Gardner and Hebard could see more minutes together once Copper and Allemand come into town. Gardner sees this immediately and uses her quickness to get to the rim before Shepard can recover. Gardner gets the mismatch on Minnesota’s Jessica Shepard, who overcommits to stopping Hebard on the roll. On this play, Hebard sets a pick for Gardner on the right wing. Here’s a good example of this against the Lynx. In two games, the (WNBA) rookie has shown strong instincts as a facilitator. With DeShields being traded to Phoenix in a sign-and-trade deal this past offseason, there was a vacancy behind Copper for someone to assume some of the PnR responsibilities. In 2021, Copper and Diamond DeShields accounted for 35.9% of the Sky’s plays as a pick and role ball handler, according to Synergy Sports Tech. Having two wings that can go downhill and run the pick and roll fits the mold of a James Wade-led team. ”Įarly on, it looks like Gardner will be able to do both admirably well. I love catch and shoot threes in the corner, so I’m comfortable with both. “So it’s kind of different having a creator for me where Sloot is going to find me for a lot of open threes. “In the past, I have been the creator,” said Gardner. While Gardner has mostly played off the ball during her time with the Sky, she has experience being the primary ball handler for her teams. There is no “carbon copy of Kah,” but those two having similar mindsets as scorers on the floor at all times makes Gardner’s fit on this team even more obvious. Gardner has proven she can do more than score, but her ability to attack in isolation or off the dribble is going to give a spark to the second unit once Copper returns. She would still get layups and I thought, ‘Oh, she is definitely going to be able to get a layup in the WNBA.’ She’s so explosive and quick.” “There were a lot of times when she would penetrate and there would be three people down low.
“That is something we paid attention to,” said Wade when asked about how the rule differences overseas and in the WNBA have positively impacted Gardner’s play. Gardner has taken advantage of it early on. Ever since she graduated from UCLA, Gardner hasn’t played in a league that enforces the defensive three-second rule meant to clear driving lanes and increase spacing on the floor. Gardner has looked like a way-too-early sixth woman of the year candidate because of the newfound space she has had at the rim. And she displayed that multiple times in her brief tenure with the Sky. Her first step off the dribble was nearly impossible to keep up with. She ended the night with 14 points on six of nine shooting and accumulated a positive-20 plus/minus. In her WNBA debut against the New York Liberty, Gardner could not be stopped when matched up one on one with a defender. Through two games, the results of what Gardner could bring to the table in 2022 are promising. She has been given one of the most important assignments for a Sky team with few holes to fill: Backing up 2021 Finals MVP Kahleah Copper. Gardner played overseas ball for ten years after she went undrafted out of UCLA in 2012. The biggest standout out of the bunch? 31-year-old rookie Rebekah Gardner. Second-year guard Dana Evans has been a living and breathing heat check through three games, while Ruthy Hebard and Anneli Maley have had strong moments on the floor.
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The Sky have great depth in the frontcourt but lost size with the departures of 6-foot-5-inch Stefanie Dolson in free agency and Astou Ndour-Fall, who opted to sit out the season.As it waits for parts of its core to join the team, Chicago has been able to give some of its bench players significant minutes early on in 2022.
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Lastly, Imani McGee-Stafford could crack Wade’s 11-player roster if Li can’t participate this season. Gardner has averaged 15 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists, two steals and 27.5 minutes in 22 games this season.
She has competed professionally overseas and is playing for Spar Citylift Girona, a Spanish club. Gardner is on her first WNBA contract since going undrafted out of UCLA in 2012. In her three seasons with the Wings from 2017 to ’19, she averaged 5.7 points, 1.5 assists, two rebounds and 17 minutes in 93 games. Davis has four years of WNBA experience, last playing in just two games for the Dream in 2020. Two intriguing options are Kaela Davis and Rebekah Gardner.
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Another two-way shooting guard who can stretch the floor and complement Quigley likely will fill one of the final spots. Finals MVP Kahleah Copper will arrive at camp late because of overseas commitments. After dealing Diamond DeShields to the Mercury in a three-team sign-and-trade that brought Allemand from the Fever, the Sky’s depth at the wing took a hit.
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