This is a fact Sky wound have been on Erica on D… it was the transition Don’t Judge My Life that should have made the stop. It was most definitely Diana bad on not making stops. It was 3-2 transition D. You at the top u have first pass. Diana also failed to move her feet on help Defense…. Yea I can understand why Sky was pissed. She wasn’t mad about the lay by Tina. Her team scored. Looks like she was mad about that bad Defense. Knowing D.T she was probably talking little petty stuff in attempt to deflect the fact that it was her missing up the D. Skylar had had ENOUGH. I used to hate going hard on both ends of the floor, just to have defensive break downs from a teammate more than two possessions in a row. That type of stuff make u speak up. I’ve definitely been Sky on various occasions. Told the W community last year, Diana YALL g.o.a.t NOT mine 🤧
@@JadaJae21 Diana is old..how much you think she got left. Lebron don't play good defense either. They roasted him on it. They both got titles so whatever..they on their way out anyway. But Diggins a Lil' B*$#! Thinks she's special...just another pain in da azzz blk chick. Facts ! Baby !
Not even, LeBron was attempting to carry his team. I ABSOLUTELY HA!+TE, when people attempt to make comparisons between Tarausi and Kobe or LeBron. That crap done went to her head BIG Time!
Taurasi needs to retire. Every game I’ve watched with her she does nothing but whine to the refs and try to bully opposing players. Her attitude has been jacked up for a while.
@@parzivalpower3587 She's a better man than Lebron. She isn't staying in a game during a blowout just to STAT PAD. She's probably actually playing defense too - unlike LeBum
@@marcdaddy33They both in the way is the point. She's still playing for no absolute reason. They both have no shot of winning anymore chips,still sticking around to pad their all time numbers.
*Diana doesn't play Defense and no one says **nothing.plus** she is the biggest finger pointer on the team* So yeah you call everyone else out but disappear when it's your turn to show up
She is getting older. Can’t rely on her to be what she was all game anymore 🤷🏽♂️plus they weren’t healthy and players in and out the lineup no chemistry this year. Ppl also forget they just came off a finals run last year and without Kia nurse. Just played a better team. She’s 40 dude it’s sad to have her try to carry the load
@@taesavage1191 Tim Duncan was old as fuck too..and let others lead. Being old and effort is too different things. Tim always gave effort. Even if his body betrayed him
But if should would have won the finals last year where would the talk come from ? If it wasn’t for Chicago she’d have another ring at an older age. That has nerve been done.
its time for D to retire. this year proves it. she's slowed down too much and refuses to play defense. she's actively hurting her team at times. as sad as it is the D and Sue era is over its time to move on
No when a great player starts to slow down but it's still capable of putting up big numbers you and more Talent around them so they have less of a workload during the regular season
I can tell Skylar wants out of Phoenix or no longer wants to play with DT & DD (2 Ball Hogs, one that no longer plays defense, DT) not to mention the coaching has went from Bad (Branadello) to worse with Vanessa Nygard. I'd be very willing to trade Erica Wheeler and a 2nd rounder for Skylar in Atlanta. Skylar running Point being backed up by Aari and playing with Rhyne, Cheyenne and Monique
@@larryjane4926 She never carried Skylar, and Breanna Turner is their best defender. Griner just makes them better because defensively because she's 6'9
@@larryjane4926 If you mean DT, to me she's never been The GOAT. I put Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes, Maya Moore and Lisa Leslie ahead of her. And it's a shame Cheryl Miller never got to play in the WNBA
We can speculate, but the thing I don't get is why in this day and age would a player give up a layup, so another player can shoot a 3-ball? Granted, the 3-ball is a mainstay of today's game, but I wouldn't encourage a player to give up a layup.
Would've been crazy to give up high percentage layup for a 3. That last layup Smith got beat on Diana did right by not helping leaving her woman possibly open for a 3. The other 2 teammates under the basket should've been the help defense. But they just stood there and watched the woman score.
@@itsruffoutchea6636 exact. Both or either one of them should have suffocated that paint area and made the shot a difficult one. Had Diana moved at that moment, with the player driving at full speed, she would have probably gotten called for a foul.
Yep. We see it in the NBA, too. I’ve seen it on 3 on 1 fast breaks. Amazing. And, of course, they miss enough of those 3’s to make it clear the layup would be the better choice.
I am glad you are calling these things out because I noticed them too. On offence everyone is standing around, no movement, no cuts, no plays. I really like diamond, Sophie and Tina on the team.
Taurasi always needs to be critical of others. Skylar played for coach McGraw, she knows how to play defense, don't make her the scapegoat. She's now in Seattle and I feel sorry for Phoenix the next time they play
Skylar tied her career high in points last night (35) against Seattle while DT nearly had a triple double. At the end of the year and many more afterwards, 2022 will be remembered as “what if”. What if Brittney had been available? What if this assembled group of experienced talent could have played in 2022? 🤷🏽♂️
They definitely would have won this year if Brittney was there. Brittney changes the whole dynamic of that team. She brings offense and defense. The chemistry and coaching would have been the only issue. I think Tina Charles stays if Brittney is there. That team would have been stacked.
