WNBA Connecticut Sun

Transcript- Taj Rasmussen Announcement

Published on February 21, 2007 under Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA)
Connecticut Sun News Release


Opening Statement: The Connecticut Sun traded Taj McWilliams-Franklin today to the Los Angeles Sparks in exchange for their pick which is number 12 in this year's college draft and Erika de Souza. We will have another announcement following this discussion.

Mike Thibault: There's a statement coming. Obviously in the statement we talk about why we're doing this. Taj has been a major part of our team for the four years we have been in Connecticut. She's been with this franchise since its inception. I had an agreement with Taj that if she was ever in a situation where she wanted to move on, it's important for her- you know, she's talked about retiring a couple times- that I would try to accommodate that request, if possible. This offseason she came to me and indicated to us that it was time to move on. She needed a change and we talked about a list of teams that would be agreeable to both sides to negotiate with and we were able to do that.

Having said that, this is a tough day for us because she has been a huge part of our success. But at the same time, she's a player that's a couple years away from retiring. We have an opportunity to get a young, 6-5 24-year-old center and a draft pick in a fairly deep draft for the future. For us, I think any time you can make a move that's good short term and long term; it's good for the franchise. Obviously we'll miss her a lot. You're talking about one of the elite players in the league. A person that was in the voting for MVP a couple years ago. Last year she was an All-Star and an all-league player and it is going to change us. We feel like Asjha Jones is ready to become a star in this league and has improved immensely over the time she has been here. It's the perfect time to move forward and move her into that position that Taj has occupied.

Question: Would you have been willing to trade with an Eastern Conference team?

A. I would prefer to trade with the West. In our discussions, it was clear that she preferred to play in the West. It worked well for both teams. The teams that had the most interest were Western Conference teams. It worked out that way. As many of you know, Taj's daughter is going to school in Arizona. It puts her closer to a better family situation for her and there's some merit in not having to face her four times. Any time you worry about what's best for your team, if the right deal would have been there with an Eastern Conference team and it was amenable to all parties, we would have done it. This is just the way it worked out and I think it's a great trade for both teams. Los Angeles can speak for themselves but they're getting a veteran player who can be a huge factor for their team. With Lisa (Leslie) gone for at least the first part of the season if not all of it, they wanted a veteran, frontline player who could step in there. When Lisa comes back, whenever that is, that's a pretty formidable front line.

Question: Talk about the short and long term benefits for the Sun.

A. We're seeing a player who can develop. Erika de Souza can come in here right now and contribute to our team. We're talking about someone who two years ago was the MVP of the Spanish League. She played for the Brazilian National Team at the World Championship. We're not looking at her as a developmental player; she can play right now. Asjha (Jones) needs to play more. I think that it's time for her to be that player. I look at it as both good and long. You're getting two young players and you're getting a player who can contribute right away, as well as open up more minutes for current players. The other issue that happens that if Taj played here one more year and decided to retire, we get zero. That's the biggest dilemma all pro franchises go through with their veteran players. People in New England are well aware of what happened when Bird and McHale and Parrish all got old and retired for Boston (Celtics). How long has taken for them to recover, and they've never really recovered. It was important for us to look toward the future and avoid it if we could. Boston may not have been able to avoid it. We were in a situation where we could come out (of the trade) and feel like we got close to equal value. Obviously you're not getting an equal player right now because Taj is one of the premier players but all the other things combined will outweigh the one player being here this year.

Question: Will it affect the team's chemistry?

A. My first couple years here when Debbie Black was here, and she and Taj were our leaders, we had a young team. Everybody here was young except for them. And now with Katie Douglas and Nykesha Sales and Lindsay Whalen and Margo and Asjha Jones as a projected starting five, you're talking about a veteran team who has learned to take over the leadership of this team. Taj was not the only leader on this team over the last couple years. Another good sign for me was, last year Taj missed a couple games to attend her daughter's graduation in Italy, we played extremely well- and that's not a knock on Taj- during that time against good teams with Asjha in the starting lineup. I think it gave the entire team confidence that this would be a move we could someday make. I think all of our players feel like Asjha is ready for this situation.

