#leaonna odom

[wnbaon2k]

An Early Review Of NBA 2K23's WNBA Integration

It’s been almost two and a half years since I wrote an article on NBA 2K adding the WNBA into its game for the first time with NBA 2K20 and what we’d like to see in NBA 2K21 and beyond. As of #2KDay, September 9, 2022, 2K will have completed three game cycles with the W included (2K20, 2K21, 2K22) and will be launching its fourth with 2K23.

I was fortunate enough to be granted early access to 2K23 (from September 5) to put together notes on the W integration to see how far it’s come from that first run.

INITIAL OVERVIEW

The W integration does take a strong step forward this year as part of what early reviews are saying is one of the best NBA 2K games in recent memory. It isn’t perfect and there are things we all want to see added or adjusted, but on the first run, the game looks and feels great!

ROSTERS

At launch, all 12 rosters will be updated as of the end of the season/playoffs, so anyone looking to start in any mode will have the full rosters at their disposal.

Headshot cutouts and face scans look good when they’re done but the numbers bear out to being average/just above average on accuracy: I counted about 77.9% correct face scans (113/145) and 81.3% correct headshots (118/145; including proper face scans substituted for a cutout; still needs to be updated but good placeholder).

Standout scans: Didi Richards (excellent update), Epiphanny Prince (FINALLY correct after several years), Satou Sabally, Natisha Hiedeman, Charli Collier, Seattle being the only team with a completely accurate roster (11/11 on scans and headshots)

Notable omissions: all of the rookies have placeholder scans for now; rookie Sam Thomas (PHX) has the headshot cutout (and placeholder scan) of former NYL player/FA Leaonna Odom.

MYPLAYER/ THE W

The MyPlayer builder is pretty much the same as last year and there are 30 different face templates you can use for your MP. You can edit all the same features (skin, hair - lots of hairstyles, etc). 

From the start, you have a few WNBA branded shirt options you can go with so when you get into The W Online, you don’t have to wear the “iconic” Brown shirt!

You have tattoo options available to your MP now so if you want your player to have some ink, you can!

Not many W specific jumpshots are available to start with (without unlocking them with attribute boosts - wish this wasn’t the case.

The overall layout of the mode is similar to 2K22. The Progress section has been streamlined so you just focus on building your Career Progress (Progression, Popularity, WNBA Popularity, Wealth, and Chemistry) vs. worrying about Job Progress as well (Entrepreneur, Fashion Icon, Global Icon, Influencer, Coach)

A major oversight in my opinion: in practice modes (team scrimmages, freestyle, team practices), the players should have on their WNBA practice gear, not their full game jerseys (the NBA players have their practice gear in similar modes). That’s an immersion breaker and an oversight in design care to me.

I love the updated contact challenges from the contacts you gain. Hopefully it’ll be easier to earn access to some legendary players too, which was really hard to do when tied to the W Online games.

THE W ONLINE

Updated court looks amazing (raised court a la NCAA Tournament) and it’s set at night so the issue with the 2K22 court’s glare is eliminated.

Still don’t show the names of the AI WNBA players - easy way to teach 2K gamers who is who and to help build name recognition.

Still full court 3v3…wish there were more options like the male MPs have within The City and MyTeam.

I hope the community goals help bring people into the mode and push players to stick around. The catch-22 of the mode is if you don’t have enough buy-in, it’ll be hard to play games, which will keep you from the goals and that lack of reward may keep people from playing…hope I’m wrong.

GAMEPLAY, PRESENTATION, MYWNBA AND ANNOUNCING

I think the gameplay feels improved. The adrenaline boosts feature should even out gameplay across the board to eliminate a lot of overdribbling and wasted motion on offense. Post moves seem like they’ve been refined a bit as well.

In my opinion, the worst part of the game has not been addressed adequately enough - the lack of diversity of the announcing crew and major misgendering/mispronunciation issues.

