At no point in the most difficult season of her winning-dominated career did she give in to the frustration, or rage against the basketball gods who tore asunder what looked like a fun and exciting historic year.
asserted
what → dominate → year
It is to her credit that the head coach of the Toronto Tempo took the hits, watched an unimaginable parade to the injury list, looked to a brighter future and just got on with the job, even if it wasn’t much like the one she took earlier this year.
asserted
she → take → one
“It’s been difficult, but in the end, I’ve still enjoyed it,” Brondello said in a one-on-one conversation with the Star following a Tempo practice this week ahead of Friday night’s home game against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever.
asserted
Brondello → enjoy → Clark
“I knew it would be a challenge.
asserted
it → know → ?
There have been some challenging times but I still think the vision’s in place.”
asserted
vision → think → place
The vision — a time-consuming process of building sustainable winning from an expansion team — was blurred most of the season.
asserted
vision → consume → season
Virtually every key player on the roster missed extended time because of injury and that simply wrecked the season that began at 9-9, the eighth-best record in the league at the time.
asserted
that → miss → time
There was no consistency in the roster and that bled into the games.
asserted
that → be → games
The Tempo were good — not great but good — when they had a full roster.
asserted
they → have → roster
Brondello was constantly searching, tinkering, far too often.
asserted
Brondello → search → ?
It hurt the coach because she’s human.
asserted
she → hurt → coach
But it didn’t hurt too much because she couldn’t afford to let it.
asserted
she → hurt → it
“It got to me during the 10- or 11-game losing streak,” the 58-year-old said, missing the longest-streak mark by one.
asserted
old → get → one
“I felt for the players but they continued to come to practice, work hard and be coachable.
asserted
they → feel → practice
That’s all you can ask in these situations.”
asserted
you → ’ → situations
There is no doubt this has been like no other season in Brondello’s career.
asserted
this → be → career
In her first 13 years as a WNBA head coach, her teams all qualified for the playoffs, and in 2014 and 2024 she guided teams to the championship.
asserted
she → qualify → championship
She’s spent the off-seasons coaching the Australian national team since 2017 and has an Olympic and two World Cup medals to her credit.
asserted
She → spend → credit
An 11-29 record with the Tempo heading into the final four games of the regular season is an outlier, no question, and the only blip on an outstanding resumé.
asserted
record → head → resumé
There was a one-game suspension for an inadvertent inappropriate comment about Atlanta star Angel Reese that was another uncharacteristic blemish.
asserted
that → be → Reese
But the odd season never beat her.
asserted
season → beat → her
“You’ve got to enjoy the journey,” she said.
asserted
she → get → journey
“If you just focus on wins and losses, it would be miserable.
asserted
it → focus → wins
I made a choice to come to work and have joy every day because we’re blessed to be here and represent this team.”
asserted
we → make → team
For all the histrionics and disappointments of the season, Brondello is excited about the future and knew full well when she signed that this is a process that plays out over years.
asserted
that → know → years
Rookie Kiki Rice had a promising first season, Marina Mabrey became one of the best three-point shooters in the league, Brittney Sykes was a leader, Nyara Sabally and Maria Conde were intriguing newcomers.
asserted
Sabally → have → league
The Tempo had to deal with an unforeseen time crunch while carefully crafting their roster.
asserted
Tempo → have → roster
“In Year 2, you’re not going to start anew,” Brondello said.
asserted
Brondello → go → Year
“You’re going to have continuity with several players.
asserted
You → go → players
There are some holes in our team, but the continuity will help because now we can build on the foundations we built this year.
asserted
we → be → foundations
We’re going to have a group of five or six women back next year who know the system and how to play.”
asserted
who → go → system
There are strong points with the roster now, a likely top-three draft pick coming and a full off-season to add depth players.
asserted
pick → be → players
It’s been bad and yet looks good.
asserted
It → look → ?
“For me, it’s about always growing, that’s part of coaching,” she said.
asserted
she → ’ → coaching
“We’ve got the first year of expansion (in) and we’re going to learn so much.
asserted
we → get → much
We’re doing things for the first time.
asserted
We → do → time
The experience helps us.
asserted
experience → help → us
“It’s a great challenge to see what we can do in Year 2 because I know how hard it is to win.
asserted
it → ’ → Year
I’ve won two championships in all my time coaching and being in the playoffs.
asserted
I → win → playoffs
This is the first year I haven’t been in the playoffs, but my ego’s not that big because I knew this would be a challenge, especially with our injuries.”
The fans certainly seem to understand the situation.
asserted
fans → ’ → situation
…and 8 more, not listed.
The Aporia
