Silver Stars’ Young developing into solid player.

“God gives you the talent, but what you do with that talent is up to you,” said Silver Stars guard Morenike Atunrase, who has played against or with Young since they were in high school in Shreveport, La. “She’s one that realizes how blessed she is. Not everyone walking the street has the abilities that she has.”http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/basketball/wnba/silverstars/stories/MYSA070808.3DsophiaYOUNG.en.3b9fbfb.html

There’s more in Storrs for Shea Ralph.

Five years in Storrs was not enough for Shea Ralph. Ralph, a former All-American for the UConn women’s basketball team, was named an assistant coach for the Huskies Monday. She replaces Tonya Cardoza, who accepted the head coaching job at Temple last week. “When you lose someone like Tonya, who has been here for 14 years and has meant so much to our players, staff and program, it is not an easy role to fill,” UConn coach Geno Auriemma said in a statement. “I know that Shea is the one person who can come in that will know exactly what UConn basketball is, what the expectation is, what type of player we want to recruit, and how to coach and treat them once they are here. “I am excited for our players and program, but most of all for Shea.”http://www.journalinquirer.com/articles/2008/07/08/sports/doc48739b35165dd883805525.txt

Lisa Leslie’s last Olympics a golden transition time.

“She prepares herself every day to be great,” said Gail Goestenkors, an assistant coach of the Olympic team and observer of Leslie since her high school days. “She was not only playing excellent basketball, she was a great leader. She has always been a great player and now she has an added maturity to her game. She’s very patient. We had a lot of young players, and she helped them understand what they needed to do to be successful.”http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-elliott8-2008jul08,0,7802334,full.column

Sun’s Jones and Raymond: A Perfect Fit.

A decade later, Jones and Raymond are back together, 40 minutes from Storrs at Mohegan Sun Arena. When one isn’t busy calling the other Peanut-Head or Big Cuz or Little Cuz or some other nickname, they’re reconnecting after six years apart, singing on the back of buses or leading the WNBA’s top team, the Connecticut Sun, who fell to Indiana, 81-74, Saturday night at Conseco Fieldhouse. The teams and places are different. The basketball is, too. And, like they were back in 1998, Jones and Raymond are different, perhaps more so than any two friends you’ll ever find.

http://www.norwichbulletin.com/sports/x379983189/Suns-Jones-and-Raymond-A-Perfect-Fit

Swin Cash left off Olympic team.

Four years ago, she was a media darling, appearing on the cover of TV Guide with a fierce stare as part of the U.S. women’s Olympic team. In Beijing, Swin Cash may just be media. The 6-foot-1 Storm forward learned on Tuesday that she would not be one of the final three players named to the 2008 Olympic team. It was a devastating blow for Cash, who won gold in Athens in 2004 and spent the past year helping the national team qualify for the Beijing Games and also traveled to China for friendlies in the host country.http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/storm/2008034284_storm05.html

Gruda aims for ‘top five’: Rookie has potential to be among best in WNBA, says Thibault.

”You have somebody of her age with that kind of length, height (6-foot-4) and quickness and shooting touch,” Thibault said, “and she still hasn’t grown into her body yet. That’s a year or two away, probably. ”The sky is the limit for her. I really do believe she can be one of the best players in this league eventually. It’s going to take some time, but I believe that she’s got the willingness to work at it. She’s persistent and she’s upbeat and she’s smart. She’ll do the work.”http://www.theday.com/re.aspx?re=88feb759-7153-4b33-b206-c19b2beb9013

Temple job too tempting for Cardoza to pass.

As Tonya Cardoza’s career as an assistant coach with the UConn women’s basketball team progressed over the last 14 years, two things became quite obvious: She was a key cog in the Huskies’ program, and it was going to take an attractive situation to lure her away from Storrs.
Those two factors converged Tuesday when Cardoza, 39, was named the head women’s basketball coach at Temple University, replacing one of the most prominent figures in women’s basketball history in Dawn Staley. “Just about every year, there is an institution that opens up, and we get calls all the time (at UConn),” Cardoza said. “Nothing really piqued my interest like Temple. “When Dawn left here, it was an exciting opportunity to work at a great academic institution. It has a great campus. I am just thrilled to be here.”http://www.rep-am.com/articles/2008/07/02/sports/doc486c45a59f6a1209452190.txt

Lynx Rookie Candice Wiggins Soaks in Every Second.

If 2008 were to end today, it would already be an amazing year for Candice Wiggins. So far, the 21-year-old daughter of former Padre Alan Wiggins has led Stanford to the NCAA title game, won the Wade Trophy as Player of the Year, been selected 3rd overall in the WNBA Draft and helped the turn the Lynx into a winning team. With all of that under her belt, Wiggins still has an Olympic appearance, the WNBA playoffs and Rookie of the Year all within her reach.http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/special/columns/baseball/archive/2008/06/lynx_rookie_can.shtml

Australia’s own dream team.

The strongest Australian women’s basketball team ever has been assembled for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The world champions have the firepower to topple the United States and a home series against the strong Brazilians at the end of the month will put the finishing touches on their Games preparations. Not since Sydney 2000 has Australia seen their women’s Olympic basketball team take the court at home. “The coaches and I are really excited at the team we have put together for these Games,” head coach Jan Stirling said. “The team is even better than the one we took to the World Championships and facing off against Brazil will give us the preparation we need.”http://www.sportsaustralia.com/articles/news.php?id=4002

Gruda’s skills have the Sun feeling fine.

Mike Thibault has touted the potential of Sandrine Gruda since the day he drafted her. He still feels there’s reason to. “She’s only scratched the surface,” the Connecticut Sun coach said of his rookie forward. “I bet she’s only 50 percent of the player that she can be. I really believe that.” The fact that Gruda’s already reached that level has Thibault smiling.http://www.norwichbulletin.com/sports/x2113790836/Gruda-s-skills-have-the-Sun-feeling-fine