Washington Mystics

Washington Mystics
2011 Washington Mystics season
Washington Mystics logo
Conference	Eastern
Founded	1998
History	Washington Mystics (1998–present)
Arena	Verizon Center
Location	Washington, D.C.
Team colors	Red, Blue, Gray, White
Main sponsor	Inova Health System
Head coach	Trudi Lacey
Ownership	Ted Leonsis
Championships	None
Conference titles	None

The Washington Mystics is a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C., playing in the Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded prior to the 1998 season. The team is owned by Monumental Sports & Entertainment (led by Ted Leonsis), who also owns the Mystics' NBA counterpart, the Washington Wizards. Sheila C. Johnson, co-founder of BET and ex-wife of Charlotte Sting owner Robert L. Johnson, is the managing partner.

The Mystics have qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in only six of its thirteen years in Washington. The franchise has been home to many high-quality players such as Tennessee standout Chamique Holdsclaw, athletic shooting guard Alana Beard, and nearby Maryland product Crystal Langhorne. Despite having talented rosters, the Mystics have never advanced to the WNBA Finals. They have only been to the Conference Finals once, losing to New York in 2002.

Franchise history

One of the first, one of the worst (1998–2004)

Logo from 1998-2010

The Washington Mystics were one of the first WNBA expansion franchises to be established. In 1998, their first season, went to a WNBA worst 3-27 record, but they were led by Olympian Nikki McCray. Although they did not make the playoffs that year, the team had high expectations after drafting University of Tennessee star Chamique Holdsclaw in 1999, which Washington improved, but failed to make the playoffs as they finished with a 12-20 record. Holdsclaw would lead the team to the playoffs in 2000, making the playoffs with a losing record of 14-18, losing to the New York Liberty in a first round sweep.

After being tied for the worst record in the WNBA in 2001 with a 10-22 record, coach Tom Maher and General Manager Melissa McFerrin both resigned. With the future of the franchise up in the air, Mystics assistant coach Marianne Stanley took over as head coach and with the duo of Holdsclaw and rookie guard Stacey Dales-Schuman, the Mystics made the playoffs in 2002 with a 17-15 record. They would sweep the Charlotte Sting in the first round, but lose to New York again in the Eastern Conference Finals 2 games to 1. In 2003, the Mystics would make a franchise second worst record in franchise history with a 9-25 record, dead last in the Eastern Conference.

File:Washington Mystics uniform 2011.jpg

Current road uniform

Rumors of Holdsclaw being unhappy playing in Washington came to a head in 2004 when the Mystics star was sidelined with an unspecified ailment, later revealed to be a bout with depression. With their all-star out, rookie and Duke University standout Alana Beard led a depleted Mystics team to a surprising playoff appearance, the third playoff appearance in Mystics history. They finished the 2004 season at .500 (17-17), but lost in the first round to the Connecticut Sun in 3 games.

Changes in the organization (2005–2007)

The 2005 season saw deep changes in the Mystics organization. Former star Holdsclaw joined the Los Angeles Sparks and the team was sold by Washington Sports and Entertainment to Lincoln Holdings LLC, led by Ted Leonsis. In 2005, the team finished the regular season with a win/loss record of 16-18 and failed to make the playoffs.

In 2006, the Mystics posted a 18-16 record thriving under star guard Alana Beard who was drafted in 2004. The Mystics entered the playoffs as the 4th seed. In the first round, Washington was ultimately swept by the Connecticut Sun, the first-seeded team in the East. This ended the 2006 season for the Mystics, who had started to see a glint of hope for their struggling franchise.

The Mystics finished with a 16-18 record in 2007. In a more competitive conference, the team was satisfied by its near-.500 finish. However, at the end of the season, the Mystics had an identical record as the New York Liberty. Since the Liberty won the regular season series against the Mystics, Washington lost the tiebreaker and was eliminated from playoff contention.

