Dangerfield settling into life in Minnesota

Crystal Dangerfield is her own toughest critic.

The reigning WNBA Rookie of the Year and former UConn star hasn’t quite matched her form from last season. Because of it, she’s seen her playing time with the Minnesota Lynx dip.

“I’m hard on myself,” Dangerfield said recently. “It’s definitely not what I expected from myself this season, but there is a lot of season left. I’m confident in myself to turn it around.”

Her scoring is down from 16.2 points on 47.1% shooting to 8.5 points on 38.1% shooting, and her minutes per game have dropped from 30 to 20.4.

Whatever the case, Dangerfield figured she’d use the Olympic break to reset. She didn’t have much planned besides relaxing, working out and maybe some local sightseeing. A staycation, if you will.

“I know people like to go on vacation and stuff,” Dangerfield, 23, said. “I’m still pretty young. I don’t have the luxury to do that yet.

Maybe I’ll just explore Minnesota.”

Dangerfield, you see, is still settling into her new home. She spent her entire rookie season in the bubble in Florida, some 1,700 miles from where she lives now. So far, she likes it. “It’s actually pretty nice,” said Dangerfield, who moved into an apartment in downtown Minneapolis. “It’s a mixture for me at least of Tennessee and Atlanta.”

The Lynx will resume their season Aug. 15 against the Liberty at home. Minnesota (12-7) again finds itself in the thick of the playoff race, riding a league-high seven game win streak. Only Seattle, Las Vegas and Connecticut have fared better thus far.

Leading the Lynx in scoring is Dangerfield’s former college teammate Napheesa Collier, who is averaging 17.3 points after arriving late from playing overseas. Collier, the WNBA’s top rookie in 2019, made her Olympic debut with Team USA and won a gold medal at the Tokyo Games.

“I told her maybe a week before they announced the team, ‘I’m proud of you no

matter what,’ ” Dangerfield said. “Seeing how she’s grown, it’s been awesome.”

Dangerfield has bounced between the starting lineup and the bench this season. Layshia Clarendon, a nineyear veteran, has received the bulk of starts at point guard lately.

That hasn’t been the only adjustment for Dangerfield. Teams are guarding her differently this year. She’s not getting as many open looks in the paint, forcing her to improve her perimeter shot.

She was 33.3% from 3point range as a rookie.

“Horrible,” said Dangerfield, who has improved to 37.5% this year. “Midrange, I can always rely on that. I never want to be one-dimensional.”

That was a focus last offseason. So, too, was getting rest. Dangerfield dealt with hip issues at UConn, and her health is still a concern at times.

“It’s never felt 100%. It’s just what I know I can play through,” Dangerfield explained. “I’ll never play through legit pain, knowing I need to sit down. It’s getting to a point I could tolerate it.”

“This last offseason was the first legit, legit offseason I’ve had in forever,” she added.

It included a trip back to Storrs in December. She watched her alma mater beat DePaul, 75-52.

Dangerfield, who played 134 games at UConn, was impressed by how last year’s freshman-heavy team evolved under Hall of Fame coach Geno Auriemma.

“The way that they came in there, held their own and did a lot for that team, that was big,” she said. “That’s not something you see [often]. He’s hard on the freshmen. They don’t get those opportunities often. They played huge minutes and contributed.”

Auriemma — now 67 years old and about to enter his 37th season — was rejuvenated by the youthful exuberance of the newcomers, including star guard Paige Bueckers. Of course, Dangerfield noticed.

“The seniors that we had, it was really business,” she said. “Then (Megan Walker) left early, and that group, they didn’t have a senior. That group, they created their own identity. It was the right group for the right year.

“There was definitely a different side [to Auriemma] that you could see this year.”