With the WNBA Draft just days away, the Atlanta Dream are still unsure who they will take with the No. 1 pick. Or at least that’s what they’re saying. Head coach/general manager Marynell Meadors made sure of that during the WNBA’s pre-draft conference call with the media earlier this week.
Here’s a bit of what Meadors and others had to say about the upcoming draft.
THE CANDIDATES
Meadors’ refusal to top her hand was probably an easy decision, especially in a draft where the No. 1 selection could be just about anyone among the top 5 or so players.
“This is the first time in quite a while where we’ve had a few players who are making it not an obvious choice up top,” said WNBA analyst Rebecca Lobo.
Meadors had plenty of praise for all of those top performers.
“Marissa Coleman and Kristi Tolliver [of Maryland] have had great careers. And they both bring different aspects to the game. Marissa is a player that can score or rebound and do just about anything she wants to. Tolliver is a scoring point guard, so if you can live with that she’s gonna be good for her team.”
Atlanta’s second-year head coach did indicate that the biggest need for the Dream heading into the draft was in the backcourt. An area where all-world point guard Renee Montgomery, a junior from UConn, could fit in nicely.
“I think she’s going to be the starting point guard for any team she goes to,” said Lobo, “She’s got a great skillset. She’s also in my mind the best leader in this draft.”
Fellow analyst Nancy Liebermann agreed regarding Montgomery’s intangibles.
“Just from talking to Geno [Auriemma], the reverence he has for her is very unsual. She’s so appreciated by her teammates,” she said.
Even though Atlanta appears to have a variety of options for support in the post this year, 6-4 center Courtney Paris might be too good to pass up. She averaged a whopping 18.6 points and 15 rebounds in her senior season at Oklahoma.
“Courtney is the most effective when she is closest to the basket, Liebermann said. “It’s not how many touches she gets, it’s where she gets her touches.”
Another player to watch for is Louisville’s Angel McCoughtry, who has been fanastic over the past few weeks in the NCAA Tournament. The performance only re-affirmed the 6-1 forward’s position as one of the top prospects in the season’s draft.
“She was No. 1 or No. 2 before the tourney began,” Meadors said of her draft stock. “She’s pretty much been in that spot all year long. Somehow or another she always ends up with 20 points and eight or nine rebounds.”
WHO’S THE PICK?
With only a few days remaining before the draft, it’s probably safe to say that Meadors and company aren’t entirely sure who they plan to select. But depending on how much you read into her statements, Meadors did appear to drop a few possible hints on who the pick might be.
“We’re mainly focusing on the guard situation first,” she said.
That means Montgomery or Tolliver would likely be at the top of Atlanta’s list.
“You’ve got to consider Montgomery, I could use a point guard,” said Meadors. “You never know with Nikki [Teasley] being an older player.”
Read into that what you will, as Meadors quickly made it clear that the pick could be just about anyone soon after.
“I know we will need a 1, a 3, ad a 5,” she said, “I ‘m not sure which order we’re gonna go with that [in the draft].”
Not exactly a straightforward answer, and it was one that resulted in a few chuckles from Meadors’ colleagues who were also participating in the conference call.
“You need a 5?” Detroit Shock head coach Bill Laimbeer joked. “You’ve already got a group of them!”
Much like the rest of us, Laimbeer will have to wait until Wednesday to see just what the Dream have planned. But with a draft that the experts say is downright stacked with talent through the top 10, there is certainly the possibility to score a big-time talent, and one that just might make an immediate impact this season.
Bagriansky can be reached at jbagriansky@scoreatl.com.
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