What if Brittney hadn’t felt so entitled to break laws in other Country? The land of the oppressed spewing crap until their entitlement lands them in hot water elsewhere where social justice means Jack!
Common knowledge while playing defense against a fast break is to pick up the ball first no matter who you are normally guarding either stop the ball or make the handler attempt to pass it best case is a turnover worst case is a layup
You're incorrect about the initial play. Taurasi did the quick look back to see where the defense was (sometimes if you're not looking a defender can cut in front and steal the inbound pass). An the fast break play wasn't even on Skylar. Skylar made a good pass and the girl blew the layup. Then the fastbreak layup happened because of the Center not Skylar. The Center's inability to get her ass back on defense forced Taurasi to have to guard both the ball handler and the girl who eventually scored. So there was nothing for Diana to be mad at Skylar for on that play. But the other 2 plays you showed were spot on.
Why DT didn’t rotate That’s the shit that gets me mad on 2K Nobody rotates on D and on offense everybody stands around and don’t move when they don’t have the damn ball.
@Damion Allen we can't forget that DT is actually TRASH on defense simply because Skylar Digging missed a couple games in a row after that incident, DT has been abysmal on defense for at least a couple of years now.
I'd think many ppl like Diana personally n her attitude bcuz she think she is the female Kobe n to high up on her horse. But not digging smith..but where is she ? I haven't seen her since
Why is DT still taking up a spot on team USA? She’s well past her prime and not even close to being a top talent any longer. Life time achievement award?
I've always felt Taurasi was a prima donna from her days back at UConn. Diggins is also a Prima donna but she plays harder than Taurasi. The two of them are like oil and water. They grand experiment is over and someone has got to go. At this point in their careers, you can get more for Taurasi.
I agree. I don't know if the two can co-exist. This is really DT's team and she could be a dog and Skylar doesn't back down from no one. They stick with Taurasi because of all she's done for the team and the community. She's an all-time legend for the Mercury. And remember they didn't count on not having Griner otherwise we'd probably be having a different conversation.
DT is like 40 years old lol. She’s never been a good defender through out her entire career, she’s not gonna randomly put in the effort to get better now lol.
1st defensive play, DT is already covering someone on the fast break, Diggins is the one behind not hustling to catch up. It's a 5v4. 2nd defensive play, it's not DT's job to help. It's supposed to be the 5 that helps on the drive while baseline defender tags the opposing big, if the ball handler makes a kickout, then it would be DT's job to split the difference between the corner or the wing player.
It's called basketball you think everybody is going to be able to hustle back on every play these people are human before they all basketball players. You can play a perfect game all night and have one play where you don't hustle back per se or get back fast enough and they will point that out. Diana has bad body language when she's on the court
Taurasi seemed to be pleading with Diggins initially but grew tired of that very quickly. Understandable. But on another note, Tina Charles was shoulder to shoulder when they crossed half court but then gets beat that bad for a layup? These girls looked tired.
DS does that a lot when she misses a shot or feels she was fouled. She’s drags her feet back on D. Make no mistake DS is a monster with the ball one that will help Phoenix continual their success after DT retires.
Bit of an odd help rotation to help from the opposite slot/wing.. it’s plausible don’t get me wrong - but could have just been jammed by the 2 bigs down low. Seems like a mess either way though if that’s the straw that breaks the proverbial camels back
Admit total speculation on my part. I thought DT should have took 1/2 a step and fake a dig at the ball. But just surprised she did not move at all. Ultimately I think DT and Diggings-Smith are both alphas and bound to clash when things go bad. Mercury are in tough spot as DT on max deal and D-S also near max. The rebuild is coming as this window is closed in my opinion
The first look back by taurasi probably wasn't a look back at Diggins for not getting back on defense. It was probably for Diggins getting herself in a bad position on the offense that led to that fast break. Diggins tried to split two defenders instead of kicking it to the player that was at the side. She almost got the ball stolen, and then got herself behind the backboard, making a difficult pass to her team mate. And the spacing got bad. The fast break layup can be blamed on the player that missed the short shot in the lane. The girl that was guarding her on that shot passed her on the break and made the layup. The Taurasi foot kick was half hearted also. The next play calls for a kick out option because Taurasi is also pointing to Diggins in the corner. There's 5 defenders inside. On the next Vegas drive, Taurasi doesn't help on the drive, but neither does the post player in the paint. The post player just watches the layup. Diggins might be frustrated with being on the team and not just Taurasi. And Taurasi may think Diggins isn't that good of a guard and shouldn't question her at any moment. UConn royalty maybe.
Wow you should have put out a video on this instead of me. You have put a lot more thought into it than I did. I just took a look late at night after playing a rec league game while drinking a beer. Thanks for the detailed break down (thesis). Good work.
