Questions Aplenty as Camp Opens

Needing to prove herself in training camp is nothing new for Washington Mystics point guard Nikki Blue. She did it last year, and in seasons before that. But as she and the Mystics began workouts this week at Verizon Center, Blue and her teammates know that there is much more at stake than in the past.

The Mystics opened camp with 15 players on the official roster -- not including injured center Tasha Humphrey -- a number that must shrink to the WNBA's new maximum roster size of 11 by June 5. Gone are the days when teams could keep three point guards or an extra post player just for depth. And with a new coaching staff, each player must prove her worth all over again.

"I think just them walking in the gym and seeing two or three people at their position got their attention," Mystics Coach Julie Plank said. "The drills we do are very competitive, we keep score, and from their play, I can tell that they know there will be tough decisions that will need to be made."

The battle at point guard between Blue, former first overall draft pick Lindsey Harding and seven-year veteran Kiesha Brown may be the most competitive for the Mystics again this season. Washington has long lacked consistency and poise at point guard.

Harding, whom Washington acquired in the offseason from Minnesota for two picks in the 2009 draft, has struggled with knee injuries throughout her two WNBA seasons, but the Mystics are confident in her health. By most accounts, Harding is the front-runner for the starting spot, leaving Blue and Brown, who returns for her second stint in Washington after parts of four seasons with the Mystics from 2002 to 2005, lobbying for a backup spot.

"I just gotta show the coaches that I have improved. . . . This is so much more intense than my first three years. This staff has taken it to a new level with our workouts," said Blue, who earned the starting position out of last year's training camp but was limited by a nagging ankle injury throughout the season.

Also in question is the exact combination of post players who will remain on the final roster. Nakia Sanford and Crystal Langhorne return from last year's squad, both able to play center and power forward, and veterans Chasity Melvin and Kelly Schumacher were added to the mix in the offseason. Humphrey is also back but has been sidelined by a left knee sprain she suffered before camp opened; she will continue to be evaluated by team doctors.

In addition to proving themselves to the organization's fourth head coach in four seasons, the Mystics need to muster the energy to survive Plank's up-tempo and high-impact practice sessions. Participating in two-a-days for the first time in at least four years, the players are showing off bruises like battle scars after just four days of workouts.

No other coach has wheeled a dry-erase board down to the practice court to diagram drills and plays either.

"It's a complete 180-degree difference from last year to this year," said Monique Currie, who will compete against rookie Marissa Coleman for playing time. "From the way things are run and operated but just the demands this staff has for us every day. To step on every line, finish every drill, we can't get away with shortcuts. We're not a [league champion] Detroit, we can't half do things sometimes because we don't feel like it. We can't get away with that and survive, whereas Detroit might be able to."

Note: The Mystics play the New York Liberty today at 11 a.m. in a preseason game.

-- Katie Carrera