Women Unequal Everywhere...

So the recent announcement that Phoenix, AZ is going to "do something" about Diana Taurasi's July DUI honestly made me shake my head. Here is the low down: Two weeks ago the Phoenix court dropped the "Extreme DUI" charge and the speeding charge against Taurasi if she pled guilty to "DUI slightly impaired". So she did that. Now, since she pled guilty she can get this: 10 consecutive days in prison, various fines, suspended license, probation and possible counseling. So in other words, since she's not Dante Stallworth she will have to do this? Here is the difference between the two of them: Diana honestly realizes she messed up, is remorseful, feels she let her family, friends, fans and teammates down. Dante barely apologized and oh yes, he killed a person while driving drunk and his BAL was nearly 3 times the legal limit. Fine, his career is in question but let's be honest, he'll be in the NFL next year, no question about it. So where is the justice? Just because she's not a HUGE star...which she totally is a HUGE star...she will have to pay the piper? I know this: she'll do it with dignity, whatever she is sentenced to. She'll take it in the chin and just keep going. And I bet this: she won't cry that she found herself while in prison like so many of the male athletes have said. Gee, didn't know that you were lost Michael, Dante, PacMan....amazing you were able to find yourself.

The blog by John Altavilla can be read here.

No Picture Compares.....Yet....

Of the many "First practice" pictures I have seen, none equal this one posted on "govolsxtra.com":

Yup, Pat Summitt and Amber Gray...the same Amber Gray who had the brain aneurysm that I wrote about here. While she is not playing, yet, she said it felt "great to have a basketball in my hands." I must say, it is great to see her with a basketball in her hands. This season she will be a spectator but she is continuing to improve through her extensive rehabilitation program. Hope to see her on the court soon.

Other Champions from around the World

After a bit of a hiatus, I'll start this blog again....first topic of discussion: Champions!

The Phoenix Mercury won their 2nd WNBA title in 3 years a few weeks back. I'm sure most of you know this. Also, did you know that this series was the highest watched WNBA Finals. According to ESPN, the five-game Finals averaged 548,000 viewers, up 73 percent from 316,000 in 2008. The 13 postseason games aired on ESPN2 averaged 435,000 viewers, a 54 percent increase from the 282,000 last year. In all of the years I have watched the WNBA, this was the best series EVER. It created buzz, energy and people who may not have watched the WNBA could be fans for life. Great series!

So we all know about the Mercury, but what about some other Champions?

In China, PLA (People's Liberation Army) won their 7th consecutive Chinese National Games title by beating Liaoning 90-68 over the weekend. I'm impressed that this team can win all of the time, reminds me of Houston Comets and their run of Championships. PLA has a familiar WNBA player on their team: Chicago Sky's Chen Nan. Nan scored 16 points in the final. Liu Dan (an up and coming star for China) had 20 points.

In Africa, Senegal won the Women's Basketball African Championships with a 72-57 win over Mali. This is Senegal's first title since 2000.

In June, France beat Russia to win the European Championship. However, Russia is hardly concerned because they did not have one of their key players: Becky Hammon.

Congrats to those that won...or should I saw to those that I could find on the web. I'm sure there were countless other Championship games played around the world.

The adventure of Delle Donne

I'd just like to start off by saying how happy I am for Elena Delle Donne. No, not because she's not at UCONN with the possibility of destroying my beloved Rutgers team...but because she made a decision for the most important person: herself.

This past Friday she started practice as a University of Delaware Blue Hen. Has she had any impact yet? You bet! Season ticket sales have tripled and she hasn't even played in a game yet. In an article on WQAD.com, she talks about how this is the first time she has had fun playing hoops since the recruiting started in High School. Please note the word "fun" in that sentence. Shouldn't that be what sports is all about? Fun? When did that change? I remember playing sports and having fun, I never found it to be a chore until my Senior year of High School. Do you know what I did? I stopped playing because it became a chore, work, extra stress, etc. I was burned out. I wasn't having fun anymore. I am so happy that Elena is having fun and I wish her the best of luck. Maybe I'll have to take a road trip to Newark, DE to see her play. I bet she is fun to watch when she is having fun playing. You can read the excellent article on Delle Donne by clicking here: Delle Donne Ready to Give Hoops Another Try.

The Shock to Tulsa?

Sad reality: It does not matter how many titles you bring to a city, if a city doesn't recognize your greatness.....you are moved. Unlike the Houston Comets, who had a fan base, the Detroit Shock have no large fan base. Frankly, Detroit is not willing to keep a women's basketball team (even they they are super good) in a city that doesn't care about them. Or at least that is what it seems like.

Looks like Tulsa, Oklahoma will not get the Seattle Storm....looks like the Detroit Shock are moving there. Three Championships, WNBA All-Stars and they are being moved to Tulsa. So close to being one of the original teams (1998). I think Tulsa is a good move for Detroit. The city seems excited to welcome a team there....just what the Shock need.

Good luck Tulsa! Complete article here.