The NBA draft lottery is tonight and when it's over we'll have a better idea about where former UConn star Kemba Walker could be playing next season. There is no question that he will be a lottery pick, all that's left to decide is where those teams most in need of his talents will be selecting. And that's now in the hands of the probability gods.
So while Walker's future remains somewhat uncertain, the Huskies' other "best player in school history" has begun her new life as a professional.
Maya Moore, less than two months removed from her final college game and fresh off a week in Las Vegas with the national team, had her first practice with the Minnesota Lynx, who selected her with the first-overall pick in the WNBA Draft.
Moore talked to the media about her first official day with her new team. She covered everything from rookie hazing ("I made sure I got them water.") to the style of play ("It's a lot more physical. Everybody's bigger.") to how UConn prepared her for professional basketball ("At Connecticut you have to love practice or you're not going to make it.")
The Lynx were 13-21 last season and fifth in the West conference. Coach Cheryl Reeve is understandably happy about putting 2010 in the rear view.
"With Maya and with (6-5 rookie center) Amber (Harris), their eyes were big a lot [Sunday]. Head spinning a little bit," Reeve said, according to StarTribune.com. "That's what the veterans want. You don't want the rookies to come in here and have success on the first day. That certainly didn't happen today. Maya more than anything is just a great sponge, and she will come back tomorrow and be very determined to be better [Monday] that she was [the first day]."
As for who might crack the starting lineup, Reeve would only say that there are seven players capable of starting adding that "We will look heavily at who plays well together."
Moore might a fresh-faced rookie but knowing what she accomplished in Storrs (and more importantly, how she accomplished it) it would be a surprise if she weren't on the court when the Lynx's season begins.
