Lynx Bolster Roster With WNBA Draft Picks
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The WNBA draft was held Thursday night, and the Minnesota Lynx added an All-Big 12 player and a couple of international talents to their already impressive roster.
With the 12th overall pick, the Lynx took Alexis Jones out of Baylor. The Lynx drafted French guard Lisa Berkani with the 24th overall pick and Australian guard Tahlia Tupaea with the 36th pick.
Jones averaged 13.2 points, 4.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game last season. She was named a 2017 Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American and was unanimously selected to the All-Big 12 first team. Jones spent two years at Duke before finishing her college career at Baylor.
Jones recorded the only triple double in the Big 12 last year with 24 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists against Oklahoma.
The 5-foot-9-inch Berkani averaged 12.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists with her French club team USO Modeville last season.
Nineteen-year-old Tupaea, also 5'9", currently plays for the Sydney Uni Flames, who just won the Women's National Basketball League championship. She played only 15 games last season due to injury, but averaged 8.2 points and 3.8 assists in limited action.
The team also announced a trade Friday, obtaining forward Chantel Osahor from the Chicago Sky for forward Keisha Hampton. Chicago drafted Osahor out of the University of Washington with the 21st overall pick in the draft. Osahor led the nation in rebounds per game and double-doubles and is Washington's all-time leading rebounder.
The Lynx will be seeking redemption when their season begins on Sunday, May 14. Last year, they lost the WNBA Finals to the Los Angeles Sparks. The team has appeared in five of the last six finals, winning three.