Male practice players and the WNBA virtually have been synonymous since the league’s founding 30 years ago. Former collegiate or semi-pro players are employed by teams for game preparation.
We recently talked to a Minnesota Lynx practice team member:
“Originally last summer, how I got hooked up to come in with the Lynx is Tim Gill,” recalled Joshua Brown. “Tim had texted me… I think it was a Sunday, and asked me if I wanted to hoop, and like me, I always want to hoop. I said yeah.”
“It just ended up being the Lynx practice, and from there I enjoyed it,” he recalled.
The 6-4 Brown, a Minneapolis native and Park Center High School grad, played his college ball at UMD, scoring over 1,000 points there. He just completed his first season playing overseas, in the Canary Islands.
Brown told MSR that his eyes were wide open in his first Lynx workout. “I felt it was a good opportunity, a space that I can really be a sponge and get some good work in and really improve my own IQ. I asked (Gill) if I could come back. They said they enjoyed having me because of my athleticism, my IQ and just who I am.
“A couple days later, I just got added into the practice squad group chat, and so I’ve been going when it works with my schedule ever since,” said Brown.
He added that he quickly developed a new appreciation for women’s hoops.
“It’s just the professional environment, the way they go about how they practice, the way they play and the way Head Coach Cheryl Reeve coaches is something I really admire,” he said of the newly inducted Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame member and longtime veteran head coach. “She’s really stern and really demanding, but you can tell that the way she coaches, she truly cares.”
And how is it like to go up against the likes of Napheesa Collier, Kayla McBride, Courtney Williams, and this season rookie guard Olivia Miles among others? Brown said he marvels at their athleticism.
“You can feel how good she is,” said Brown on Collier, who is still recovering this season from ankle surgeries and has not yet played this season. He learned this from going up against her last season. “I think I would point specifically at her IQ when I would guard her,” he continued.
“One example on how she used her IQ, I’m playing really aggressive and I saw her go up, say something in Courtney’s ear, and then the very next play she got me on a backdoor layup.”
On Miles, “she’s new this year but you can feel her presence on the court. Natasha Howard and Olivia Miles, you see in games the way they connect on their picks and rolls.”
The Lynx in general, “They all put in their own work before and after practice,” stressed Brown, “whether that be shots or ball handling. Then while they’re actually in practice, just how hard they go, and that’s a part of Cheryl demanding perfection. You can see the way they push each other; they’re not going to get frustrated with each other.
“I think that gives credit to Cheryl as well. I like to ask questions about some of the different schemes that she employs,” reiterated Brown.
“I’ve become a big Lynx fan. We have some of the best players in the league on a year-by-year basis,” he said proudly. “A main thing is not going in there and thinking that I know it all and thinking, ‘Oh, I’m a dude, I’m better than these women’s basketball players.’ But my mindset is going in there and being a sponge and trying to learn from these high-level women who are the best at what they do in their sport.”
“I got a lot of respect for them,” surmised Brown, “who they are as people. There’s been over the years a lot of disrespect about the women’s game, but being there firsthand, I’ve gained a lot of respect for them.”
Brown hopes to return to his overseas pro job, either back in the Canary Islands or elsewhere next season. He ended his “freshman” season on a high: “My last game I scored 51 points and had 25 rebounds in my last game of the season,” he said proudly. “Before that, I scored 40 this season. The last time I scored 40 was my freshman year in high school.
Charles Hallman welcomes reader responses at challman@spokesman-recorder.com.
Copyright © Charles Hallman