Did she even play in the second half?

Surprised that neither KLS nor Gabby Williams play much for Chicago. Think Chicago wishes it took Arike instead? I was wondering, while watching last night's game, whether LVA wishes it had taken Arike first over JY?

So much of how a rookie does depends on the situation she is walking into. A lot of this is in the control of the team, but sometimes circumstances take over and skewer things.

Plus, I think it's really hard for a WNBA rookie -- particularly one that was playing right up to and throught the NCAAs -- to get through a WNBA season without some degreee of exhaustion setting in. As good as UConn and ND players are, the WNBA has the best players in the world and to step up, earn your roster spot and then make yourself valuable (even relevant) is pretty tough.

Some - Collier, Arike, McCowan -- are going to shine. A lot are going to make it through and will benefit from playing overseas and coming back next spring.

To your points:

- Should the Aces (Bill Laimbeer, specically) taken Arike instead of Jackie Young?
My gut? No. Arike should be playing off-ball and guess who he has there? K-Mac and Kelsey Plum. While Jackie has had an "ehhh" shooting season (oddly having trouble finishing, which I used to think of as her strength), she has done a good job of running the point for a lot of scoring options in front of her.

Do I think of her as a PG long-term? Actually, I think Jackie could become a bigger, stronger version of Jewel Loyd, but stay tuned on that. Even though he traded away Moriah Jefferson, I think Laimbeer has to make up his mind what to with Kelsey Plum, Jackie and K-Mac. If her knee recuperates, you could see Lindsay playing minutes next year, too.

- Chicago.

KLS: There was a huge thread on the Boneyard about KLS not playing much and her mother commenting on articles written about it (ugh). Head Coach Wade's done a good job with Chicago (Coach of the Year in many estimates) but drafting KLS to be a power forward does not seem to be one of them.
And then KLS got injured a few weeks into the season and never could get back into the rotation. In my mind, she's 3 who needs to get a bit tougher in all aspects of the game. But she's got Diamond DeShields ahead of her. Let's see if she gets her mojo back while playing in France but this could be a trade waiting to happen...

Looking back, Chicago should still have drafted a UConn Huskey...but it should've been Napheesa Collier at the power forward slot.

As for Gabby Williams. she's a great athletic player who used her superior athletic ability to beat up on most of college basektball. But most everyone is a good athlete in the WNBA and the fact of the matter is Gabby was an undersized guard playing forward who can't shoot reliably outside of the foul line. If she can't improve her percentage and range, she'll be a sub.

- Collier is in the right spot at Minnesota and will only get better there. So will Jess Shepard when she gets back from injury. Perfect situation playing under Coach Reeve and playing with Collier.

- On one hand, Arike had to learn how to play point and also keep being her main shooting option, once Moriah Jefferson wasn't going to play and Sklar Diggins-Smith didn't come back. That's the bad news. The good new was she could do what she does best, regardless of the odds: be a high-volume iniator/closer. She'll take less shots with Sky back next year, but will probably have a higher shooting percentage because of it.

- Kudos to Marina Mabrey, who many thought wouldnt' even make the LA Sparks roster. She isn't playing much at all now that the Sparks injured and suspended are back, but she had some moments. I think plaing overseas will help her immensely for next year, regardless of what team she ends up on.

- Bri had a great last 1/3 of the season and rebounds and plays D well. She's got to work on her offensive tool-kit. She's got the Aussie Leage (Tottenville?) to do that.

Orangutan follows the WNBA and bunch and the Chicago Sky in particular, so it would be intersting to get his takes.

and Dillon builds you a watch! Thanks for the thoughts. The genesis of my Arike for JY swap was, admittedly, the very small data point of watching last night's game/watching Plum run the offense as the only PG playing in the second half/KMac getting into foul trouble and the thought of how Arike's outside shooting might open up the middle for LVA's bigs and how their presence would lead to shots for Arike.

I'm still confused by the fact Chicago took KLS. I don't think it's too hard to look at her game and have serious doubts about how her skill set would translate to the WNBA. Obviously, it's very early in her professional career but she was drafted too early and you are dead on about Collier being a better pick regardless.

Thanks again for all the thoughts.

There's just been a mess of posts and thread floating around on these subjects and it was all top of mind.

I'll be very interested in seeing:
- What Bill Laimbeer does with his backcourt between seasons. There's a couple of combo guards (Plum, Young) and K-Mac who is at her best catch and shooting.
- If KLS takes the next step up, after a season overseas. Like you, I think some of her skill set was a bit light, but overshadowed by her shooting and passing skills and the overall excellence of her UConn teammates. Notably, Got to see defense and rebounding improve and overall strength.
- While some wonder if there's enough balls on the court for Arike and Skylar, I'm not particularly concerned about it. Both have played with other talented offensive players and I think they get the "we" and "I" parts of it.