Connecticut gets PG Renee Montgomery, the #4 pick in the 2009 WNBA draft and the #1 pick in the 2010 WNBA draft from the Lynx (who got this pick from NY in a previous trade).
The Lynx get PG Lindsay Whalen and the #3 pick in the 2010 WNBA draft from the Sun
Basketball wise, this turns Minny from a team trying to get in the playoff picture into a possible contender. They already have a great swingman in Seimone Augustus and now get to add a top notch All Star PG in Whalen who can dish as well as anyone, is one of the league's best shooters, AND also has good rebounding skills . Connecticut, gets a bit younger by getting a rising star guard, and also get first dibs for the next draft, where they are sure to add a significant player to put around their star Ashja Jones.
It's not really the basketball that makes this trade notable though. Rather it's the PG's who got traded here. Whalen is a Minnesota alumna, and was one of the two big stars (NY C Janel McCarville being the other) to lead the Gophers from being a crap Big Ten team, to a Final Four team in 2004. Before the 2004 draft, Minnesota did everything they could to trade up to get Whalen, but failed. Now they have her. The Lynx are among the bottom in league attendance in recent years, and this move will get more fans into the Target Center, as much as it could improve the team. Also, Whalen's husband, Ben Greve, a former Gopher golfer is a Minnesota native. They probably own a home in Minny somewhere, like Flip does.
The same can be said for Connecticut, though the state is a women's basketball haven and the only place where Geno Auriemma, Rebecca Lobo, Sue Bird, Swin Cash, and Diana Taurasi alone have more oomph than Ray Ray, Ripped Ham, Tuff Juice, and Emeka COMBINED. By adding Montgomery, a UConn alumna to the roster with another former UConn goddess in Jones, this can ensure that fans will continue to fill the Mohegan Sun Arena for years to come. Second, the projected #1 pick of the 2010 draft is UConn C Tina Charles who is having her way with almost everyone this season. Just imagine it now, three potential starters (two for sure) all from UConn playing only an hour away. Bet you the dealers at the Casino of the Wind didn't think all this would've happened! The only bigger wish the Sun has is possibly getting Sue or Diana there....
To me, the trade is nice to see, but given that the league has seen five teams either move (Detroit), close shop (Houston, Sacramento), or publicly put on notice that a folding or a move may happen (Indiana, Atlanta), this trade seems to be a business decision to sell more tickets, in particular for Minnesota. If they've sucked in attendance last few years, their owner Glen Taylor may soon want to just focus his assets on the Wolves like the Maloofs did on the Monarchs and what Karen Davidson did to the Shock
So do you think this was primarily a trade for basketball, trade for ticket sales, or both?
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