The W side has had the same all-male announcing crew since 2K20 and 2K is missing a huge opportunity to bring in any number of notable, knowledgeable, diverse WNBA talents to help polish the game and appeal to their followings as well. Lachina Robinson, Monica McNutt, Carolyn Peck, Ryan Ruocco, Rebecca Lobo, Andraya Carter, Holly Rowe, Christy Winters-Scott, Pam Ward, Meghan McPeak, and many others would be great additions to the announcing booth in this game, especially knowing that on the NBA side of the game, you have greats like Kevin Harlan and others and guests like Richard Jefferson in the game. Not sure if it’s a money/contractual issue or a lack of asking, but change needs to be made moving forward.

In that same vein, the current crew has been a part of the lower level MyCareer sections in the past, which may be the cause of audio misgendering issues. Since 2K20, every once and a while you’ll hear a “he doesn’t hit the first (free throw)” or “he’s 3-for-4” or similar lines of audio where a she should be a he. I have clips already of it happening in 2K23 and will be logging all year. I haven’t even tried to see what happens with playing with a Layshia Clarendon or AD that use different pronouns, but at the core, this is either due to lack of speaking clarity, actual incorrect audio, or both and that’s unacceptable for professionals.

The In game presentation across the game - not just in the W - has gotten a bump. More dynamic looking replays, some cool intro highlights, the arenas, THE JABBAWOCKEEZ (!), and just the look of the player models is much better overall. The player models do still have some proportionality issues (all are kind of thin no matter the player’s actual body type) but the base aesthetics of the scans, the lighting, etc. look awesome. (NOTE: recorded this video before the Finals matchup was set but maybe 2K23 can tell the future!)

Glad the All-Star Game and Commissioner’s Cup have been added to the season schedules in-game. Those are major parts of the WNBA season so adding them had to be a requirement for realism.

Still wish the halftime stats screen during games would stay up longer than four seconds (yes, I counted).

The expansion feature in MyWNBA is wild and awesome…easily over 50 options on the map of cities you can move to, and you can create two teams (believe the NBA side has six). Editing the jerseys, logos, and arena takes time but should be fun.

One issue I did see with the jersey editor: you can use some customizable logos for your team but those customizable ones then can’t be added to the jersey. Maybe just an oversight.

The All-Star Draft is in the game now, with the teams named after captains and the draft set up like IRL. The All-Star game still uses Eastern and Western Conference verbiage though so I hope there’s a way to adjust that with Team A’ja, Team Stewie, etc.

Major wish: having access to the Gym with the practice drills at all times, even if you don’t make badge progress on your visits every time.

OTHER NOTES

I won’t dive into the player ratings here but I’m sure social media will handle those conversations! ;) 

RECAP ON THE TO 2K20/2K21 WISHLIST

What’s been fixed from the first run of 2K20: multi-season MyWNBA; female MPs, custom rosters, draft classes; Playoff only mode; coaches all are their proper gender; online Play Now; WNBA Finals celebration; graphics in menus specific to W; 

Still not fixed: announcers, MyCareer storyline, adding female MPs to the City/Park or at least making one just for them; halftime screen; no historic teams

FINAL THOUGHTS

Simply put, NBA 2K23 is coming out strong from the start and the WNBA side of things looks a lot more enjoyable that any of the three previous attempts. You can tell effort was put into streamlining some things and enhancing others. There are still some maintenance issues that need addressing and a number of major wishlist items that the community wants to see that aren't in the game yet, but I believe the WNBA in 2K23 is heading for contender status vs. just being happy to be be there.

FULL DISCLOSURE: My early access to NBA 2K23 was provided on a review basis by a member of the NBA 2K staff but this review was not shown to them prior to publishing.

[female-buckets]

‘They’re Our Teammates’: American Players in Ukrainian League Show Support on Court

One professional basketball player shares what it has been like for her and her BC Prometey teammates as their field of play shifts from Ukraine to Bulgaria.

Joyner Holmes has not been in Ukraine since Jan. 28. At 4 a.m. that morning, she left her apartment in Dnipro, a city in the country’s center, and was driven 2 ½ hours to an airport in Zaporizhzhia. Despite her lone American teammate Ariel Atkins urging her to bring more with her, Holmes packed just one big suitcase, mostly filled with clothes and shoes. She flew to Istanbul and then to Dallas.

“I have a lot of stuff in the Ukraine,” Holmes says. She believes she’ll get it back one day. When exactly, though, she isn’t quite sure.

