The Seattle Storm handed the Minnesota Lynx their first loss of the season on June 11.
Storm veteran guard Erica Wheeler was emotional and filled with gratitude in her post-game interview after the team’s 94-84 victory.
“Oh man, you guys are amazing. What? Today is Wednesday. You guys got off work to come see us. Come on, man. That’s heart. That’s dedication. That’s love. And that’s what I’ve been feeling since I’ve been here. That’s why I’m emotional,” said Wheeler.
New Beginnings
Wheeler entered the league in 2015 after going undrafted in 2013. She played a few seasons overseas before getting her first shot in the WNBA with the New York Liberty. However, she only played three games for New York.
The Rutgers product received an opportunity with the Atlanta Dream in 2015 and played 17 games for the franchise. She went on to play for the Indiana Fever, who handed the keys to Caitlin Clark last season, the Los Angeles Sparks, and now the Storm where she may have found her new home.
Wheeler is averaging 10.8 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 4.1 assists while shooting a career-high 45.8% from three. She has played in all ten games for Seattle and started in three games thus far.
Early Start
Currently, the Storm are 6-4 on the season and are occupying the fifth seed in the league. Wednesday night’s victory is the franchise’s fourth win over a team above .500.
In addition to the win over Minnesota, the team is on a three-game win streak. Nneka Ogwumike (21) and Wheeler (20) led the way in scoring in their win over the Lynx.
Skylar Diggins-Smith (18), Ezi Magbegor (13), and Gabby Williams (12) chipped in with double-digit scoring. However, the team held Minnesota to 48.4% shooting from the floor and forced 12 turnovers.
While the WNBA season is only a quarter of the way through, some players have left for EuroBasket play. Needless to say, Seattle will retain their roster throughout the whole season.
Storm Rookie Dominique Malonga and Williams decided to forgo their EuroBasket season to focus on the WNBA. As a result, the franchise will be at full strength moving forward barring any injury.
Weathering the Storm
Unfortunately, Seattle was swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Las Vegas Aces last season. Yet, this season is showing promise due to the team’s depth and balance.
Additionally, the team has four players who are averaging double digits in scoring. The team is effectively scoring from all three levels of the floor.
At the moment, the Storm is top five in points per game (81.7), assists per game (22.4), field goal percentage (47.4) and three-point percentage (37.7).
Adding Wheeler to the roster has helped this team’s second unit which struggled last season due to depth. Different from last year, assists have helped this roster generate more points and score in a variety of ways.
Thus far, there have been three teams that have signed players to a hardship contract. Seattle’s rotation expands over seven players and Zia Cooke and Lexie Brown are still being worked into the franchise’s plan.
Both players were added to the franchise during the offseason. Cooke signed with the team in February and Brown was traded to the team in February.
Veteran Emotion Revealed as Seattle Storm Hand Minnesota Lynx First Loss of the Season