expectations of Turner and how much she adores her game in this week�s StormCast.

However, it was obvious on Tuesday that Turner did not have her usual energy. This is partially because it is so obvious when she does. In other words, when she wasn�t impacting every play and she was on par with everyone else it stood out.

Donovan�s message to Turner was how she needed to learn the pacing of a WNBA season. For the first time in her career she is going to have to play back to back games in different cities. For the first time she is going to people who are physically able to match her strength and her intensity. Therefore, she is going to have to learn how to get herself going when her body is saying no.

In addition, Donovan told Turner that she has to communicate with Donovan so she can manage her and do what she can to help Turner get going. It is a good example of the forethought and brilliance in Donovan� coaching. Touch on what will be a season-long issue for Turner and any rookie and start planting the seeds of how to deal with now.

Turner very well maybe on an island in regards to how to deal with this. It looks unlikely that this year�s team will have any other rookies on the roster, in contrast to last season when the Storm had five different first-year players.

Roster Breakdown
Posted on May 1, 10 p.m.

(6:00 p.m., KJR 950 AM, )

Today was the first time all camp we saw the starting frontcourt of Lauren Jackson and Janell Burse on the floor together. It made a huge difference in practice. Burse was the highlight of practice. (For more on that, click here for other thoughts from today�s practice in today�s audio report.)

Let�s break down how the roster is playing out. Teams can carry 11 players and then have the choice to carry up to 13 players. Having extra players on the roster is much less important in a truncated season like the W rather then the NBA.

Eight spots seemed solid. Last year�s starting line-up returns: Sue Bird, Betty Lennox, Izi Castro Marques, Burse and LJ. (By the way, LJ will be at the Bellevue Starbucks from 3:30 to 4:30 on Saturday.)

Three bench spots are fairly certain: last year�s first-round pick Tanisha Wright, this year�s number one pick Barbara Turner and free agent pick-up Wendy Palmer. While we're talking about Turner, I'm not the only person has fallen for her. Check out what Anne Donovan said in this week�s edition of StormCast.

Simone Edwards is back in camp. She brings such electricity the building with her personality. In addition, she has subtly improved her game each of the last few years, including shooting 59% from the field last year. Teams would be hard-pressed to find a better fourth post on their roster.

The only issue is that none of Seattle�s post players are bruisers. It is a missing component to the roster and something I am sure the coaching staff will keep an eye on. Former Houston Comet Tiffani Johnson will be coming to camp and she adds that dimension if the rest of her game is up to standard.

Here is a quick breakdown of the other players in camp and their strengths.

Palmer's Presence
Posted on April 29, 7 p.m.

click here

Anne Donovan said it best - Wendy Palmer is �gold.� Her 10-year veteran presence is evident in every drill of practice. She stood on the sidelines with her grey sweatsuit drenched top to bottom and instead of taking one play off, she yelled encouragement to all her teammates on the floor. More impressively, she moved to the side of the floor where second-round pick Dalila Eshe was starting the play and she talked her through every step of the offensive set.

In her own play, Palmer sets the tone every time she steps on the court. The most noticeable example was when she took a jumper from the left baseline about 19 feet out and it missed. While every other player on the floor seemed to take a deep breathe thinking the play was done (it was a half-court drill so there was no rebound and transition opportunity), Palmer grabbed the board and put the ball back up in. It was a clear message from a 10-year veteran to play out every play.

If Palmer has missed anything in practice, it's that on numerous occasions Donovan has had to remind her to take the shot more often when she instead attempts to set up a younger player to give them confidence.

After 10 years in the league there is only one thing left for Palmer to accomplish, and that is to win a championship. Donovan brought her to Seattle for her leadership and because the team needed the veteran who had a one-track mind focused on a championship.

For Palmer the drive is also the love of the game. She talks about the off-season as a time when she misses the daily grind, misses the thrill of playing competitively and craves the chance to play again. Her passion for the game is obvious.

Last year�s camp really struggled until Sue Bird arrived from Russia. This year things have been much better largely because of Palmer and her leadership.

Palmer's game may not be the same as she had in 1998 when I called her games in Utah or in 2000 when she put 32 points on the board against the Storm when she played for Detroit (the opponent individual record against the Storm for some time until Sheryl Swoopes broke it in 2004), but it is still strong and her leadership is a perfect compliment to the Storm.

Notes From Friday's Practice
Posted on April 28, 10 p.m.

A lot of the conversation around the offense was about the change from the 30-second clock to the 24-second clock. That is the focus of today�s audio file.

Without question, my favorite part of practice is watching Donovan coach. She is a master. Today she spent a huge amount of time communicating to each player why they need to be where they are on the floor and how they are impacting the other four players on the floor. When players grasp that, you get that very special chemistry on the floor.

