The Dallas Wings have already won more games this season than in the last two years combined. They are back in the playoffs after two atrocious losing seasons.
Some of the reasons for that turnaround are obvious. Getting Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd with back-to-back number-one picks will improve any franchise notably. Jessica Shepard’s emergence as one of the great offensive hubs in the W is also an obvious reason. Moreover, Awak Kuier has made significant strides.
Alysha Clark doesn’t have that kind of on-court effect. She is averaging 2.2 points and 1.5 rebounds in 11.2 minutes per game. Nevertheless, Arike Ogunbowale and Jose Fernandez noted her as a big reason for this season’s success after a playoff-clinching 96-78 win against the Portland Fire.
“Honestly, one of our biggest unsung heroes is Alysha Clark,” Ogunbowale said in the postgame press conference, per a video on the Wings’ YouTube channel. “When it’s not the coaches, it’s her. Even when the coaches are there, they listen to her, too. And me being a vet and there’s other vets, I’d say she’s like the top, top vet. Just her conversation, her insight, her IQ, everything she does for the team that doesn’t show up is so valuable for us, so her being on this team is definitely really special.”
Fernandez said, “A lot of our success that we’ve had this year is because of her leadership and how she’s been able to communicate with me and communicate with the coaching staff.”
Fernandez had to make the jump from college to the pro level with a lot of pressure to deliver success with a team built around Bueckers. Having a 14-year vet to help with the transition must have been invaluable.
Alysha Clark’s impact highlights the importance of vets
Talent is great, but experience and veteran leadership matter just as much in the WNBA, and every team with young stars needs an older player who is ready to show them the way. Clark is one example of that.
Another one is Betnijah Laney-Hamilton with the Mystics. She joined a team made up primarily of first- and second-year players. While she went scoreless in two games and hasn’t scored more than nine in any contest yet, her young teammates and new coach are constantly raving about her leadership and experience. Signing a championship veteran to be around the core that the Mystics hope can bring the franchise a title in the next few years was a chance they couldn’t pass up.
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