My eldest son decided to attend with his day camp rather than his family, so we were split up. My youngest son has Key Arena narcolepsy or something. He has been falling asleep by the second quarter of night games, but smack dab in the middle of the day he was sound asleep before halftime. My wife (making a rare appearance at a game now that her show has opened at the Intiman and she has her days free) says she believes it might be the lighting in the arena. I have no idea, but it is nuts.
I took the time to make a sign for Doppler's birthday with some cool photos of Doppler including one of him doing the shimmy with Simone (boy do I miss her). On the back, I wrote the note I have been wanting to write all season.
"Force 10 are my heroes! The perfect 10 for the perfect Storm!"
Owner Lisa Brummel (who I met briefly before the Liberty game) saw my sign, grabbed fellow owner Ginny Gilder and ran across the court, vaulted the court side barrier behind the visitor's basket (she still has a little athlete in her!) and came up to shake hands and thank my family for coming. They told us they saw our sign and couldn't pass up the chance to tell us that families like ours are part of what makes it all worthwhile for them.
The more I get to know about these women the more I am amazed and appreciative. They not only love this game, but they have an understanding of the connection between the team and the fans and, unlike their NBA counterparts (on their way to Oklahoma City) they respect and appreciate their fans. Their level of commitment and enthusiasm is phenomenal. We in Seattle are just so lucky to have them as part of our community. It is truly special what we have here, and I am enjoying the whole experience of Storm basketball even more with Force 10 Hoops as a part of it. It is more than just keeping the team here, it is how perfect a match this ownership is with this team in this city.
The Sparks owners are also local women fans and they are showing their support of Force 10 and their team by organizing a "Party Plane" trip for thirty of their fans from LA to Seattle for this Saturday's game. While we love to "hate" the Sparks, these two ownership groups have much in common and are setting the example for how the WNBA can be run in the future as independant business entities. They have thriving franchises with exciting stars and solid role players. They are building strong, enthusiastic fan bases and reaching out to new fans in their markets.
Storm
Most Effective Shooters
Player | True Shooting Percentage | Effective FG% | Floor Percentage | Points |
| Katie Gearlds | 100% | 100% | 72% | 6 |
| Tanisha Wright | 69% | 69% | 68% | 11 |
| Yolanda Griffith | 64% | 50% | 67% | 10 |
| Swin Cash | 52% | 40% | 63% | 14 |
| Lauren Jackson | 51% | 34% | 47% | 25 |
| Camille Little | 50% | 50% | 29% | 4 |
Really nice balance between the starters and the bench. Both Swoopes and Bird were over 40% true shooting percentages as well.
Top Ratings
| Player | Offensive Rating | Individual Rating |
| Katie Gearlds | 207.66 | 196.97 |
| Tanisha Wright | 150.08 | 128.44 |
| Yolanda Griffith | 148.72 | 120.23 |
| Swin Cash | 129.77 | 105.26 |
| Sue Bird | 112.07 | 83.89 |
The bench continues its strong play. Lauren Jackson also rated over 100 points per 100 possessions.
Raw Plus/Minus
Sue Bird: +16
Lauren Jackson: +14
Yolanda Griffith: +10
Katie Gearlds: +8
Swin Cash: +7
Sheryl Swoopes: +5
Camille Little: +4
Tanisha Wright: +1
Kristin O'Neil: -3
Shyra Ely: -4
Most Effective Lineups
Bird-Swoopes-Gearlds-Cash-Jackson: +6
Bird-Swoopes-Cash-Jackson-Griffith: +3
Bird-Wright-Gearlds-Jackson-Griffith: +3
Bird-Wright-Swoopes-Little-Jackson: +3
Wright-Swoopes-Gearlds-Cash-Griffith: +3
There was nice balance with the lineups...no particularly dominant looks.
Mercury
Most Effective Shooters
Player | True Shooting Percentage | Effective FG% | Floor Percentage | Points |
| Yuko Oga | 114% | 0% | 100% | 2 |
| Le'Coe Willingham | 86% | 93% | 68% | 15 |
| Barbara Farris | 68% | 75% | 69% | 6 |
| Kelly Miller | 67% | 67% | 50% | 12 |
| LeToya Pringle | 54% | 0% | 55% | 5 |
You know Phoenix is in trouble when you don't see Pondexter or Taurasi on this list, though they both just barely missed it.
Top Ratings
| Player | Offensive Rating | Individual Rating |
| Yuko Oga | 250.00 | 227.27 |
| Le'Coe Willingham | 141.64 | 140.28 |
| Barbara Farris | 138.79 | 121.26 |
| LeToya Pringle | 117.73 | 93.38 |
| Diana Taurasi | 104.66 | 85.34 |
| Kelly Miller | 100.46 | 91.70 |
Le'Coe Willingham was singularly impressive.
Raw Plus/Minus
Allie Quigley: +4
Le'Coe Willingham: +3
Kelly Miller: -1
Yuko Oga: -1
LeToya Pringle: -2
Diana Taurasi: -5
Jennifer Derevjanik: -5
Tangela Smith: -7
Kelly Mazzante: -8
Barbara Farris: -16
Cappie Pondexter: -17
Most Effective Lineups
Miller-Pondexter-Taurasi-Willingham-Pringle: +6
Oga-Quigley-Mazzante-Willinghame-Pringle: +4
Miller-Mazzante-Taurasi-Farris-Pringle: +3
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