2004 Connecticut Sun season

2004 Connecticut Sun season

Head Coach

Arena

Attendance

6,707 per game

Results
Record	18–16 (.529)
Place	1st (Eastern)
Playoff Finish	Lost in WNBA Finals
Team Leaders
Points	Nykesha Sales (15.2)
Rebounds	Taj McW.-Franklin (7.2)
Assists	Lindsay Whalen (4.8)
Connecticut Sun seasons
< 2003	2005 >

The 2004 WNBA season was their sixth season and their second in Connecticut. The Sun attempted to return to the postseason for the second consecutive season and were successful.

Offseason

Dispersal Draft

Based on the Sun's 2003 record, they would pick 8th in the Cleveland Rockers dispersal draft. However, the Sun traded the pick to the Houston Comets.

WNBA Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	School/Team/Country
1	4	Lindsay Whalen	United States	Minnesota
2	16	Jessica Brungo	United States	Penn State
2	24	Ugo Oha	United States	George Washington University
3	29	Candace Futrell	United States	Duquesne

^[1]

Transactions

May 19: The Sun waived Courtney Colman.
May 18: The Sun waived Anna Zimerle, Ugo Oha, and Anastasia Kostaki.
May 12: The Sun waived Courtney Mix and Katie MacFarlane.
May 10: The Sun waived Brina Chaney and Brianne Stepherson.
May 4: The Sun waived Texlin Quinney, Jamila Wideman, and Isabel Stubbs.
April 26: The Sun signed Brina Chaney, Katie MacFarlane, Le'Coe Willingham, Jennifer Derevjanik, Courtney Mix, and Texlin Quinney.
April 20: The Sun waived Adrienne Johnson.
April 19: The Sun waived Jamila Wideman.
April 16: The Sun signed Isabel Stubbs.
April 9: The Sun signed Wendy Palmer-Daniel, Brianne Stepherson, Anna Zimerle, and Anastasia Kostaki.
March 25: The Sun acquired Asjha Jones from the Washington Mystics. The Washington Mystics acquired Tamicha Jackson from the Phoenix Mercury. The Phoenix Mercury acquired the 8th pick in the 2004 WNBA Draft from the Sun.
January 28: The Sun traded Shannon Johnson and their 21st and 34th picks in the 2004 WNBA Draft to the Silver Stars in exchange for San Antonio's 4th, 16th, 29th picks in the 2004 WNBA Draft.
January 5: The Sun traded the eighth pick in the 2004 WNBA Dispersal Draft to the Houston Comets in exchange for a second-round pick in the 2004 collegiate draft.

^[2]

Roster

Connecticut Sun roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Nat.	Name	Height	Weight	From
1.5 !G	24	USA !	Black, Debbie	7000160020000000000♠5 ft 3 in (1.60 m)	124 lb (56 kg)	Saint Joseph's
4.0 !F	22	USA !	Brungo, Jessica	7000185420000000000♠6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Penn State
1.5 !G	34	USA !	Derevjanik, Jennifer	7000177800000000000♠5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	140 lb (64 kg)	George Mason
2.5 !G/F	32	USA !	Douglas, Katie	7000182880000000000♠6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Purdue
1.5 !G	12	USA !	Futrell, Candace	7000177800000000000♠5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	154 lb (70 kg)	Duquesne
4.0 !F	15	USA !	Jones, Asjha	7000187960000000000♠6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	196 lb (89 kg)	Connecticut
5.5 !F/C	11	USA !	McWilliams-Franklin, Taj (C)	7000187960000000000♠6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	184 lb (83 kg)	St. Edward's College
4.0 !F	3	USA !	Palmer-Daniel, Wendy	7000187960000000000♠6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Virginia
2.5 !G/F	42	USA !	Sales, Nykesha (C)	7000182880000000000♠6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Connecticut
1.5 !G	13	USA !	Whalen, Lindsay	7000172720000000000♠5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	150 lb (68 kg)	Minnesota
4.0 !F	43	USA !	Willingham, Le'Coe	7000182880000000000♠6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Auburn
4.0 !F	21	USA !	Wyckoff, Brooke	7000185420000000000♠6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	Florida State

Head coach

Mike Thibault (St. Martin's University)

Assistant coaches

Scott Hawk (Nebraska-Omaha)
Bernadette Mattox (Georgia)

Athletic trainer

Jen Brodeur

Strength and conditioning coach

Lisa Ciaravella (Lynn University)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(FA) Free agent
(IN) Inactive
(S) Suspended
Injured

