[url=http://breakz.us][img]http://breakz.us/bilder/banner2.jpg[/img][/url] |
|
. I dont know what hes talking about.The two played their way to No. 3 in the international standings and a spot on Copacabana b
. I dont know what hes talking about.The two played their way to No. 3 in the international standings and a spot on Copacabana b
in Gilde 15.04.2019 15:26von jj009 • 2.159 Beiträge
INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana president Kelly Krauskopf initially built the fledgling Fever around home-state star Stephanie White.Turns out, the hard-working rookie she drafted in 2001, Tamika Catchings, emerged as the face of the franchise.On Sunday, the two most iconic players in Fever history -- one now the coach -- will say farewell to the WNBA in their final regular-season home game. Coach White is taking over the Vanderbilt program and Catchings is retiring.I think they had an equal impact. What both leave behind and have meant to this franchise ... Krauskopf said, pausing. Steph was the very first player I went out and got to start this franchise. They were the cornerstones of this franchise.The game Sunday against Dallas wont be their last. Indiana has already clinched a playoff spot, and these two still envision going out after a victory celebration.Regardless, it seems fitting that White and Catchings, who have shared so many moments and memories over the past 15 years, are leaving together.Its hard to fathom just how much these two have meant to Indiana.Catchings legacy has been well-documented on the court. She started Friday nights game at Minnesota ranked No. 2 in WNBA career scoring (7,353 points), sixth in assists (1,487) and 12th in blocks (384), She already held the league record for steals (1,071) and needed just three rebounds to pass all-time leader Lisa Leslie (3,307).Those numbers only tell part of the tale of the 2011 WNBA MVP, 2012 Finals MVP, five-time defensive player of the year and 10-time All-Star, who spent most of her career being cited as the top choice front-office executives would build a franchise around and the top choice of league players as the teammate they wanted.Before arriving in Indianapolis, the shy, hearing-impaired kid went from Texas prep star to four-time All-American and part of an undefeated national championship team at Tennessee. Krauskopf took her No. 3 overall in the 2001 draft even though she knew Catchings would miss that first season with a torn ACL.Her growth as a player and a person was equally impressive. She started a foundation to help young people achieve their goals, became the president of the players union, wrote a book, interned at the NBA and got married in February.The four-time Olympic gold medalist could have enjoyed a WNBA farewell tour in her final season, but instead turned it into a legacy tour in which she gave something back to her fans.I dont need anything and basically I dont want anything. It only seemed right, Catchings said. It was about the kids being there and seeing how excited they were. The thing I enjoyed most was being able to spend time with each kid in the autograph line and being able to talk to them. I remember one place this boy yelled across the gym at me and I looked up at him and you could just see his face. He was so excited -- and thats a boy.Catchings calls her foundation, Catch The Stars, and the impact its had on other peoples lives her proudest achievement. On Friday, Catchings said her teammates donated $50,000.Inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse, so many more people are proud of the star.NBA All-Star and new Olympic gold medalist Paul George bought 5,000 balcony tickets for Sundays game, which were distributed to fans on Friday. Krauskopf talks about the handwritten notes she keeps in a desk drawer from children and parents thanking Catchings for speaking at their school, in their community or just being a role model.But thats nothing compared to actually being on the court with her.As a teammate, you want to be better for her, White said. I will never forget one play, I dont remember where we were, and I missed an assignment on the defensive end, and she said `Come on, Steph. I felt like I let her down.The truth is, White was pretty good herself.She was the small-town star who made it big -- going from 1995 Gatorade national player of the year and 1995 Indiana Miss Basketball at nearby Seeger High School to Purdue, where she won a national championship in 1999. Then onto the WNBA, where she handed over the reins of Fever team leader to Catchings so White could start a coaching career.When White returned as an assistant in 2011, Catchings was still excelling. The next year when the Fever finally captured their first WNBA title, they celebrated together.Now with the 39-year-old White bound for Vanderbilt and the 37-year-old Catchings eager to trade the hot and cold tub treatments for a little travel and some extra rest, the two players Krauskopf put in place all those years ago are ready to say goodbye together.Ive noticed her (Catchings) this year, just watching as much as she can, taking it all in. Im