One of the biggest topics surrounding the Minnesota Lynx for the past few seasons has been longevity.
In other words, how long can the Lynx keep this up?
As every year comes and goes and as each player continues to get a year older, that topic and question get louder and louder.
For the past few years, Lynx head coach and general manager Cheryl Reeve has explored the ideas of what her team could look like in the future, while also trying to focus on getting every little bit of success out of her current — and still very talented — roster.
This offseason, with Reeve taking over GM duties while also having to go out and basically re-tool her second unit, Minnesota believes it has a succession plan in place while also focusing on the present and what the current roster can do in 2018.
“Everyone knows that the succession plan is what we think about a lot,” Reeve told Zone Coverage. “Especially when it comes to our backcourt.”
The Starting Five and Focusing on 2018
Minnesota enters the 2018 season having won four championships in seven years.
A big reason for all of that success? The starting five of Lindsay Whalen, Maya Moore, Sylvia Fowles, Seimone Augustus and Rebekkah Brunson.
That group has put together a long stretch of success in the WNBA for nearly a decade that we haven’t really seen before in league history.
Although the Lynx were unable to retain all of their free agents this offseason, with Renee Montgomery and Natasha Howard finding new homes for next season, they were able to keep that starting five together.
One of the first moves of the offseason was Minnesota re-signing five-time WNBA champion Brunson, who will be entering her 15th season this year.
“That was the most important piece of the offseason, keeping our starting five intact. Rebekkah Brunson decided to continue her career here,” Reeve said. “We will hopefully find ways to get it done like always.”
That starting five is still really good — even historically good — but the thought of how long they can continue to stay intact is something many are finding hard to ignore.
When the 2018 season tips off on May 20 against the Los Angeles Sparks, the average age of that starting five will be 33.2 years old, with Moore (28) the only player under the age of 30. At some point within the next year or two, it’s safe to assume players like Whalen, Brunson and maybe even Augustus will be considering hanging their playing shoes up for good.
Although the idea of what lies ahead in the future looms in the near distance, Reeve and company are trying to focus on the present season and trying to put together yet another successful season in 2018.
Jones, Robinson and Transitioning for the Future
With the departures of four key second-unit players this offseason, something that Lynx fans will see a decent amount of in the 2018 season is expanded roles for guards Alexis Jones and newly-acquired Danielle Robinson.
“Obviously it’s more on paper right now, we haven’t been on the court just yet,” Reeve said. “I would say that the second team as built right now, particularly at the guard position — well Alexis was here last year, so that’s not new — will have more elevated roles this season.”
Jones will be entering her second WNBA season after spending time primarily as the third point guard last year behind Whalen and Montgomery. Jones did, however, see her minutes start to expand as the year progressed.
Robinson will enter her first season in Minnesota after the Lynx acquired her from Phoenix this offseason. Currently playing overseas, Robinson will be late to training camp this year due to those commitments.
Reeve also mentioned that newly-signed veteran guard Tanisha Wright will get some quality playing time among the reserve team.
“For Alexis, it will be about getting her more minutes than what she got last year. Danielle Robinson, she gives us a little bit of a different look compared to Renee as far as a backup,” Reeve said. “She might be one of the best players in the league end-to-end, but there’s so much more to the game than that.
“I think defensively, I think she will be an asset. I think she has leadership qualities, which is not necessarily different than Renee but more of an extension. Tanisha Wright is a very, very strong and physical presence and will give us a solid presence in that second unit.”
Robinson, though, is probably the most interesting piece out of the three players. Although Reeve has admired her abilities from afar, the Lynx coach and GM never thought about adding her to the team until she got a call from Phoenix this offseason.
“That was something that presented itself I think for Phoenix and was a goal of theirs to make a change. I think they tried alternate routes to get where they wanted to go and with the departure of Renee, they looked at our roster I think and they found us to be a trading partner that could potentially work,” Reeve recalled. “It was just a few weeks ago that we were approached by Phoenix, so that was later in the game and wasn’t something that was on our radar. We didn’t seek it out, but when the opportunity presented itself, we were pleased and we were happy to take advantage.”
Robinson has the potential to do multiple things for the Lynx, including the obvious of being a nice presence on both ends of the ball. But she also gives Minnesota the ability to think ahead to the future while also focusing on the present, providing the Lynx with a succession plan moving forward.
“That might be the most appealing part of this,” Reeve said. “The now piece, Lindsay Whalen is still here and playing and is a big part of what we do, but she has been playing a little more than half a game. Having someone like a Danielle that’s been in the league and understands our team, she has only played against us but she gets us and she’ll get some quality minutes. I love our ability to not put too much pressure on her as she figures things out.
“I think the real value with Danielle will be down the road a little bit. I think this gives us a pretty nice transition at whatever point that Lindsay makes the decision she doesn’t want to play anymore.”
Reeve and the Lynx are focusing on making another push to try and win a WNBA record fifth championship in franchise history in 2018. But when the time comes, Minnesota believes it has a succession plan for the future.
Part One: An Offseason of Adjustments
Part Two: Lynx Experience Second Unit Shake-Up
