CANDACE & CAPPIE! SPARKS & LIBERTY!

Candace Parker was back and the Sparks picked up a big road win, Thursday night, when they knocked off the Fever 74-64 at Indy. CP posted 17/6/4 in her return from a bruised wrist and the Sparks got a huge lift off the bench when Jantel Lavender chipped in 18/9 in a 25 minute stint. The win put the Sparks at 6-5 on the road this season. They are 3-1 on their road trip which ends Saturday in Newark, N.J.

The Sparks will face the Liberty in that 10 A.M (pt) tilt that I will call on Time Warner Cable SportsNet. The Sparks ran over NY (97-89) when they met on July 4th at Staples Center. Kristi Toliver canned 29 points and L.A. outshot the Liberty 65% to 48%.

One of the few bright spots for NY was the 34 point performance by Cappie Pondexter. 

The 8th year pro who played her college ball at Rutgers in N. J., has shifted to "lead guard" under new head coach, Bill Laimbeer. The Libs are sitting at 9-12 right now and trying to snare a playoff spot in the east. Cappie talked with me about the new head coach and her new role in NY. 

Cappie: "It has been up and down. We are still trying to find our identity as a team. Bill's won championships in Detroit and I've learned a lot from him.  I switched positions on the court. He feels the team is better off with me playing the "lead guard" and I am embracing that. In the past I have said that "I am not a point guard or a lead guard. That is not what I do," but now I am accepting it because I want to grow as a player and I feel that my skill set and my vision can help my team to be better.I'm not a typical point guard because I am looking for myself first and that allows me to open thing.s up for my teammates. It is a learning curve- good and bad."

Laimbeer is know for his "bad boys" days and his championship ways playing for the NBA's Detroit Pistons, but he also won three WNBA championships as head coach of the Detroit Shock. He is  known for having a bit of an "attitude" and for being a no nonsense kind of leader. Cappie has seen both sides of her new head coach.

Cappie: "Definitely! He is a determined guy. He doesn't settle for mediocrity. He wants to win. He sets rules. He is straight forward. You are never second guessing where he is coming from. I never have to question what he expects from me. He knows the game very well. He is very intelligent and he has brought out a different side of me. I am enjoying that aspect of Bill, just getting to learn more about myself as a player and expand my game in different ways. We have a great relationship.We are still learning each other, but I like where we are headed."

Cappie Pondexter and the Liberty are headed for a Saturday showdown with the Sparks. 

She is New York's leading scorer at 18 points per game. 

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Coming in a future blog: Chicago's "Big Syl"- Sylvia Fowles 

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