A
WNBA expansion team in the
1999 season. In its three
seasons, the Miracle has made the playoffs once, losing to the
Cleveland Rockers in the first round in
2000. In 1999 and
2001, the team went 15-17 and 13-19, respectively, finishing one spot away from the
playoffs each time.
The Miracle did an
excellent job building their team before the 1999 season. Through various drafts and expansion allocations, the Miracle picked up
rookie small forward Nykesha Sales, rookie
center Taj McWilliams (now
Taj McWilliams-Franklin), former Rockers
shooting guard Adrienne Johnson and former
ABL Columbus Quest point guard Shannon Johnson. All four players are still with the team, though Adrienne Johnson is coming off a torn
Achilles' tendon. McWilliams-Franklin and Sales were
All-Stars in each of their three seasons in the league.
The Miracle have a new coach for the
2002 season former
NBA player
Dee Brown after previous coach
Carolyn Peck moved to the
University of Florida. Brown served in the Miracle's front office in 2001, and he was a former player with the
Orlando Magic, the Miracle's NBA
sibling team. Both the Miracle and the Magic play at the
TD Waterhouse Centre.
1/25/03 update: The Miracle lost a lot of money in 2002, and their owners (RDV Sports) have decided to cease operations. The team is now the property of the WNBA, who are reportedly trying to move the team to Hartford, Connecticut.
2/20/03 update: The Miracle were purchased by the Mohegan Sun, an Indian casino in Connecticut, and will move there for the 2003 season. Their new name is the Connecticut Sun.
Sources/More info:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/basketball/miracle/
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/basketball/miracle/orl-sptmiraclehistory.htmlstory
http://www.orlandosentinal.com/sports/basketball/miracle/orl-spt-miracleroster.htmlstory
http://www.wnba.com