USA Women’s World Championship Team Training Gets Underway

Sept. 4, 2010 • Oakton, Va.

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On a beautiful, sunny Saturday afternoon, a day when most people were outside enjoying the final weekend of summer, nine of the nation’s top players spent several hours inside a gym. These nine players had much more on their minds than spending a lazy Saturday simply hanging out. They are the first half of the final 18 players in the running for the 12 spots on the USA World Championship Team.

Due to athletes still competing in the playoffs, a spate of injuries, family commitments and other issues, stepping onto the court at Flint Hill School today were: Jayne Appel (San Antonio Silver Stars), Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx), Lindsey Harding (Washington Mystics), Ebony Hoffman (Indiana Fever), Asjha Jones (Connecticut Sun), Kara Lawson (Connecticut Sun), Renee Montgomery (Connecticut Sun), Maya Moore (University of Connecticut) and Lindsay Whalen (Minnesota Lynx).

Being shorthanded, however, gave the players more time on the court, which equates to more time in front of the coaching staff and the USA Basketball Women’s National Team Committee. That could be the edge some of these players need to make it to the Czech Republic and compete for the 2010 FIBA World Championship gold medal.

With four practices in the Washington, D.C., area and four more days in Hartford, Conn., before the team leaves for Europe, USA head coach Geno Auriemma is trying to get the most out of every minute his team is on the court. He saw a competitive practice between the players and a good scrimmage against the Washington Mystics’ practice team comprised of local men.

USA Basketball spent some time with Auriemma and several players following practice to find out what they though about the start of the 2010 USA World Championship Team’s training.

Auriemma

Geno Auriemma, University of Connecticut
What are your expectations for the U.S. team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship?
I think the expectations for USA Basketball are always the same. Some of the names might change and the locations might change, but for USA Basketball the expectation is to go in and compete for the gold medal. That’s why we practice. That’s why we train. I would think that our expectations are no different than a lot of other teams at the World Championship. We’re all coming to the Czech Republic to win the gold medal. That’s why we’re anxious to get started.

On the USA’s first practice:
It’s not easy with nine players and the injury situation and the other family commitments and things, but having practice players really helps. The nine that we have, because they’ve had a chance to be with us in the springtime or at the all-star break, there was a sense of familiarity there and we were able to get a lot done in a short period of time. Obviously it’s not the same as having your whole team here, but at least I know those other guys are playing. It’s not like they’re sitting at the beach. We’ll add players as we go along, but for now the ones we have are getting an opportunity to do a lot of things done that maybe they wouldn’t get the opportunity to do if the whole team was here. I was pretty happy with the way it went and I think it’ll be better tomorrow.

There are 18 finalists for the 2010 USA World Championship Team. How difficult will it be for the USA Basketball Women’s National Team Player Selection Committee to pare down to the final 12-member team?
It’s not going to be easy, because you don’t get them all here at the same time to compare and evaluate against each other. So, I don’t know. I don’t know how that decision is going to be made. Some players are going to look really, really good these next four or five days. Then as we add players to the training camp, they may not look as good. Then the players who can’t be added until late, are they going to be almost at a disadvantage because they keep winning in the WNBA.

We want to make sure that everybody gets a fair chance, everybody gets an opportunity to show what they can do. Then we’re just going to have to go with our gut instincts to see who makes the best team. What combinations make up the best team that we can take over there.

It’s not necessarily the 12 best players. It’s got to be the 12 players who fit in best together that give us the kind of flexibility that we’ll need once we get over to the Czech Republic.

Have you been following the FIBA World Championship for Men?
Yeah, I have. Like it has been with us, the World Championship is a big deal. It may not be as familiar here in the United States, but around the world, winning the World Championship is as big, if not bigger, than winning an Olympic gold medal.

You can see the level of competition rising. I look at the scores, how many close games there are, and I’m amazed at how many countries 10 or 15 years ago you would never think would be competitive at basketball, and how competitive they are now. It’s a small world and it’s getting smaller. The more we compete outside the United States, the more we learn about ourselves and our game, and the more we instruct. Every time we leave the country, every time our men or women leave the country to play, the people we play against go home and they go, ‘uh huh, this is what we’re going to have to do.’ And each time they come back, they’re better and better prepared. It used to be easy, but it’s not easy anymore. I think the guys are proof of how difficult it is to win. I’m sure it’s going to be the same way for us.

Augustus

Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx)
On the USA’s first practice:
It was good. I think it was a solid day. We had to get the chemistry together, we had to pick up on each other’s emotions and kind of go with the vibe of everything. All-in-all we were good. We were competitive.

You’re one of the veterans out here. Do people look to you a little more since you’ve been to a FIBA World Championship, you’ve won an Olympic medal?
Yeah, I guess with this team, I’m just going with the flow. I’m really a talker, so I let Renee (Montgomery) and the other players who are talkers step up into their role and do the motivating.  I just try to go out, play hard and lead by example.

