Locked On WBB: Atlanta Dream preliminary recap and anticipation

First, they discussed Tina Charles’ impact on the team since her arrival:

“So if you look at the score, you’ll really see the impact Tina Charles had on this game,” Cruse said. “She is the oldest player in Dream history to score 20 points in a game and she did it in her first game. She’s going to score a lot of buckets for Atlanta. And one thing Tanisha Wright talked about after the game was how this opens things up offensively for Atlanta. Just by the threat of Tina Charles and what she does in the post, how she’s able to draw defenders, draw help, and then kind of open things up for Rhyne Howard, Alicia Grey. And that’s very helpful for Atlanta’s offense.

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Next, they discussed how the Atlanta Dream focused on player development this past offseason, including players who went overseas and those who stayed stateside to participate in Athletes Unlimited and train at home.

“As you know, many players go abroad during the off-season. So, not many players like the NBA can sit on the market, work with the player development coach and staff and really come up with a plan for them to continue to improve. So for (Haley Jones), along with Nia Coffey, those were the two players that stayed in Atlanta for most of the offseason,” Cruse said. “Nia was in Atlanta all offseason, but Haley was in and out. (Jones) worked a lot with the player development coach and also just coordinated with Tanisha, being able to really develop her game so she could prepare for next season. She didn’t go overseas, but she went to Athletes Unlimited.

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“I think Athletes Unlimited isn’t my favorite setting for players, but I like it for her in that she just needed to get more aggressive. And she really came into the season aggressively. So I think the main thing Atlanta has focused on is allowing her to be more confident, to take those shots, so she can continue to improve her game,” he continued.

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