The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Dangerfield off and running with Lynx
The WNBA’s opening weekend is in the books, and it was an unforgettable one for a former Husky. In all, six games were played over two days, including one between Connecticut and Minnesota that went down to the wire.
Let’s look at what we learned and what we can expect moving forward. CD an instant hit: It’s no secret that Lynx coach and general manager Cheryl Reeve has an affinity for former UConn players. She even uses a specific label when discussing the ones she brings aboard: “Plugand-play.”
Crystal Dangerfield,
Reeve’s newest ex-Husky, is already living up to that billing. Dangerfield, the 16th overall pick in April’s draft, had a memorable debut in Minnesota’s 77-69 victory over Connecticut, recording 10 points (all in the second half ), two rebounds and one assist in 21 minutes off the bench.
What made her performance all the more impressive was that the Lynx, who trailed by nine at halftime, were plus-17 when Dangerfield was on the floor.
“Our plan was not that Crystal would see significant minutes,” Reeve said. “We’re always ready when the game dictates something different, and that’s why we got an opportunity.
We were just looking for something different at the guard spot, and she made the most of it. That’s what UConn players do. She’s ready, she’s confident.”
Reeve has said all along that she’d like to bring Dangerfield along slowly, but if Sunday is any indication, that may not be necessary moving forward.
All eyes on Sabrina: Sabrina Ionescu is, in fact, a rookie. But she certainly isn’t being treated like one.
In her first game with New York, she saw all sorts of different defensive looks, from pressures to traps. She struggled from the field, shooting 0-for-8 from 3 and 4-for-17 overall, in a 87-71 loss to Seattle.
The expectations surrounding Ionescu are massive. They normally are for No. 1 overall picks. But Ionescu, who rewrote the NCAA record books during her legendary career at Oregon, is in a category by herself. Saturday was just another reminder of that.
“I’m really just trying to figure out what I can do to help us win,” said Ionescu, who finished with 12 points, six rebounds and four assists. “I know on every single ball screen a lot of attention is on me, trying to get the ball out of my hands. I’m a rookie, and there’s a lot of expectation on me coming in and just producing the numbers I did in college. I definitely think there’s going to be a lot of down and a lot of adversity that I have to face in order to get there.”
Around the ‘Wubble’: Kudos to NBA star Kyrie Irving, who has launched a campaign called the “KAI Empowerment Initiative,” which will provide financial support to WNBA players who are sitting out this season because of coronavirus concerns or social justice reasons.
Irving, who is fully funding the $1.5 million initiative, said via the Associated Press that he came up with the idea after speaking with Natasha Cloud and Jewell Lloyd. They put Irving in touch with other WNBA players who discussed with him the challenges they faced when deciding whether to perform in 2020. Cloud is one of several players sitting out to help fight racism.
Quotable: “If you watch the clip when I blocked it, everybody on the court froze. So that’s how Phoenix was able to get the ball back. Nneka (Ogwumike) was in shock. … It was overwhelming a little bit with my phone because everywhere you turn I was getting a notification of the block.” — 5-foot-9 Sparks guard Brittney Sykes on the reaction to her block of 6-9 Brittney Griner
Appointment viewing: Washington-Connecticut (Tuesday, 7 p.m., NBATV/ NESN+): It doesn’t pack quite the punch it could have, especially with Jonquel Jones, Tina Charles and Elena Delle Donne not playing, but it’s still a WNBA Finals rematch.