Storm Practice Video

From StormTracker - the Official Blog of the Seattle Storm. Just about thirty minutes of practice with the storm on tape.

What's interesting is that the practice squad playing against the Storm is a male practice squad. They might have been setting up like a specific opposing WNBA team, but at least for 30 seconds or so, they weren't doing so good.

Ivory at the iPod: Training Camp Pics - May 20, 2008

Lil' Wayne, eat your heart out.

Some more pictures. These were supplied by the Atlanta Dream on Twitter.

1. Ivory at the iPod, above.
2. Chamique Holdsclaw against the green screen.
3. Angel McCoughtry poses for the green screen.
4. Coco Miller interviewed at Media Day.
5. Coach Meadors interviewed at Media Day.

Rub a Dub Dub, Rookie in the Tub

Another picture from the Atlanta Dream training camp, copyright Big Smooth Productions:



I ain't gonna identify who is in this pic. After the Tamera Young fiasco, y'all on your own.

Who Can Dunk? Dream Can Dunk!

Can Michelle Snow and Angel McCoughtry...dunk? I think the answer to that question is "yes"?

Second-Hand Training Camp Notes: May 18 2009

All Eyez on Me

(via Twitter)

* We have two new nicknames for Dream players. Chamique Holdsclaw is known as "Big Smooth" and Tamera Young is known as "Lil Smooth". You have to watch out for that "Smooth/Smoove" nickname. Ivory Latta nicknamed Kristin Haynie "K-Smoove" last year, and look what happened.

* Some more pictures from Big Smooth.

** The beginning of the long day.
** Tales of the sleeping rookie.
** More snoozin'.

* From Chantelle Anderson: "Media day is taking 4ever. I just want to go home and lay down! :)"

* More from Big Smooth (I think Chamique Holdsclaw might become the Designated Twitterer.):

"Our rookies are great! They have been awesome on the first 2 days of rookie duty. They had donuts and bagels waiting for us this morning!" I think this horrible rookie hazing is inexcusable and should be reported to the WNBA, Chamique - but I'll keep my mouth shut for a donut.

* Another reason to follow Big Smooth: two "Bubble Tweets" of a sleeping rookie waking up.

Training Camp Pictures, May 17 2009

Shalee Lehning warms up.

From @atlantadream on Twitter:

1. Ivory Latta
2. Danielle Donehew and Coach Marynell Meadors
3. The first team huddle
4. Angel McCoughtry
5. Marlies Gipson
6. Shalee Lehning, above.
7. Chamique Holdsclaw, Chantelle Anderson, and Nikki Teasley
8. Coco Miller.

The First Training Camp Picture

The photographer? Chamique Holdsclaw.

The source? Twitter. Chamique shared her shot with the world.

The location? Dream Training Camp, May 17th 2009.

My question: who is the subject?

Update: The second picture, this from Chantelle Anderson. Even a soopergenious like me was able to figure this one out. Also: thanks to all the commenters for identifying the subject of the picture above. My only comment: I feel really stupid right now.

Training Camp Opens

Today, training camp opens in the WNBA.

It makes the heart swell as much as those magic words "Pitchers and Catchers Report Today" make the heart of a baseball fanatic skip a beat.

Dream Signs Coco Miller

The final spot in the Dream's training camp has been filled with the signing of Coco Miller, a former standout at the University of Georgia and the identical twin of Kelly Miller who plays for the Phoenix Mercury. Miller has been a guard for the Washington Mystics for the last eight years.

Coco Miller had a horrible year last year. Her best year was at 24, and she's sort of declined every year since then.

However, a) she is an experienced player, who
b) is willing to accept limited minutes.

The impression is that she's been signed to a regular season contract and not a training camp contract. Here's the final training camp list. (I can't wait till Leuchanka shows up.)

A: Players Who Played Last Year

C Snow (free agent signing)

F/C de Souza
F Lacy
F Lyttle

G/F Castro Marques
G Latta
G Young
G C. Miller

B: Players Who Didn't Play Last Year, But Whom We Expect To Play

C Anderson
G Teasley
F Holdsclaw

C: Players Acquired by Draft or Who Have Not Signed a Contract

C Leuchanka
G/F McCoughtry
G Lehning
F Gipson

Dream Sign Marlies Gipson to Training Camp Contract

Even though there is no press release from the Dream, the Dream have signed Marlies Gipson to a training camp contract.

Gipson is a 6-0 power forward out of Kansas State - she can provide some familiar company for second-round Dream draft pick Shalee Lehning. Gipson averaged 13.4 ppg/5.1 rpg/1.4 apg. The only injury hx I can find is from Wikipedia, which mentions a knee cap injury in 2006-07.

Her draft profile from WNBA Draft Net is here.

This still leaves one spot open in training camp. The list now looks like this:

A: Players Who Played Last Year

C Snow (free agent signing)

F/C de Souza
F Lacy
F Lyttle

G/F Castro Marques
G Latta
G Young

B: Players Who Didn't Play Last Year, But Whom We Expect To Play

C Anderson
G Teasley
F Holdsclaw

C: Players Acquired by Draft or Who Have Not Signed a Contract

C Leuchanka
G/F McCoughtry
G Lehning
F Gipson

Phoenix Mercury to Hold Tryouts

From the Phoenix Mercury - old news, but newly relevant:

The Phoenix Mercury will be holding open tryouts for WNBA hopefuls on May 2 beginning at 9 a.m. at US Airways Center. From the participants, two women will be chosen to participate in preseason workouts with members of the Phoenix Mercury and its coaching staff at US Airways Center.

Women 18 years and older can register to participate in an instruction and drill session hosted by Phoenix Mercury Head Coach Corey Gaines, General Manager Ann Meyers Drysdale and the Mercury coaching staff. The top 16 participants will be invited back to scrimmage at 6 p.m. Coaches will evaluate each player and select the two people to join the team for workouts in May.


Hey, Atlanta Dream organization! Why can't we do something like this? We've got one open spot for training camp! Maybe we could give recent graduate Jacqua Williams of Georgia Tech an invite to camp? She's better than someone off the street!

Tweet, Tweet, Tweet

From @AtlantaDream on Twitter:

@AtlantaDreamCan't wait for training camp to start May17th!! Welcome home Tamera Young and Ivory Latta!!

That confirms two things:

1) that training camp opens on May 17th, and
2) that Tamera Young is now back in the United States.

Hey, we've got Anderson, Holdsclaw, and Lacy currently in Atlanta working out - what's it going to be like when you add Latta and Young to that mix? We could be AWE-some.

Each WNBA Team to Have 15 at 2009 Training Camps

There is a new report that the number of training camp spots for 2009 will total 15. This leads to the question of who will actually be named to the 2009 Atlanta Dream training camp roster.

Here is our best estimate:

A: Players Who Played Last Year

C Mattera (married name of Katie Feenstra)
C Snow (free agent signing)

F/C de Souza
F Lacy
F Lyttle (acquired from dispersal draft)

G/F Castro Marques
G Haynie
G Latta
G Young

B: Players Who Didn't Play Last Year, But Whom We Expect To Play

C Anderson
G Teasley

C: Players Who Might Or Might Not Be Signed, Or Show Up

F Holdsclaw
C Leuchanka
?? #1 Draft Pick
?? Other Draft Pick

This implies that out of the four draft picks from 2009, only two of them will get an invitation to training camp. It's possible that the lower round picks could be "burned" on foreign players to secure their rights.

Out of these 15 players, four will be sent home as the WNBA maximum roster size for 2009 is 11 players.