McCarville goes No. 1 in WNBA
SECAUCUS, N.J. – Janel McCarville has heard all the talk about how this year’s incoming rookie class in the WNBA won’t be as talented as the last.
“We’ve been overshadowed by the players from the past,” McCarville said after being selected by the Charlotte Sting as the top overall pick in Saturday’s league draft. “We definitely have great players. Every year brings something different to the league and adds spice to it.”
The 6-foot-4 McCarville averaged 16 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.2 steals last season while leading Minnesota to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament – the highest in school history.
McCarville is confident she’s ready for the faster play in the WNBA.
“It’s a little bit more up-tempo,” she said. “I’m definitely prepared. I’m strong and agile enough, but I know I have a lot to work on and I’m looking forward to it. I’m the type of player that will do anything my team needs to help it win, whether it’s rebound, pass or even score.”
McCarville has received advice from former teammate Lindsay Whalen, who was a first-round pick by the Connecticut Sun last year.
“She’s talked to me a little bit about it,” McCarville said. “What to expect, how to handle things and approach things. So, she’s definitely been there for me.”
McCarville said she is looking forward to playing with new teammate Dawn Staley.
The Indiana Fever selected Tan White from Mississippi State with the second pick, and the Phoenix Mercury followed by taking Texas Christian’s Sandora Irvin. The San Antonio Silver Stars picked Kansas State’s Kendra Wecker at No. 4, and the University of Houston’s Sancho Lyttle went to the Houston Comets with the fifth pick.
White led the nation in scoring with 23.5 points per game, had an SEC-record 372 career steals and led Mississippi State to 12 straight wins. The 5-7 guard also won the Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award, given to the best women’s college basketball player who is 5-8 or shorter.
The Washington Mystics, who traded three-time All-Star Chamique Holdsclaw to the Los Angeles Sparks last month, took LSU’s Temeka Johnson at No. 6.
Rounding out the first round, it was: Georgia’s Kara Braxton to the Detroit Shock at No. 7; Katie Feenstra from Liberty to Connecticut with the eighth pick; Michigan State’s Kristin Haynie to the Sacramento Monarchs at No. 9; Tennessee’s Loree Moore to the New York Liberty at No. 10; UC Santa Barbara’s Kristen Mann to the Minnesota Lynx with the 11th pick; Penn State’s Tanisha Wright to the defending champion Seattle Storm at No. 12; and Oklahoma’s Dionnah Jackson to the Shock with the 13th and final pick of the first round.
After the draft, the Sun traded the rights to the 6-8 Feenstra to the Silver Stars for 7-2 center Margo Dydek.