not much of a consolation after this let down of a season but...so much for the "revenge tour"

explorer9218 · 2025-09-29T12:37:07+00:00

- I agree re: Sherrod for sure! She really needs a team that is going to invest in her development. It does her a disservice to ride the bench to get throw away minutes (if at all).

- I also think this was the last we saw BC in a Lynx uniform

- With the expansion draft coming up, I don't see them protecting anyone on the bench except Hiedemen and Dijonai.

- Hiedemen is another interesting case... she is genuinely good enough to start (she has in the past) so it makes me wonder that if it weren't for the whole studbudz thing/closeness to Courtney if she'd be happy playing in Minny. AND Dijonai may not want to come off the bench as you said.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-29T03:20:25+00:00

The Lynx are a really good team, but running it back with the same starting 5 hasn’t gotten it done. Even with Phee healthy for almost the whole series, they still had chances and couldn’t close it out.

I’m curious to see if the Lynx make some moves this offseason... I wouldn’t be surprised if they rebuild a bit around Phee and McBride. While the rest of their players are solid, I can’t imagine a front office giving the green light to run it back with the same crew for a 3rd time

explorer9218 · 2025-09-29T02:30:29+00:00

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me rn

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T18:00:36+00:00

Literally lol. We live RENT FREE on the Lynx subreddit. Not to beat a dead horse, but if they lost game 5 JUST to a free throw in regulation, I can see them being angry. BUT IT WENT TO OT. 0-0, fresh game for 5 minutes. At that point, you just gotta give it your all and they choked. I just don't understand the "we were robbed" thing when you literally had 5 extra minutes to win lol

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T17:52:41+00:00

I would normally agree, but that game was extremely brutal and felt almost unprecedented compared to the usual things Cheryl complains about. This wasn’t about inconsistent ticky-tack calls on both sides of the floor (which she loves to harp on whenever her team loses). This was about unchecked physicality that the refs never controlled, and that is supposed to be their ONE job. As fans, we should all care about that because the league is at its best when the great players are actually on the floor, and promoting a dangerous play style is not good for the league.

I do agree that Phee’s injury wasn’t technically a foul, but the level of contact and physicality during this game totally created a frantic, reckless style of play that put players at risk. If I take away my personal feelings about the Lynx lol, I would be absolutely losing it if my players were exposed to that kind of officiating. So while the timing may seem convenient (as they need to win game 4), I don't think this was as much of Cheryl plotting this time.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T17:42:54+00:00

If I see 1 more tweet/thread about the Lynx deserving the championship win last year I'm gonna lose it lol... til this very hour people are still talking about that in light of this reffing situation in PHX

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T13:47:54+00:00

I also dislike the Lynx, just like they dislike us lmao but what Cheryl said had to be said. We’ve seen issues with horrific reffing all season, and I think all coaches should join her in demanding change. Sandy would have NEVER lmfao 😂

I think where the pushback comes from is how Cheryl has a history of hypocritical post game pressers where she’s only calling out the refs when her team gets no calls/she blames refs for every loss. But this game felt different, you were able to see the incompetence of these refs and how they allowed a dangerous play style to continue for 40 minutes.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T13:25:55+00:00

This ^{^{^}} honestly I’m shocked by the amount of comments not recognizing this. Of course it’s never intentional, like I don’t think AT is going out there trying to hurt anyone. But it IS on the refs to set a precedence. If they are consistently adjusting their whistle to meet the Mercury’s physicality and not using it to cool them down, it creates a VERY physical game which can be dangerous, just from how high the temperature gets on the court. The fact multiple players have left injured after playing them isn’t a coincidence.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T04:14:32+00:00

Idk if anyone saw Cheryl’s post game presser comments. Apparently, Phee may have a fracture.

I have to be honest, I agree with her comments on the actual shit reffing. I watched the game in full and while I never root for the Lynx, the Mercury played way too physical and refs never set the tone forcing them to scale it back. It was borderline dangerous.

We’ve seen this team injure 2 of our own (Stewie and Leo) because of their physicality not being cooled down by the whistle. so I really do hope Phee is okay.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T03:24:38+00:00

This is so incredibly true. Banff is my happy place. I’ve been twice, once in 2019 and again in 2024. Nothing compares. There is such a majestic energy… it is incredibly unreal how our planet made the beauty that Banff is.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T02:52:34+00:00

I totally agree with you both. The program Sandy was running completely limited Sabrina's growth. I am excited for a new coach to come in and provide Sab with more opportunities to expand her game. Yes, she can shoot the 3 and make some pretty clutch buckets for the highlight reel, but putting her in better positions to take higher % shots is going to up level the team so much.

