Sparks See a Big Plus in Additions

Orlando Woolridge, hoping to be the first Los Angeles Spark coach to survive an entire season, leads a vastly improved group of players to training camp today.

Vastly improved, of course, is a WNBA redundancy. Every team is vastly improved, since the league’s draft May 4 brought in 35 players from the defunct American Basketball League.

Los Angeles went big in the draft, taking ABL veterans DeLisha Milton, 6 feet 2; Clarise Machanguana, 6-5, and La’Keshia Frett, 6-3, with their first, second and fourth picks. In between was Ukari Figgs a 5-9 point guard for Purdue’s NCAA title team.

After the draft, Woolridge hired an assistant coach he has dubbed his “chief of police for defense,” Michael Cooper. They were Laker teammates for two seasons, 1988-90, when Cooper was known as one of the NBA’s premier defenders.

Said Cooper Thursday, “The key thing about this draft for us is that those big players are not only great defenders, but they’re great transition players too.

“They all get downcourt in a hurry. . . . I see us playing a lot of five-on-three, five-on-four basketball.”

The draft picks join returnees Lisa Leslie, Tamecka Dixon, Allison Feaster, Mwadi Mabika, Pam McGee, Eugenia Rycraw, Penny Toler, Sandra VanEmbricqs and Jamila Wideman.

Former Tennessee center Tiffani Johnson and former University of New Orleans player Kenya Robinson are also on the 16-player training camp roster.

Two-year veteran Katrina Colleton hadn’t signed, but is expected to be in camp today at Los Angeles Southwest College.

Gone is two-season center Haixia Zheng of China, who has retired because of arthritic knees.