Question: How long has this been in the works?

A. For a couple months now in one form or another. Taj and I had had our discussion probably a month after the season. Most of it was done over the course of a couple months through her agent because she was playing in Russia and now Korea. She and I have emailed and she has expressed her wishes about this. We had a long discussion before last season about this. I was not totally unprepared to do this. We had given it a lot of thought. It's ironic, about a year and a half ago I was having a discussion with Taj about the future of our team- not in relevance to her self. Taj had seen Erika play overseas and thought she would help enhance the future of this team. It's ironic that they're now being traded for each other at this point.

Question: Talk about Erika de Souza.

A. This year, she is playing with Margo in Spain and her minutes have gone down. She had been hurt a little bit at the World Championship. She came in and it took her a little bit to get going. She has not had the same year this year that she did the year before. The year before she played for Barcelona and was the MVP of the Spanish League and had a terrific year. Her team went to the Finals. This year has not been a good year but she has also had to split minutes with Margo, which she will do here. But we feel like we'll have a rotation and she'll be able to do it. You're talking about most young post players not developing in their games until somewhere between the ages of 23 and 26. We feel like that's where she is headed now. It's hard to find a young, mobile, athletic post player that can run, are strong around the basket and, if she was in this year's draft, people were talking about her being a lottery pick if not the top center in this draft. We feel like we're getting a terrific upside player and there isn't pressure on her here to be a go-to player. She's walking into a situation where there are so many veterans here that there isn't pressure to carry a team.

Sun General Manager Chris Sienko: We have just signed Kristen Rasmussen to a three-year contract. We're very excited for that. She was formally with Phoenix last year.

Question: Talk about concerns of losing Asjha Jones off the bench.

A. I think Kristen is going to come in and do for us what Asjha did. That is the replacement of that role. She can play the 4 or 3 and even a little bit of 5 as she did for Phoenix last year. We're talking about one of the better defenders in the league, who has improved her offense. I mean on some of the teams she's played on particularly last year, she wasn't asked to be a huge factor on offense, but she can make open shots and she has three-point range. You're talking about a 6-2 versatile front line player who I expect to play the same kind of minutes that Asjha did last year. I think she'll be a great chemistry fit. Our players are very much in favor of us bringing her in here. So all of this combined, it makes more sense to do it all together.

Question: Talk about your discussions with current players on player movement.

A. When we have made major trades, if we have had players on our team who have played with potential additions to our team, I quiz them about that player. Are they good teammates, are they this, are they that...They have played a lot head-to-head with players overseas. I don't survey a lot, but I go to our primary players- Kesh, KT, Asjha, Margo, Lindsay. Those players to get a sense of chemistry and where we're headed. That's important because your players have a vested interest in what you do as a team.

Question: Talk about what you expect with that draft pick.

A. Well, we have some flexibility with the 12th and 13th draft picks. I don't know if Erin's injury is necessarily going to impact what we do in the draft. At some point, she's going to be back. Maybe mid-year this year, maybe the end, maybe next. It's hard to invest a draft pick on someone who will eventually play. There's a reasonable chance that we could see her before the season is over eventually playing. We have selected a group of players who we think might be available at 12 or 13.

Question: Any more trades?

A. It's always a possibility. We don't have anything on the board right now. This has been the focus of what we have done the last couple of months. Salary cap-wise that would be an implication. We don't have as much flexibility with what we have done.

Question: What about Rasmussen's veteran leadership for younger players?

A. Her experience in this league with several franchises allows her to give (young players) a voice of experience, tell them what to expect. You aren't going to get a better pick-and-roll defender. She talks on defense, talks to her teammates. That's one thing that Taj was extremely good at and I think Kristen will really help us in that area. That's a really good thing for young players to pick up on.

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Women's National Basketball Association Stories from February 21, 2007


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