Minnesota Lynx center Sylvia Fowles will be out indefinitely with a cartilage injury in her right knee. Fowles sustained the injury on Tuesday night in a 88-69 loss to the New York Liberty. It is unclear when she can return from the knee injury.
NEWS: Sylvia Fowles Injury Update
— Lynx PR (@Lynx_PR) June 9, 2022
Full Release: https://t.co/69yNtQqUIh
The 15-year pro was entering her final season before retirement. It has been a disappointing season so far for Minnesota; they are 3-9 and struggling a lot this season. Fowles was one of the few bright spots averaging 16.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. Also, the center is shooting 64% from the field. Even after all these years, Fowles is still a force in the paint on both sides of the court.
This is not how Fowles would want to go out, with a struggling team and missing significant time due to injury. It is unclear if Fowles would reconsider her retirement decision if she misses too many games this season. It would be excellent if Fowles could make it back to play this year and end her career.
Even if Fowles does not return to play and retires, her legacy is set in stone as one of the best players to play in the WNBA. In her 15 years in the WNBA, Fowles has scored 6,181 points in her excellent career, averaging 15.8 per game. In addition, she is a career 59.9% shooter.
Fowles spent her first seven seasons with the Chicago Sky before joining the Lynx in 2015. She helped lead the Lynx to two WNBA Finals in 2015 and 2017 and was Finals MVP in both Finals. Also, in 2017, Fowles won the WNBA MVP Award, averaging 18.9 points, 10.4 rebounds, and two blocks per game.
To go along with her MVP award, Fowles won Defensive Player of the Year four times, led the WNBA in blocks, and rebounding twice. In addition, she was a seven-time All-star, made seven All-WNBA Teams, and ten All-Defensive Teams.
As you can see, Fowles has put together an outstanding career, and when she retires, she will be among the WNBA greats. Although Minnesota will miss Fowles’s leadership and toughness when she is gone, the former LSU star is a force in the paint on both ends of the floor. It will be hard to replace a player of the caliber of Fowles.
Follow me on Twitter: @raiderway83 and read other amazing articles on Beyond Women’s Sports.
