2008 Detroit Shock season

August 2023 March 2026 Detroit Shock 2008 22 12 Eastern 1 Bill Laimbeer The Palace of Auburn Hills Won WNBA Finals The 2008 WNBA season was the 11th for the Detroit Shock, an American women's professional basketball team. The Shock returned to the WNBA Finals for the third consecutive year, winning their second WNBA Championship in three seasons, and their third in six years. During the Finals, Katie Smith averaged a team high 21.7 points per game to be named WNBA Finals MVP.Smith's Sheer Dominance Earns Her MVP Honors Similar to Kevin Garnett with the 2008 Boston Celtics, Taj McWilliams-Franklin won her first championship after 10 years in the league.My Kevin Garnett Moment in WNBA Blogs in Fan Voice http://my.wnba.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1800004529 https://web.archive.org/web/20110718073521/http://my.wnba.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1800004529 2011-07-18 live 2009-08-24 Offseason The following player was lost in the Atlanta Dream expansion draft: Katie Feenstra http://www.wnba.com/dream/expansiondraft_080206.html WNBA.com: Atlanta Dream Expansion Draft 2008-04-24 https://web.archive.org/web/20090820061552/http://www.wnba.com/dream/expansiondraft_080206.html 2009-08-20 dead WNBA draft Round Pick Player Nationality School/Team/Country 14 (from Atl. via Sea.) Alexis Hornbuckle Tennessee11 (from SA) Tasha Humphrey Georgia218 (from Atl.) Olayinka Sanni West Virginia342 Valeriya Berezhynska Rice Transactions September 4: The Shock signed Ashley Shields. August 19: The Shock signed Ashley Shields to a seven-day contract. August 12: The Shock traded Tasha Humphrey, Eshaya Murphy and a second-round pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft to the Washington Mystics for Taj McWilliams-Franklin. August 8: The Shock waived Stacey Lovelace. July 26: The Shock signed Kelly Schumacher. July 25: The Shock waived Nancy Lieberman. July 24: The Shock signed Nancy Lieberman to a seven-day contract. July 11: The Shock signed Stacey Lovelace. June 27: The Shock waived Chrissy Givens. June 22: The Shock traded LaToya Thomas to the Minnesota Lynx for Eshaya Murphy. June 18: The Shock waived Wanisha Smith and signed Chrissy Givens. May 15: The Shock waived Michelle Campbell and Wanisha Smith. May 8: The Shock signed Wanisha Smith to a training camp contract. May 7: The Shock signed free agent Sheri Sam. May 5: The Shock waived Valeriya Berezhynska, Natasha Lacy and Tyresa Smith. April 26: The Shock waived Chakhia Cole, Fantasia Goodwin and Samantha Mahoney. April 18: The Shock waived Nina Norman. April 17: The Shock signed Samantha Mahoney to a training camp contract. April 16: The Shock signed Chakhia Cole to a training camp contract. March 31: The Shock signed Elaine Powell to a training camp contract. March 10: The Shock re-signed free agents Cheryl Ford, Deanna Nolan and Katie Smith. March 4: The Shock signed Tyresa Smith and Michelle Campbell to training camp contracts. February 29: The Shock signed Nina Norman to a training camp contract. February 28: The Shock re-signed free agent Plenette Pierson and signed Chrissy Givens to a training camp contract. February 19: The Shock traded Swin Cash to the Seattle Storm in exchange for the 4th pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft. February 6: The Shock traded Ivory Latta to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for LaToya Thomas and the 18th pick in the 2008 WNBA Draft. http://www.wnba.com/transactions/WNBA_2008.html2008 WNBA Transactions. Accessed 2009-08-07. 