The Shock entered the 1999-2000 offseason with its first ever playoff appearance in its back pocket, and a solid core of players to build around in Wendy Palmer, Sandy Brondello and Jennifer Azzi. Unfortunately two of those three players were out of the Motor City prior to the start of training camp. Even more alarming � only five players who were on the roster for Detroit�s 1999 playoff loss to the Charlotte Sting were in training camp in 2000.

The first casualty came in the form of Brondello who was left exposed in the 2000 Expansion Draft. Miami, Indiana, Portland and Seattle joined the league that season, and Brondello indicated that she would stay in her native Australia in the summer of 2000 to train with the Australian national team. The Sol selected the guard in the second round of the Expansion Draft, and the Shock also lost forward Leslie Brown in the fourth round to Miami.

In March of 2000, Detroit took another hit when Azzi announced that she was no longer interested in playing in the WNBA sighting financial considerations and a lack of motivation as her reasons. �It certainly comes down to a salary, that�s a business decision, and that I am ready to explore other things without basketball,� Azzi said in a conference call with San Francisco Bay Area media at the time. She added, �I�ve always thought that my advantage over other people is my drive, my motivation. And when I don't feel those things, then I know that something is wrong.�

Ultimately, Azzi did sign a contract with the WNBA, but moments later Head Coach and General Manager Nancy Leiberman-Cline traded Azzi closer to her West-Coast roots by sending her to the Utah Starzz along with the 12th overall pick in the draft in exchange for the third and eighth overall selections.

When draft day rolled around 24 hours later, the Shock used those two first-round picks to select Edwina Brown and Tamicha Jackson. With the rest of their draft picks Detroit selected Madina Slaise in the second round (No. 28 overall), Chavonne Hammond in the third (No. 44) and Cal Bouchard in the fourth (No. 60).

The WNBA allocated six additional players to the Shock training camp roster on May 1 � Anna DeForge, Barbara Farris, Isabu Milton, Vicky Picott, Darla Simpson, and Elena Tornikidou.

�In a sense, it�s as though we are starting over,� Lieberman-Cline said of her roster turnover. �But with the youth and talent we have now, this team is set up for eight years or more.�

The 2000 regular season got off to a good start as Detroit upended the Sacramento Monarchs 77-73, but the Shock never really got things untracked all year long. They were 2-2 after four games, 4-4 after eight, 5-5 after 10, 6-6 after 12. They were the very definition of average throughout the first 20 games of the season � a �perfect� 10-10 record.

There were some bright spots along the way including a WNBA-record 111 points scored in a 37-point win over the expansion Indiana Fever. Anna DeForge also showed flashes of the player she would later become with the Phoenix Mercury, leading the Shock in three-point field goal percentage. On the flip side, Detroit also permitted the Monarchs to drop 108 points against them in a 12-point loss.

Despite heading into August with a 12-15 mark, the Shock still held a half game edge over Washington (11-15) for the fourth and final Eastern Conference playoff spot. New York (18-10) had already sewn up a berth, Cleveland (15-12) had almost punched its ticket and Orlando (14-13) looked like a lock for the three seed.

In control of their own destiny, the Shock dropped its next three games against Los Angeles, Washington and Orlando. Still, with two games remaining, at Indiana and vs. New York, the Shock (12-18) had an outside shot at making the postseason. The Mystics (13-17) had a one-game advantage and games at Orlando and vs. Cleveland still on the schedule. Washington also owned the tie-breaker against Detroit having beaten the Shock in each of their three meetings during the regular season.

On August 7, the Mystics fell to Orlando, 65-57, while Detroit topped Indiana, 74-63, sending both teams into their season finales on August 9 with identical 13-18 records. The Shock took care of its end of the bargain by beating New York, 66-63, but Washington upended Cleveland, 60-48, to pick up the four seed in the East.

Despite the disappointing end to the season Lieberman-Cline had nothing but positive things to say about her squad following the game. �I�m very proud of them. With their backs against the wall, all they did was come out and play hard. I think this team connected with our fans on a pretty special level.