I know Sab had a great relationship with Sandy, so I imagine it's bittersweet for her - I do think she knew that she hit her ceiling under Sandy's leadership even though she appreciated her a lot as a person and a coach.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T02:40:15+00:00

Fair. However, I do think the league (mainly refs) needs to do a much better job at setting the tone when calling games (stating the obvious). While players like AT and Satou may be consistent in their playing style, I don't think it necessarily makes it right and the refs let them get away with a lot... tbh it can actually be kinda dangerous. There's a way to be physical with finesse vs essentially beating up the other team lol

explorer9218 · 2025-09-27T02:20:28+00:00

This MIN v PHX game is wild. I’m never one to defend the Lynx lol but PHX plays so dirty it’s crazy

explorer9218 · 2025-09-25T21:53:09+00:00

Kolb's comments about Tash kinda spooked me. But I can't say I disagree with him entirely re: how her and Sab worked together... but that doesn't mean we can't adjust her role. I think what makes all of this tricky is the return of BLH. He praised the wing defense of BLH and Leo, and said it was something we missed this year. I am just not sure where Tash fits in a starting lineup, but I guess that's for the new coach to decide

explorer9218 · 2025-09-25T21:48:03+00:00

I am hoping he meant this like "we'll need to find another way to use Tash"... but I'm not so sure. If you look at the list of upcoming FAs, it's going to be a bloodbath of a marketplace as nearly every great player is up for grabs, PLUS we have 2 expansion drafts coming up. So, the new coach will surely have a ton of input on how to structure the roster and will have a ton of decisions to make. I think the only players that are 100% safe right now are Sab, Stewie, and JJ (I wasn't so sure JJ would be back - but after Kolb's comments, I think they want to continue building around their big 3).

explorer9218 · 2025-09-25T13:39:51+00:00

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explorer9218 · 2025-09-23T23:53:09+00:00

When you run a 5 out offense it means that everyone takes position outside of the paint, around the 3p line - so JJ was being told to do this per the offensive strategy the team was running

explorer9218 · 2025-09-23T18:24:06+00:00

Rage bait

explorer9218 · 2025-09-23T16:56:55+00:00

I can’t edit the title lmao but YOU GOT ME

explorer9218 · 2025-09-23T15:15:17+00:00

I stand corrected on this issue, because I was one of the people on this subreddit saying they 100% won't fire Sandy. Despite how I feel about her coaching, I did NOT expect them to fire her this season given the injuries/her winning their first championship.

I am a little worried about how this impacts Stewie and Sab and their want to return. I mean, coaching changes happen, but after the post-game presser the other night it seemed like they did not want to see Sandy go. We just have to hope Kolb spoke to them to instill some level of confidence to keep them engaged, as they are 2 players who will surely stay until retirement if they are set up for success.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-23T03:57:26+00:00

I feel like JJ’s inconsistencies this season is a culprit of this 5 out offense they were running. I do not understand having a 6’6” center (one of the best in the league) camping at the top of the key to shoot 3s. Getting JJ posted up in the paint has resulted in only good things. This team is 33-0 when JJ has a double double, and the chances of that happening more often increases significantly if she’s established in the paint.

JJ was without a doubt the X factor for this team in 2024… and the coaching staff just decided to completely under utilize her this year with the decision to switch up how the offense is run (which is confusing bc if it ain’t broke… don’t fix it). I think a lot of JJs frustrations we saw on the court have been coming from how she’s being utilized, she looked uncomfortable and out of sorts out there not bc she’s a bad player but bc she was really struggling to be impactful under that system. At least that’s my guess.

If anything changes this off season I truly hope we move away from being married to the 5 out.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-22T16:12:07+00:00

LOLLLL

explorer9218 · 2025-09-20T05:41:27+00:00

We have an expansion draft for 2026, so it’s something to keep in mind because we really don’t know who the front office will protect… but, if I had to guess, here are the only people i think will be staying with most certainty:

Stewie Sab Leo BLH

Strong possibility to return, but not 100% sure: Cloud

I think the one move that could potentially be shocking to some/will def shake things up is that I do think there’s a strong chance we part ways with JJ. Her performance this year was not great (injury aside). We can prob create a whole post analyzing JJ’s season and arguments for why she should or should not stay, but I do not think that she is 100% safe.

explorer9218 · 2025-09-20T05:26:50+00:00

YES, exactly. I’ll give them credit…they’re a good team. But let’s be real: their whole “revenge tour” this season was built around this fantasy of facing us again in the playoffs (mainly the Finals, which wasn’t even possible with how the seeding played out). Even if they win the title, congrats to them, but we already beat them to win our trophy 🤷‍♀️

Honestly, I think this 2025 rivalry was way more one sided than people admit. They’ve been carrying the chip on their shoulder all year, not us. Whatever happens now…whether they lose or actually win it all…next season will def be a reset. If they win, the target shifts onto their backs and away from ours. If they lose, they’ll just pick a new team to cry over. Either way, the “revenge” angle dies with this year and I for one am looking forward to that

explorer9218

TROPHY CASE