What a load of crap. It is all about the money isn't it...don't dare miss the Olympics for an injury, the national team pays too much. Don't dare miss out on playing in Russia...but the WNBA? Ehhh chicken scratch. Who needs them!

Don't forget it is the WNBA and the fans who cheer you on even when you lose that MADE you...just keep this in mind LJ...when the fans don't cheer as loud for you next season, don't wonder why.

I hope you win the gold this year then you can retire and we fans don't have to get our hopes up for another championship just to be let down again.

I think it is time to reconsider renewing my courtside seat...

She's not getting paid for playing in the Olympics. Plus, she gets paid far more playing overseas than in the WNBA. She was already made before the WNBA.

i thought the same thing when kolebigears said

"so we fans don't have to get our hopes up for another championship just to be let down again"
this sucks really bad!

As it should be, she is Australian first and has yet to get that gold medal so I can't fault her for choosing the Olympics, and Spartak over the WNBA, where she makes chump change! Yes she loves Seattle and the storm and wants another WNBA but she wants that gold more, but she has always said country comes first so no one can fault her for that no matter how disappointed they are. Don't count the Storm out yet, it's not over until it's over!

Between LJ's and PT's ankle though I think their chances for gold just got slimmer. It will most likely be a USA/China gold medal, Australian/Russia bronze. Sorry Aussie's but the USA's bench players are basically all starters while the Aussie's are not. Before all this I was cheering for an Australian Gold so LJ could have her final piece to her puzzle, but with the Storm not likely to win the finals this year I have to have a championship team to cheer for, so GO USA!!

Kolebig, I understand the disappointment, but don't blame her, she has always said country first. Of course money should come first we don't pay our players enough to have to put the WNBA first. Of course the Olympics are more important, she wants a gold more then anything else. The Storm have gave us a great year even if we don't end with the championship. Just think, next year JB will be back, our bench is getting better and deeper all the time, KG, T and Little will have even more playing time to improve even more s our chances will be great next with LJ and JB healed, and if she does make it back for the finals she will be rested and no one will be able to stop the Storm, not even SASS.

Brett: There are perks to playing in the Olympics, as you can imagine, but Jackson made her name through the WNBA. When she was drafted, many knew of her potential but she was still developing her game. She broke out in 2003, becoming an international star post player. In an interview a while back, she acknowledged that players can use the WNBA to build a name in the game, and then get paid their worth overseas.

It's very unfortunate and you're gonna have many people sharing feelings from both sides of the spectrum, but in reality, injuries in sports are an occupational hazard. LJ getting hurt during the Olympics is no different than if she got hurt in the All-Star game or in Europe. It is just an unfortunate accident. It certainly beats the ballplayers that injure a back sneezing or bust up their leg dirt biking w/their kids on the beach.

In the best of scenarios, the Storm have a good enough record to play .500 ball and make the playoffs and maybe LJ will be able to rehab herself ahead of schedule and we won't have to depend on their getting to the finals without her... Get well soon, LJ.

I could hardly read this yesterday. I just couldn't accept the fact that LJ will probably be gone for all season. I felt LJ was selfish in a way, but truly, if I put myself into her situation, I would have done the same.

Olympics = lifetime goal & Russia = Big $$$ where she makes a living vs Storm = she has been successful with MVP & Championship.

Let's move on.

I bet O'Neil will not get another 7 day contract, and Angler will look for another post. Any ideas? Possible return for JB?

THIS SUCKS! LJ is just like all those other athletes who claim they play for the love of the game but it all is about $. I hope the owners are pissed because there are many out there who will not be coming back next year. I have been a longtime season ticket holder but will not renew because of moves like this of players.

It's ridiculous to jump to the conclusion that this must be about the money. Truly I wonder if the "fans" who are thinking this know anything about the financial side of women's basketball.

I feel that the pain must be excruciating for LJ not to wait until the season is over for this surgery. She usually doesn't show up in Russia until January, so there is no time issue there (and no chance of missing out on money if she waited until post-WNBA season). In my mind, this is just an athlete, who has given a lot to the Storm over the years and from that perspective of whom we couldn't have asked for more (a Championship? two MVPs? perennial play-offs?) who has reached her pain threshold. And for LJ that's high indeed.

So I don't begrudge her the time to get herself healthy, though I do mourn what might have been in a season that was full of expectation. I'm back to my less lofty goals of making it out of the first round of the play-offs, when pre-injury LJ I was imagining WNBA Finals.

Alas. This is the way of sports. We may still win more games than the Sonics did. ;)

I gotta trust LJ. Maybe if she does not take care of her ankle now it will bother her for the rest of her career. The Storm needs Ms Geralds to step up and score when it means something and Ms Cash to focus and finish her inside shots. Get better LJ

Before the Olympics started I remember having a conversation with a friend and I said, I don't think LJ will come back if she gets a gold medal.
I think in a way she got from the WNBA what she needed. Let’s face it, the WNBA helped her achieve being the world’s best player because of the high level of competition, but now that there is more competition and money in Russia there is really no need for playing year around.
I guess it really doesn't matter what anyone thinks or believes, she is going to do what she is going to do for whatever reason. Might as well just focus on what we still have.
And as a sports fan I find it funny that someone would stop being a season ticket holder because a player might have decided they don't want to play here anymore. Hey, it happens all the time in other sports. Just be a fan and support the team that's here.

