Breanna Stewart

Seattle Storm Game Review: Scorcher VI

Joseph ZuckerLeave a comment
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Here we go again, again

The Seattle Storm opened their 2018 WNBA season with an 87-82 defeat to the Phoenix Mercury on Sunday night in a game that offered reasons for optimism while also serving as a reminder of the team’s flaws.

Breanna Stewart filled up the stat sheet with 22 points, 15 rebounds, two assists, two steals and three blocks. Jordin Canada had a nice WNBA debut, finishing with nine points, one assist and four steals. Jewell Loyd struggled to get going, though, shooting 3-of-11 from the field to score 10 points.

The Storm had an opportunity to force overtime late in the fourth quarter. They inbounded the ball down 85-82 with 3.2 seconds remaining in regulation, but Stewart stepped out of bounds to give the ball back to Phoenix and extinguish any comeback attempt.

Here’s a more detailed breakdown of the game.

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Seattle Storm Game Preview: May 20 vs. Phoenix Mercury

Joseph ZuckerLeave a comment
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When you’re ready for the season opener

The interminable wait is nearly over, as the Seattle Storm are set to open the 2018 WNBA regular season and continue what feels like a best-of-57 series with the Phoenix Mercury.

The Storm and Mercury have seen a lot of each other lately. Phoenix bounced Seattle out of the playoffs last year, and the two teams had a pair of preseason games earlier this month. And after Sunday’s game at KeyArena, they turn right around for a rematch Wednesday at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

Playing the Mercury not once but twice this early into the season can be both good and bad for the Storm.

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What’s the Seattle Storm’s Bar for Success in 2018?

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Where do you realistically set expectations for a team coming off back-to-back playoff appearances but still hasn’t had a winning season since 2011?

“It’s time to start winning,” Breanna Stewart said during the Storm’s media day, per the Seattle Times‘ Percy Allen. “I don’t want to come off as crass or cocky or anything like that, but losing sucks. It does. That’s just how I feel about it. And, no, I won’t ever get used to it. I can’t. That’s not how I’m wired.”

The Storm certainly intimated as much, too, when they hired Dan Hughes. They could’ve opted for a first-year head coach who would need a few seasons to grow into the role. Instead, Seattle chose a 16-year veteran who has the third-most wins (237) of any coach in WNBA history.

It’s not a title-or-bust kind of season for the Storm, but 18-20 wins are probably the minimum requirement to avoid another disappointing campaign.

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Seattle Storm 2018 WNBA Season Preview

Joseph ZuckerLeave a comment

Doppler

A little over eight months after their 2017 season ended at the hands of the Phoenix Mercury, the Seattle Storm will open their 2018 campaign at home May 20 against Phoenix.

Before that, the Storm and Mercury will meet twice for a pair of preseason games in May.

To some extent, Seattle’s disappointing first-round playoff exit may benefit the team this year. The Storm could be the biggest post-hype sleeper in the WNBA.

Mechelle Voepel of espnW.com and Brian Martin of WNBA.com both listed Seattle at No. 5 in their preseason power rankings in 2017. Expectations were high, and the Storm got fans even more excited with a 4-1 start to the regular season. Then came a humbling 100-77 defeat to the Minnesota Lynx at KeyArena, and things were never the same for Seattle.

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We Need to Talk About Breanna Stewart’s Defense

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Through the first two years of her WNBA career, Seattle Storm star Breanna Stewart is a case study in the limits of both our perceptions as fans and advanced analytics.

Read almost any story about Stewart’s on-court performance and her defense is bound to earn a graf or two. Even when Stewart is mentioned in passing, her contributions on the defensive end are likely to receive a mention.

It’s not hard to see why. Stewart ranked third in blocks per game (1.9) as a rookie and then sixth (1.6) in her second season. She finished runner-up to Sylvia Fowles in the 2016 Defensive Player of the Year voting, collecting eight votes. To put Stewart’s 1.7 blocks per game in perspective, only six players in WNBA history have averaged more blocks on a nightly basis over their careers.StewartBlockThe quintessential Breanna Stewart block—we’ll call it a Brenial™—arguably came in what was her fourth game as a pro. Bria Hartley beat Jewell Loyd and appeared to have a clear path to the basket on the baseline. However, Stewart reacted quickly to rotate over and swat Hartley’s attempt away with two hands.

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Hoisted by Her Own Petard

Joseph ZuckerLeave a comment
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A visual representation of Jenny Boucek turning in her KeyArena ID and Starbucks Rewards card at Storm HQ.

I started working on this before going to work Thursday afternoon, and while I was working, the Seattle Storm went ahead and fired Jenny Boucek, naming Gary Kloppenburg as the interim replacement.

As a result, this transformed from an another airing of grievances with the Storm’s direction into a treatise about what went wrong for Boucek.

During a 2017 season that has been disappointing in virtually every facet for the Seattle Storm, the team’s lack of offensive adventure is one of the most underwhelming aspects and arguably most justified Boucek’s firing. Continue reading →

What’s Wrong with the Seattle Storm?

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What in the world happened to the Seattle Storm team that started the year 4-1?

Seattle was riding high entering its June 3 game against the Minnesota Lynx and sat third in WNBA’s Week 3 power rankings. Then the Storm got outclassed by the Lynx and everything snowballed. Now Seattle is 6-7 overall and eighth in the WNBA standings.

It’s still too early to begin panicking about the Storm’s playoff chances, which isn’t to stay the team’s poor play should be dismissed offhand. In some cases, aspects of the Storm’s 2-6 run speak to what were genuine concerns coming into the year.

In no particular order, here are some of the factors that explain the Storm’s slide. Continue reading →

Seattle Storm Weekend Preview—at Sparks (May 13); vs. Fever (May 14)

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After splitting their preseason series with the Phoenix Mercury, the Seattle Storm officially tip off what is a highly anticipated 2017 campaign against the defending WNBA champion Los Angeles Sparks Saturday. Then it’ll be a quick turnaround as they travel back home for a Sunday matinee with the Indiana Fever.

While it’s not a title-or-bust kind of year for Seattle, expectations are high for a team that posted the seventh-best record (16-18) in the league a season ago. WNBA.com’s Brian Martin ranked the Storm fifth in his opening-week power rankings—an assessment shared by the 16 members on the panel for the Associated Press’ preseason poll.

Let’s take a look at some broad storylines to follow over Seattle’s first two games and a few keys for the Storm to get the year off to a strong start. Continue reading →