Seattle's decision or did BA pay enough for them to commit to Opals duties instead?

Lacey would be a fringe Opal at best and was definitely at most risk of losing her spot on the Seattle Storm roster.

Bishop though is right in contention for a spot on the Opals team.

lacey and bishop are trying to get in / find their spot in the opals - ones going to wnba phillips / snell etc have proven their worth and can head stateside.

Would be very surprised if Lacey got an Opals birth. Id take Madgen over her!

Lacey shouldn't get a Opals jersey in the final squad as she didn't really shine during the WNBL season. She's a great squad member and is seen as a 'glue player' for the Caps. Does the little things, but doesn't put herself into the game like a top 10 draft pick from the WNBA should.

I suspect that Lacey just "pulled out" to save face. I doubt Seattle would have asked her back this season anyway given that:
a) They already signed a better combo guard (Erin Phillips), which effectively left Lacey without a spot anyway, and
b) last season she went 4/35 from the field (including 3/27 from 3PT). Not exactly "we must have her back!" material.
A couple of WNBL seasons will do her some good I think. A bit of maturing and hard work and she might be in a good position to have another crack at the WNBA for the 2013 season.
No way in hell she plays for the Opals in London either, unless we have a catastrophic series of guard injuries.
The 2014 Worlds is where she should be setting her sights IMO.


Bishop on the other hand ... that is disappointing (from a Seattle POV (who I am a fan of), and IMO from an Opals POV also).
With both Abrosimova & Vesela not returning to Seattle (so that they can help their countries qualify for London - something that is a mere formality for Australia), there are significant minutes for the taking, shots to be attempted and rebounds to be grabbed in Key Arena this season.
Abby obviously places a high priority on grabbing an Opals spot if she is willing to cave in to Graf's requests like this. While I admire her dedication to getting an Olympic gig, personally I think her best bet would have been to return to Seattle this season and continue her development, and then attack the WNBL and an Opals spot from the latter part of the year.
Not that she can't work on her game down here, but at this stage of her career I think she needs to test herself against better opposition.

If you guys have forgotten Alison Lacey got off the bench more than Bishop during the WNBA. She was ahead of Bishop in the rotation. Brian Agler (Seattle) asked Lacey to come back last season. He wanted her back. While watching games the ESPN news people said that she is one of the best shooters on the team, but was unable to put it in the games mainly because she had to play behind Sue Bird. A big part of her decision of not returning was the fact that she was not able to improve being on the bench. Alison is an excellent player that is not playing with confidence. By all mean I am not saying Bishop is a horrible player, she is amazing. I just have watched Alison all through college, WNBA, and WNBL. She has plenty of talent that has not shown yet. I think this offseason will do her good with gaining confidence. Give her some slack; this was her 1st season in the WNBL. I think you guys will be amazed when you see here this WNBL season. She will be a different player, AND I THINK SHE'LL BE ABLE TO PLAY IN THE WNBA IN THE SUMMER OF 2012.

Lacey did not make the Opals squad...

I think it is a shame as someone like her (not necessarily Lacey though) IMO should have been in the squad ahead of a Poto for example.

In response to May, yes - Lacey did get slightly more of an opportunity in Seattle than Bishop. You know why? Because (a) She was supposed to be able to play point guard - a position that Seattle did not have a backup for once L-Mo got injured; and (b) she was their first round draft pick! She was *expected* to be able to contribute that season.
Abby on the other hand was just picked up as a free agent probably on Lauren's recommendation as much as anything, and had numerous players ahead of her in the rotation so it was a struggle just finding her the few minutes that they did.

The point is, Lacey disappointed with virtually every opportunity, and THAT is the reason her minutes were so low. She stunk it up. They were forced to play Wright as their backup PG, which forced Svet to play the 2, so the whole backcourt rotation was thrown off.
There were plenty of potential minutes for her as backup PG if she had been able to hold her own.
She will be better equipped to have another crack with a WNBL season or two under her belt. You could see the improvement in her over the course of this season just gone.


LC, I agree.
Better to go with someone young with potential (such as they have done at some other positions) than include someone who is unlikely to make it on current merit and zero chance of improving further.

Alison didn't stink it up in the WNBA season. Aus doesn't have a set position. They brought her in for a shooting guard and point guard. Brain said in the beginning of the season that they weren't sure what she was going to play yet.
Think of this if you had to play behind the best point guard in the world do you think you would get any minutes... NO!
So don't criticize a young player that has yet to gain confidence. I don't know about you guys, but I watched her through college and she could play. Alison just needs to stop worrying about impressing coaches and players and play for herself.