One thing Dominique Malonga can do to immediately win over Storm fans

2025 WNBA Draft
2025 WNBA Draft | Elsa/GettyImages

The Seattle Storm may have lost Jewell Loyd this offseason, but they got the opportunity to draft one of the best talents in the 2025 WNBA Draft. 19-year-old Dominique Malonga impressed with her game overseas and is ready to take her talent to the next level. 

One thing that makes Malonga so intriguing as a prospect is her size and athleticism. Malonga is 6-foot-6 and can jump. She can also dunk with ease. 

Dunks are not (yet) a regular part of WNBA action, but fans are clamoring for that to change. Dominique Malonga could offer the first step in that direction by dunking during a game. That way, she will immediately win over fans in Seattle. 

Dominique Malonga already dunked during Storm practice

Dominique Malonga joined the Seattle Storm’s training camp late because she still had a season to finish in France before being able to come to the U.S. The youngster wasted no time impressing her new team. 

The Storm posted a video of Malonga dunking during practice, and her new teammates hyping her up. Even during a practice session, the reaction to Malonga’s dunk was great. One can only imagine that it would be even better if Malonga dunked during a game. 

At this point, fans, coaches, and players alike almost seem to expect it. Los Angeles Sparks forward Rickea Jackson was one of the first players to put the idea out there after Malonga was drafted. “Please don’t let me be the first WNBA player to get dunked on,” she wrote on X

While Malonga will probably be behind veterans Ezi Magbegor and Nneka Ogwumike in the Storm’s rotation, she should get plenty of opportunities to play and show off her skills—hopefully including a dunk.

Dunks are not a huge part of the WNBA

In 2002, Lisa Leslie became the first player to dunk in a WNBA game. Since then, several other players have done it as well: Michelle Snow, Candace Parker, Sylvia Fowles, Liz Cambage, Awak Kuir, Jonquel Jones, and, first and foremost, Brittney Griner. Griner currently holds the record for most dunks in WNBA history with 27. She is also the only WNBA player to have dunked more than twice in their career. 

The only three players on the list of players to have dunked in a WNBA game who are still active are Griner, Jones, and Kuir. Malonga will undoubtedly soon join that list. If given enough time, she may even be able to break Griner’s record.