trying to do it, too, because I keep thinking this will be so odd next year, Krauskopf said. Tamika is the cornerstone of this franchise, and Steph has been here off and on from the beginning. This is our teams foundation. Cheap Air Max Shoes China . Vettel, who has already clinched his fourth straight F1 title, enters the finale with a chance to equal Michael Schumachers 13 victories in a year and match the record of nine consecutive wins by Alberto Ascari in the 1952 and 1953 seasons. Air Max Sale Cheap . - The Washington Redskins have cut defensive lineman Adam Carriker and punter Sav Rocca. http://www.airmaxsalecheap.com/ . Fernandez, coached in Toronto by former two-time Olympic silver medallist Brian Orser, scored 267.11 points and is the first champion to successfully defend since Russias Evgeny Plushenko in 2005 and 2006. Cheap Air Max Wholesale . -- Catcher Brett Hayes has agreed to a $630,000, one-year contract with the Kansas City Royals, avoiding salary arbitration. Air Max Shoes Online Cheap . Jane Virtanen scored two, and Alex Roach and Elliott Peterson rounded out the offence for the Hitmen (40-15-6). Brady Brassart chipped in with three assists. Colton McCarthy scored twice, Brayden Point had a goal and two assists, and Jack Rodewald also scored for the Warriors (15-35-9), who were 2 for 5 on the power play. RIO DE JANEIRO -- When Beijing gold medalist Phil Dalhausser teamed up with Nick Lucena less than one year ago for a longshot run at the Olympics, it was more out of friendship -- and a lack of alternatives -- than anything else.Dalhausser was coming off two straight seasons with injuries. Lucena had never been to the Olympics, struggling to find a partnership that worked.We were playing with the houses money, Dalhausser said Monday after losing in three sets to Brazilian world champions Alison and Bruno in the quarterfinals on Copacabana beach.Its been a lot of fun, Dalhausser added. I couldnt have done it without him. I wouldnt have wanted to do it with anyone else.At 6-foot-9 and already an Olympic champion, Dalhausser is one of the most feared players in the sport. He won his gold medal with Todd Rogers in 2008, and the pair returned to the London Games, finishing ninth.But last August, already a year into the two-year qualification cycle, his partnership with two-time Olympian Sean Rosenthal had stalled -- in part because of Dalhaussers abdominal and calf injuries. So he went back to Lucena, his partner for a couple of dozen events when they were first starting out.Im pretty fortunate to play with him, Lucena said after the 21-14, 12-21, 15-9 loss to Brazil left them in fifth place. Hes one of the best players in the world. I wanted to win this for him.Lucena and Dalhausser first teamed up in 2003, a time when they were travelling all night to play in domestic tournaments and sleeping on the beach outside the gates to save money. After they split in 2005, Lucena played with four different partners that year; Dalhausser went on to become a world and Olympic champion.But Dalhaussers injuries left him with little chance of making it back to the Olympics -- or so he thought.Nobody gave us a chance to qualify, he has repeated often.I gave us a chance, Lucena interrupteed playfully, just hours after their Olympic elimination.dddddddddddd. I dont know what hes talking about.The two played their way to No. 3 in the international standings and a spot on Copacabana beach with a whirlwind of 13 tournaments in 12 months -- just one event above the minimum. They cruised through Olympic pool play with a 3-0 record.And that was the problem.When Alison and Bruno lost in the preliminary round, they wound up second in their group. The blind draw lined them up with the Americans in the quarterfinals in a match that could have easily been the final.In the second quarterfinal match, the Dutch team of Alexander Brouwer and Robert Meeuwsen advanced with a 25-23, 21-17 victory over countrymen Reinder Nummerdor and Christiaan Varenhorst.Fans waving Brazilian flags had to struggle to hold onto them in a stiff breeze that began just as play began on Monday. The Brazil and Olympic flags on the poles ringing the top of the stadium came partially loose and fluttered wildly while the poles shook in the wind.Trash swirled around the arena.The Brazilians dominated the first set against the United States and then -- just as decisively -- struggled in the second. The Americans fell behind 12-6 in the third, and then the 6-foot-8 Alison and the crowd took over.With a block to force match point and then a spike off Dalhausser for the winner, the man known as the Mammoth moved within one win of a second-straight Olympic medal.The fifth-place finish, combined with the 19th-place finish by Jake Gibb and Casey Patterson, ties with Athens for the worst finish by the U.S. men in an Olympics.I have learned so much from the Americans. They are good friends outside of the court, Alison said. Theres respect for them, and they must be celebrated. ' ' '
|
Forum Statistiken
Das Forum hat 5874
Themen
und
5901
Beiträge.
|
Forum Software ©Xobor.de | Forum erstellen |