I’ve read through most of the viewer comments. One viewer said it best “Diana isn’t playing for greatness anymore…she is playing for stats and a paycheck.
Well at the first sample nobody on the team played defense, on their second at 1:51, I read that different when I played basketball the rotation would be for the center to step up as a shot blocker and the other forward to rotate over and cover her person (which did happen as you can see 2 people on the post, then if kicked to the corner DT would rotate out) so the issue here is Skylar looks to be angry at the wrong teammate. You don't leave that shooter on reach in when you have a shot blocker behind you, it has a high probability you will pick up a foul...but the shot blocker stayed on her person leading to an unneeded double on the Aces post player. This tells me Phoenix has an issue with defensive scheme and coaching at this time of the video..because that first possession was even worse.
Those def. possessions are on DT. Forget the fact DT should stop the 🏀 in transition, SDS in no universe is covering that distance (WNBA players are slow) not to mention they had the #s on def. 4 ppl around the 🏀. Then DT was lazy on the help or face guarding either way it's on her
I understand the frustration of playing with someone who seems to not care. You cannot expect people to come to your games if you're playing lame. Also you cannot expect the wnba to have succes if the show ain't good. Some players in the league understand and care, but most of them females just don't care. I just don't understand why you're expecting a bigger pay check if you know you don't deserve it. That's the problem in the wnba, they say they deserve to get pay more but they actually deserve less sadly. There's only a few players in this league who deserve more. Facts.
HeyCoach23, Play defense or you lose the game. Poor defense by Phoenix as a team. No help. Leave your player and stop the ball. Help your teammates. Just stand there. Plum is left handing. Might over play to right. Again, D or go home.
she cant be mad on the no help defense when they missed the shot, also they were sticking 1 on 1. cant rlly double team as she is mid drive or they will call a foul
This is another prime example of players staying in the game to long when your play is over 50% gone down. Yes, Taurasi will be a Hall of Famer. She has earned all that and more. It's high time the WNBA League, owners, and Coaches step up for the better good of the team period. We all know the Mercury needs Brittney Griner. However, to let Diana Taurasi make a democracy out of that team is just terrible. Skylar Diggins Smith is younger and still playing at a very high level. She all so has about 7 more very good years left of playing if she chooses to. Enough is enough stop trying to trade off are run off good players to save face for out going ones. The respect level should be mutual. Diana injuries has made a significant difference in her play along with age over the years period. Less State the facts and the obvious stop trying to make Skylar Diggin Smith the scapegoat not going to work
The funny thing is the player sitting next to Skylar knew immediately she was about to blow-up based on her gesture when Skylar stood up. I believe there is a level of frustration with the team because while some players are in their prime others are close to finishing theirs and it’s clearly a lost opportunity to win big. Brittney being locked up really hurt their chance and Diana is probably getting an easy pass this year.
Hey Boss, if you're going to do a breakdown gonna need you to do a proper breakdown. Tina Charles got beat not racing back after her bad shot. Thus the easy bucket. Then Charles again, looking for get back and not swinging the ball missed the open pass to the corner. Then, youre spot on with the NO HELP from either DT or TC on the drive. Both are ham & eggers on these plays.
Taurasi is the vet And she plays defense like amateur The fast break was her fault She was the out let that should of been down first And when that women drove in from the wing the defense should of collapsed the middle and Diana jus stood there looking stupid
Nah now was that her fault she couldn’t stick chels and Kelsey at the same time. Especially Brianna turner and diamond committed to the paint. If all three of them committed to Hamby 3. She could have easily kicked out out for a open 3. Or had a wide open layup if B turner and diamond wouldn’t have committed to the middle. It was nothing taurasi could do. Skylar being late on defends messed up the defensive rotation. They still didn’t contest the shit tho. They just let her lay the ball up. So u can’t blame that on her 🤷🏽♂️. All 5 players need to get back and communicate defensively
Diana used to be one of my favorite players since her uconn days. Unfortunately she is showing that she has stayed too long. Great career but it's time to retire.
She’s also make millions over seas so she prob jus playing to stay active this check 10x less then her original, they also payed her a million to sit out a season befor
Good show, should diggind expected help? I think the majority would say yes. Diggins opened the door for a tap and the trappess said nah, I'm stickin my man, er, woman. and the high percentage sht over the probable brick Diggins would have put up, nothing wrong with the shot that was taken.
That's not really Taurasis job to help there...it's the bigs job to help...she could have helped but she's not expecting Diggins to get beat off the dribble...the only way Taurasi helps is if she knows her player can't shoot...if she leaves her player to help and she gives up a wide open shot then she gets criticized as well...it's a no win situation.
Diggins is mad at the organization. So she's just pissed in general. She looks to be having issues all around with her comeback. Honestly doesnt look healthy. Lost a lot of weight hella quick which can produce mood swings..