2009-08-11. Trades DateTradeFebruary 6, 2008To Detroit ShockTo Atlanta Dream LaToya Thomas and the 18th pick in the 2008 WNBA draft Ivory LattaFebruary 19, 2008 To Detroit Shock To Seattle Storm The 4th pick in the 2008 WNBA draft Swin CashJune 22, 2008 To Detroit Shock To Minnesota Lynx Eshaya Murphy LaToya ThomasAugust 12, 2008 To Detroit Shock To Washington Mystics Taj McWilliams-Franklin Tasha Humphrey, Eshaya Murphy, and a second-round pick in the 2009 WNBA draft Free agents 52% Additions PlayerSignedFormer team Plenette Pierson February 28, 2008 re-signed Cheryl Ford March 10, 2008 re-signed Deanna Nolan March 10, 2008 re-signed Katie Smith March 10, 2008 re-signed Elaine Powell March 31, 2008 re-signed Sheri Sam May 7, 2008 Indiana Fever Kelly Schumacher July 26, 2008 Phoenix Mercury Taj McWilliams-Franklin August 12, 2008 Washington Mystics Ashley Shields August 19, 2008 Houston Comets Subtractions PlayerLeftNew team Katie Feenstra February 6, 2008 Atlanta Dream Ivory Latta February 6, 2008 Atlanta Dream Swin Cash February 19, 2008 Seattle Storm Shannon Johnson March 7, 2008 Houston Comets Tyresa Smith May 5, 2008 free agent Tasha Humphrey August 12, 2008 Washington Mystics Tausha Mills 2008 free agent Ayana Walker 2008 free agent Season Highlights The Shock season opener resulted in a record-breaking debut for rookie guard Alexis Hornbuckle. Hornbuckle set a Shock record with seven steals to help the Shock beat the Houston Comets on May 17. Deanna Nolan scored a franchise-record 44 points (28 in the fourth quarter and overtime) in a 98-93 victory over the Minnesota Lynx on June 20. Malice at the Palace Sparks–Shock brawl The Sparks–Shock brawl (also known as The Malice at the Palace II) was an altercation that occurred in a game between the Detroit Shock and Los Angeles Sparks on July 22, 2008 at The Palace of Auburn Hills. With 4.2 seconds before the game was officially over, the fighting began on the court after Plenette Pierson made a hard block out after a free throw on Candace Parker. This was the second brawl to occur at the Palace, the other being the Pacers–Pistons brawl. Nancy Lieberman In July, the Detroit Shock signed Nancy Lieberman, the franchise's first head coach and general manager, to a 7-day contract. The 50-year-old Lieberman broke her own record for being the oldest player in the WNBA.http://blogs.usatoday.com/gameon/2008/07/nancy-lieberman.html Nancy Lieberman to play in WNBA at age of 50 2008-10-12 https://web.archive.org/web/20081012082812/http://blogs.usatoday.com/gameon/2008/07/nancy-lieberman.html 2008-10-12 dead Lieberman, a Hall of Famer since 1999, was 39 years old when she played with Phoenix during the league's first year in 1997. The 50-year-old Lieberman played nine minutes and had two assists.Lieberman's Shows Flash of Past in Shock Loss One of the assists included a no-look pass in the closing minutes of the Detroit Shock's 79-61 loss to the Houston Comets on July 24. Lieberman made an appearance in the Shock's first game against the Los Angeles Sparks on July 22 due to the bench-clearing brawl. Five Shock players were suspended and Cheryl Ford suffered a season-ending injury, prompting coach Bill Laimbeer to offer Lieberman the seven-day contract. Roster Detroit Shock 2008 WNBA 45 Kara Braxton C 6 6 210 Georgia USA 35 Cheryl Ford PF 6 3 198 Louisiana Tech USA yes 22 Alexis Hornbuckle SG 5 11 155 Tennessee USA 44 Taj McWilliams-Franklin PF 6 2 184 St. Edward's University USA 14 Deanna Nolan SG 5 11 144 Georgia USA C 23 Plenette Pierson SF 6 2 181 Texas Tech USA 5 Elaine Powell PG 5 8 150 Louisiana State USA 55 Sheri Sam G/F 6 0 160 Vanderbilt USA 24 Olayinka Sanni C 6 2 205 West Virginia USA 11 Kelly Schumacher C 6 5 183 Connecticut USA 3 Ashley Shields SG 5 10 155 Southwest Tennessee Community College USA 30 Katie Smith G/F 5 11 174 Ohio State USA C USA Bill Laimbeer Notre Dame USA Rick Mahorn Hampton USA Cheryl Reeve 1 La Salle USA Laura Ramus 1 Wayne State University USA Laura Ramus 1 