At the Bottom Yet Again (2008)

In 2008, the Mystics looked to build on their near-playoff appearance in a tough Eastern conference. They drafted Crystal Langhorne of Maryland with the 6th pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft. Plagues again by coaches problems, the Mystics fell to the bottom of the East again, finishing only in front of the expansion Atlanta team. The Mystics had gone through 10 coaches in 11 years of existence, the most in the WNBA. The Washington front office knew it needed to completely clean out the franchise if success was desired.

Changes, Part Two (2009–present)

Crystal Langhorne

During the 2008/2009 WNBA offseason, the Mystics released general manager Linda Hargrove (replaced by Angela Taylor) and interim coach Jessie Kenlaw (replaced by Julie Plank). Under the new general manager, underperforming players were waived as new players were signed. With the second pick in the Houston dispersal draft and the 2009 WNBA Draft, the Mystics selected Matee Ajavon and Marissa Coleman, respectively. The Mystics hoped to take advantage of the team changes and finally find consistency in their play.

By the time the season began, the Mystics surprisingly started 3-0. They went 13-18 since the first three games, but their 16-18 record was actually good enough to reach the playoffs. However, in their playoff comeback, the eventual conference champion Indiana Fever were too much for Washington to handle and the Mystics were swept in the first round, ending their season.

The Mystics had their best season ever in 2010. Led by Lindsey Harding, Katie Smith, and Crystal Langhorne, the Mystics took first place in the East with a record of 22-12. They were swept in the first round by the eventual Finals-contender Atlanta Dream.

Prior to the 2011 season, the Mystics made many controversial changes. Coming off their best season in franchise history, many had hoped the team would finally see some consistency; this was not the case. Harding and Smith were both traded away (to Atlanta and Seattle, respectively). Furthermore, general manager Angela Taylor and head coach Julie Plank were relieved of their duties, as Trudi Lacey was named to both positions in a decision seemingly related to cost-cutting. The questionable decisions came to fruition when the Mystics started the season 3-11.

Uniforms

• 1998–2010: white with black and gold outlines at home, dark blue with black and gold outlines on the road.
• 2011–present: white with red and blue outlines at home, red with white and blue outlines on the road. Both jerseys display the Inova Health System name on the front.

"Attendance Champions"

The Washington Mystics led the WNBA in home attendance from 1998 through 2000 and from 2002 through 2004. To celebrate the fans turning out for games, they have hung six banners from the Verizon Center rafters celebrating each year the Mystics were "Attendance Champions." Part of their fan base was the lesbian community, which embraced the team early and has contributed significantly to the team's attendance records.

Verizon Center, home of the Mystics

The banners have been the focal point of much criticism over the years. With many people believing that the rafters are reserved for achievements in sports and not by the fans and thinking it is insulting to have banners for championships (such as the '84 Georgetown Hoyas and the '78 Washington Bullets) and retired numbers (for the Washington Wizards and the Washington Capitals) hang next to "attendance champion" banners.

Members of the press have addressed this controversy many times. Washington City Paper has called them "embarrassing", a 2005 ESPN.com article by Todd Wright had Wright commenting " it's time to lose those Mystics attendance banners hanging from the rafters", the Sports Road Trip website mocked the banners by stating "Oh... Mystics... WNBA "attendance champions" in '98 and '99. "Wheeeeeeee!". When Washington Post writer Jon Gallo was asked about the banners, he stated "The attendance banners were largely achieved because the Mystics gave away approximately 30 percent of their tickets before Sheila Johnson took over the team. If the Mystics had made everyone pay for a ticket, then they would not have had the best attendance in the league.".

As of February 2008 only three of the attendance banners - the two earliest ones (1998 and 1999) and the one for 2002 (only Mystics team to win a playoff series to date) - hung in the Verizon Center rafters; the other three were removed to make room for a Georgetown Final Four (men's basketball) banner, to go next to that team's 1984 national championship banner.

In the 2009 season, the Mystics once again led the WNBA in attendance at 11,338 per game; however, in an entry on his blog, Ted Leonsis, whose Lincoln Holdings owns the Mystics, promised that there will be no attendance banner for 2009 should the Mystics conclude the season with the attendance lead [1].

In a blog entry of 7 May 2010, Leonsis announced that the banners would be coming down.

Players

Current roster

Washington Mystics roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Height Weight DOB From Yrs G 7 Atkins, Ariel 5' 8" (1.73m) 167 lb (76kg) 1996-07-30 Texas 6 F/C 0 Austin, Shakira 6' 5" (1.96m) 190 lb (86kg) 2000-07-25 Mississippi 2 G 13 Brown-Turner, Jakia 6' 0" (1.83m) Maryland R F Claessens, Nastja 6' 0" (1.83m) 2004-12-02 Belgium R C 6 Cunane, Elissa 6' 5" (1.96m) 191 lb (87kg) 2000-09-25 NC State 1 F/C 11 Delle Donne, Elena 6' 5" (1.96m) 187 lb (85kg) 1989-09-05 Delaware 10 C 31 Dolson, Stefanie 6' 5" (1.96m) 235 lb (107kg) 1992-01-08 Connecticut 10 F 24 Edwards, Aaliyah 6' 3" (1.91m) 2002-07-09 Connecticut R F 21 Engstler, Emily 6' 1" (1.85m) 180 lb (82kg) 2000-05-01 Louisville 2 C Határ, Bernadett 6' 10" (2.08m) 208 lb (94kg) 1994-08-24 Hungary 1 F 2 Hines-Allen, Myisha 6' 1" (1.85m) 200 lb (91kg) 1996-05-30 Louisville 6 G/F 12 Richards, Didi 6' 2" (1.88m) 164 lb (74kg) 1999-02-08 Baylor 2 G 44 Samuelson, Karlie 6' 0" (1.83m) 160 lb (73kg) 1995-05-10 Stanford 5 G 15 Sykes, Brittney 5' 9" (1.75m) 154 lb (70kg) 1994-02-07 Syracuse 7 G 14 Truong, Kaylynne 5' 8" (1.73m) 2001-07-10 Gonzaga R G 35 Vanloo, Julie 5' 8" (1.73m) 1993-02-10 Belgium R G 32 Walker-Kimbrough, Shatori 5' 9" (1.75m) 140 lb (64kg) 1995-05-18 Maryland 7	Head coach Eric Thibault (Missouri) Assistant coaches LaToya Sanders (North Carolina) Shelley Patterson (Washington State) Ashlee McGee (Austin Peay) Athletic trainer Christina Kennedy Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured   WNBA roster page
East ATL CHI CON IND NY WAS West DAL LV LA MIN PHO SEA

Former players

• Nikki Blue (2006–2009)
• Kiesha Brown (2002–2005)
• Vicky Bullett (2000–2002)
• Stacey Dales-Schuman (2002–2004)
• Lindsey Harding (2009–2010), now a member of the Atlanta Dream
• Chamique Holdsclaw (1999–2004)
• Asjha Jones (2002–2003), now a member of the Connecticut Sun
• Nikki McCray (1998–2001)
• Taj McWilliams-Franklin (2008), now a member of the Minnesota Lynx
• Chasity Melvin (2004–2007, 2009–2010)
• Coco Miller (2001–2008), now a member of the Atlanta Dream
• DeLisha Milton-Jones (2005–2007), now a member of the Los Angeles Sparks
• Murriel Page (1998–2005)
• Nakia Sanford (2003–2010), now a member of the Phoenix Mercury
• Katie Smith (2010), now a member of the Seattle Storm
• Nikki Teasley (2006–2007)

Coaches and staff

Owners

• Abe Pollin, owner of the Washington Wizards (1998–2009)
• Monumental Sports & Entertainment/Ted Leonsis, owner of the Washington Wizards (2010–present)

