When Dan Hughes decided he would leave the Charlotte Sting and take the job with the Cleveland Rockers last October, how could you not shake your head and wonder?

	Merlakia Jones is averaging 10.5 points for the Rockers.

Cleveland was the worst team in the league last season with a 7-25 record, so any improvement would be nice, but with many of the same players back, how much improvement could be made?

Both valid questions, but Hughes appears to have the answers.

Although it seems a little early to declare the surprise team of the WNBA season, Cleveland is already the winner after a 5-1 start.

The Rockers, winners of five consecutive games after an opening-night loss to Minnesota, need just two wins to match their win total from last season. And as they head into Friday's game with Detroit, the Rockers also are in first place in the Eastern Conference.

Admittedly, the Eastern Conference is the weaker of the two, and some usually strong teams -- Charlotte and New York -- have gotten off to rough starts. But that doesn't take away from the degree of turnaround in Cleveland.

According to point guard Suzie McConnell Serio, it's a whole new attitude.

"We've got a lot of belief in each other and we play to win," McConnell Serio said. "I can't say it was the same way last year."

Cleveland, a playoff team two years ago, is winning again with two Ds -- depth and defense. The former has always been more elusive in the WNBA, yet Hughes is making good use of his bench. Nine players average at least 10 minutes a game, and the Rockers' bench is averaging 24 minutes and score more than double the points of the opposition.

"I think what has happened here is that the players have done a great job of buying into some of those intangibles," Hughes said. "We've become a defensive team, enabled to score off our defense, whether it's defending shots or causing turnovers. The offensive chemistry sometimes takes a little longer. Defense is the way to keep us in a game."

The Rockers have finally moved on after the departure of Isabelle Fijalkowski, the team's star player in its first two seasons. Fijalkowski decided not to return to the team last season and it's clear she will not be back at all.

Eva Nemcova has taken over the role as Cleveland's go-to player. The forward is currently leading the team in scoring at 15.2 points per game and is shooting better than 40 percent from 3-point land. She is also the only player on the team averaging more than 30 minutes.

McConnell Serio is largely recovered from the foot injury that limited her playing time last year, but she still fights nagging injuries and is splitting time with rookie Helen Darling, who helped lead Penn State to the Final Four just two months ago.

	“	Coming off last year's miserable season, (Dan Hughes) has gotten us back on the winning track and instilled a lot of confidence in this team. ”
		— Suzie McConnell Serio

Darling, whose draft status plummeted when she was scouted as undersized, is holding her own quite well.

"Suzie brings us her veteran leadership," Hughes said, "and then Helen comes in, and she's an athletic point guard and a really nice complement."

McConnell Serio, who would appear to be approaching the latter days of her career, doesn't mind sharing her spot.

"Helen has done a great job and I'm willing to do whatever it takes to make our team successful," McConnell Serio said.

Earlier this week, the Rockers dealt guard Michelle Edwards to Seattle for center Nina Bjedov. Edwards, a starter in Cleveland's three previous seasons, was not getting much playing time and both Hughes and Edwards saw this an opportunity to make a change.

"Through the first five games, her minutes were not extensive," Hughes said. "They were not up to the standards that she would like to have them. An opportunity presented itself. Getting a chance to play is something she wanted in her career and Seattle can offer her that opportunity."

In the meantime, the Rockers are getting contributions from just about everybody else on the roster.

Off-guard Merlakia Jones was an All-Star last year, but has never really been a star player. Again, she is doing the not-so-glamorous work of defensive stopper.

Vicki Hall is a surprise starter who had the best game of her career Monday against Indiana with 12 points and six rebounds. Hall is splitting time with defensive-rebounding specialist Rushia Brown.

Chasity Melvin also has improved quite a bit in the post, while the team's other rookie, center Ann Wauters, is going to be something of a project, but ultimately a worthwhile one as far as Hughes is concerned.

"She's very mobile and she's getting better from game to game," Hughes said.

Cleveland has been fortunate in the schedule department thus far. The Rockers have played three of their first six games at home and don't face their first back-to-back games until this weekend.

"I know there's going to be peaks and valleys for a lot of teams this season," Hughes said. "Some of the more difficult things, we haven't hit yet. But we've got to learn to play through those situations and be successful."

McConnell Serio handed a lot of the credit for the team's turnaround to Hughes.

"He has brought a lot of enthusiasm. He is a great teacher and a great motivator," she said. "Coming off last year's miserable season, he has gotten us back on the winning track and instilled a lot of confidence in this team."

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