SEC Women’s Basketball: SEC Players in the WNBA Roundup, All-Star Edition
The WNBA is currently at their All-Star break, roughly midway through the season (every team has played between 18-21 games of their 40 game season), so I believe now is a perfect time to do our second roundup of the year on how the former SEC players are doing in the WNBA. All in all, five former SEC players were named WNBA all-stars (and were all on Team Wilson, led by team captain and former SEC star A’ja Wilson).
We have also had a couple of transactions involving former SEC players since our last update. Khaalia Hillsman (who had been signed right before our last update) has since been released by the Chicago Sky (after playing in just one game). Also, the Los Angeles Sparks have since signed two former SEC players (Destanni Henderson and Rae Burrell) to rest-of-season hardship contracts. With that being said, there are now 23 former SEC players in the WNBA (after starting the season with 21).
With all of that out of the way, let’s jump right in to seeing how the former SEC players are doing in the WNBA (on a team-by-team basis with the team’s ordered by record):
SEC Women’s Basketball in the WBNA Roundup: All-Star Edition
Las Vegas Aces (19-2 record)
A’ja Wilson (South Carolina) – A’ja Wilson continues to make a case for yet another MVP trophy while leading the Aces to an impressive 19-2 record. Wilson served as one of the All-Star game captains in this past weekend’s All-Star game after finishing as the highest total vote getter. Wilson is now a five-time All-Star. The former UofSC star is currently averaging 19.7 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 2.1 APG, and 2.1 BPG while shooting 53.2% from the field on the year. Wilson still leads all former SEC players in both scoring and rebounding. The reigning MVP also still ranks top 10 in the WNBA in scoring per game (sixth) and rebounding (fifth), and also leads the league in blocks.
Candace Parker (Tennessee) – Candace Parker continues to be a steady role player for the Aces in year 16. Parker is currently averaging 9 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 3.7 APG, and 1.5 SPG across 18 games played. Parker is also shooting 46.5% from the field and 33.3% from deep. The former Vol also continues to knock down shots from the line at a high mark, 89.3%. While the counting numbers are not what we have seen from Parker in the past, you cannot understate that Parker still plays a key role in the success of the Aces.
Sydney Colson (Texas A&M) – After not playing much early in the year, Colson has now played in 11 of the Aces’ last 14 contests (14 total games played on the year). However, it has still been in limited minutes as the former Aggie is averaging just 4.4 minutes per appearance. Overall for the season, Colson has totals of 13 points, 5 rebounds, and 14 assists on 4/6 shooting. Colson has been a lot more active recently in terms of getting into games, but now the next step is trying to carve out more of a rotation spot.
New York Liberty (14-4)
The Liberty are still currently the only team in the WNBA without a former SEC player.
Connecticut Sun (15-5)
DeWanna Bonner (Auburn) – Bonner is our second of the five SEC All-Stars from this past weekend that we will look at. The former Auburn star continues to be one of top scorers in the WNBA. Bonner is currently averaging 18.3 PPG and 4.8 RPG on the year while shooting 43.5% from the field and 37.6% from deep. The 35-year old has seen an uptick in production since our last update, averaging 20.8 PPG and 5.4 RPG on strong 48.6%/45.2%/86.8% shooting splits over the last 12 games. Bonner ranks third among all former SEC players in scoring this season. Bonner is now a five-time All-Star.
Tyasha Harris (South Carolina) – Harris continues to be one of the top bench options for the Sun, and also continues to be one of the most efficient three-point shooters in the league. Harris is averaging 4.9 PPG, 1.1 RPG, and 1.6 APG. Harris is shooting 40.6% from deep on the year, one of the top marks in the league. Overall, Harris is shooting 40.4% from the field and has played in all 20 games this year for the Sun (all off the bench at 15.1 minutes per game).
