Lynx Look To Asjha Jones To Fill McCarville's Void
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- As the Minnesota Lynx get ready to start another season, it's hard to miss the Janel McCarville-sized hole in their starting lineup.
"It was not ideal, you know, to have a player make a decision like that at the 11th hour, when all the transactions and the draft and everything are over," Lynx Coach Cheryl Reeve said. "You know, it's not what we hoped for. At the same time, you don't sit around and cry about it, you know. You got to put action."
That action was acquiring veteran forward Asjha Jones -- a two-time all-star -- to take McCarville's place.
"I'm just going to come in and fill a void. They're missing one of their really good players, and just be a veteran on the team and just bring maturity," Jones said.
An 11-year WNBA veteran, Jones spent the last nine years with Connecticut. But the last two were spent on the bench, missing both seasons with various injuries.
"It's not just coming back from the physical injuries, but also mental, getting your timing back," Jones said.
So the Lynx know they're getting a talented player, yet another member of that gold-medal team from the 2012 London Olympics -- but one with a little rust, too.
"I think I was fortunate to have them want me. When I decided I was able to play, I was going to be able to play, I was just kind of seeing who would even want to take a chance on me. And I'm just grateful and I'm blessed that it was such a good team," Jones said." And there's so many people who can play on this team, it's not going to be like I'll have to play 40 minutes. So I'm not really worried about that.
Reeve said the team is fortunate.
"We had talked to Asjha throughout the offseason. She's a player that we targeted, and so it was not new, our interest in her was not new," Reeve said. "We were fortunate, and we're lucky. I really like Asjha's game."
The Lynx face the Washington Mystics in their season opener on Wednesday, May 27. Their home opener is set for Friday, June 5 against the Tulsa Shock.