Alexander Shun

Web Editor Associate | @alexpshun 

Minnesota Lynx practice was abuzz today, despite the lack of…well, players.

Six Lynx players were at practice today after multiple roster moves both before and after the All-Star break shuffled players both in and out of Minnesota.

The biggest of the roster moves being the trade this morning for Chicago Sky center Sylvia Fowles. The Lynx acquired Fowles and the Sky’s second-round pick in next year’s draft in a three-team trade, sending center Damiris Dantas, forward Reshanda Gray and their first-round pick in the 2016 WNBA draft to the Atlanta Dream while the Dream send center Erika de Souza to Chicago.

“Great day to be a Lynx,” said Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve, speaking about the Fowles trade. “Most days are great days to be a Lynx, but this one ranks up there as pretty special.”

Reeve, as well as seemingly everyone else within the organization, was glowing after the trade that brought the 6’6, 29-year old center to Minnesota.

“For us to be able to secure ourselves a 6’6 center that has found a lot of success in this league just opens up a number of opportunities for us. We can talk about the championship window, we can talk about what it actually does X-and-O wise…it’s a big, big day and a big acquisition”

Guard Lindsay Whalen knows her well, having played both with and against Fowles throughout her career, and knows the type of impact that a player of Fowles’ caliber can have.

“She’s a dominant force,” said Whalen. “Rebounding, rolls hard, blocking shots, just a really big inside presence that is really going to help us a lot.”

The Lynx already lead the Western Conference and hold the best record in the league at 12-4, but adding a dominant veteran center like Fowles makes Minnesota even better and arguably the team to beat in the WNBA.

Despite the addition though, Reeve says that scheme-wise, nothing will really change for the team; the stats will change though, especially defensively.

“We were already a really good defensive rebounding team and I expect our defensive rebounding percentage to go up even more. We should get every defensive rebound with Maya, Brunson and Sylvia there.”

Fowles joins a team that, for the most part, she is very familiar with, having played with players like Whalen, forward Maya Moore and center Asjha Jones on the national team in the Olympics. Lynx guard Seimone Augustus also played with Fowles in the Olympics but played with her in college at LSU as well. Such familiarity will make Fowles’ transition an easy one.

“I think that transition because of [familiarity] is going to be easier,” said Reeve. “It’s kind of a known entity for us, it’s just a matter of Sylvia kind of learning what the Lynx way of doing things is. It’s not a complicated system, that’s what I’m encouraged by, so I think she’ll pick up things pretty quickly.”

Fowles will join the team tomorrow and Reeve says that Fowles is expected to play in Wednesday night’s game against the Los Angeles Sparks.

Augustus was at practice today and off her crutches a little over a week after having an arthroscopy on right knee. Though Augustus did not participate in practice, she says the knee feels great and that she is probably a little ahead of schedule, though Reeve says the timetable remains the same.

Whalen was also back at practice for the first time since suffering an eye injury two games previous against the Tulsa Shock. Whalen says her vision was blurry but is perfect now and she is ready to play Wednesday.

“I feel good. As long as I keep feeling good and nothing comes up either day before [the game], I feel good and ready to go.”

The Lynx will practice again tomorrow before Wednesday night’s game against the Sparks.

QUICK HITS

• Lynx forward Maya Moore sat out of practice today because she competed in the WNBA All-Star Game over the weekend. Reeve joked that she gave Maya the day off only because Moore received All-Star Game MVP honors.
• Lynx guard Lindsay Whalen will play against the Los Angeles Sparks on Wednesday night.