In addition, Donovan�s ability to see everything that is happening on the floor at one time is magnificent. On numerous occasions, there were plays where she noticed something on the weak side while most of the action took place elsewhere. She also notices the slightest alterations in a player�s spacing and how that impacts the passing lanes and floor balance.

A good example of this is that the wings were struggling on the insert pass and she was working with them on how to create those angles. Then, after the pass, she kept reminding the wings to move away from the ball to pull their defender away from the post player.

Some other observations from Friday�s morning sessions:

Seeing Turner is Believing
Posted on April 27, 6 p.m.

click here

Storm fans, you are going to love Barbara Turner. After practice today, a group of us got to chat with her and she is engaging, thoughtful and a pleasure to be around. The best part is the woman can play.

In the media world we talk about players that can fill up your notebook. Turner gave the reporters enough stories they could write a story about her every day. That's not to mention the amazing things Anne Donovan said about her after practice.

Donovan said that Turner has the unteachable �it.� The �it� is the incredible ability to play every possession with your maximum energy. Think Tamika Catchings. Donovan raved about her competitiveness and how she will not allow a play to go by that she doesn�t impact. Donovan even said, �She is going to be very good. Those aren�t flashes, that is her game.� Let me tell you, the flashes are terrific and if those aren�t flashes that is good news for Storm fans.

Before we get too excited about her game, let�s all take a deep breath (this is mostly meant for me) and remember she is not playing against fellow top-level WNBA players yet and there still is going to be a lot of adjustment. Turner even admits that defensively she is really not sure of herself yet and that the move from a down-low power player to an open-floor wing player is taking some adjustment.

Now to the fun stuff. Kevin Pelton has already profiled her at storm.wnba.com, but today we learned more. She started playing the game in Ohio with her older brother Cameron, who was four years older. They played two-on-two against the neighbor boys. Evidently, Cameron was pretty competitive and didn�t accept losing under any circumstances. Turner even said it got so intense that she didn�t like playing for a while. Can�t you just see Barbara and her brother going up and down the neighborhood playing everyone almost as a sting - "Hey, you want to play me and my little sister?" and then the little sister could ball.

Talking to Turner is impressive. She makes eye contact. She is very well-spoken and very sure of herself. The phrase �beyond her years� fits perfectly.

In this 10th Anniversary season, Turner is also a great example of how the WNBA has changed the lives of young girls. Growing up in Cleveland, Turner went to Rockers games and her aunt was a season-ticket holder. At an awards banquet, she met then-Cleveland Cavaliers Coach John Lucas. After exchanging numbers, Turner started working out with Lucas in Cleveland. (She also had a personal trainer at this point in high school). Most of those workouts took place with male players and they included current and future NBA players. In fact, she wears #11 in part because of the time she spent with Earl Boykins (now with the Denver Nuggets) during those workouts. Yes, she posted him up.

This is one terrific lady both on and off the floor. When you see her, you will believe.

Observations From Day Two
Posted on April 26, 2 p.m.

The other is the reaction to errors. A few players had some struggles today as their skills weren�t translating to the WNBA game. The pressure mounted with each mistake and was visible in their face.

I kept a running recording of my thoughts from practice today. It includes what the drills were and thoughts on Lindsay Taylor and first-rounder Barbara Turner.

Kicking Off Training Camp
Posted on April 25, 1 p.m.

We are really going to intensify and expand the coverage on storm.wnba.com this season. We will have audio downloads as well as podcast shows and blogs - plus all the great stuff that Kevin Pelton has done in the past.

I just returned from practice today. The focus was almost entirely on defense. While I was at practice I talked into my recorder to share my thoughts with you and you can listen to that by clicking here. Sorry the quality isn�t great.

Here are a few opening thoughts. Two items really should be getting headline play for the 2006 Seattle Storm. First, the entire starting lineup returns. That is not something a lot of teams are going to be able to say around the WNBA and the Storm will only make one change in their top seven players with the addition of Wendy Palmer.

Last year, Anne Donovan was very concerned about offensive flow with all the new pieces and this year she will be able to put more of the focus on defense, because the offense will flow naturally.

Second, the move to the 24-second clock is going to have a large change in how the game is defended. Players will now only have to get down and dirty for about 10 to 15 seconds rather then 15 to 25 which is a big difference. Offensively, this will favor teams that have players that can make plays on their own and Seattle has three of the best in Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson and Betty Lennox. In addition, it will favor teams that can run and we all know how Izi can run. It also can�t be forgotten how good Janell Burse became in the post on single coverage last season.

Those are the thoughts for today. Please check back at storm.wnba.com for more. Also, don't forget to get your tickets - great 6- and 10-game packages are available.