Holdsclaw: "It was a personal thing"

Chamique Holdsclaw gives an interview to the Silver Stars web site where she talks briefly about leaving Atlanta and the circumstances behind her departure.

"In my situation, I had a great team last year and I loved the players on my team. It was a personal thing between me and the coach. It had nothing to do with my teammates, it wasn't about basketball. You know, all my teams that I've played on in the past, everybody'll tell you I'm great in the locker room, we have a lot of fun and you know, early on it was because of my situation off the court, it was a personal reason which I could not control.

But, you know, this [inaudible] situation in Atlanta was something I didn't expect to happen. I mean I have a house there, you know, I lived there before the team was there and that's where I want to retire. But you know, you don't get everything you want so you can move on and you know, you welcome the new experience."

My translation: we don't know why Holdsclaw left, and we'll never know. "Personal thing" covers a hell of a lot of ground.

UPDATE: Holdsclaw talks to the Associated Press rep in San Antonio.

But Holdsclaw said she asked for a trade before training camp this year because of a dispute with coach-general manager Marynell Meadors.

Holdsclaw would not elaborate, only saying that it wasn’t about basketball and that it “was a thing of principle.”

“It was a lose-lose situation for me,” Holdsclaw said.

Okay, enough of the cryptic crap. Either say the reason, or stop hinting that there was one but that you won't tell anyone what it is. And you decide to throw all of this stuff only after you've landed safely in San Antonio?

New Promotional Video for Chicago Sky

Unfortunately, I can't post it on the blog, but give it a look:

http://www.graphicsmafia.com/2010/03/12/daily-planet-for-wnba-chicago-sky/

At the link above, obviously.

Women Out Front Keynote Speaker Kathy Betty Discusses the Dream

On January 14, 2010 Georgia Tech celebrated its "Women Out Front" celebration with Kathy Betty as keynote speaker. Betty is the owner of the Atlanta Dream.

A video of Kathy Betty's speech can be found at the Atlanta Dream's Facebook page. (Unfortunately, I'm not able to post it to the blog.) Apparently, there were forces out there that tried to dissuade Betty from purchasing the franchise:

And let me tell you, I had a lot of people come to me and say, "Don't do it." "This is not the right time", "this is not the right investment" - but my heart was always there.

And I think as women support women, we understand that there's a bigger decision than just logic, or just your head. It's all about your passion, and your love and your support. And believe me, we're going to make a difference in Atlanta, we're going to make a difference not only on the basketball court in the community.

And we're going to work with every little girl so she can dream to be a professional baseball - I mean basketball player! Sorry, it's way past my bedtime...!

Betty got some chuckles from her gaffe, but...well, why not professional baseball as well? Maybe Betty was just thinking big.

Another Chapter in the Boring Iziane Novel

...as Bert calls it at the Painel do Basquete Feminino. One again, Iziane Castro Marques makes it as plain as she's made it over the last few months that if Paulo Bassul remains coach of the Brazil Women's Basketball Team, then Iziane will not play. However, Iziane says something to the effect that "the door is open" now that Bassul has not yet signed a new contract.

As one commenter on the Painel do Basquete Feminino blog stated, the problem is that Iziane refuses to give even a few apologetic words. Unfortunately for the Brazilians, she's also one of their best players.

At 2:21 in the video linked at this website, Iziane talks to the television show "Good Morning Mirante". Unfortunately, I can't speak Portugese.

My bet? Iziane is talking about the whole Paulo Bassul thing. (The actual incident where Iziane refused to return to the floor happens at 4:07.) Oh yes, and the future of Brazilian basketball.

Holdsclaw in Slovakia

Chamique Holdsclaw has posted a video about her struggles with a cough after arriving in Slovakia. She shows us her medicine, and how it gets administered.

Video of Izi in France

LFB: ESBVA / CALAIS - 8ÈME JOURNÉE 2008/2009
by esbvalm

This is video of the Villeneuve-d'Ascq-Calais match. Villeneuve-d'Ascq is in white. Calais is in the dark stripes. Iziane Castro Marques is wearing #4 for Villeneuve-d'Ascq.

You can see Izi at the :47 minute mark (adjusting jersey), 1:04, 2:33, and 3:03 (making a free throw).

I like how the video looks like a sort of movie, shot at angles, with a weird technobeat in the background. For a few seconds around 2:24, the sound goes to natural sound, then the beat comes back. Sounds like someone's been reading Cahiers du cinéma when not filming for the French league.