Holmes, a 24-year-old forward, is in her first season with BC Prometey of the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague. She played in the WNBA the previous two seasons, but moved to Ukraine in August after being waived by the Aces at the end of June.

When Holmes and Atkins left the country in January, discussion about a possible Russian invasion had, in Holmes’s words, been “swirling in the air.” Still, she says, many of her teammates downplayed the tense climate and said it was “normal for them.”

BC Prometey players drape themselves in Ukrainian flags before a recent game in Bulgaria on Feb. 24.

“I think in the last 24 hours they’ve been really surprised,” Holmes says.

Prometey players woke up Thursday morning to alerts that Russia’s attack on Ukraine had begun by land, sea and air. One of the reported targets was Dnipro, the city where some of them call home. “In the blink of an eye this happens,” Holmes says. “The photos and videos, it’s insane to even look at.”

As the first day of Russia’s invasion wore on, Holmes was not stateside—she instead found herself playing for Prometey in front of fans in Bulgaria, against Turkish club CBK Mersin Yenisehir BLD. Many of her Ukrainian teammates were displaced from their homes with the conflict beginning less than 900 miles away.

When the stadium’s public address announcer called out Prometey’s roster, most of the players had Ukrainian flags draped around their shoulders. Atkins and Holmes held the flags in their hands. Those in attendance rose to their feet in applause as each of Prometey’s names were read. Yurkevichus. Datsko. Rymarenko. Nine Ukrainians in all. Players from CBK Mersin Yenisehir BLD stood across the opposite free-throw line and clapped. For two hours, the BC Prometey team hoped basketball would be a reprieve.

Standing alongside teammates she now considers family, Holmes watched as tears swelled in the eyes of those nearest to her. She choked up a bit herself, but gathered her team in a small circle inside the three-point arc and told them she was there for them. “I really love you guys and whatever happens tonight, we’ll go out there, play with our heart and give what we have.”

They broke the huddle, placed their Ukrainian flags on their bench seats, and then the game tipped off.

“They’re our friends, they’re our teammates, they’re our coaches,” Holmes says. “And they have no homes to go to right now.”

Holmes and Atkins, a four-time All-Defensive team guard for the Mystics, left Ukraine amid a break in Prometey’s schedule. While Holmes remained in Texas, Atkins went on to join USA Basketball in Washington, D.C., helping the United States qualify for the upcoming World Cup.

A WNBA spokesperson told Sports Illustrated on Thursday via a statement that the few players who were competing in Ukraine this offseason were no longer in the country. Guard Arella Guirantes of the Sparks had been with Budivelnyk Kyiv, while guard Leaonna Odom, who recently signed a training camp contract with the Mercury, was playing with Kyiv Basket.

“The league has also been in contact with WNBA players who are in Russia, either directly or through their agents,” the statement continued. “We will continue to closely monitor the situation.”

Holmes initially planned on flying back to her adopted home on Feb. 10 but pushed her flight back two days and later received a travel advisory that said Americans could not travel into the country at all.

Amid the geopolitical tensions, Prometey’s team president, Vladimir Mikhailovich Dubinsky, crafted an alternative plan. He paid to fly everyone to Bulgaria’s capital, Sofia, and transport them to nearby Plovdiv, where they would train and play. Holmes arrived last Friday.

Thursday’s game was the first of two legs in the EuroCup’s Round of 8. In the lead-up to the evening tip, Prometey’s coaches and officials provided regular updates to players on the situation back home. One Ukrainian player, who is the mother of a five-year-old child, tried to contact her son. Others tried contacting their parents. In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, many users suffered internet disruptions amid reports of explosions in the region.

The Turkish club, featuring WNBA players DeWanna Bonner, Jasmine Thomas and Tiffany Hayes, jumped out to an early lead. Prometey trailed by nine at the end of the first quarter, 11 at halftime and eventually lost by 19. Before leaving the court, the team posed for a picture with 10 girls who had watched the contest. As the players walked off, two Ukrainian flags remained spread out in otherwise vacant seats behind the scorer’s table.

The team returned to their hotel and ate dinner before hearing reports around the first day of fighting and the toll it took.

“Can’t even put into words how proud I am of my Ukrainian teammates for drying up their tears and giving their best tonight,” Atkins wrote on Instagram afterward.

