The Sting tip off their 10th season of play at 6:00 p.m. Saturday against Chicago. Charlotte enters 2005-06 looking to rebound from last year’s 6-28 season, and hopes to build on the momentum Head Coach Muggsy Bogues helped generate after taking over the lead role in the final 10 games of 2005. Under Bogues’ guidance, the Sting won three of its last 10 games, equaling the team’s win total over the first 24 games of the season.
With the return of veteran guard Allison Feaster from last season’s pregnancy and the addition of first-round picks Monique Currie and Tye’sha Fluker, second-round pick LaToya Bond and rookie free agent find Yelena Leuchanka, Charlotte hopes to have the pieces in place to again become a contender in the Eastern Conference.
CharlotteSting.com caught up with Coach Bogues this week to see how he thinks things are looking as the season opener approaches.
Your first full regular season starts Saturday. How are you liking things leading up to opening night?
I’m liking it. I think things are shaping up pretty good. We’re just trying to make the players realize that we need to understand the task at hand. We need to focus defensively and make sure we understand the rotation and not turn the basketball over. If we keep the ball in our rotation, we can get anything we want.
Do you like the way the team is blending together right now? With a mix of veterans and youngsters, is there more chemistry now than there was a couple weeks ago?
Yeah, it’s starting to come. When you have your core players still pretty banged up a little bit, it can be hard to get acclimated to the things that you are doing, but up to this point they have done their jobs pretty well. We also want to blend the young players in and allow them to understand what we are trying to do. I think they had a pretty decent preseason. They got some experience under their belt and now hopefully the veterans can come and set up and continue to lead the charge.
How important was the time the rookies got in preseason to get adjusted and get ready for regular season games?
Oh. It was very important. I think we got the butterflies out of them already. Now Saturday is just another game for them. Those four preseason were just like regular season games for them, and that’s the way they approached it. That’s what I was pleased with -- the way they approached each game and learned from each game that we played. That win at the end (in San Antonio) helped their confidence level and let them know the things we have been doing can work. They understand the task at hand and know we can’t have mental lapses over some of the breakdowns we have been having. If we can just keep cleaning up those areas, we should be fine.
How ready is this team with all of the little injuries that plagued it through preseason?
Well, I know we want to try and get all of our leadership out there on the floor. We really don’t know exactly how much each of the girls is going to be able to give yet. Janel McCarville’s still not 100 percent, but she’s getting there. She’s working extremely hard at practice, her and Allison (Feaster) both. They are just not healthy enough where they feel good about themselves. We’re just trying to let them know and tell them that they are a vital part of this organization. We need them -- their mind, their bodies and their souls -- to be on the same page that we are all on. And sometimes you may not be able to do it physically but the mental aspect comes into play, and we need that part of the game night-in and night-out.
You’ve had a week off between the last preseason game and the regular season opener. Has that practice time been beneficial, or would you like to have been playing more preseason games?
I think it has been beneficial, because you are able to clean up a lot of stuff and really focus on the upcoming season. The preseason is what it is -- games to get players, especially the rookies, acclimated to what the league is all about. You basically use it as a practice for your team to try and see the things that you need to work on and the things you do well, and try to improve on each area.
How difficult is it to open up the season against an expansion team? That’s a big unknown, isn’t it?
It truly is because they have a bunch of players that are hungry and are trying to prove a point. There’s not much you can scout either, but I think we are looking forward to getting the season going. I think these young ladies have been working extremely hard, these last two weeks to try to get themselves in the best shape they possibly can get in, and they know what’s at stake. They definitely don’t want to repeat what happened last year, I don’t even like to mention last year -- it’s a brand new year and the mindsets are brand new. So they understand what we are trying to do. We try to push their buttons to let them know that they are accountable, they need to be accountable. And we are expecting big things from them.”
