MINNESOTA LYNX HIRE A NEW COACH

For Immediate Release
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 2009

Cheryl Reeve Press Conference Transcription
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL –

Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith's Opening Statement:
"This is an exciting day for us; we're announcing that Cheryl Reeve is becoming the new head coach for the MN Lynx. Over the last few weeks, we've been in discussions with Cheryl, and some of the things that impressed us most about her as a person are her confidence, her utmost belief that she can lead this team to where we want to be, her passion for the job, and her desire to be in Minnesota. We believe and she believes that this is a very good fit for her in terms of the style of coach that she is and the style of our team. She has us convinced that she adamantly believes that this is a team that can win today and can win big today. And it's those passions, beliefs, and desires that very much got our attention and got us excited about her. And then you start looking at just the details of the resume -- she's been coaching for 21 years, 12 of them in college and nine in the WNBA. In those years in the WNBA she's been a part of two world championship teams, two other teams that went to the Finals, seven teams that went to the Playoffs in nine years. Her mentors in that process have been three of the best coaches that this league has seen in Dan Hughes, Ann Donovan, and Bill Laimbeer. One of the things that we have is a team that’s growing and building every year and gaining experience every year, and I'm very excited that we can accelerate that process by bringing in someone with the amount of coaching experience that Cheryl has. We think that will be a huge boost to our team, and we're very excited about that. She's also had five years of coaching experience in college, so she's not a rookie to being in that infamous seat where all the decisions have to be made. So up and down, just across the board, there were a lot of reasons that as we talked to Cheryl we just became really convinced and excited that she is the person to lead this team. Her knowledge of the league, team, and players has all been there from that nine years of growth; and she doesn’t just know her team (the Detroit Shock), but she knows our team as well by scouting and playing against us. So this is definitely a situation where we're set to take off from where we ended last year with our very talented team, with our first and third picks in the regular draft, the second pick in the dispersal draft; we want to be ready to go, because this could be a big year for the Lynx."

Minnesota Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve's Opening Statement:
"Wow, what an exciting day. I'm extremely excited for this great opportunity. This is certainly a talented Minnesota Lynx basketball team. I feel extremely grateful to Roger for this great opportunity. As Roger alluded to, this is a great time to be here with the Lynx. When I talked to Roger during this process, I strongly stressed that I believe the time is now for the Minnesota Lynx. What I mean by that is that championship windows open and close, and I feel strongly right now that this is a situation that with a talented young group, with the return of Simeone Augustus, and some of the additions that we'll be able to make with the draft picks, there's no reason why this five-to-seven year window shouldn't be the best of the Minnesota Lynx' years, and I strongly believe that. I'm a nine-year veteran and I've seen a lot in the WNBA. I'm a big believer in how to get things done, and I'm excited for the opportunity. As Roger mentioned I've had some great mentors in the game, not the least of which is Bill Laimbeer who is now here in Minnesota. I'm extremely humbled by his support in this process. I've gotten a kick out of seeing him here as an assistant coach -- that's been fun for me. I've learned a lot from Bill. A lot of my swagger -- although people who have known me for a long time know I kind of have a natural swagger-- but I think Bill brings out even more of that. To sit here and talk about how it's not about being a playoff team; the MN Lynx are a playoff team. It's about how far we're going to advance in the playoffs and compete for championships. That's what it's going to be about while I'm here in Minnesota, and that's going to be our focus. I'm looking forward to getting started.

Griffith On Jennifer Gillom:
At the end of the season that's the direction (bringing her back) we thought we were going. We had an extended period of a negotiation with her that just did not come to fruition. The LA Sparks, Jennifer and her agent requested the opportunity to be able to speak to each other, and consistent with what we've always done here, when people want different opportunities we're always open to that, so we allowed that door to be open for Jennifer to talk to them. I don't know where that process is at, I don't know where that's going, but when that happened we needed to start looking at our other alternatives. We started looking at our list of potential candidates, including the people that became available through things that happened in the league this off season, and we started exploring our opportunities and our options. Because we need to be ready for this season. So that's kind of what happened there.

Griffith On Bill Laimbeer's Role In The Process:
It kind of went in two phases. The first phase, when we needed to start that background look into who our candidates might be, I had conversations with Bill saying "who would be on your list, who are the people that have experience in this league, that from your experience in this league you would consider candidates?" At first, I would say he gave very honest and insightful impressions, and Cheryl is one of the people who would have been on my list based on the factors we talked about with the resume. He gave very insightful, analytical feedback - what type of coach she is, what type of person she is, what she did for him in terms of practice and preparation and all those things. Once we got to the point where we were talking to Cheryl and interviewing her, then he switched to a fan; then he switched to more of a supporter and he was hoping and rooting for her. But at that point I kind of started ignoring what he was saying, because I wanted the honest facts, not the rooting section. I think he handled it very well in terms of giving us what we needed and then becoming a rooter for Cheryl.