Wayne State University https://web.archive.org/web/20081012032337/http://wnba.com/shock/roster/ 2008-09-20 Season standings DET Schedule Regular season background:#0047AB; color:white 2008 Game Log: Regular Season y background:#DC143C; color:white May Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1 | May 17 | Houston | 85-66 | Smith (21) | Ford (11) | Ford (4) | Palace of Auburn Hills13,824 | 1-0 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 2 | May 18 | @ Minnesota | 70-84 | Smith (17) | Ford (9) | Nolan (6) | Target Center9,972 | 1-1 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 3 | May 21 | Indiana | 76-71 | Braxton (22) | Ford (10) | Nolan (8) | Palace of Auburn Hills6,842 | 2-1 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 4 | May 23 | @ Atlanta | 88-76 | Nolan (33) | Ford (13) | Nolan (8) | Philips Arena11,609 | 3-1 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 5 | May 25 | New York | 72-62 | Pierson (25) | Braxton, Powell (7) | Nolan (7) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,068 | 4-1 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 6 | May 31 | @ Indiana | 74-65 | Smith (19) | Ford (8) | Nolan, Powell (3) | Conseco Fieldhouse9,219 | 5-1 |- y background:#DC143C; color:white June Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 7 | June 4 | Seattle | 77-67 | Smith (33) | Ford (11) | Nolan (8) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,108 | 6-1 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 8 | June 6 | @ Sacramento | 84-70 | Smith (30) | Braxton, Ford, Nolan (6) | Nolan (9) | ARCO Arena6,663 | 7-1 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 9 | June 7 | @ Seattle | 67-75 | Smith (18) | Pierson (10) | Hornbuckle, Pierson (3) | KeyArena7,105 | 7-2 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 10 | June 11 | @ Los Angeles | 73-80 | Smith (16) | Pierson, Smith (7) | Smith (4) | STAPLES Center8,520 | 7-3 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 11 | June 14 | @ Phoenix | 89-79 | Humphrey (28) | Hornbuckle (15) | Nolan (8) | US Airways Center7,696 | 8-3 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 12 | June 20 | Minnesota | 98-93 (OT) | Nolan (44) | Ford (14) | Pierson (4) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,916 | 9-3 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 13 | June 22 | @ Atlanta | 97-76 | Ford (20) | Ford (12) | Nolan (7) | Philips Arena7,865 | 10-3 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 14 | June 24 | @ Connecticut | 68-85 | Nolan (17) | Ford (11) | Smith (4) | Mohegan Sun Arena7,501 | 10-4 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 15 | June 26 | Connecticut | 70-61 | Nolan (13) | Ford (9) | Smith (4) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,636 | 11-4 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 16 | June 28 | @ Chicago | 59-76 | Murphy (13) | Ford (8) | Hornbuckle, Sam (4) | UIC Pavilion3,407 | 11-5 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 17 | June 29 | Atlanta | 100-92 | Braxton (26) | Braxton (9) | Nolan (11) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,798 | 12-5 |- y background:#DC143C; color:white July Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 18 | July 1 | @ San Antonio | 72-79 (OT) | Smith (17) | Ford, Sam (8) | Smith (9) | AT&T Center5,656 | 12-6 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 19 | July 8 | Connecticut | 88-82 | Pierson (23) | Braxton (8) | Nolan (8) | Palace of Auburn Hills7,623 | 13-6 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 20 | July 11 | Washington | 79-66 | Smith (23) | Braxton, Ford (7) | Nolan (4) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,596 | 14-6 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 21 | July 12 | @ New York | 64-74 | Smith, Pierson (13) | Ford (12) | Nolan (4) | Madison Square Garden8,661 | 14-7 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 22 | July 16 | Chicago | 66-63 | Ford (14) | Pierson (8) | Nolan, Smith (4) | Palace of Auburn Hills15,210 | 15-7 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 23 | July 18 | @ Washington | 99-62 | Nolan (26) | Braxton, Hornbuckle (6) | Sam (8) | Verizon Center6,834 | 16-7 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 24 | July 20 | Sacramento | 85-88 | Nolan (27) | Ford (10) | Smith (6) | Palace of Auburn Hills9,138 | 16-8 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 25 | July 22 | Los Angeles | 81-84 | Smith (20) | Ford (9) | Hornbuckle, Smith (5) | Palace of Auburn Hills12,930 | 16-9 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 26 | July 24 | @ Houston | 61-79 | Nolan (23) | Nolan, Sam (9) | Nolan (4) | Reliant Arena7,261 | 16-10 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 27 | July 27 | San Antonio | 64-76 | Nolan (25) | Braxton (9) | Smith (6) | Palace of Auburn Hills9,537 | 16-11 |- y background:#DC143C; color:white August Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record |- | colspan="10" align="center" valign="middle" | Summer Olympic break |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 28 | August 29 | New York | 83-69 | Nolan (26) | Braxton, McWilliams-Franklin (7) | Smith (6) | Palace of Auburn Hills11,516 | 17-11 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 29 | August 31 | @ Chicago | 81-82 (OT) | Smith (23) | McWilliams-Franklin (11) | Nolan (6) | UIC Pavilion4,197 | 17-12 |- y background:#DC143C; color:white September Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Record |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 30 | September 5 | Indiana | 90-68 | Pierson (20) | Pierson (6) | McWilliams-Franklin, Pierson (4) | Palace of Auburn Hills9,287 | 18-12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 31 | September 6 | @ Washington | 84-69 | McWilliams-Franklin (21) | Nolan (10) | Smith (8) | Verizon Center9,976 | 19-12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 32 | September 9 | Phoenix | 89-78 | Nolan (18) | Braxton, Hornbuckle, McWilliams-Franklin (8) | Pierson, Smith (5) | Palace of Auburn Hills7,495 | 20-12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 33 | September 11 | Washington | 78-66 | Nolan (17) | McWilliams-Franklin (8) | Smith (6) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,145 | 21-12 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 34 | September 14 | @ New York | 61-59 | Nolan, Pierson (11) | Hornbuckle, Nolan (7) | Powell (4) | Madison Square Garden10,042 | 22-12 |- Postseason background:#0047AB; color:white 2008 Game Log: Postseason y background:#DC143C; color:white Eastern Conference Semifinals Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Series |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 1 | September 19 | @ Indiana | 81-72 | Nolan (22) | Braxton, McWilliams-Franklin (7) | Powell, Smith (3) | Conseco Fieldhouse7,613 | 1-0 |- bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 2 | September 21 | Indiana | 82-89 | Nolan, Pierson (16) | Pierson, Powell (7) | Pierson (5) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,219 | 1-1 |-bgcolor="bbffbb" | 3 | September 23 | Indiana | 80-61 | Nolan (21) | Hornbuckle (8) | Hornbuckle, McWilliams-Franklin (4) | Palace of Auburn Hills8,296 | 2-1 |- y background:#DC143C; color:white Eastern Conference Finals Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Series |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 1 | September 26 | @ New York | 56-60 | Nolan (22) | Hornbuckle, McWilliams-Franklin (7) | 4 players (2) | Madison Square Garden14,711 | 1-0 |-bgcolor="ffbbbb" | 