Basketball fans around the nation believed Maya Moore would go No. 1 in this year's WNBA draft, but really only one man knew for sure: Roger Griffith, executive vice president of the Minnesota Lynx. Following the draft, espnW's Adena Andrews talked with Griffith about what it's like hold the top pick in the draft, what went on during draft day and which teams are the most dangerous in the league this year.
Adena Andrews: You had so many picks in this year's draft. Did this make things difficult or easier?
Roger Griffith: The quantity didn't make it challenging. One of the things that made it most challenging was the second-round trading activity. When you're picking in the first round at No. 1 and No. 4, your work gets done early and no one is in your way to change anything you might want to do. At 4 it's not all that different, either. So that part is relatively easy.
There was quite a bit of back and forth with those picks at [Nos.] 13, 14 and 18 but I never felt like we were under the gun pressure-wise where we might run out of time.
AA: What teams did you take calls from on draft day?
RG: Obviously, we got calls from New York and Atlanta because that's where we ended up doing deals. By the time we got to the second round, we probably had eight or nine different offers written on our board for potential second-round picks based on the right player being there. I don't necessarily remember the exact teams that were offering.
AA: I was in the Atlanta war room on draft day and know the Dream called you first with the option, and you turned it down, then came back later to accept it. Was that bluffing?
RG: At that point in time the Dream were actually the last team to call about those second-round picks. When I was eyeballing the list, we already had two picks to trade and I had two options from other teams above the Dream. Those two options fell out, so I called the Dream back to take them up on their offer.
AA: Why Maya Moore and not Liz Cambage? Some might say it's tough to see that kind of height in Cambage and turn it down in the draft.
RG: Because Maya is Maya. You don't turn down what is potentially the best player in women's basketball. That trumps height. I'd challenge you to find anyone in the position to make our decision and see if they would have done anything differently.
AA: When you met Maya Moore, what was the first thing that struck you about her?
RG: I like when people are grounded. She has a great head on her shoulders. She really has an appreciation for what her talent is and what that means in the whole scheme of things. That's just really, really cool to experience how people can accomplish what she has accomplished but still have their feet on the ground.
AA: On draft day, when you tell a team to pick for you, and you pick for them, nothing is really official. Isn't it kind of a handshake agreement? There's no real contract -- couldn't something go wrong?
RG: You have no choice but to go on trust. The other side of it is you want to be trusted. Once [Dream coach] Marynell [Meadors] tells me that name to pick for her at 14, if I do what she tells me to do, and then [if] she backs out, that's pretty damaging to her reputation. So you have a lot riding on the line to follow through with what you promise.
AA: Which teams are the ones to beat this year?
RG: (laughs) The Minnesota Lynx.
Then there is Seattle. They are the WNBA champions and until some team beats them, they are the team to beat. That's the honor you get for being the champions, and that's the target you get on your back for being the champions. The other team that I put in that category is Atlanta. They started off good last season, kind of faltered in the middle and came on strong again and went on to win the East and then lose in the finals. But they lost those three games in the finals by a total of just eight points.
I think they have done a lot to improve their team with their trade for [Lindsey] Harding. The two teams who made the finals are the teams to beat. They deserve that honor. Now it's up to the other 10 of us to go get them.
