Kate Martin has the pleasure of playing on an Unrivaled team made up of young stars. Her teammates include Paige Bueckers, Dominique Malonga, Rickea Jackson, and Cameron Brink. That means, Martin has had front-row seats to Malonga‘s dunks. She‘s still eagerly waiting for one specific dunk, though.
When Martin appeared on We Need To Talk Now, she told host Alicia Jay, “It’s amazing. She [Malonga] does it in practice all the time, at least once a practice. So, I just think the ease with which she throws it down is very, very impressive. And even in warmups, a two-hand dunk with ease. That is just so cool to watch the evolution of our game.”
She also added, “Her and Paige used to work on the lobs at the beginning of the season, so I’m still hoping for that to happen at some point.”
Every Unrivaled fan is waiting for the same thing. Even before the season started, fans were hungry for dunks from Malonga, who didn’t manage to dunk during her rookie season in the WNBA.
Dominique Malonga already dunked in Unrivaled
Malonga didn’t make fans wait long for her first in-game dunk. She did it on a fast break against the Lunar Owls on January 24. Not even a month later, she threw down another dunk against the Lunar Owls after getting a steal and an open lane to the basket.
Both dunks were impressive, but fans are still waiting. They still want Malonga to dunk on someone (preferably Rickea Jackson) or to dunk off a lob pass. Neither is something women’s basketball fans get to see very often. Unrivaled, with its increased spacing and frequent mismatches, sets the perfect stage for Malonga’s big moment.
There isn’t much time left, though. The Breeze only have three regular-season games left.
Malonga isn’t the only Unrivaled player who can dunk
Malonga may be the only player who dunked in an Unrivaled game this season, but she isn’t the only one who can. Brittney Griner holds the record for dunks in the WNBA and dunked in Unrivaled last season.
Malonga’s teammates Cameron Brink also dunked during Breeze practice. It was the ultimate proof that she is fully recovered from the ACL tear she suffered during her first WNBA season.
Vinyl guard Rae Burrell can also get up there. She almost dunked in a game against the Laces, touching the rim on a layup. It’s only a matter of time until she gets her first real dunk. If Burrell dunked in a game, it would be an even bigger show-stopper than a dunk from Malonga, Griner, or Brink. Burrell is only 6’2”, whereas the other three are all listed at 6’4” or taller.