DeWanna Bonner of the Connecticut Sun reacts during the fourth quarter of a game against the Indiana Fever on May 14 at Mohegan Sun Arena. Bonner, in her 15th season in the WNBA, is the league’s fifth all-time leading scorer. (Jessica Hill/AP Photo)
DeWanna Bonner of the Connecticut Sun drives for a layup during a game against the Indiana Fever at Mohegan Sun Arena on June 10. (Sarah Gordon/The Day) Buy Photo Reprints
Stephanie White, the head coach of the Connecticut Sun, said earlier this year that the team was lucky to have a player such as DeWanna Bonner, who in her 15th season in the WNBA has “continued to ascend.”
And so it was recently that White saw Bonner ascend in a different fashion. As a professional. As a teammate.
With the Sun struggling to find the perfect lineup combination since the addition of sharp-shooting guard Marina Mabrey via trade on July 17, Bonner recently approached White and the coaching staff and volunteered to come off the bench.
For Tuesday’s historic game against the Los Angeles Sparks at TD Garden in Boston, the city’s first-ever WNBA matchup, Bonner, the Sun’s leading scorer and a six-time All-Star, was absent from the starting lineup. It was Bonner’s first time coming off the bench since the 2016 season with the Phoenix Mercury.
“DB volunteered to come off the bench,” White explained following the game. “She understands that it’s about winning. She also understands that there’s emotions involved when it comes to starting or not starting.
“And so she came to us and said, ‘Look. I don’t mind coming off the bench. I just want to win. I want to figure out what our best lineup is, what our best rotation is. I’m gonna be ready no matter what.’”
It was the Sun’s third different starting lineup in the last three games, during which time Connecticut has gone 2-1 with a 109-91 win Friday at Dallas, an 82-70 loss Sunday at Atlanta and Tuesday’s 69-61 victory over the Sparks.
Bonner played 25 minutes, 33 seconds off the bench, finishing with seven points, two rebounds, two assists, a steal and a noteworthy blocked shot.
“And so that’s leadership, right?” White said of Bonner’s selfless offer. “That’s putting the team above everything else and I’m so thankful to her for that moment. … I don’t know if I still like it, right?”
Bonner, the 6-foot-4 guard/forward, is averaging 16.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists for the Sun (20-7), the second-place team in the WNBA standings behind New York (24-4). The Sun take on the Chicago Sky at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Mohegan Sun, followed by a road trip to New York for a 7 p.m. game Saturday.
The lineup is a work in progress with six potential starters: All-Stars Bonner and Alyssa Thomas, center Brionna Jones, point guard Ty Harris and guards DiJonai Carrington (leading scorer Tuesday with 19 points) and Mabrey, acquired from Chicago.
White said she’s starting to sound like a broken record.
“I’ve been saying this for such a long time, but getting new pieces and finding out who complements whom well in the flow of the offense … there was some things I really liked about tonight and there were some things that I didn’t,” White said Tuesday. “We’ll continue to tinker with it. The goal is to have it solidified before we head into September.”
The Sun’s offense sputtered at times Tuesday, with them shooting 38.4% from the floor, 47.1% from the free throw line.
It was Connecticut’s 14-0 run beginning with 3:52 remaining, fueled by defensive energy and a deafening sold-out crowd of more than 19,000 fans, that made the difference in the game.
If there’s one thing for certain, however, it’s Bonner’s lofty resume during her WNBA career. She is fifth all-time in the league in scoring (7,327), just 53 points away from fourth place, and has 2,995 rebounds, 18 away from moving into ninth place all-time.
She is one of two players in league history to have 7,000 points, 2,800 rebounds and 1,000 assists in her career, joining Tamika Catchings.
“Honestly for me, I never knew the magnitude of DB’s legacy until I got here,” Harris said of Bonner. “I knew she was really good and I played against her my (three) years coming in before I got here and it was hard. It’s always hard to play against her — she’s a tall guard, she can do it all.
“But coming here and seeing how she breaks records literally every other game, it’s insane.”
“DeWanna Bonner is one of the all-time great players in this league and we don’t talk about it enough,” White said. “Her consistency, her ability to keep getting better, to keep getting more efficient. … She just is a player that has been the consummate professional and no matter what team she’s been on, she’s been not just effective but she’s been elite.”
The matchup between the Sun and the Sky (11-16) will be the first between the teams since the July trade which sent Connecticut’s Moriah Jefferson and Rachel Banham to Chicago in exchange for Mabrey.
The Sky are led by Chennedy Carter with 16.8 points per game and rookie Angel Reese out of LSU with 13.6 points and 12.3 rebounds per game.
v.fulkerson@theday.com
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Publish date : 2024-08-23 12:39:00
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