In women's game, it remains Diana and everybody else

Mohegan - It happens like this at all-star games, where pretty much nothing happens. And so while it was worthwhile to have witnessed the world's best Saturday in Neon Uncasville, the game had all the flavor of cauliflower.

But we learned this much: The best player, the most dynamic player, the most dynamic personality and the reason the United States will win gold in 2012 is still named Diana Taurasi.

All these games and all these years later, Geno Auriemma can still say it with conviction.

When a reporter in London asks him how the U.S. won gold, he can say, "We had Diana and they didn't."

Taurasi did nothing spectacular on Saturday. But to watch her, even watching the mundane task of interacting with teammates, is to watch a different level of greatness from anything else in women's basketball. It's brighter than ever. It's the primary difference between her and Maya Moore, the next great one, who isn't in Diana's neighborhood yet, all the comparisons not withstanding.

Moore is a marvelous talent with an understated mien that is to be appreciated. But she does not affect games - or her teammates - as Taurasi does. Not yet.

That's because nobody does. Taurasi radiates a self-belief that becomes team belief. It's why UConn won in 2003 and 2004, after four first-round draft choices graduated. She is still a show by herself, a player you'd pay to see, as many of the customers did a few weeks ago when the Sun played Phoenix.

It was a Friday night in late June, a game that would have drawn about 7,500 normally to Mohegan Sun Arena. But the place was full and buzzing and alive because Diana was there. And the gasp that went up when Taurasi unloaded the potential game-tying 3-pointer in the closing seconds was priceless. Taurasi wasn't merely responsible for 2,000 more tickets sold, but she was the best show of the season to date.

Just by being Diana.

"Diana's ability to make everyone around her better … it's just in her," Sue Bird said. "When you're her teammate, you're made to feel like a million bucks. It's the way she is, the way she talks. It raises the level of people around her."

That, sports fans, is a hosanna that applies to one person in women's basketball.

Taurasi is smart enough to know it, too. That's why her deference to Moore is both amusing and inspiring. Take, for instance, her banter with Connecticut Post columnist Chris Elsberry on Friday. Elsberry asked her who would win a 1-on-1 game between Taurasi and Moore.

"Oh, she'd kill me," Taurasi said. "Yeah, she'd kill me."

"Really?" Elsberry said. "How come?"

"She's Maya Moore."

"You're Diana Taurasi."

"She'd kill me."

"Oh, come on."

"If she spotted me five, I think I could win."

It is grossly unfair to Moore to involve her in some tale of the tape with Taurasi. But since the question pops up now and then, you should know that even the UConn coaches don't think it's an argument. This was a topic of occasional discussion during the NCAA tournament. Hey, they love Maya. What's not to love? But they know there's a difference between being a great scorer and being a 24/7 force.

Remember that Moore spent ample time on the bench in the 2010 tournament because of foul trouble. They were not smart plays. That's not necessarily shocking, given Moore's youth.

"Each of them does different things," Bird said. "Each of them affects games in different ways. I haven't been around Maya enough in a team setting. But what sets Diana apart is the kind of teammate she is. It sets her apart from everyone. She could take four scrubs and make them look like all-stars."

It wasn't lost on the players Saturday that the loudest cheers belonged to Moore. That's because she was the only player in uniform who is still a UConn Husky. And while there was plenty of din for Renee Montgomery, Tina Charles, Swin Cash, Bird, Taurasi, Lindsay Whalen and Katie Douglas, Moore was the darling.

For the foreseeable future, though, Moore is going to be unwittingly involved in comparisons with Taurasi. She'll lose them all. And that's OK. There's only one Diana.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro.