Cooper Says Sparks Still Team to Beat
The Sparks are facing the best team in the WNBA, if you go by regular-season records; the highest-scoring team in the WNBA, with a 75.1-point average, and arguably the most confident team in the WNBA.
That would describe the Detroit Shock, the regular-season and playoff Eastern Conference champion.
Still, the Sparks -- who have won the last two WNBA titles -- didn’t seem outwardly concerned about the Shock, their opponent in a best-of-three series for the league championship beginning Friday at Staples Center. Or about having to win a championship on the road for the first time. Games 2 and 3, if a third game is necessary, will be in Detroit on Sunday and Tuesday.
Coach Michael Cooper doesn’t play many psychological games with his team, but one of his favorites is the “no respect” ploy, which he brought out again after Monday’s 66-63 series-clinching victory over Sacramento.
In a rapid-fire discourse toward the end of his news conference, Cooper lashed out at “the media and so-called basketball minds” who’d said his team could not survive the challenges of Minnesota and Sacramento.
Tuesday, there was more of same.
“That’s how I felt and I was very sincere about it,” Cooper said. “And I meant what I said -- a lot of people haven’t given us our respect this year. Not that we need their [approval] to feel good about ourselves. But we’re still the best team in this league.
“What I’m saying is, if anybody’s going to win the championship, they’re gonna have to take it from us.”
That doesn’t mean the Sparks don’t respect the Shock.
“I am impressed with what Detroit has done,” guard Nikki Teasley said. “Their coach [Bill Laimbeer] is very good. They’ve been very successful this year and they’ve gotten to the championship round.”
Added center Lisa Leslie, “They’re obviously a legitimate team because they’re here [in the finals]. They’re playing good basketball -- shooting well, getting the ball inside, rebounding. But I still believe we’re the best team on the road, and if not, we’re the best one still standing.”
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The teams met once this season, in Detroit on June 17. The Sparks had a late lead, but wound up losing in overtime, 87-78. That loss was the difference in the Shock’s having home-court advantage in the series.
“We definitely gave that game away in many aspects,” Leslie said. “Missed free throws at the end, some other missed opportunities to win the game. We can play smarter. We have a different offense now, and definitely a different defense.”
Teasley said that game had been so early in the season that it was “hard to look at the teams back then.” But she also figured the Sparks’ playoff experience would be a factor.
“We’re no strangers to being in the championship game,” she said. “We’ll use our experience more than anything. We know how to win.”
When asked about any change in strategy from the June meeting, Cooper said not to expect much.
“We had a lead with a minute left in that game, so I thought we did our homework,” Cooper said. “Staying out of foul trouble will be a key.”
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Eastern Conference teams traditionally have been slow-down, half-court teams. Detroit, however, likes to run and gun as much as the Western teams do.
This will be the third up-tempo team the Sparks have faced in this year’s playoffs.
“They do have some athletes who like to get up and down the court,” Cooper said. But I think our athletes are better than theirs are; at least our starting five is.
“So if they want to run, let’s go. On your mark, get set, go.”
Said Teasley: “I think everybody’s game plan has been to run and try and tire us out, because our starting five normally plays so many minutes. But if they want to go half-court it will be hard because we have so many offensive weapons, with Lisa and DeLisha [Milton] on the inside, and myself, Mwadi [Mabika] and Tamecka [Dixon] on the outside.
“You can try to run and wear us down, but we’re in the best shape of our lives and defensively we work real hard, which makes it easy on offense.”
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WNBA Finals
Game 1 -- Friday at Staples Center, 5 p.m., ESPN2
Game 2 -- Sunday at Detroit, 1 p.m., Channel 7
Game 3 (if necessary) -- Tuesday at Detroit, 5 p.m., ESPN2
By the Numbers
A comparison of the Sparks and Detroit per-game averages during the regular season:
*--* SPARKS DETROIT 73.5 Points 75.1 71.5 Opp. Pts 70.4 418 FG% 450 403 Opp. FG% 399 330 3-pt. FG% 387 792 FT% 707 33.8 Rebounds 36.2 32.5 Opp. Reb 31.3 17.3 Assists 16.0 13.8 Turnovers 17.9 20.1 Fouls 17.8 19.2 Opp. Fouls 22.8
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Head-to-Head
Detroit won the regular-season game between the teams, 87-78, in overtime on June 17 at Detroit.
* Before: The Sparks, at 9-0, had tied their league record for best start to a season. Detroit was 3-1.
* During: Detroit overcame a 16-point Spark lead, tying the score when Ruth Riley made two free throws with three seconds to play, then outscored the Sparks, 11-2, in overtime.
* After: The victory ultimately gave Detroit a better record by one game over the Sparks and the home-court advantage in the finals.