After an exciting season in which they made the playoffs for the first time
since 2013, Sue Bird believes the Seattle Storm can take the momentum even
further this year.
The Storm started slow last season, but went 7-3 after the Olympic break thanks
in large part to the play of star rookie Breanna Stewart. They had the lead in
their playoff opener until Angel McCoughtry caught fire during a historic
individual performance. With a core of Stewart, Bird and fellow All-WNBA
selection Jewell Loyd, Seattle could be primed to make another leap in 2017.
“I think we showed at the end of last season what we’re capable of as a team,”
Bird said at NBA All-Star Weekend in New Orleans. “So I think the expectations
for us to make the playoffs – and maybe make a little more noise than we did
last year – have been earned. That doesn’t mean it’s a guarantee. There’s still
much work to be done. I think last year we showed some stuff, but there’s a big
difference between doing it once and being consistent season after season.
That’s where we need to get. We need to get more consistent.”
For Stewart, Bird said, it will come down to fine-tuning as many aspects of her
game as possible. The UConn product is already one of the league’s top
all-around players – she finished sixth in the MVP voting as a rookie – but
Stewart still has plenty of unlocked potential.
What could help her unlock it is spending more time at power forward, which the
Storm addressed this offseason by trading for center Carolyn Swords.
Stewart has shown she is capable of playing center in the WNBA, but last year
she was almost always Seattle’s tallest player on the court. That was a lot to
ask of a lanky rookie. Seattle started 6-foot-2 Crystal Langhorne at the other
frontcourt spot, and centers Krystal Thomas and Markeisha Gatling only saw
limited minutes.
In that sense, Bird says the 6-foot-6 Swords could make a drastic difference.
“The game of basketball has definitely started to change, where you need more
versatile players,” Bird said. “Stewie is a great example…she can literally play
every position. But that doesn’t mean that big, true post players don’t have
value. I get it, we don’t have players like Lisa Leslie, who are just low-block
players. But they’re still needed. And I think we were really missing that size,
someone who could come in and guard a big player, get rebounds, that type of
thing. And from watching Carolyn play over the years, I know she can fit
perfectly.”
Rebounding is, statistically, the area where Seattle could use the most help.
The Storm had the lowest overall rebounding percentage (47.1) and offensive
rebounding percentage (22.1) in the league last year.
With Swords coming to town and plenty of optimism stemming from last year, the
fans in Seattle can expect another fun season at KeyArena. Adding to that
excitement is the announcement of the 2017 WNBA All-Star Game, which will be
held in the Emerald City for the very first time.
“I know the city’s really excited, and the organization’s really excited,” Bird
said. “Obviously everyone’s a little biased, but I think we have the best fan
base in the WNBA, and I know they’re going to show up and show out. Hopefully,
as Seattleites, we’ll all put on a good show.”
