Basketball Hall-of-Famer and ESPN analyst Nancy Lieberman answers your questions and e-mails throughout the year. Click here to submit a question of your own.

Hey Nancy, if you have to choose right now, who do you think will win it all and who is your MVP?
- Delaine, Indianapolis

"I think that Indiana is going to win it. My MVP is tough to call: It's between Tamika Catchings and Lauren Jackson. It's a tie in my mind right now. Lauren's been outstanding and Catch is, well, Catch."

Is Diana Taurasi's recent behavior acceptable for a team captain, an ambassador of the league and a star of the game? It seems like she should have a little more class. What are your thoughts?
- Risa, Phoenix

"I suspect that if you asked Diana, she would love to take back what happened last Friday. Nobody wants something like that on your resume. But you have to look at the total person, and Diana has always been a great person and a great ambassador for the game. Sometimes our emotions get the best of us and I'm sure it's something she's not happy or proud of, but she's a big girl, she's serving her suspension and she'll learn from it.

"People forget that Diana just turned 25. She's still young! People have been watching her since she was a teenager at UConn, so they think she's been around forever, but she's still a kid! And young people will make mistakes every now and then. That's what she did, and she'll learn from it."

Hi, Nancy! What is wrong with the Sun? Sales is not playing well. She is shooting poorly and not defending well like she was before. Are they tuning Coach Thibault out or what? I wonder if the Sun miss Taj McWilliams-Franklin's leadership. I have never seen the Sun play like this. Any other issues come to mind?
- Joy, Bolingbrook, Ill.

"Defense, rebounding, not getting in the passing lane, letting teams get to the rim… Beside those and the things you mentioned, I don't see anything wrong (laughs).

"But seriously, I do think they're really missing Taj's leadership. She was a mom and a voice of reason with that team and she could dish out tough love when she needed to. The core success that Connecticut has achieved has always been based on its perimeter. So with Taj gone, there's so much more pressure on Sales, Katie Douglas and Lindsay Whalen. It's an extraordinary responsibility to have to be on your 'A' game every day. If they don't play well, the Sun probably aren't going to win.

"I honestly think that Connecticut is having trouble keeping up with the speed of the game. Teams are getting the ball up the court more quickly with the 8-second backcourt rule and they're taking quicker shots. Connecticut is not a great one-on-one perimeter basketball team. They used to be a great rotation or team defense, where they would force you to areas of the floor. Now teams are looking to get quicker shots and they're doing it off the bounce and the Sun haven't been able to keep up.

"I don't think they're tuning Mike out. The starters cannot be complacent and maybe it's time to bring some new faces into the starting lineup… just to shake things up."

Someone is trying to tell me it's illegal to dunk in the WNBA. I can't believe this is true. Is it? And if it is legal, why do you think more women don't dunk when we see they are more than capable in warmups and practice? Thanks.
- Dana, Sacramento

"First of all, my sources tell me that it's not illegal to dunk. And if someone could, I think they would. Dunking is obviously a fun part of the game. It adds an entertainment aspect to the growth of women's basketball and I hope that more players do try to dunk."

I was watching Saturday night's Mystics-Sky game and saw Dominique Canty's injury. It didn't look good at all! With Canty being out for several weeks, do you think the Sky will need to make a trade for another point guard (Kristin Haynie, maybe?) to keep their season alive?
- Matt, Wilmington, Del.

"I don't know if they're going to need to make a trade, but being without Canty is really debilitating. She's such a great team player and has loads of experience. Jia Perkins or Stacey Dales could slide over, but the problem with the Sky over the last few games is that they're just not defending. It's not the offense. Of course, they need to hit more shots, but they really have to defend better."

Dear Nancy, by the time casual fans notice the WNBA season has started, it's over. In an age when media coverage of the major men's sports stays strong throughout the year, a 34-game schedule is not going to get you noticed. We're already talking All-Star Game, and the season feels like it started yesterday. Unless the league expands via independent ownership, lengthens the schedule to 50-60 games and scores additional national TV time, I do not see the WNBA being anything more than "the other league" Taurasi and Bird happen to play in when they are not hooping it up in Russia. Here's hoping that the second decade of WNBA basketball brings more games, more fans and a greater sense of identity. Your thoughts?
- JB, Palmetto, Fla.

"Players certainly want to play more than 34 games. And I wish that the game were at a point in this country where we could go out there, play a longer schedule and our best players wouldn't have to go to Russia to make a living. That's the best scenario. But we're still growing. We're still building our brand and our business. And we have to continue to be patient. When we build, we have to build right because we're not going to get second or third chances. Everybody is working toward growing our game, but we have to do it in the proper timeframe."

I'm a longtime Ruth Riley fan and can't help but notice how her production has fallen off. Do you think she is at the end of her career?
- Tom, Pennsauken, N.J.

"I don't think she's at the end of her career, and I know that Ruth is still a tremendous player. She might not be the force that she was, but she's very serviceable to a team. She's a great teammate and is mature beyond her years. You can't look at her in terms of pure numbers. You have to look at the whole package: Ruth Riley the player is a very competent player. Ruth Riley the person is an All-Star."

I'm 11, and I loooove basketball. It's my life. I hope to play for the Liberty someday. I'm an excellent point guard, but I'm not that good at shooting. My friend is really good at shooting but stinks at ball handling, and I'm the best at that in the whole grade. She's my best friend and we know each other's game, but if I didn't have her to help me shoot, I wouldn't know what to do. Could you give me some advice?
- Mandy, Kearny, N.J.

"Yes! E-mail me through my website at nancylieberman.com and I would be glad to help you as much as I can."