Great article but really not true; there are many players involved in the NPF that are not from the ...more
posted 08/26/14 at 1:28pm
on Softball Standouts Plourde and Prezioso Represent Atlantic 10, Exemplify Mid-Major Potential at Next Level
posted by Swish Appeal
Friday, August 29, 2014 at 1:45pm EDT
In keeping with SB Nation’s innovative use of social media in reshaping sports journalism, our vision is a women's basketball site that goes beyond merely providing game reports; instead, we want to capture the narratives that fuel our passion for the game, while maintaining the critical stance that helps us understand the game better.
Support women's sports and SHARE this story with your friends!
We bring together our predictions panel one more time for the Eastern and Western Conference Finals and, consistent with what most people expect, predict the WNBA Finals as well.
With the Western Conference Finals beginning today, we make our final predictions of the 2014 WNBA Playoffs.
Our panel with a combination of Swish Appeal and SB Nation-NBA writers remains the same as they were for the first round, which we almost unanimously predicted correctly.
This time around, the only thing we all agree on is that both conference finals series will go three games.
Western Conference Finals: Mercury def. Lynx
Name
Winner
Games
Albert
Minnesota
3
James
Phoenix
3
Kris H.
Phoenix
3
Kris W.
Phoenix
3
Nate
Minnesota
3
Pat
Phoenix
3
I explained my reasoning for this pick yesterday: despite the Phoenix Mercury's considerable talent, the Minnesota Lynx are a significantly better rebounding team at their best (and I think my affinity for the Lynx is well-established at this point). But home court advantage is clearly in the Mercury's favor here, which probably makes that the more reasonable choice.
Eastern Conference Finals: Chicago def. Indiana
Name
Winner
Games
Albert
Chicago 3
James
Indiana 3
Kris H.
Chicago 3
Kris W.
Chicago 3
Nate
Indiana 3
Pat
Chicago 3
Pat previewed this series and explained his pick yesterday, but I'm not entirely convinced that the Chicago Sky have overcome the problems that hurt them the against Indiana Fever last year and with the added benefit of home court advantage for the Fever, I expect Lin Dunn to make one more WNBA Finals appearance.
2014 WNBA Finals predictions: Phoenix wins the title
Name
Winner
Loser
Games
Albert
Minnesota
Chicago
3
James
Phoenix
Indiana
3
Kris H.
Phoenix
Chicago
4
Kris W.
Phoenix
Chicago
3
Nate
Minnesota
Indiana
4
Pat
Phoenix
Chicago
4
Ultimately, yes, we all think the Western Conference Finals will produce the champion. And at that point, we appear to think it's almost academic in terms of how many games the East's representative can pull out.
In short, I don't think you could possibly go wrong with any of those combinations - no matter who ends up in the Finals, some of the league's brightest stars will be showcased and that's good for the growth of the league.
For more on the conference finals, check out our 2014 WNBA Playoffs section.
Poll Who do you think will win the 2014 WNBA Finals?
2 votes | Results
Support women's sports and SHARE this story with your friends!
MORE ABOUT THIS AUTHOR:

In keeping with SB Nation’s innovative use of social media in reshaping sports journalism, our vision is a women's basketball site that goes beyond ...
full profile
For more, visit Q McCall's Full Profile
LATEST ARTICLES & POSTS
Sat at 3:44pm
Sat at 3:28pm
Sat at 3:24pm
Fri at 7:35pm
Fri at 1:53pm
Fri at 1:51pm
Fri at 1:45pm
No one has commented on this yet. Be the first!