Monarchs Blog and Q&A

Bee staff writer Melody Gutierrez grew up in Twentynine Palms. At 14-years-old, she decided to combine her two passions -- sports and writing -- when she became a special assignments reporter for the Desert Trail, her hometown weekly newspaper. Melody headed to Northern California in 2000 to attend Chico State and has remained in the region ever since. She earned an internship with The Bee and subsequently became a staff writer in 2004 and has covered virtually every sport, starting with high schools, up through college and then the pros. Melody took over coverage of the Monarchs last season and chronicled the team's pursuit of a second straight league championship -- a quest that fell just short.

Melody welcomes your questions and will answer as many as she can as the season progresses.

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May 02, 2007

Jersey look doesn't have uniform appeal

Yolanda Griffith isn't one to sugar coat things. If she is unhappy, the scowl on her face will tell you first.

Following Tuesday's practice, I asked her what she thought of the new WNBA uniforms, which have created quite the buzz as the design hit the Internet. The Monarchs veteran slumped back into a black chair, folded her long arms and announced "they're ugly."

In its first year as the official WNBA outfitter, adidas redesigned the uniforms for a "new distinct style that creates a women's basketball uniform that looks better than any other," according to Tuesday's WNBA press release.

The form-fitting uniforms have a tribal pattern going down the side, which features a different design for each team associated with their logo. The Monarchs design takes the insignia of the 'M' and 'S' in the team logo and combines them for a swirling pattern.

Others aren't so abstract: Houston has comets, San Antonio has stars and Los Angeles has sparks.

The uniforms have V-necks, racer backs (looks like a sports bra) and are designed to be tucked in. Players' numbers are above their names on the back of the uniform. The material is also different, using a fabric designed to regulate an athlete’s body temperature.

Griffith specifically said she wasn't a fan of the new material and felt like the league had decent uniforms last year. She said the uniforms look "cheap."

Conversely, Monarchs coach Jenny Boucek said she liked the new style and felt they were "very flattering."

You can form your opinion by clicking here: http://www.wnba.com/news/newuniforms_070501.html

Posted by Bill Bradley, May 2, 2007 12:27 PM

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