There are 18 finalists for the 2010 USA World Championship Team. How competitive is it going to be to make this team?
It’s always difficult, because we always have a talented pool of young ladies. Anybody can step in to play this role in coach Auriemma’s system. It’s a matter of doing the intangible things, motivating your teammates, bringing energy, being a hustle player, things like that. It’s not necessarily about scoring points, you have to do the dirty work.

Since the end of your season, what have you been doing to get ready for this training camp?
Just rehabbing this knee. That’s about it. I wanted to focus on trying to get it stronger coming into camp. Obviously I overworked it or I didn’t work it hard enough, but I’ll get through it.

Have you been following the USA Men’s World Championship Team?
Yeah, it’s been tough for them. It hasn’t been a cakewalk, but that team is like this team. There’s chemistry, they gel together well, they play together well and they’re able to push through adverse situations, especially when they play tough teams. The Turkey team is doing well, the Spanish team also.

Has any team impressed you?
Lithuania has been playing well. Brazil has been playing well, too.

What about anyone on the USA team?
I’m going to be biased, I love Kevin Love because he plays for Minnesota. But Kevin Durant has been a leader, he stepped up for the USA team, as well as (Russell) Westbrook. He’s been very impressive. Those are two of my favorites.

Montgomery

Renee Montgomery (Connecticut Sun)
On the USA’s first practice:
There were nine people, but it was really good. The guys came, I didn’t know we would have practice players and that makes everything a little easier because there’s a defense. Then we can be a team and guard them. It’s always good when it’s us versus them, so that was good. It was exactly what I expected. There was a lot of running, high energy, we were in and out in a little over two hours. That’s good.

There are 18 finalists for the 2010 USA World Championship Team. How competitive is it going to be to make this team?
It’s hard because you’re playing against … everybody has a certain level. There’s nobody here that you can say like, ‘oh, she’s definitely not going to make this team.’ You can’t say that about any person on this team. Knowing that and knowing that it’s going to take the little things. Everyone is going to have something that they do well. You have to make sure that you just impose your will.

How much does it help team chemistry as people start joining the group that many of you have played together in the past?
It helps a lot. It also helps when you have an understanding of the system. It’s good that we already had the Stars at the Sun weekend and the other training camps, because it helps to build a base for the chemistry. People come in, he doesn’t have to teach us plays. When you all kind of know the same concepts, even when people come in here late, it’s not going to be easy, but it’s going to be easier.

Have you been following the USA Men’s World Championship Team?
I have. There’s something about when people put on a USA jersey, you just feel so proud. No matter what. If they play terrible and win by one, you’re like ‘that was such a great game.’ USA is amazing. When I watch their games, I just get this feeling. It’s exciting for me to be able to have the opportunity to represent the U.S., so when I watch them, I’m thinking, ‘man … that could be me in a month.’ It’s cool.

On both the men’s & women’s teams losing players to injuries or other issues, especially bigs:
You have to make things work. Certain things are going to happen and you can’t control it, but when you have a certain level of talent and a certain work ethic, you can always try to make things work. You can’t create size, but you can trap hard. You can do other things to disguise it.

Whalen

Lindsay Whalen (Minnesota Lynx)
On today’s practice:
It was good. I think that we got a lot done. Everyone’s trying to get used to each other right now on the court, trying to play hard, make the right plays, do the right things and get better as a unit. Try to get better every day.

How much does it help team chemistry as people start joining the group that many of you have played together in the past?
It definitely helps. Playing with Seimone (Augustus) all summer, playing with Asj (Jones) in Connecticut all those years and then Ebony (Hoffman) back in the day with other USA teams, it definitely helps. You kind of pick up right where you left off because you know what they’re good at, they know what you’re good at. You kind of look for each other, try to feed off of that, go to people’s strengths and try to work on other things.

There are 18 finalists for the 2010 USA World Championship Team. How competitive is it going to be to make this team?
Yeah, it’s going to be hard. You just have to play hard, play as hard as you can and be the kind of player that they want on the team. Be the kind of player who can help the team. That’s all that you can do: play hard and go to your strengths, be a good teammate and try to make the team better.

Are any of your Czech teammates cheering you on to make the team?
My coaches came to a game probably a month or so ago. They were asking me what was going on with everything. I said, ‘well, we’ll see. Once the camp starts and once things get going we’ll see what eventually happens with the final roster.’ But yeah, I think since it’s in the Czech Republic, they’re pretty pumped. They were already excited about it last year, so we’ll see what happens.

Have you been following the USA Men’s World Championship Team?
Yeah. I love watching those guys play. Those guys are phenomenal athletes. I watched pretty much the whole game against Brazil. Those guys are great and there’s some tough competition. I’ve watched every game I could, I know they’re off for a couple days. I’ll be watching for sure as they progress through the medal rounds. I’m really cheering them on and hoping they do well.