Commentary: Can Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins-Smith maintain the Storm’s standard of success?

SEATTLE – As Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins-Smith sat side-by-side Monday morning at the Seattle Storm Champions Center, the Space Needle loomed in the view from the window to their left. While Seattle’s star signings spoke, the needle’s golden elevator traveled the same 41-second, 520-foot track.

Up. Down. Up. Down.

The Storm, of course, are familiar with the view from the ground floor and the observation deck.

One’s a whole lot easier on the eyes.

To date, Seattle has spent considerably more time at the top – with 18 playoff appearances, 14 winning seasons and four WNBA championships in 24 years. The champions center overflows with evidence – a quartet of title trophies protected by glass; a basketball honoring Sue Bird’s 2,000th career assist; framed jerseys of Bird and current Storm star Jewell Loyd; a wall featuring photos of Bird, Loyd and former Storm MVP Breanna Stewart peering past the Space Needle.

There’s an existing expectation here that might seem daunting for some.

It’s a selling point for others.

“I’ve been a part of building a house,” said Ogwumike, previously an eight-time All-Star forward and 2016 WNBA MVP for the Los Angeles Sparks. “I’ve been in a house that the Lisa (Leslies), the DeLisha (Milton-Joneses) and so many others built and the one I had been living in. So coming here was really important, because there’s so much legacy. That legacy doesn’t come lightly, at all. It comes with a standard and an expectation.

“I don’t really use the word ‘pressure,’ per se, unless you’re making diamonds. But I think the standard and the expectation and the history and the legacy that comes with considering a team like this – with a team welcoming us in like this, and us continuing to build off of that – is what really drew me here.”

In the Storm’s first season since Bird’s retirement (and Stewart’s relocation to the New York Liberty), that house took some hits. Seattle plummeted to 11-29 in 2023, finishing next to last in a 12-team league and delivering its lowest winning percentage since its inaugural season in 2000.

And yet, the offseason signings of Ogwumike and Diggins-Smith alter the franchise’s immediate trajectory – forming a super team to rival the two-time defending champion Las Vegas Aces and Eastern Conference champion New York Liberty.

But it’s not enough to simply stockpile available All-Stars.

These pieces also fit.

Take the 33-year-old Diggins-Smith, a prolific and proven two-way point guard who should buoy Loyd to form one of the WNBA’s best backcourts. Diggins-Smith finished in the top 10 in points and assists for five consecutive seasons, before missing the 2023 season while on maternity leave. She averaged 19.7 points and 5.5 assists per game in 2022, earning first-team All-WNBA honors along the way.

When asked Monday why she signed a two-year deal with Seattle, a smiling Diggins-Smith said: “I want to play with Jewell (Loyd). (I was) trying to figure out how to play with players that you hate guarding and playing against, and Jewell and Nneka are at the top of that list.”

Granted, Loyd set a WNBA record with 939 points last season … but did so while shooting just 37% from the field. The addition of an expert distributor in Diggins-Smith should allow Loyd and sharpshooter Sami Whitcomb to excel.

“Personally, I’m trying to be a menace on both sides every play. I’m not stopping, ever,” said Diggins-Smith, as Storm General Manager Talisa Rhea responded with a glowing grin. “So that’s what you’re going to get from me.”

As for Ogwumike, the 6-2 forward provides a back-to-the-basket threat the Storm noticeably lacked last year. And though she’s a 12-year veteran, the former No. 1 overall pick turned in one of her top statistical seasons in 2023 – producing 19.1 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game, while shooting 51.2% from the field in 36 starts.

With a polished blend of post moves, 3-point production (36.1% in her career), rebounding, shot-blocking and unyielding leadership, Ogwumike should assist Storm forwards Ezi Magbegor (a first-time All-Star in 2023) and Jordan Horston (the team’s first-round draft pick last spring) as well.

Outside those same windows at the champions center, two rusting green dinosaur statues stand alone in a stone courtyard. Despite their identical ages, Diggins-Smith and Ogwumike have proved to be anything but.

Which doesn’t mean the Storm will surpass the Aces (34-6 in 2023) or Liberty (32-8) – the game’s dueling Goliaths – this season. Despite occupying a table in the champions center, Diggins-Smith, Ogwumike, Rhea and head coach Noelle Quinn stopped short of championship guarantees.

But each repeated that same word: standard. From the ownership group’s investment in a dedicated training facility that will open this spring, to the constant support of a fervent fan base, to four trophies in a crowded entryway: That standard has been set.

“There’s going to be a standard of excellence and discipline in everything that we do, and that’s not just because of me saying it. I know these women, and they embody that,” said Ogwumike, who ESPN has reported signed a one-year deal. “I know a lot of the players on this team, and that’s something that was really huge for me – integrity and doing things the right way. That’s what fans can expect. And we’re going to have some fun.”

Time will tell whether these two take the elevator to the top.