Ukrainian SuperLeague play has been suspended due to the Russian aggression, meaning Holmes’s international stint is nearing its conclusion. The two teams that met Thursday will play the second leg of the Round of 8 in Mersin on March 2. If Prometey wins and advances to the EuroCup quarterfinals, it is unclear where exactly it will play. If Prometey loses, Holmes, who recently signed a training camp contract with the WNBA’s Sun, will return to Dallas. But what about her Ukrainian teammates?

“Who knows what their next step is. That’s the scariest part,” Holmes says. “We played this game and then back to reality. Life still hits, and it’s still war now.”

#joyner holmes #wnba #connecticut sun #wospo #fiba eurocup #ariel atkins #washington mystics #ukraine #usa basketball #usa wbb #usabwnt #usbwnt #uswnt

[scottbcrowley2]

Odom’s career-high 25 points lead Duke women past Belmont - Sat, 17 Mar 2018 PST

Leaonna Odom scored a career-high 25 points, including nine in Duke’s dominant third period, and the fifth-seeded Blue Devils beat No. 12 seed Belmont 72-58 in the first round of ... Odom’s career-high 25 points lead Duke women past Belmont - Sat, 17 Mar 2018 PST

#Spokesman.com: Latest stories #Odom’s career-high 25 points lead Duke women past Belmont - Sat #17 M

[proviralmedia-blog]

Duke vs. UConn - Game Summary - March 24, 2018

Duke vs. UConn – Game Summary – March 24, 2018

Points Leaonna OdomL. Odom F – DUKE 22PTS 9/17FG 4/6FT Napheesa CollierN. Collier F – CONN 16PTS 6/13FG 4/8FT Rebounds Leaonna OdomL. Odom F – DUKE 8REB 6DREB 2OREB Azura StevensA. Stevens F – CONN 12REB 7DREB 5OREB Assists Leaonna OdomL. Odom F – DUKE 4AST 1TO 36MIN Gabby WilliamsG. Williams F – CONN 6AST 2TO 33MIN Times Union Center Attendance: 10,658 Referees: Bruce Morris, Michael Price,…

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[investmart007]

UConn routs Duke 72-59, advances to Albany Region final

New Post has been published on https://goo.gl/3Gr3Ws

UConn routs Duke 72-59, advances to Albany Region final

ALBANY, N.Y./March 24, 2018 (AP)(STL.News) —Napheesa Collier had 16 points and 11 rebounds to help top-seed UConn beat Duke 72-59 on Saturday and advance to the Elite Eight for the 13th consecutive season.

UConn (35-0) will face defending national champion South Carolina on Monday night in trying to reach an 11th straight Final Four.

The Huskies scored the first seven points of the game beginning with a banked-in 3-pointer from Kia Nurse and they were off and running.

Duke had only given up an average of 49 points in its first two games of the tournament. UConn had that by the end of the third quarter, much to the delight of the partisan crowd of 10,658 that took in the Albany Regional.

Fifth-seed Duke (24-9) was only down seven early in the second quarter when the Blue Devils went cold from the field, going scoreless over the next 5½ minutes. UConn extended its advantage to 30-16.

The Blue Devils cut their deficit to 12, but UConn scored the final eight points of the half, including a pullup by Gabby Williams just before the halftime buzzer to give UConn a 40-20 lead.

Duke closed its gap to 44-31 midway through the third quarter, but didn’t score for the rest of the period and UConn rebuilt the 20-point advantage.

The game also featured Huskies center Azura Stevens going against her former team. She transferred to UConn after her sophomore season. Stevens had eight points and 12 rebounds.

Katie Lou Samuelson and Williams each had 15 points for the Huskies.

Duke was led by sophomore Leaonna Odom, who has been dominant in the tournament, averaging 20.5 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting 60 percent from the field in wins over Belmont and Georgia. She had 22 on Saturday.

The loss ended the stellar careers of Duke guards Rebecca Greenwell and Lexie Brown. The pair came into the game averaging a combined 33.9 points this season which was third best among Power Five schools. They only had 16 combined against UConn.

