Fans selected the starters, and the coaches in each conference selected the six reserves for each team on Wednesday. Brandy is having an outstanding year and is as deserving as anyone of being an All-Star. Reed joins Katie Smith and Betty Lennox of Minnesota, DeLisha Milton and Mwadi Mabika of Los Angeles, Natalie Williams of Utah and Sacramento's Yolanda Griffith as Western Conference reserves. Houston coach Van Chancellor will lead the West against New York coach Richie Adubato and the East. It means even more that the league really respects my game.
Hard work pays off.
The omission of Reed had some fans asking for refunds on tickets, and others planned to either boycott the league's second All-Star Game or show up in black clothing to reflect their mood. Ackerman said she expected the uproar to subside quickly. Mercury vice president Seth Sulka said the youthful league, formed in 1997, showed uncommon wisdom in creating a spot for a player with unquestioned credentials. I'm not sure a lot of leagues would have seen something like this happen and taken the steps necessary to correct it. You had the fans' vote and then the coaches who failed to select a deserving Mercury player, so the league hadn't really had input into it until now.