Sacramento Monarchs

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Sacramento Monarchs
Sacramento Monarchs
Conference Western Conference
Founded 1997
Home court ARCO Arena
Colors Dark purple, gray
WNBA Championships 1 (2005)
Conference Championships 2 (2005, 2006)
Playoff Appearances 6 (1999–2001, 2003–2006)
Head coach Jenny Boucek
General manager John Whisenant
Owner Maloof family
Mascot Monty [1]

The Sacramento Monarchs is a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Sacramento, California. The team is one of the WNBA's eight original franchises and was noted early on for standout players Ticha Penicheiro, Ruthie Bolton and Yolanda Griffith.

While the Monarchs have been one of the more successful WNBA franchises, they have often trailed behind perennial Western Conference champions the Houston Comets and the Los Angeles Sparks. However, in 2005, the team brought Sacramento its first major championship in a professional sport, winning the WNBA Finals for the first time.

The team is named after the Monarch butterfly and the type of ruler. As the name "Monarchs" suggests, they are the sister team of the Sacramento Kings.


Contents

[edit] Franchise History

The Monarchs made an impact in the WNBA almost immediately. With the hiring of Portuguese national team player Ticha Penicheiro, popular player Ruthie Bolton and prolific scorer Yolanda Griffith, all of whom have been WNBA All-Stars, the Monarchs have been able to make the playoffs almost every year so far, but were normally eliminated before reaching the WNBA Finals.

After losing to the Seattle Storm in the 2004 WNBA Western Conference Championship, the Monarchs made major roster moves to improve the team, by way of obtaining younger players and emphasizing Head Coach John Whisenant's defense-oriented system. Bolton, one of the team's original players, became a free agent and the Monarchs made the difficult decision not to keep her on the active playing roster, though they did offer her a position in their front office. Edna Campbell, a breast cancer survivor and another fan favorite, was not signed by the Monarchs and later signed with the San Antonio Silver Stars.

On March 3, 2005, the Monarchs traded Tangela Smith and a 2006 second round draft pick to the Charlotte Sting in exchange for former Stanford University standout Nicole Powell, Olympia Scott-Richardson, and Erin Buescher. After signing two Chinese players, Miao Lijie and Sui Feifei, the Monarchs traded Chantelle Anderson to the San Antonio Silver Stars for a 2006 draft pick. During the 2005 WNBA Draft, the Monarchs drafted point guard Kristin Haynie from Michigan State University and Chelsea Newton from Rutgers University. The Monarchs did sign Ruthie Bolton as a free agent for the purpose of her trying to win a spot on team's roster during its pre-season training camp, but eventually waived her. Bolton later joined the Monarchs to work in their promotions and public relations department.

The offseason moves immediately paid off for the Monarchs as the team finished with a franchise-best 25-9 win/loss record. Whisenant was later named the WNBA Coach of the Year, and Powell received the WNBA Most Improved Player Award. After previous seasons of being eliminated from the WNBA Playoffs by either the Houston Comets or the Los Angeles Sparks, the Monarchs finally defeated both teams during the 2005 WNBA Playoffs to earn their first appearance in the WNBA Finals against the Connecticut Sun. The Monarchs won their first ever WNBA Finals by defeating the Sun, three games to one in a best-of-five playoff series, which brought Sacramento its first major championship in a professional sport.

[edit] Season-by-Season Records

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, % = Win-Loss %

Season W L % Playoffs Results
Sacramento Monarchs
1997 10 18 .357
1998 8 22 .267
1999 19 13 .594 Lost First Round Los Angeles 71, Sacramento 58
2000 21 11 .656 Lost First Round Houston 2, Sacramento 0
2001 20 12 .625 Won First Round
Lost Conference Finals		 Sacramento 2, Utah 0
Los Angeles 2, Sacramento 1
2002 14 18 .438
2003 19 15 .559 Won First Round
Lost Conference Finals		 Sacramento 2, Houston 1
Los Angeles 2, Sacramento 1
2004 18 16 .529 Won First Round
Lost Conference Finals		 Sacramento 2, Los Angeles 1
Seattle 2, Sacramento 1
2005 25 9 .735 Won First Round
Won Conference Finals
Won WNBA Finals		 Sacramento 2, Los Angeles 0
Sacramento 2, Houston 0
Sacramento 3, Connecticut 1
2006 21 13 .618 Won First Round
Won Conference Finals
Lost WNBA Finals		 Sacramento 2, Houston 0
Sacramento 2, Los Angeles 0
Detroit 3, Sacramento 2
Totals 175 147 .543
Playoffs 22 15 .595 1 WNBA Championship

Stats updated September 9, 2006

[edit] Players of note

[edit] Hall of Famers

  • Bridgette Gordon (scheduled to be inducted in July 2007)

[edit] Retired numbers

[edit] Not to be forgotten

[edit] Current Roster

Sacramento Monarchs
Current Roster
Head Coach: John Whisenant Edit
Pos. No. Name College
F 32 Rebekkah Brunson Georgetown
F-C 7 Erin Buescher The Masters College
G 5 Scholanda Dorrell Louisiana State
F-C 33 Yolanda Griffith Florida Atlantic
G 4 Kristin Haynie Michigan State
G 20 Kara Lawson Tennessee
G 9 Hamchétou Maïga-Ba Old Dominion
G 21 Ticha Penicheiro Old Dominion
F 14 Nicole Powell Stanford
F 8 Kim Smith Utah
F 22 DeMya Walker Virginia
(IL) - Inactive List

[edit] Coaches and others

Head Coaches:

General Managers:

[edit] Trivia

  • First professional women sports team to appear on cover of Wheaties box.

[edit] External links

Women's National Basketball Association
Eastern Conference Western Conference
Charlotte Sting | Chicago Sky | Connecticut Sun | Detroit Shock | Indiana Fever | New York Liberty | Washington Mystics Houston Comets | Los Angeles Sparks | Minnesota Lynx | Phoenix Mercury Sacramento Monarchs | San Antonio Silver Stars | Seattle Storm
Media: The WNBA on ESPN2 | List of WNBA Finals broadcasters
Other Women's Leagues: National Women's Basketball League | Women's National Basketball League (Australia)
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