Augustus To Make First Return To Target Center

Fri, Jun 11, 2021, 7:13 PM

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How do you sum up Seimone Augustus’ impact on the Minnesota Lynx?

In 14 seasons, the 2006 No. 1 overall pick racked up a resumé that includes the 2006 WNBA Rookie of the Year award, eight WNBA All-Star appearances, six All-WNBA recognitions, three Olympic gold medals, four WNBA Championships, and the 2011 WNBA Finals Most Valuable Player award. When she departed Minnesota in the spring of 2020, “Money Mone” was atop the franchise’s all-time scoring list having 5,881 points in 370 games while wearing a Lynx uniform, and she remains there today.

“Mone is the Lynx,” Augustus’ longtime teammate Sylvia Fowles said Friday. “She’s been here since day one. She’s been here through the good, bad, and the ugly… Anytime you think about the Minnesota Lynx, you can pretty much put Mone beside that.”

When the Lynx host the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday, Augustus returns for the first time since signing with LA as a free agent in 2020. Though she did play in two games for the Sparks versus Minnesota last season in Bradenton, Fla., the 37-year-old retired in May to become an Assistant Coach for LA.

It’s rather poetic that Augustus will never play the villain at Target Center, where she was the face of the Lynx franchise for a decade-and-a-half.

“I’m excited to have her back,” Fowles said. “I think our fans will love that, and they deserve that. This is Mone’s home.”

The Lynx center continued: “It worked out perfect. She got the ending she wanted.”

Augustus is sure to have her No. 33 retired in Target Center at some point, along with a shoe-in induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame when she becomes eligible in 2024.

But on Saturday, the celebration begins with a much-anticipated return to Target Center.

 

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