By Mel Greenberg
I
f Tuesday was quite a night for Tennessee in taking the NCAA women’s basketball championship over Stanford at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla., then Wednesday was equally sensational.
After spending little sleep time after accepting the trophy, the four Vols seniors and junior sensational Candace Parker gave valedictory addresses at a morning press conference and then all headed off to the WNBA a few hours later in nearby Palm Harbor to become draft picks of the 14 teams in the pro league.
Parker, the nation’s top player and eligible to be selected, became the first overall pick of the three rounds as the Los Angeles Sparks quickly made the move everyone expected to make her Leslie Leslie’s new teammate.
However, the Chicago native will report to camp with one of her college teammates – guard Shannon Bobbitt, who was taken by the Sparks at the top of the second round and 15th pick, overall.
Alexis Hornbuckle was a first-round pick, the fourth overall selection by the WNBA runnersup Detroit Shock.
Right after Bobbitt was chosen, the Minnesota Lynx, who took Stanford star Candice Wiggins as the third overall pick, selected Tennessee’s Nicky Anosike. Alberta Auguste was not abandoned -- she went 35th overall in the third round as a selection by the New York Liberty.
While Tennessee coach Pat Summitt was able to celebrate her eighth title, she certainly let everyone know at the Hyatt Hotel press conference prior to the draft what lies ahead once the hoopla dies down in Knoxville.
“I’m not going to be nearly as smart this next year,” Summitt said. “We’re going to have a young team, but we’re going to have talent. It’s going to be quite a different transition but I’m looking forward to our incoming freshmen and I’m just excited to start working with them when classes start.”
As for her departing players, the Hall of Famer saluted them, saying, “This is a special class. I love them all. I’m obviously going to miss them, but they are going on to pursue their dreams in the WNBA and I wish them all well. They certainly gave so much to our program.”
Summitt may also lose assistant coach Nikki Caldwell, who is considered a leading candidate for the vacant UCLA job.
“I have a great staff,” Summitt said of potential changes. “There are a lot of jobs out there that are actively pursuing our staff. I would never hold back one of our staff from being a head coach and running their own program. We will know something in about a month or so with people trying to make decisions after the Final Four.”
Summitt did not join her players at the draft, opting to return with the undergraduates to Knoxville for a fan celebration later in the day.
In discussing Parker’s future as a pro, the Tennessee coach said, “Candace is going to have a great impact on the league. With her talent, her skill set, and her ability to play multiple positions, she will go in and be able to have an immediate impact. I’m really proud of how hard she has worked to expand her game. She’s worked very hard in all aspects and will be a very positive player in the league. She will be a great spokesman for the WNBA.”
Parker was asked if she might still be around if a WNBA team in a lesser market than Los Angeles owned the first shot at the lucrative senior class from across the nation.
“One thing that I live my life by is the certain. I don’t go by the what-ifs. I just try to live in the moment. Going into the WNBA… I just feel like it is my time,” Parker said.
She was asked about Sunday’s semifinal in which she executed the offense in the last seven seconds to enable Tennessee to edge LSU just before time expired.
“We have a coaching staff that prepares us for different decisions, for every situation,” Parker said. “I think at the time, we didn’t quite understand coach’s thoughts and the logic of making us run drills over and over and over again. In the end, we did it.
“ It’s weird how everything at the end comes together. There is something special with our team, and down by one point, we were going to find a way to win. That’s what great teams do. Some people call it luck, but we practiced that. I just call it pulling together and winning the game. I think it encompasses everything that we are.”
Auguste and several other players compared last year’s title experience with Tuesday night’s triumph.
“Last year I did not know what to expect, this year was different because it was a special team and we were all seniors and we wanted to go out with a bang,” she said.
Hornbuckle added, “Last year’s championship was more exciting, we didn’t know what to expect …we came out and tried to play hard. There was a lot of pressure on us to win.”
Anosike observed, “There was more pressure this year. We had to go out with a bang. We did all we could for this program. I’m more satisfied this season than I was last year.”
She was asked about Parker’s WNBA future: “As long as we aren’t playing against each other I think she’ll have a great impact. No, I’m just kidding. She’s a great player I don’t know what she’ll do without me. I’m just kidding. She has great versatility. No matter what happens she’s going to be successful.”
--Mel
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