Dana Wynne in a more familiar uniform .
In looking at a series of players with very high Player Efficiency Ratings (PER) but very low career minutes played, we come to the case of Dana Wynne. Wynne had a PER of 51.70 in 2001, the highest I've seen (so far) for a single season. The highest value of a player that actually played was that of Yolanda Griffith's 28.43. Based on PER alone, you could make the argument that Yo deserved the MVP more than Lisa Leslie, but Leslie wasn't far off with 27.59 and Leslie happened to lead her Los Angeles Sparks to their first of their two straight WNBA championships.
In her one-game, three-minute outing with the Monarchs in 2001, she didn't attempt any field goals, but she went 2-for-2 from the line in free throws. She also had one offensive rebound and one blocked shot. Not bad for three minutes or less of play.
However, Wynne's case is misleading. This wasn't just some rookie-for-a-cup-of-coffee. Wynne graduated from Seton Hall in 1997 and the 6-2, 175 pound guard/forward was a third round pick in the 1997 American Basketball League draft, playing for the Colorado Xplosion in both 1996-97 and 1997-98. From my understanding, she was also a player in 1998-99 until the league suspended operations in December 1998.
The problem is that there is no storehouse of statistics for the ABL from its 1996-97 through (aborted) 1998-1999 seasons. Oh John Sage has a site that will give you an tantalizing glimpse of some abbreviated stats, but there's nothing comprehensive. Trust me, if I had the comprehensive stats, I'd put them in the database. The ABL was the equal of the WNBA in my opinion, and it's sort of unfair that I have to ignore Wynne's previous two seasons. Maybe someday, when I win the lottery, I'll get those stats from somewhere.
So what happened to Dana Wynne? In 2002, she returned to the Monarchs, but was waived in May. I have a tantalizing glimpse of an article from the LA Daily News (hidden behind a paywall) that suggests that from 2003-04, Wynne was playing in Greece along with former UCLA player Michelle Greco. We know that at least from 2004-07 she was an assistant coach at Seton Hall University, her alma mater. After that, Dana Wynne disappears from the internet, or at least any mention of her in context with basketball disappears.
Dana, if you're out there somewhere, we at the Atlanta Dream Blog hope that you're okay. And that you're playing hoops every once in a while.
9 comments:
she's the girls' varsity coach at my high school.
I'm riding with her for Team In Training's(Leukemia and Lymphoma Society) charity 100 mile ride around Lake Tahoe June 6th, 2011.
I am trying to locate Dana Wynne to invite her to the Hightower Family Reunion. She can contact me at rgtower@aol.com. Ronald G Hightower
She is the Varsity Girls basketball coach at Nutley High School. She is an excellent coach and im happy to play for her.
Dana Wynne is the head coach varsity at Nutley High School in Nutley NJ.
She also coaches a girls Garden State Sharpshooters AAU team that my daughter plays on.
She coaches JV girls in Henderson NV, at Basic High School
Dana Wynne now lives in Henderson, NV and coaches JV women's b-ball at Basic High School. She is so amazingly funny and such a great friend...she's actually sitting across from me right now and doesn't know that I'm leaving this comment (:
Dana Wynne lives in Henderson, NV and coaches basketball at Basic High School. She is a great friend and amazingly funny. She's actually sitting across from me and doesn't know I'm posting this (:
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