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Former UConn Women's Great Tina Charles Carrying A Dream Load; Napheesa Collier Earns Cup MVP

Top scorer Rhyne Howard is out indefinitely with an ankle injury, making it more important for veteran Tina Charles, the former UConn great, to add punch to the Atlanta Dream's low-scoring attack as they attempt to remain in the WNBA playoff picture.

Coach Tanisha Wright and the Dream are leaning on experienced leadership from Charles, a former MVP who is on the cusp of moving into the top three of the league's all-time scoring list.

The Dream (6-9), who play Friday at Connecticut, have lost three straight games and five of six. Atlanta ranks last in the WNBA in points (75.9 per game), field-goal percentage and assists.

Howard, the two-time All-Star and 2022 rookie of the year, was leading the team with 15.4 points per game before hurting her left ankle last week.

The Dream have not announced a timetable for Howard's return. It is not known if the injury could threaten her spot on the United States' 3×3 team in the Paris Olympics.

Charles, the 2012 league MVP with Connecticut, is an eight-time All-Star who led the league in rebounds in four seasons and in scoring twice. She ranks second all-time in rebounds, trailing only Sylvia Fowles.

Charles says she applauds the league's transition to new stars, including Howard in Atlanta, and Caitlin Clark's national impact. Clark's visit to Atlanta on Friday with the Indiana Fever attracted 17,575 fans to State Farm Arena, a Dream franchise record for a home game. The Fever beat the Dream 91-79, overcoming a season-high 24 points from Charles.

"I think it's more a testament to just a new generation coming in," Charles said of Clark. The demand for tickets led the Dream to move the game from their usual Gateway Center Arena, which has a capacity of 3,500, to the home of the NBA's Atlanta Hawks.

"You know, like I said, I've been in awe of Caitlin Clark and just her voice, her maturity, her professionalism and just what she's able to generate," Charles said. "Yeah, they're coming out to see her, but they're also able to come out and see us and become fans of us as well for those who are just watching the game because of her greatness. So it's really sweet to just see how it all unfolds, the progression of the league from where it started in 2010."

After leading Atlanta with 19 points in its 96-75 home loss to New York on Sunday, Charles is averaging 13.8 points and 8.8 rebounds. Charles said her first season in Atlanta has been "really a blessing" and she has enjoyed her reunion with Wright, her former teammate for three seasons with the Liberty, despite the team's fall below .500.

Collier MVP as Lynx win Cup title: Napheesa Collier and the Minnesota Lynx put the WNBA on notice that they are a championship caliber team. Bridget Carleton scored 23 points and Collier, the former UConn star, added 21 to help the Lynx win their first Commissioner's Cup championship with a 94-89 victory over the New York Liberty on Tuesday night.

"Means a lot. Testament to where we are at this season," said Collier, who added six rebounds and was named the game's MVP. "This is the best group. Our personalities mesh so well. Any night anyone can have 20. Bridget had an outstanding game. It's so fun."

The Lynx became the fourth different team to win the Cup in the event's four-year history and continued the trend of the host team losing. New York was trying to be the first to repeat as champions after winning in Las Vegas last season.

"It's really good, always want to win championships," Collier said. "This is a championship we won, but there's still work to be done. A lot of games to be played. We want to build on this. We don't want to peak here. This is amazing at the end of the day we want to achieve bigger things than this at the end of the season."

The game was tied at 60 late in the third quarter when Carleton and Cecilia Zandalasini hit consecutive 3-pointers to start a 10-0 run that spanned the periods.

Breanna Stewart, another former Husky, scored nine straight points to get the Liberty within 70-69, but they could never regain the lead. Courtney Williams and Carleton scored the next five points for Minnesota and New York never really threatened again.

"What I'm proud of is we answered every run on the road and that tells you everything about our basketball team," Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve said.

Hooplandia 2024: UConn's Azzi Fudd Participates With Fans In Basketball Clinic (photos)

WEST SPRINGFIELD — UConn women's basketball player Azzi Fudd was a featured guest on Saturday at Hooplandia, alongside her mother and coach, Katie Fudd, as Katie conducted a basketball clinic for kids of all ages.

"Being somewhere like (Springfield), the birthplace of basketball is really cool," Azzi said on Saturday. "You've got the (Naismith Basketball) Hall of Fame right here. Even the Big E is here later in the year, so I think this is just an amazing place to be.

"It's a great environment and atmosphere for young ballers, especially to just see all the basketball around them (in Springfield), so I think it's really inspiring and cool what Hooplandia is doing."

Katie Fudd played Division-I basketball at North Carolina State University, where she won the ACC Rookie of the Year Award before transferring to Georgetown. During her time with the Bulldogs, she led the Big East in scoring twice, leading to her selection in the 2001 WNBA Draft by the Washington Mystic.

"It's really cool to bring in a different environment," Katie Fudd said. "You don't have a coach pulling you and yanking you because you've made a mistake, and you've got four to five other people on your team; everybody has got to play. You're playing in a freer environment (in 3x3 basketball)."

After coaching the girls' basketball team at The Potomac School (VA) for 11 years, Katie Fudd currently works alongside her husband and fellow coach, Tim Fudd, in operating GTS Fusion, a grassroots girls' basketball program in the DMV Metro area. In the clinic, she stressed the importance of learning how kids can work on their fundamentals independently.

"Kids nowadays play a lot, we play a lot of 5x5, organized ball... But (they need to) understand that their skillset has to evolve," Katie Fudd said. "You're going into a team practice, and you want to work on a specific dribble move, or you want to work on your shot or offensive moves - teams are not designed for that.

"I tell my teams all the time, I want to bring in 10 great players, and then we make a great team, but I can't do that unless we have kids doing what they need to do on their own... (if you) just spend 10 minutes a day on (a drill), that's 52 hours in a year if you're giving yourself a day off. Everybody has got that; no matter how busy you are, you've got 10 minutes."

Katie Fudd watches as a shot hits the net during a skills clinic on Saturday June 22, 2024.Sebastian Restrepo

Katie detailed how she and her husband helped Azzi learn a specific skill and how something as simple as taking extra shots after practice can lay the foundation for further growth.

"That adds up over time, so you're just constantly putting pennies in the bank," Katie Fudd said. "Exposing (kids) to that (concept) and showing them that doing work on your own really isn't awful. Some kids, because they're so used to being in groups all the time, have a hard time going and doing something on their own.

"(I want) to give them that experience and show them things they can take home and work. Sometimes kids don't know, like, 'I want to work, but what do I do.' Well, we just did 30 minutes of ball handling (drills) that you can take and do on your own... Just giving them snippets of what they can go and do on their own and work on so when they do get on the court with their team, they're evolved."

Katie Fudd will host two more clinics at the Showcase Courts on Sunday. The UMass men's basketball team and former NBA player Lou Roe are also scheduled to host their own clinics.

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Focus On Mental Approach Helped UConn's Azzi Fudd Work Through Second ACL Tear

Azzi Fudd takes a break alongside family after a skills clinic at Hooplandia in West Springfield, Mass. On Saturday June 22, 2024.Sebastian Restrepo

WEST SPRINGFIELD — When UConn women's basketball player Azzi Fudd first tore her right anterior cruciate ligament in the summer of 2019, she struggled through the physical and mental toll she faced during her recovery.

Despite the pain she endured to get back onto the court - or maybe because of that experience - Fudd remembers barely being fazed when she tore her right ACL for a second time.

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