Head coaches

Washington Mystics head coaches

Name Start End Seasons Regular season Playoffs W L PCT G W L PCT G Jim Lewis December 29, 1997 July 24, 1998 1 2 16 .111 18 0 0 .000 0 Cathy Parson July 24, 1998 end of 1998 1 1 11 .083 12 0 0 .000 0 Nancy Darsch February 18, 1999 July 14, 2000 2 21 32 .396 53 0 0 .000 0 Darrell Walker July 14, 2000 end of 2000 1 5 7 .417 12 0 2 .000 2 Tom Maher December 21, 2000 January 4, 2002 1 10 22 .313 32 0 0 .000 0 Marianne Stanley April 5, 2002 January 21, 2004 2 26 40 .394 66 3 2 .600 5 Michael Adams February 17, 2004 April 15, 2005 1 17 17 .500 34 1 2 .333 3 Richie Adubato April 21, 2005 June 1, 2007 3 34 38 .472 72 0 2 .000 2 Tree Rollins June 1, 2007 July 19, 2008 2 24 28 .462 52 0 0 .000 0 Jessie Kenlaw July 19, 2008 end of 2008 1 2 10 .167 12 0 0 .000 0 Julie Plank November 6, 2008 November 1, 2010 2 38 30 .559 68 0 4 .000 4 Trudi Lacey November 1, 2010 Current 1 4 14 .222 18 0 0 .000 0

General managers

• Melissa McFerrin (1998–2001)
• Judy Holland-Burton (2002–2004)
• Linda Hargrove (2005–2008)
• Angela Taylor (2009–2010)
• Trudi Lacey (2011–present)

Assistant coaches

• Cathy Parson (1998)
• Wes Unseld, Jr. (1998)
• Melissa McFerrin (1999–2001)
• Jenny Boucek (1999)
• Tyrone Beaman (2000)
• Marianne Stanley (2001, 2010–present)
• Linda Hill-MacDonald (2002–2003)
• Ledell Eackels (2002–2003)
• Linda Hargrove (2004)
• Stephanie Ready (2004)
• Marynell Meadors (2005–2006)
• Jeff House (2005–2006)
• Crystal Robinson (2007–2008)
• Jessie Kenlaw (2007–2008)
• Lubomyr Lichonczak (2009)
• Vanessa Nygaard (2009)
• Vicky Bullett (2009)
• Trudi Lacey (2010)
• Laurie Byrd (2011–present)

Media coverage

For up-to-date media coverage information, see 2011 Washington Mystics season.

Currently, some Mystics games are broadcast on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic (CSN-MA), which is a local television station for the area of Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, Maryland. More often than not, NBA TV will pick up the feed from the local broadcast, which is shown nationally. Broadcasters for the Mystics games are Frank Hanrahan and Christy Winters Scott.

All games (excluding blackout games, which are available on ESPN3.com) are broadcast to the WNBA LiveAccess game feeds on the league website. Furthermore, some Mystics games are broadcast nationally on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC. The WNBA has reached an eight year agreement with ESPN, which will pay right fees to the Mystics, as well as other teams in the league.

All-time notes

Regular season attendance

• A sellout for a basketball game at Verizon Center is 20,674.

Regular season all-time attendance

Year Average High Low Sellouts Total for year WNBA game average 1998 15,910 (1st) 20,674 10,364 1 238,647 10,869 1999 15,306 (1st) 20,674 11,008 1 244,889 10,207 2000 15,258 (1st) 19,093 11,070 1 244,134 9,074 2001 15,417 (2nd) 19,093 11,302 1 246,667 9,075 2002 16,202 (1st) 19,766 14,004 0 259,237 9,228 2003 14,042 (1st) 19,683 11,052 0 238,710 8,800 2004 12,615 (1st) 18,436 8,784 0 214,448 8,613 2005 10,089 (2nd) 16,654 6,010 0 171,512 8,172 2006 7,662 (7th) 15,103 5,892 0 130,255 7,476 2007 7,788 (8th) 13,997 6,147 0 132,396 7,742 2008 9,096 (3rd) 11,517 6,146 0 154,637 7,948 2009 11,338 (1st) 17,220 9,738 0 192,747 8,039 2010 9,357 (3rd) 14,347 7,547 0 159,065 7,834 2011 10,531 (1st) 13,954 7,028 0 in progress 7,892

