`Lexie Brown is off to an excellent start for the Los Angeles Sparks this season. Last Friday Night, Brown scored a career-high 26 points. She shot 11-16 from the field and 3-7 from beyond the arc in the Sparks 99-93 overtime win. Brown followed up her 26-point performance with 14 point game in a 92-85 win against the Seattle Storm.
Brown is in her sixth year in the WNBA,. Before signing with the Sparks, she spent time with the Connecticut Sun, the Minnesota Lynx, and the Chicago Sky.
Last season with Los Angeles, Brown was a reliable rotational player and averaged 7.1 points per game. This year she is doing a lot more. Brown is mainly known for her outside shot, but this season, Brown has shown the ability to do more.
“When I signed back to LA, one of the first things Curt told me was I need you to get out of this box of being just a shooter,” Brown said. “I believe you can be a three-level scorer. We had this conversation in January or February or whatever it was. I went to AAU, played really well there, and came to LA early, and that was huge for us to be in the gym together early and build chemistry with the coaching staff and each other, and we had a tough training camp.”
“I was able to work on many things in this training camp that I really hadn’t been able to work on in prior training camps because I was fighting for my life. This season I was able to be way more comfortable and having a gym available for us that’s always available for us every day. The coaching staff was available for us for extra shooting. I’ve been working out a ton in my free time.”
So far this season, Brown is averaging 14.4 points per game, shooting 50% from the field and 41% from the three-land. The sixth-year player has shown the ability to get to the basket and score off the dribble.
Brown is being used way more in pick-n-roll situations. With Brown’s ability to drive to the basket, you must pay more attention when standing in the corner because she can cut the basket or come off a screen. The former Sky player is dangerous in screen and roll because Brown can pull up for three, take a mid-range jumper or get to the rim. Now the defense can’t go over the screen and force her to dribble because she can beat you that way.
We are watching Brown take the next step in her WNBA career.
“We’re witnessing Lexie going from good to great,” teammate Nneka Ogwumike said. “I talked to her about this. A couple of weeks ago, I said not everyone could handle it, and not everyone is ready for it. When your preparation meets opportunity, there’s this transition from good to great, and that’s what I feel like I’m witnessing right now.”
Sometimes in pro sports, along with your hard work, you need a home and a coaching staff who challenges and believes in you. That’s what Curt Miller has down for Brown.
“It’s fun to watch how mature she’s (Brown) become and how much she’s grown through the adversity,” Miller said. “She, like many, is not just a straight line of success in this league. She had highs and lows; she’s played on multiple teams and had to wait her turn. Brown just kept grinding and fighting for this opportunity. Brown earned it and had a good year last year for the Sparks. But, we made a commitment to her on a multi-year deal to bring her back because we see that she just needed a home.”
It’s nice to see Brown becoming more of a complete player. The Sparks are currently 3-2 on the season, and Brown contributed to Los Angeles’s early wins. If Brown can continue her strong play, the Sparks could be a team that could surprise some people.
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