5 DEARICA HAMBY

6-3 forward, Wake Forest

■ By the numbers: 9.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.1 steals

Hamby started the season playing some of the best basketball of her career after coach Becky Hammon moved her into the starting lineup. She earned the second All-star appearance of her career, but a loss of form and the Aces’ poor team defense resulted in Hamby, a two-time sixth player of the year, returning to the reserve unit Aug. 7.

She then suffered a right knee bone contusion Aug. 9, recovered to appear during the playoffs and made a huge impact during the Game 1 of the WNBA Finals.

Did you know?

Hamby had a career-high 19 rebounds to help the Aces beat the Storm May 8. The performance was one short of the Aces’ single-game rebounding record, which is jointly held by three players: Liz Cambage, Jayne Appel-marinelli and current Aces general manager Natalie Williams.