Draft picks

• 1998 Expansion Draft: Heidi Burge (2), Penny Moore (4), Deborah Carter (6), Tammy Jackson (8)
• 1998: Murriel Page (3), Rita Williams (13), Angela Hamblin (23), Angela Jackson (33)
• 1999: Chamique Holdsclaw (1), Shalonda Enis (13), Andrea Nagy (25), Jennifer Whittle (37)
• 2000: Tausha Mills (2), Tonya Washington (18)
• 2001: Coco Miller (9), Tamara Stocks (25), Jamie Lewis (41), Elena Karpova (44)
• 2002: Stacey Dales-Schuman (3), Asjha Jones (4), LaNisha Cartwell (33), Teresa Geter (36)
• 2003 Miami/Portland Dispersal Draft: Jenny Mowe (8)
• 2003: Aiysha Smith (7), Zuzana Zirkova (21), Trish Juline (32), Tamara Bowie (36)
• 2004 Cleveland Dispersal Draft: Chasity Melvin (2)
• 2004: Alana Beard (2), Kaayla Chones (15), Evan Unrau (28)
• 2005: Temeka Johnson (6), Erica Taylor (19), Tashia Moorehead (32)
• 2006: Tamara James (8), Nikki Blue (19), Myriam Sy (33)
• 2007 Charlotte Expansion Draft: Teana Miller (6)
• 2007: Bernice Mosby (6), Megan Vogel (19), Gillian Goring (33)
• 2008: Crystal Langhorne (6), Lindsey Pluimer (19), Krystal Vaughn (33)
• 2009 Houston Dispersal Draft: Matee Ajavon (2)
• 2009: Marissa Coleman (2), Camille Lenoir (23), Jelena Milavanovic (24), Josephine Owino (28)
• 2010 Sacramento Dispersal Draft: Kristin Haynie (6)
• 2010: Jacinta Monroe (6), Jenna Smith (14), Shanavia Dowdell (18), Alexis Gray-Lawson (30)
• 2011: Victoria Dunlap (11), Karima Christmas (23), Sarah Krnjic (35)

All-Stars

• 1999: Chamique Holdsclaw, Nikki McCray
• 2000: Chamique Holdsclaw, Nikki McCray
• 2001: Chamique Holdsclaw, Nikki McCray
• 2002: Stacey Dales-Schuman, Chamique Holdsclaw
• 2003: Chamique Holdsclaw
• 2004: None
• 2005: Alana Beard
• 2006: Alana Beard
• 2007: Alana Beard, Delisha Milton-Jones
• 2008: No All-Star Game
• 2009: Alana Beard
• 2010: Monique Currie, Lindsey Harding, Crystal Langhorne
• 2011: Crystal Langhorne

Honors and awards

• 1999 Rookie of the Year: Chamique Holdsclaw
• 1999 All-WNBA Second Team: Chamique Holdsclaw
• 1999 Peak Performer (FG%): Murriel Page
• 2000 Peak Performer (FG%): Murriel Page
• 2001 All-WNBA Second Team: Chamique Holdsclaw
• 2002 Coach of the Year: Marianne Stanley
• 2002 Most Improved Player: Coco Miller
• 2002 All-WNBA Second Team: Chamique Holdsclaw
• 2002 Peak Performer (Scoring): Chamique Holdsclaw
• 2002 Peak Performer (Rebounds): Chamique Holdsclaw
• 2003 Peak Performer (Rebounds): Chamique Holdsclaw
• 2005 Rookie of the Year: Temeka Johnson
• 2005 All-Defensive Second Team: Alana Beard
• 2005 All-Rookie Team: Temeka Johnson
• 2006 All-WNBA Second Team: Alana Beard
• 2006 All-Defensive Second Team: Alana Beard
• 2007 All-Defensive First Team: Alana Beard
• 2009 Most Improved Player: Crystal Langhorne
• 2009 All-Defensive Second Team: Alana Beard
• 2009 All-Rookie Team: Marissa Coleman
• 2010 All-WNBA Second Team: Crystal Langhorne
• 2010 All-Defensive Second Team: Lindsey Harding

External links

• Template:WNBATeam
• Kenlaw replaces Rollins as Mystics head coach