Norwester: Let's not be naive. Jackson's body is the way she makes a living. She needs surgery to keep playing basketball. This is happening so she can continue to make money. I do believe she must be in severe pain to do this to the Storm now, but the way she and Basketball Australia have handled this is ridiculous. If Lauren cared about Seattle and its pursuit of a championship, why not just sit out the final eight games, hope for the best and then return for the postseason -- pushing through for the title. Then have the needed surgery. She goes to Russia earlier than January and obviously my plan would prevent her from participating in the beginning of EuroLeague play. Based on numerous interviews today, I think Spartak has a hand in this and this is another way Russia is screwing with the WNBA. Yes, injuries are a part of sports and I wouldn't have thought twice about this had the announcement been made AFTER the Olympics. But to say you're so hurt that you can't play in the WNBA and then go out to play two games for country - which I get - and be spotted cheering on the men's team just thumbs the nose at everything the Storm helped Lauren achieve. I'm not saying Lauren owes Seattle anything, she's given a lot to the organization, but her people could have handled this better and fans deserve her honesty.

Well stated, Jayda... as I said before as well, injuries are, indeed, a part of sports. But how the hell do you plan your timing the way LJ planned hers. It just has got to leave a sour taste in the mouths of the fans. But it certainly isn't the fault of the rest of the team and yet, people (here) are saying "oh, I'm going to reconsider my seats," etc, etc, etc, yada, yada, yada. That's totally ridiculous. Laura's right... be a fan- support your team. This is not a precedent being set here, after all, folks...

I don't think she has treated the Storm organization shoddily at all, and I don't see the problem with her going out there and cheering for the men's team unless she was running about, and pushing off on her injured ankle. With that sort of injury, you can risk your long term health if a piece of debris tissue loosens and damages a ligament or nerve. Every game she is playing, she is putting herself at risk. I can understand why Jackson is willing to chance further permanent damage to represent her country: the Olympics come around every 4 years, and she has never, ever made a secret of the fact that the games are her number one priority. It is rather presumptuous of people to assume she's scheduling the surgery now for mercenary purposes, or has chosen her Russian club over Seattle, without first having seen an X-Ray or spoken to her physician or Lauren herself. And for all of the talk about her Russian Club's involvement, last year Tina Thompson was allowed to take a hiatus from the team in order to return to the states to undergo a medical procedure--I believe she had a throat problem. It is not unprecedented. Look at Spartak's roster, do you really think the club would not destroy most, save one or two teams, without Jackson? Hell, Shabtai has been known to rest his star players for games at a time as the season is very long. Conspiracy theories are nice, but toothless without facts to support them, so, yes, please let's not be naive.

Jayda, if you conducted numerous interviews where people implied Spartak had a hand in Jackson's decision, I would love to read the quotes or an article further explaining your conjecture. Are they people involved with know anything about how Russian clubs or Euroleague operates? Or are these teammates, and a coach, who are terribly disappointed, grasping for explanations?

SECDevotee: I'm waiting to speak with Lauren to write any more about Russia and the WNBA because I like to have all sides of the story before putting things out there for you to read. Yes, some are probably grasping at straws and yes, others are people heavily involved in the league and have extremely creditable knowledge of the situation. I have an interview request in with Lauren, but we all know she's busy. If she has time and responds, I'll write that story.

Understandable and thank you for the response. All I know is this: from my experience with Spartak, Shabtai and his GM are very good to their players, and mostly very understanding to their needs. Shabtai is especially fond of Lauren Jackson. If she were to tell him that she needed a month to heal her body, lest she incur permanent damage, I am quite confident he would give her that time and her contract status with the club would remain secure.

ummm,
What's wrong with it being all about the money? Yeah, as a Storm fan, this REALLY sucks. But, that's life. She's been playing non stop for years now, and if she feels like she needs a break, or needs a break so that she can heal then continue to play, the best time to take it is during the WNBA season. She's an athlete, with no college education and can realistically only play for a limited number of years before she's making less, or no money. In the end, it's all about the money and don't lie to yourselves by saying its not.

Shayla: One little nitpick, Lauren is earning a degree on-line. I understand your point, but to Americans, "no college education" implies stupidity. Being that Lauren is Australian with a different educational system and value, I don't like it when people put her under that veil. Especially when, like I said, she is working slowly toward a degree.

You may think stupidity, I never said I did. That thought never crossed my mind. Please don't put your own meanings behind my words.

Shayla: I didn't add anything to what you wrote, I said "to Americans," which is a generalization I can make about my country because I've heard it many times. I just don't want others to view your words and Lauren the same way because she is in fact getting a secondary degree. It's not a personal attack, just a clarification.