SB Nation Arizona - Phoenix Mercury Acquire Forward Charde Houston From Lynxhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/46593/arizona-fave.png2012-02-28T15:15:15-07:00http://arizona.sbnation.com/rss/stream/25954682012-02-28T15:15:15-07:002012-02-28T15:15:15-07:00Phoenix Mercury Acquire Forward Charde Houston From Lynx
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<p>Corey Gaines has been busy in his first full offseason in his new role as the Phoenix Mercury General Manager which comes on top of his head coaching duties and his position on the Phoenix Suns coaching staff. He <a target="_blank" href="http://arizona.sbnation.com/phoenix-mercury/2012/1/12/2703598/phoenix-mercury-trade-tulsa-shock-andrea-riley-temeka-johnson/in/2595468">already swapped point guards</a> with the Tulsa Shock and now has acquired forward Charde Houston to help add depth to his team.</p>
<p>"(Houston is) a mismatch problem with her size. She runs the floor, shoots threes, she's a scoring punch off the bench instantly," Gaines said in a phone call with SB Nation Arizona shortly after the news of the deal was announced.</p>
<p>Looking at the roster that already includes talented forwards Candice Dupree, Penny Taylor and DeWanna Bonner along with guard Diana Taurasi, it seems likely that Charde will be indeed be as a reserve. Her exact role, however, hasn't been determined yet according to Gaines.</p>
<p>Charde also provides insurance for the team behind Penny Taylor who is expected to play a significant role for her Australian national team during the 2012 Summer Olympics. Houston provides a lot of the same face-up scoring and shooting ability as Taylor but isn't near the facilitator as the Aussie star.</p>
<p>Houston also helps the Mercury in another area of need according to SB Nation's WBB blog, Swish Appeal:</p>
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<p><a target="_blank" href="http://www.swishappeal.com/2012/2/28/2831457/phoenix-mercury-charde-houston-minnesota-lynx">Quick Analysis: Phoenix Mercury Acquire Charde Houston From Minnesota Lynx For Draft Picks - Swish Appeal</a><br>The Mercury were not a particularly strong rebounding team last season, allowing opponents to grab the second highest percentage of offensive rebounds in the Western Conference (28.1%). In addition to being one of the highest usage players in the WNBA in 2009, Houston was also an outstanding defensive rebounder, ranking 7th in the league with a 22.8% defensive rebounding percentage. For a team like the Mercury that like to run, that rebounding could certainly be useful.</p>
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<p>Houston was a WNBA All-Star in 2009 when she started 33 games for the Minnesota Lynx. She averaged career-high 13.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game that season while shooting 47 percent from the field.</p>
<p>In the last two seasons, however, her numbers have fallen as she played a lesser role behind Lynx stars like Seimone Augustus and Maya Moore. Houston won a championship ring with the Lynx last season but played a career-low 7.8 minutes per game.</p>
<p>Houston is currently playing overseas in Israel and wasn't available for comment. From the looks of this tweet, however, she's happy to be coming to Phoenix:</p>
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<p>*Jumps up and down* I'm a Mercury! I'm a Mercury! This day is amazing! Praising God!</p>
— Chardé Houston (@CharHouston) <a href="https://twitter.com/CharHouston/status/174590689588424704" data-datetime="2012-02-28T20:23:58+00:00">February 28, 2012</a>
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<p>Houston is a fan favorite for many around the WNBA in part due to her aggressive scoring ability both driving the ball and as a shooter and also thanks to her passionate style of play and dynamic personality.</p>
<p>Coach Gaines has been on the receiving end of Houston's abilities on several occasions. Playing against the Mercury in up-tempo contests, she's averaged 13.8 points and 5.9 rebounds in 16 career games against Phoenix according to a team official.</p>
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<p>Houston was the 30th overall pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft coming out of the University of Connecticut. Charde was acquired from the Lynx in a sign-and-trade deal that sent the Mercury's 2012 second-round pick (18th overall) to Minnesota in exchange for Houston and the Lynx' 2012 second-round pick (24th overall).</p>
<p>The Mercury still have the sixth overall pick in the 2012 WNBA Draft in April available to try and fill remaining holes on the roster.</p>
<p>The team has tremendous depth at the wings and power forward position but still has questions to answer at point guard and center. Veteran big Nakia Sanford is expected to return to play the five and Riley will compete for the starting point guard spot in camp. Both positions, however, are in need of additional options and Gaines didn't rule out additional trades.</p>
https://arizona.sbnation.com/phoenix-mercury/2012/2/28/2831445/phoenix-mercury-charde-houston-lynx-wnba-2012Seth Pollack2012-01-12T18:35:42-07:002012-01-12T18:35:42-07:00Phoenix Mercury Swap Point Guards With Tulsa Shock; Andrea Riley In, Temeka Johnson Out
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<img alt="Andrea Riley driving the ball during her rookie season in 2010 with the Los Angeles Sparks. Photo by Craig Bennett, <a href="http://www.swishappeal.com/" target="new">Swish Appeal</a>
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<figcaption>Andrea Riley driving the ball during her rookie season in 2010 with the Los Angeles Sparks. Photo by Craig Bennett, <a href="http://www.swishappeal.com/" target="new">Swish Appeal</a>
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<p>The Phoenix Mercury traded veteran point guard Temeka Johnson to the Tulsa Shock in exchange for Andrea Riley who was drafted in 2010.</p> <p>The Phoenix Mercury struggled during their 2011 season with point guard play. Temeka Johnson, who played a big role in the team's 2009 Championship run, started the season slow due to an ankle injury and never seemed to find a rhythm. To address that need and give the team a better scoring option to keep defenses honest, head coach and newly appointed General Manager Corey Gains swapped Johnson for Andrea Riley of the Tulsa Shock.</p>
<p>Riley was originally taken eighth overall in the 2010 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks out of Oklahoma State University where she averaged 26.7 points per game as a senior.</p>
<p>"Andrea Riley is someone we had our eye on coming out of college," Head Coach and General Manager Corey Gaines said. "She is a fast guard who can score the ball and shoot the three. She has the ability to change the pace of the game and we think she is a player who can thrive in our system."</p>
<p>Here's a bit more on Riley's season last summer:</p>
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<br>Prior to the 2011 season, Riley was traded to the Tulsa Shock. On March 29, 2011, nine weeks before the start of her second season in the WNBA, Riley gave birth to a daughter, Tiana. She returned to the court and played 33 of Tulsa's 34 games that season, missing only the first game of the year. Riley averaged 6.0 points and 1.8 assists in 19.0 minutes per game. She started 10 of those 33 games, including the final five games of the season in place of the injured Ivory Latta. In those five games as the designated starter, Riley averaged 13.2 points and 3.8 assists.</blockquote>
<p>Gaines feels that Riley will excel in the Mercury's up-tempo system and has an attitude and competitiveness that will fit with the veteran-led Phoenix team. The Mercury will return a core of Diana Taurasi, Penny Taylor, Candice Dupree and DeWanna Bonner this May. Center Nakia Sanford is expected back as well along with the newly acquired Riley. </p>
<p>The move saves the Mercury an estimated $40-$50k heading into the WNBA free agency period that opens on January 15. This will give Gaines more flexibility to add depth and fill any other holes on his roster.</p>
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https://arizona.sbnation.com/phoenix-mercury/2012/1/12/2703598/phoenix-mercury-trade-tulsa-shock-andrea-riley-temeka-johnsonSeth Pollack