Physical first game I bet

Sami Whitcomb already showing why she should have been picked for Tokyo. Maybe Sandy is finally learning....

It was a crime to pick Mitchell over Whitcomb for the Olympic team.

Rocci was terrible, would rather have Shyla in as back up just for her floor spacing.

Rocci and Blicavs a bit shaky. The rest playing well. Hope Wallace gets on the court!

Cut almost half the team.

Keep
Whitcomb
Talbot
Allen
Smith
George

Cut / Enter
Rocci < Lavey
Madgen < Nicholson Melbourne
Blicavs < Kunek or Ohea
Garbin < Magbegor
Tolo < Scherf

Wallace and Heal to get more time

Cut / Enter
Rocci < Lavey
Madgen < Melbourne
Blicavs < Maley
Garbin < Magbegor
Tolo < Scherf

Keep Wallace
Mansfield maybe for heal

We are in big trouble if this is similar to the squad we take to the WC.

Brazil will either not make the WC or finish outside the 10 at the WC and today they were missing best 2 players in dantas and dos santos.

Tolo is not getting cut. Madgen, Rocci and Garbin need to go for Nicolson/Melbourne, Lavey and Ezi.

The bias from sandy towards Madgen and Blicavs has to stop.

Tolo had a good game but stamina is an issue

Maley would be handy, just for the rebounds

I really struggle to see how madgen brings anthing to the opals she is barely noticeable at wnbl level. Nicholson deserved another go . Whitcomb will play 35 minutes when the games get harder so there are not many minutes for a backup pg . So its either heal or rocci not both ezi has to come back . Melbourne not even close.

Lavey over Heal n Rocci, aflw atm.

We will finish 7-10 at WC out of 12

Rocci, Madgen and Blicavs gone for sure.
Heal and Garbin hanging by a thread

Watching the other games, we are doomed....

Lapena turned Canadas b team into a decent team within 2 months.
Was leading japan into the last 1/4

France new additions loook good too

Hopefully in the supposed 15 lead up games, we cycle through some players

I would for Scherf. People get caught up in the points too much and forget how bad she was vs fast pace teams. So too George against japan.

Sandy had a backup 5 of

Rocci-Madgen-Blicavs-Garbin-Tolo


Is she nuts?

Can't believe there is a comment about cutting Tolo for Sherf. Tolo played excellent defence. There were still a lot of issues in the second string players and we should have won by a much higher margin.

No doubt but we are playing inferior opponents.

Whitcomb-Lavey
Talbot-Nicholson-Wallace
Allen-Kunek-Maley
Magbegor-Smith
George-Tolo


Can rotate and use different sized lineups.

Can Heal ever keep anyone in front of her? She has to be one of the worst professional perimeter defenders I have ever seen.

She has not been good

Pity Mansfield injured and lavey aflw

All teams seem to be missing a few players

Opals will look completely different once Liz & Ezi are back in

Liz ain't coming back

Brazil haven't been contenders for a very long time, a win against them means nothing.

A win against a top 8 side means something.

Serbia and Korea shouldn't be a challenge either.

It's either Nicholson, Melbourne, maybe Wehrung. As Madgens replacement.

Great in wnbl but has not translated in fiba, much like Madgen.
Probably deserves another shot but no guarantee.

loz had avg about 6-3-2 in 25 mins in asia

Wehrung 4-3-2 in 18 mins
Wallace 4-2-2 in 14 mins
Melbourne 3-1-1 in 8 mins

Shelley 4-2-2 in 13 mins

My pick

Lavey1-Mansfield1
Whitcomb2/1-Wallace2/1
Talbot3/2-Kunek3-Maley3/4
Allen4/3-Smith4/5
Magbegor5/4-George5-Tolo5


Reserves
Reid1
Wehrung2
Nicholson3/2
Garbin4
Scherf5

In the fiba game you need speed, good d(ability to move feet and focus), good perimeter shooting and the ability to penetrate and Madgen can not do any of those at a high enough level.

Blicavs also way too slow, like a wounded gazelle. Offers nothing more than Maley except an extra 1.5 inches in height, shooting on par these days, defense, running the floor, rebounding, scrappiness all way behind Maley.

2022

Whitcomb 88 34y.o
George 89 33y.o
Tolo 89 33y.o
Madgen 90 32y.o
Allen 92 30y.o
Blicavs 93 29y.o
Talbot 94 28y.o
Garbin 94 28 y.o
Wallace 96 26y.o
Rocci 98 24y.o
Magbegor 99 23y.o
Heal 01 21y.o

Wish sandy would stop harping on about being a defensive team and then choose players who can't defend.