Reeve On If She Sees Herself Being In Minnesota For A 5-7-Year Window:
That's a tough question. The easy part for me is that I'm a loyal person. I think that the situation is set up that if things go the way I truly believe that they will go, there's no reason to believe why that wouldn't happen. Five to seven years is a long time, let's first say that.

Reeve On If The Past History Concerns Her:
Not at all. Not in any way. Former coaches, former players, former success or lack of success has no bearing on what I do… I think looking at the Lynx, first and foremost, the improvement that has to be made in order to compete for championships has to be on the defensive side of it. Defensive and rebounding win championships. I'm a big believer in that, and that will never change. I've seen that throughout the entire nine years that I've been with the WNBA. Defense doesn’t take talent. It's more about a focus to what you're doing, a determination to be difficult to play against, execution of the game plan. Those things don't take talent; that's just a matter of how big your heart is and your desire to get the job done. On the offensive side of it, that actually does take talent, and what's very encouraging about the situation here in Minnesota is that there's a lot of good offensive talent on this team. Obviously the return of Simeone Augustus -- obviously that's your franchise player, your go-to player, everybody knows that, but man, what a supporting cast. That's what's critical in the WNBA right now. Every team is good, every team now has depth. With some of the changes the league has gone through, it’s the ability to put a team together that believes in the same thing, that are selfless players, and are okay with Simeone taking the last shot. If she misses, they're there to get the rebound. And having that type of mentality. From an offensive standpoint, there will be obviously bringing out the strengths of the players; playing off of our defense is going to be how we're going to make the biggest change.

Reeve On What Her Coaching Staff Will Look Like:
Over the last year, and then in particular over the last few weeks, I've had the opportunity to get to know Jim Peterson on a larger scale. I spent some time with Jim in Minnesota when we played here last year and talked to him for awhile. Jim appeared to me to be a person who was very interested in the WNBA, and that's important. I know that kind of sounds like that would be simple, but it's not. Jim Peterson is a guy who seems like the players trust, he's genuinely interested in their development, and then from the other side of it, from the X and O standpoint, obviously Jim's played the game. He understands how to get things done on the court, so I think he has value on both sides of it. The players' side of it, as well as the coach side of it. It's an easy transition, and for me it was a no-brainer as I got know Jim better and better, and we're looking to have Jim join us again.

Griffith On If There Will Be Another Assistant Coach:
It's one of the changes that's coming around in the league - We're only going to be allowed to have one assistant coach on the bench. That's one of the league's rule changes for the upcoming season, so it will be Cheryl and Jim.

Griffith On If Reeve Is The Missing Piece To Something Special In Minnesota:
As we talked to Cheryl, some of the things she said in the interviews were very different than things that have been said in interviews in the past. Previously there had been certain consistencies to the answers we got, so you kind of start believe that "okay, that was the right answer." But when Cheryl answered some questions differently and then we said why, it really made us believe that she could be different; she could be that impactful person, she could be that difference-maker. In addition to Cheryl coming in with all her years of coaching experience, we also have several different chances to get that impact, too. From one of the players off the Sacramento roster, through having the first and third picks in the draft. So we're in a great opportunity this year where we don't just have one thing changing in our favor, we have a list of things changing in our favor. That combination of things we anticipate to be very impactful.

Reeve On How She Relates To Players:
I do like to have a good time, I think that's important. When it's time for business, it's time for business, and I think our players through the years will tell you whether it’s a Dawn Staley all the way up to a Katie Smith, there's a tremendous amount of trust through the information that I provide for them, and also at the same time, to be able to have an interaction on the court that is easy-going, direct, to the point. I don't like the phrase "players' coach," I never have. My job is to get the most out of the players, and sometimes I have to deliver difficult messages. That's what Jim is there for, to kind of pick up the pieces. I'm detail-oriented, and that comes with discipline. I think those types of things will be communicated. At the same time, we're going about our business and we're going toward certain goals, but it's also about having fun doing what we're doing. But it's typically only fun when you win.

Reeve On If She's Talked To The Players:
I have not spoken to any of the players yet, I look forward to that. The first thing I'd tell them about myself is my strong belief in this Minnesota Lynx basketball team -- the existing pieces and a very clear direction on how to move forward. [There are things] we've already talked about from a defensive standpoint, and I want to get to know them as people. I think that's important. And have them ready to go into training camp, to make improvements as a basketball team.

Reeve On If Roster Sizes Are Staying At 11:
It is. The roster's going to stay at 11, but that's probably all that needs to be said there.

Reeve On The Transition From Being An Assistant Coach To Now Being A Head Coach:
I've thought about that. You know, when I was an assistant coach in college and became a head coach, I understood the idea of moving, and I really saw the impact and that is a transition. Through the course of the last nine years, I don't know that I've changed my thought process from that of a head coach. So I see little transition into that next seat up other than obviously in game situations. Although, I went through a lot of that last year in Detroit. It's going to be my decision, and it's final, and that's what it is. I don't see any concerns or any kind of transition period there. I'm looking forward to that, because Bill didn't listen to me as much as he should have.