Sarah Ashlee Barker proved she can do a little bit of everything for the Los Angeles Sparks as the team hosted the Minnesota Lynx at home. The 6'0" guard didn't log a lot of buckets, but she did hit a killer 3 when needed, had plenty of blocks, and in general proved that she can thrive as a role player for Los Angeles.
The position is a departure from her time at Alabama, where she was primarily the team's engine. The Sparks drafted Barker as the No. 9 overall pick in April, a move that was greeted with relief by fans (who were all too aware of the team's dire need for a backup guard). Barker was moved into a more dominant position after teammate Rae Burrell was injured during Friday's game against Golden State.
Barker played for Georgia for two seasons before transferring to Alabama, where she averaged 18.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.0 steals during her senior season. She also became the fifth player in the school's history to hit 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 250 assists.
Sarah Ashlee Barker fought through training camp
Barker battled for her spot on the Sparks' roster throughout the team's training camp. In an interview with The Next Hoops in May, Barker underscored the fact that her goal was to go into training camp open and and willing to understand the game of basketball as completely as possible.
She also made it clear that she was more than open to assuming a role player position with her new team. "You can impact the game in so many different ways, so many different aspects. And so for me, it’s like, if I’m not getting, you know, the number of shots that I got in college, okay, that’s fine," Barker explained.
Barker added that she could focus on getting other people's shots, or she could focus on what's best for her team. "Like, like, I can completely go try and get somebody else to shoot, or I can try and go get extra rebounds. I can try to defend whoever I’m defending the best I can get, steals, do this, do that, do the little things, because we have so many great players on our team," she added.
Barker's continued development will be of interest to Sparks fans and the WNBA as a whole. If she keeps playing like this, she will continue to add to the league for a long time coming.