Season standings

Eastern Conference	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Conf.
Connecticut Sun ^x	18	16	.529	–	10–7	8–9	14–6
New York Liberty ^x	18	16	.529	–	11–6	7–10	10–10
Detroit Shock ^x	17	17	.500	1.0	8–9	9–8	11–9
Washington Mystics ^x	17	17	.500	1.0	11–6	6–11	9–11
Charlotte Sting ^o	16	18	.471	2.0	10–7	6–11	8–12
Indiana Fever ^o	15	19	.441	3.0	10–7	5–12	8–12

Schedule

Preseason

2004 Game Log: Preseason

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location	Record
1	May 8	Chinese National Team	L 85-87	Derevjanik (13)	Coleman (9)	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	0-1
2	May 11	@ Houston	L 71-84	Douglas, Sales (13)	Coleman (6)	()	Toyota Center	0-2
3	May 13	Los Angeles	L 51-77	Sales (12)	McWilliams-Franklin (7)	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	0-3

Regular season

2004 Game Log: Regular Season

May

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location	Record
1	May 22	Phoenix	L 58-65	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	0-1
2	May 25	Houston	L 57-68	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	0-2
3	May 27	Los Angeles	W 82-73	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	1-2

June

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location	Record
4	June 3	Charlotte	W 71-62	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	2-2
5	June 4	@ Washington	W 72-63	()	()	()	MCI Center	3-2
6	June 6	Detroit	L 73-74	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	3-3
7	June 9	@ Phoenix	L 59-75	()	()	()	America West Arena	3-4
8	June 11	@ Seattle	L 63-68	()	()	()	KeyArena	3-5
9	June 12	@ Sacramento	W 83-76	()	()	()	ARCO Arena	4-5
10	June 14	@ Los Angeles	L 74-76 (OT)	()	()	()	Staples Center	4-6
11	June 18	Charlotte	L 58-63 (OT)	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	4-7
12	June 20	Washington	W 75-65	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	5-7
13	June 22	@ Indiana	W 63-58	()	()	()	Conseco Fieldhouse	6-7
14	June 25	Detroit	W 71-67 (OT)	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	7-7
15	June 27	@ Detroit	W 74-72	()	()	()	Palace of Auburn Hills	8-7
16	June 30	Washington	W 78-69	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	9-7

July

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location	Record
17	July 6	Indiana	W 79-67	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	10-7
18	July 9	Sacramento	L 70-85	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	10-8
19	July 11	@ Indiana	W 65-61	()	()	()	Conseco Fieldhouse	11-8
20	July 14	@ Minnesota	L 63-66	()	()	()	Target Center	11-9
21	July 15	@ San Antonio	L 67-78	()	()	()	SBC Center	11-10
22	July 17	@ Houston	L 56-72	()	()	()	Toyota Center	11-11
23	July 21	@ Detroit	W 78-68	()	()	()	Palace of Auburn Hills	12-11
24	July 22	Minnesota	L 52-68	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	12-12
25	July 24	San Antonio	W 69-55	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	13-12
26	July 30	@ Washington	L 68-69	()	()	()	MCI Center	13-13
27	July 31	@ New York	L 66-80	()	()	()	Madison Square Garden	13-14

September

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location	Record
Summer Olympic break
28	September 1	@ Charlotte	L 55-62	()	()	()	Charlotte Coliseum	13-15
29	September 3	New York	W 61-43	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	14-15
30	September 10	@ New York	W 77-66	()	()	()	Madison Square Garden	15-15
31	September 12	Seattle	W 71-64	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	16-15
32	September 15	@ Charlotte	W 81-67	()	()	()	Charlotte Coliseum	17-15
33	September 17	New York	L 66-69	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	17-16
34	September 19	Indiana	W 80-60	()	()	()	Mohegan Sun Arena	18-16

Playoffs

See also: 2004 WNBA Finals

In the first round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs, the Sun had to face the Washington Mystics. Since the Sun had the better record, the series would be played with game 1 at Washington, game 2 at Connecticut, and game 3 (if needed) at Connecticut. The Sun lost the first game, but won the next two to advance to the next round. In the second round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs, the Sun had to face the New York Liberty. The Sun and the Liberty had identical records and each team had won two of the four meetings against each other in the regular season. The Sun attained home-court advantage however, because they beat the Liberty by more than the Liberty beat them. The series would be played with game 1 at New York and games 2 and 3 (if needed) at Connecticut. The Sun swept the Liberty and game 3 was not needed. The Sun advanced to the WNBA Finals. The team would be facing off against the Seattle Storm. The Storm had the better record so the series would be played with game 1 at Connecticut, and games 2 and 3 (if needed) at Seattle. This was the last year the league played the finals in a best-of-three setup. The Storm beat the Sun 2 games to 1 to win the WNBA Finals.

