Congratulations to Georgia’s Tasha Humphrey who was selected by the Detroit Shock with the 11th overall pick in the first round of Wednesday’s WNBA draft. She is Georgia’s eighth WNBA first-round selection; only Tennessee and Connecticut have produced more.

It was a bit of a surprise and disappointment for local fans that the new Atlanta expansion team passed on Humphrey at the #8 pick, opting instead for Tamera Young of James Madison. But Atlanta’s mistake is Humphrey’s gain. Instead of being part of an expansion franchise, she finds herself on a contender. Detroit won the league title two years ago and remains strong led by Deanna Nolan, another former Lady Bulldog great. Detroit’s first pick at #4 was Alexis Hornbuckle of Tennessee. Besides being outstanding players, Humphrey and Hornbuckle are both very smart on the court with great awareness. It goes without saying that two decorated players from Tennessee and Georgia should be assets in Detroit.

The situation is great for Tasha. She’s on a good team with a chance to win a title as a rookie, she won’t be the only quality player drawing attention from defenses, and she should relate to Detroit coach Bill Laimbeer’s style easily. Yet another Lady Bulldog, Kara Braxton, is the liklely Detroit starter at center.

I can’t let this post go without mentioning the #9 pick. Amber Holt of MTSU originally signed with Georgia, but she was "rejected a week before the fall semester because course credits for her major weren’t accepted." It’s an understatement to say that a player who was among the most prolific scorers in the nation would have made a difference on a Georgia team that struggled to produce offense. Insult was added to injury when Holt helped to lead MTSU to an upset win at Georgia in December of 2006.