DYNAMIC DUO: Nurse and Williams moved into a tie for fourth on the all-time NCAA win list, improving to 147-2 in their stellar careers at UConn. If the Huskies win the national championship the pair will finish at 150-2, the third-most wins all-time in NCAA history. It would also be the second-best winning percentage for a senior class, trailing only UConn’s Saniya Chong, who graduated last year with a 152-2 mark.

TIP-INS: UConn had won the past eight meetings in the series before the two teams stopped playing after the 2014 season. … Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie is 1-11 all-time against UConn with the lone win coming in 2004 when she was the head coach of Michigan State. … Brown added to her single-season school record for steals with six against UConn. She finished the season with 121, seven more than former record holder Alana Beard. … UConn was 8 for 16 from the free-throw line.

UP NEXT:

UConn beat South Carolina by 25 points on Feb. 1. The second-seeded Gamecocks advanced to the

regional final with a 79-63 win over 11th-seeded Buffalo.

By DOUG FEINBERG  by Associated Press – published on STL.News by St. Louis Media, LLC (U.S)

#Buffalo #Gabby Williams #Napheesa Collier #NCAA #South Carolina

[investmart007]

UConn routs Duke 72-59, advances to Albany Region final

New Post has been published on https://www.stl.news/uconn-routs-duke-72-59-advances-albany-region-final/102696/

UConn routs Duke 72-59, advances to Albany Region final

ALBANY, N.Y./March 24, 2018 (AP)(STL.News) —Napheesa Collier had 16 points and 11 rebounds to help top-seed UConn beat Duke 72-59 on Saturday and advance to the Elite Eight for the 13th consecutive season.

UConn (35-0) will face defending national champion South Carolina on Monday night in trying to reach an 11th straight Final Four.

The Huskies scored the first seven points of the game beginning with a banked-in 3-pointer from Kia Nurse and they were off and running.

Duke had only given up an average of 49 points in its first two games of the tournament. UConn had that by the end of the third quarter, much to the delight of the partisan crowd of 10,658 that took in the Albany Regional.

Fifth-seed Duke (24-9) was only down seven early in the second quarter when the Blue Devils went cold from the field, going scoreless over the next 5½ minutes. UConn extended its advantage to 30-16.

The Blue Devils cut their deficit to 12, but UConn scored the final eight points of the half, including a pullup by Gabby Williams just before the halftime buzzer to give UConn a 40-20 lead.

Duke closed its gap to 44-31 midway through the third quarter, but didn’t score for the rest of the period and UConn rebuilt the 20-point advantage.

The game also featured Huskies center Azura Stevens going against her former team. She transferred to UConn after her sophomore season. Stevens had eight points and 12 rebounds.

Katie Lou Samuelson and Williams each had 15 points for the Huskies.

Duke was led by sophomore Leaonna Odom, who has been dominant in the tournament, averaging 20.5 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting 60 percent from the field in wins over Belmont and Georgia. She had 22 on Saturday.

The loss ended the stellar careers of Duke guards Rebecca Greenwell and Lexie Brown. The pair came into the game averaging a combined 33.9 points this season which was third best among Power Five schools. They only had 16 combined against UConn.

DYNAMIC DUO: Nurse and Williams moved into a tie for fourth on the all-time NCAA win list, improving to 147-2 in their stellar careers at UConn. If the Huskies win the national championship the pair will finish at 150-2, the third-most wins all-time in NCAA history. It would also be the second-best winning percentage for a senior class, trailing only UConn’s Saniya Chong, who graduated last year with a 152-2 mark.

TIP-INS: UConn had won the past eight meetings in the series before the two teams stopped playing after the 2014 season. … Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie is 1-11 all-time against UConn with the lone win coming in 2004 when she was the head coach of Michigan State. … Brown added to her single-season school record for steals with six against UConn. She finished the season with 121, seven more than former record holder Alana Beard. … UConn was 8 for 16 from the free-throw line.

UP NEXT:

UConn beat South Carolina by 25 points on Feb. 1. The second-seeded Gamecocks advanced to the

regional final with a 79-63 win over 11th-seeded Buffalo.

By DOUG FEINBERG  by Associated Press – published on STL.News by St. Louis Media, LLC (U.S)

#Buffalo #Gabby Williams #Napheesa Collier #NCAA #South Carolina