This is a meaningless tournament for the opals to see how a few young players go with some vets. People need to stop reading too much into it.

Young ones like Madgen, Blicavs, Allen, Talbot, Tolo, Garbin, Whitcomb, George, smith, Wallace. So 10 of 12 / 26 or older.

So why not pick Maley, Scherf, Melbourne if we've already seen Blicavs, George, Madgen many many times.

Why not actually play heal or Rocci or Wallace ore than just a few minutes ....


Truth is sandy sees things differently.
Others (most really think differently to her)

Look on Insta, Facebook, teitter etc and it’s clear most want Nicholson or a Maley, Scherf, bishop over those that sandy has chosen.

People forget she chose both Madgen and Blicavs for Mercury training camp

As someone has stated earlier she's only going to find replacements for Mitchell n Ebzery.

Garbin a late replacement for Ezi, saminreplaces mitchell and 3 guard choices to replace Ebzery in heal, Rocci or Wallace.

Nothing changes from Tokyo imo under brondello.
Lavey n Ohea will make it back in

'Sandys brain'

WC 22 / Tokyo 21

Whitcomb / Mitchell*
Talbot / Talbot
Allen / Allen
Magbegor / Magbegor
George / George

Heal, Rocci or Wallace / Ebzery*
Madgen / Madgen
Ohea / Ohea
Smith / Smith
Tolo / Tolo

Lavey / Lavey
Blicavs / Blicavs


*retired from international ball

Don’t think 2 additions will save this team.
We aren’t going from 8th in Tokyo to medal at WC with just Whitcomb and a new inexperienced young pg.

We need significant change, especially to the backup 5 and some potential positional changes facing smaller more mobile sides or sides with athleticism, possibly Whitcomb, Talbot, Allen and Magbegor playing primary wnba positions at 2, 3, 4 and 5.

Eg S5

PG 5’8 Lavey (maybe)
SG 5’10 Whitcomb - New York
SF 6’2 Talbot - Seattle
PF 6’2 Allen - New York
C 6’4 Magbegor - Seattle

Or

PG 5’10 Whitcomb - New York
SG 5’11 Wallace or 5’11 Nicholson (maybe)
SF 6’2 Talbot - Seattle
PF 6’2 Allen - New York
C 6’4 Magbegor - Seattle


We would be better defensively and more mobile, that’s for sure.

Even

Whitcomb
Talbot
Allen
Maley
Magbegor

I'd like to see

Korea beat Brazil by 2, looks like Brazil are out of the WC.

12 Through to wc

Australia
Belgium
Bosnia
Canada
China
France
Japan
Korea
Serbia
USA
Nigeria or Mali - could be either
Russia or Puerto Rico - likely Russia

Australia at full strength could only realistically beat Korea at the WC, the rest of the teams will be very tough.

Rocci ... just so far off opals level.

Dumbest team ever...

Several boneheaded plays by us

Smith went to Stanford.... But her bball iq….

Madgen should be nowhere near this squad, way too slow for this level.

Goodbye sandy asap

Inbounds passes from pgs to centres lol.

Entertaining game. The bald polish ref was on a mission from the start. The ejection was ridiculous.

Not much new was really learnt.

Point Guard required.

Rocci not even at Opals camp level.
Smith and Blicavs cant be trusted, having them both on the same team is just asking for dumb plays to happen.
Heal way off it, too small and not quick enough to run the point.

Maley would have been really handy to guard Anderson. Good game to see what can happen when two bigs get into foul trouble early, ejections injuries, who can you rely on when the pressure increases.


Allen, Talbot, Whitcomb, Tolo, Garbin, Madgen, George plus Ezi should all get selected.

Madgen is slow and steady and actually the best point guard in that current squad, she plays solid defence, makes smart decision, can hit the open shot and is steady with the ball.

Whitcomb, PG (Lavey/Reid), (Wallace or Melbourne as defenders up tempo guards)
Talbot, Madgen
Allen, (Maley)
Garbin, George
Ezi, Tolo, (Scherf? o)

Team will need more defensive speed against the smaller quicker teams. Cant rely on Whitcomb and Allen having to play 35 minutes.

Madgen lol
Worst I've ever seen George

Stanford has great PR.

Agree with 024s roster w/ Wallace other than Lavey: what does she bring to the team or is it a case of what else do we have?

Love Scherf although wears out quickly. Bishop would have been handy.

Any post that mentions Melbourne should be instantly regarded as nonsense.