2004 Game Log: Postseason

Eastern Conference Semifinals

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location/Attendance	Series
1	September 25	@ Washington	L 59-67	Whalen (16)	McWilliams-Franklin (9)	Douglas (4)	MCI Center 13,263	0-1
2	September 27	Washington	W 80-70	Whalen (21)	Sales (7)	Whalen (6)	Mohegan Sun Arena 5,760	1-1
3	September 29	Washington	W 76-56	Sales (18)	McWilliams-Franklin (11)	Douglas, Whalen (6)	Mohegan Sun Arena 5,514	2-1

Eastern Conference Finals

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location/Attendance	Series
1	October 1	@ New York	W 61-51	Sales (15)	McWilliams-Franklin, Palmer-Daniel (10)	Whalen (5)	Madison Square Garden 12,146	1-0
2	October 3	New York	W 60-57	McWilliams-Franklin (18)	McWilliams-Franklin (9)	Douglas (4)	Mohegan Sun Arena 6,734	2-0

WNBA Finals

Game	Date	Opponent	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location/Attendance	Series
1	October 8	Seattle	W 68-64	Douglas (18)	Sales (9)	Whalen (9)	Mohegan Sun Arena 9,518 (sellout)	1-0
2	October 10	@ Seattle	L 65-67	Sales (32)	McWilliams-Franklin (7)	Whalen (7)	KeyArena 17,072 (sellout)	1-1
3	October 12	@ Seattle	L 60-74	Sales (18)	Douglas (6)	Douglas, Whalen, McWilliams-Franklin (2)	KeyArena 17,072 (sellout)	1-2

Depth

Pos.	Starter	Bench	Inactive
C	Taj McWilliams-Franklin	Le'Coe Willingham	Brooke Wyckoff
PF	Wendy Palmer-Daniel	Asjha Jones -- Le'Coe Willingham
SF	Nykesha Sales	Jessica Brungo -- Candace Futrell
SG	Katie Douglas	Jennifer Derevjanik
PG	Lindsay Whalen	Debbie Black

Player stats

http://www.wnba.com/sun/stats/2004/

Awards and honors

Taj McWilliams-Franklin, Nykesha Sales, and Lindsay Whalen were named to the WNBA All-Star team.
Nykesha Sales was named to the All-WNBA Second Team.
Wendy Palmer-Daniel was named the Most Improved Player.
Nykesha Sales was given the Off Season Community Assist Award.
Nykesha Sales was named the WNBA Player of the Week for the week of June 27, 2004.

References

External links

Connecticut Sun seasons

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Bold indicates WNBA Finals appearance

Connecticut Sun

Formerly the Orlando Miracle Founded in 1999 Based in Uncasville, Connecticut

Franchise	All-time roster The Orlando Miracle years The move to Connecticut Current season

Arenas	TD Waterhouse Centre Mohegan Sun Arena

Head coaches	Carolyn Peck Dee Brown Mike Thibault Anne Donovan Curt Miller

Administration	Owner: RDV Sports, Inc. Mohegan Sun General Manager: Carolyn Peck Dee Brown Chris Sienko

All-Stars	Alex Bentley Kelsey Bone Tina Charles Katie Douglas Margo Dydek Allison Hightower Shannon Johnson Asjha Jones Taj McWilliams Renee Montgomery Chiney Ogwumike Nykesha Sales Lindsay Whalen

Seasons	1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Playoff appearances	2000 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2011 2012

Conference titles	2004 2005

WNBA titles	None

Rivals	Atlanta Dream Detroit Shock Indiana Fever New York Liberty

Media	TV: CPTV Sports (CPTV-S) Announcers: Bob Heussler Rebecca Lobo Jennifer Rizzotti Kara Wolters

2004 WNBA season by team

Draft The Game at Radio City Playoffs Finals

Eastern	Charlotte Sting Connecticut Sun Detroit Shock Indiana Fever New York Liberty Washington Mystics

Western	Houston Comets Los Angeles Sparks Minnesota Lynx Phoenix Mercury Sacramento Monarchs San Antonio Silver Stars Seattle Storm

← 2003 WNBA season 2005 →

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