2 | September 28 | New York | 64-55 | Nolan (22) | Taj McWilliams-Franklin (11) | 4 players (2) | EMU Convocation Center7,965 | 1-1 |- bgcolor="bbffbb" | 3 | September 29 | New York | 75-73 | Nolan (21) | Taj McWilliams-Franklin (8) | Nolan, Smith (3) | EMU Convocation Center7,429 | 2-1 |- y background:#DC143C; color:white WNBA Finals Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location/Attendance Series |-bgcolor="bbffbb" | 1 | October 1 | @ San Antonio | 77-69 | Smith (25) | Smith (9) | Nolan (4) | AT&T Center9,380 | 1-0 |-bgcolor="bbffbb" | 2 | October 3 | @ San Antonio | 69-61 | Smith (22) | Nolan (7) | Smith (6) | AT&T Center16,012 | 2-0 |-bgcolor="bbffbb" | 3 | October 5 | San Antonio | 76-60 | Smith (18) | Braxton, Hornbuckle (9) | Hornbuckle, Nolan (5) | EMU Convocation Center8,952 | 3-0 |- Player stats Regular season Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG Deanna Nolan Deanna Nolan 34 34 33.6 .465 .374 .863 3.9 4.4 1.2 0.3 15.8 Katie Smith Katie Smith 34 34 33.9 .383 .360 .887 2.8 4.0 0.9 0.1 14.7 Plenette Pierson Plenette Pierson 28 0 23.2 .457 .000 .752 4.9 2.3 0.9 1.2 11.9 Taj McWilliams-Franklin Taj McWilliams-Franklin 7 7 26.2 .422 1.000 .909 6.7 1.9 0.4 0.7 10.7 Cheryl Ford Cheryl Ford 24 24 26.5 .481 .000 .560 8.7 0.9 1.0 0.4 10.1 Kara Braxton Kara Braxton 33 10 17.9 .415 .000 .743 5.1 0.8 0.4 0.7 8.9 Tasha Humphrey Tasha Humphrey 22 16 13.5 .500 .385 .955 2.9 1.0 0.6 0.3 7.3 Alexis Hornbuckle Alexis Hornbuckle 34 0 22.0 .354 .356 .636 4.1 2.1 2.3 0.3 5.4 Elaine Powell Elaine Powell 16 16 19.6 .490 .500 .750 3.1 2.2 0.4 0.7 3.6 Olayinka Sanni Olayinka Sanni 31 9 10.5 .500 .000 .649 2.1 0.2 0.4 0.2 3.4 Ashley Shields Ashley Shields 7 0 6.3 .364 .333 .750 0.4 0.3 0.1 0.0 3.1 Sheri Sam Sheri Sam 32 15 14.9 .309 .286 .692 2.8 1.2 0.6 0.1 2.9 Eshaya Murphy Eshaya Murphy 13 3 9.4 .300 .263 .667 1.6 0.5 0.5 0.2 2.5 Kelly Schumacher Kelly Schumacher 7 0 12.7 .375 .000 1.000 2.9 0.7 0.3 0.4 2.0 Stacey Lovelace Stacey Lovelace 7 2 6.3 .286 .400 .667 1.0 0.1 0.1 0.0 1.4 LaToya Thomas LaToya Thomas 7 0 5.7 .267 .000 .000 0.7 0.1 0.1 0.1 1.1 Chrissy Givens Chrissy Givens 3 0 3.3 .000 .000 1.000 0.0 0.7 0.0 0.0 0.7 Wanisha Smith Wanisha Smith 1 0 0.0 .000 .000 .000 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Nancy Lieberman Nancy Lieberman 1 0 9.0 .000 .000 .000 0.0 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 Detroit Shock Regular Season Stats Postseason Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG Deanna Nolan Deanna Nolan 9 9 38.8 .359 .341 .939 4.6 2.9 2.1 0.3 17.6 Katie Smith Katie Smith 9 9 34.3 .410 .354 .758 4.0 2.4 0.4 0.1 15.3 Taj McWilliams-Franklin Taj McWilliams-Franklin 9 9 32.6 .490 .500 .864 7.0 2.1 1.0 1.3 12.9 Kara Braxton Kara Braxton 9 9 20.0 .500 .000 .650 5.3 1.0 0.4 0.6 8.6 Plenette Pierson Plenette Pierson 6 0 17.8 .474 .000 .846 3.0 1.7 0.7 0.3 7.8 Alexis Hornbuckle Alexis Hornbuckle 9 0 24.4 .429 .375 .750 4.9 2.1 1.2 0.8 6.3 Elaine Powell Elaine Powell 9 9 19.0 .588 .000 .818 2.3 2.0 0.7 0.0 3.2 Olayinka Sanni Olayinka Sanni 9 0 7.3 .438 .000 .500 1.8 0.3 0.3 0.0 1.8 Kelly Schumacher Kelly Schumacher 8 0 11.9 .438 .000 .000 3.0 0.4 0.1 0.4 1.8 Sheri Sam Sheri Sam 6 0 5.0 .286 .000 1.000 0.5 0.0 0.2 0.0 1.0 Ashley Shields Ashley Shields 3 0 1.3 .200 .000 .000 0.0 0.3 0.3 0.0 0.7 Detroit Shock Playoff Stats Awards and honors Katie Smith, WNBA Player of the Week (June 2–8) Deanna Nolan, WNBA Player of the Week (June 16–22 and July 14–20) Deanna Nolan, All-WNBA Defensive Second Team Katie Smith, All-WNBA Defensive Second Team Deanna Nolan, All-WNBA Second Team Katie Smith, WNBA Finals MVP References Category:Detroit Shock seasons Detroit Category:Eastern Conference (WNBA) championship seasons Category:WNBA championship seasons Detroit Shock