Chiney Ogwumike's Winning Character Shaped By Relationship With Sister Nneka
With Round 2 of the Ogwumike battle about to commence, Chiney Ogwumike confidently moved through the Connecticut Sun layup line, as her best friend and older sister, Nneka, stretched at midcourt. More important than a matchup of star siblings, it would be a game between two teams desperately fighting for playoff berths.
A few hours later, 22-year-old Chiney was finished carrying a young team on her back for 37-plus minutes. Despite the rookie’s brilliance, especially in the second half where she scored 17 points, her inexperienced squad squandered a six-point lead with 29.8 seconds left, only to lose by a single point. The Connecticut Sun forward recorded her 13th double-double (23 points, 12 rebounds) of the season, good for third in the league, yet still came away unsatisfied.
“Ugh, I just want to punch her in the face right now,” Chiney joked after the loss, referring to her sister Nneka.
She vented with a smile on her face, but wasn’t able to hide an underlying sense of exasperation. Read more >>
2014 LA Sparks Season Preview: The Quest for a Title
Last postseason ended in heartbreak, as Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner’s late turnaround jumper over Candace Parker sent the Sparks into an early offseason. In a decisive Game 3, they had lost by a single point on their home court, losing the chance for a Western Conference Finals rematch with the Minnesota Lynx.
It represented the second straight year, in which the Sparks finished 24-10 but failed to emerge from the West and make the WNBA Finals. In 2012, the Lynx similarly eliminated the Sparks by one point at Staples Center.
“To me as a coach,” said Sparks head coach Carol Ross, “I think heartbreakers are always the ones that stick with you the longest, and they have the greatest lessons to be learned.”
In sports, as tough as the defeat(s) may be, typically you have a chance for redemption, a chance to grow from your past failures. Well, the LA Sparks almost didn’t get that chance, at least in Los Angeles.
In December, Sparks owner Paula Madison notified the WNBA that her family could no longer afford to invest in the team. Thus, the WNBA took temporary control of the team. In the ensuing months, it became increasingly likely that the Los Angeles Sparks, one of four still-standing original WNBA franchises, would be bought by the Warriors’ ownership group and moved to the Bay Area.
In early February, however, an investment group led by Lakers legend Magic Johnson and Mark Walter swooped in and saved the day. The team would be remaining in the City of Angels, where it would have more opportunities to compete for titles.
“Magic buys the office lunch all the time,” said Sparks general manager Penny Toler, “and every time he’s getting ready to say his prayer, he’s always like, ‘Penny, the team gotta win, the team gotta win.’” Read more >>
Fire and Ice
Nneka and Chiney Ogwumike Are on Their Way to WNBA Stardom
It’s easy to get overlooked when playing alongside 2013 WNBA MVP Candace Parker, who has been the face of the league since she was drafted first overall in 2008 out of powerhouse Tennessee. While Nneka Ogwumike may not garner the name recognition of, say, Candace Parker, Brittney Griner or Elena Delle Donne—few do—since entering the league two seasons ago, she has undoubtedly morphed into one of its top interior players. The scary part? She may not even be the best player in her family when all is said and done.
Nneka and her younger sister, Chiney, started out as gymnasts. When they grew too tall for the sport—Nneka, 11 years old, and Chiney, 9—their mom’s coworker recommended they try basketball.
Having never played basketball before, both girls were extremely raw. Nneka persevered through the awkwardness and continued practicing with the other players. Her younger sister, however, felt too embarrassed to continue. “I ran away,” Chiney recalled. “I hid in the bathroom for the rest of that practice.” Read more >>
Fallen Soldier
Jacki Gemelos Keeps Fighting Despite Five ACL Surgeries
This motivational William Quigley painting hangs in Gautier’s office; Gemelos keeps getting up. (Aaron Fischman/Slam Online)
At halftime of a Sacramento Monarchs game, 11-year-old Jacki Gemelos was asked to make six free throws in less than a minute. She missed her first shot, but calmly proceeded to swish the next six.
By the time she was 15, Gemelos had already committed to the University of Connecticut, the powerhouse school for which her favorite player, Diana Taurasi, played at the time.
As she prepared to enter college in 2006, Gemelos was nationally ranked as the No. 1 women’s basketball player in her class.
But ever since the final game of her McDonald’s All-American senior year at St. Mary’s (CA)—a season in which she averaged 39.2 points and 8.9 assists per game—her once-expectedly smooth path to the WNBA has become riddled with obstacles.
Seven years and five ACL surgeries later, including three surgeries to her left knee, she still hasn’t played a single WNBA game. Read more >>
Cassie Harberts Emerges Stronger Than Ever Despite USC's Miserable Season
Two seasons ago, Southern California’s women’s basketball team came within one win from claiming a WNIT championship.
Only two players remain from that team: Cassie Harberts and Christina Marinacci.
Fast forward more than three years later, and the Women of Troy are struggling mightily. Harberts is far and away the team’s best player, but USC cannot buy a win.
Despite the massive frustrations of a 9-19 season, the long, difficult journey has enabled Harberts to take immense strides in her development as a player and person. The team has relied upon the 6-foot-2 junior much more heavily than anticipated, and the experience has made her stronger than ever.
When Michael Cooper was named USC’s head basketball coach on May 1, 2009, he quickly set his sights on securing Harberts’ presence on his new team. As a high school junior, Harberts had originally committed to USC earlier that spring, but decided to re-open her commitment after Mark Trakh, USC’s former coach, resigned. Read more >>
Milton-Jones and Ross Reunited by Basketball
On a hot Sunday afternoon in July, Los Angeles Sparks forward DeLisha Milton-Jones relished in shooting around with her teammates. The one they call “Sunshine” was about to make her 400th career WNBA start, but it was business as usual for the 37-year-old forward, who smiled before every one of her previous 399 starts.
Since Milton-Jones played her first professional game more than 15 years ago, she’s built an impressive resume: Two WNBA championships, two Olympic gold medals, three WNBA All-Star selections, two FIBA gold medals and the list goes on.
But long before any of these accolades, current Sparks head coach Carol Ross recognized something special in young Delisha Milton (before she got married and added “Jones” to her name) more than 20 years ago.
Ross, who was then the head women’s coach at the University of Florida, had already developed a relationship with the lanky 17-year-old over the phone, but the two had never met.
Read more >>