Week 2 Preview: 4 First-Time Captains Emerge

Siegrist went with an Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball veteran with her first pick, drafting Odyssey Sims, who comes into the week sitting in eighth place with 1,067 points. Sims has played 45 games during her career with AU, averaging 23.2 points per game in 36.0 minutes.

Nurse took fellow AU Pro Basketball newcomer Alissa Pili with her first pick, adding a dangerous long-range gunner who helped the Minnesota Lynx win the Commissioner’s Cup last season.

Interestingly, Harris bolstered her frontcourt with her first two picks, grabbing centers Elizabeth Williams and Theresa Plaisance, who sit sixth and 13th, respectively, on the leaderboard.

Here’s a look into Week Two:

POTENTIAL GAME OF THE WEEK

Team Siegrist vs. Team Bradford (Saturday 7:30 p.m. CT) – This will be interesting on the final day of Week Two because of how Siegrist and Bradford drafted their teams. Siegrist chose four of her teammates from Week One, with AU Pro Basketball veterans Isabelle Harrison and Taj Cole, and sharpshooting guards Charisma Osborne and Sequoia Holmes. Bradford chose a similar route, choosing Week One teammates Hartley, Suriya McGuire, and Jaylyn Sherrod to join her for a second straight week. The chemistry on these rosters, with returning teammates, will be five games deep by then and could make for a high-scoring shootout.

STEAL OF THE WEEK

Alysha Clark went second on Bradford’s draft board and is a solid pick-up after her first week at AU. Clark, who is preparing for her 13th year in the WNBA, ranks 18th on the leaderboard with 825 points. In her three games last week she averaged 34.3 minutes and turned in 11.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. But what won’t show up on the leaderboard is her leadership and knack for making everyone on the court better. The three-time WNBA champion is also a defensive stalwart and can be a stopper no matter who she’s guarding. Finally, her focus could be even more locked in this week after she announced where she’ll be playing in the upcoming WNBA season, as she’ll be returning to Seattle. With that out of her way, Clark can enjoy basketball and focus on what she does best.

Read More: Alysha Clark Pays Homage to Tennessee Basketball Pioneers Wiseman, Summitt in Homecoming Season

FORBES LIST

If there is one player to watch this week, now that she has a few games under her belt, it’s McKenzie Forbes. With a deep basketball pedigree on her paternal side, Forbes enjoyed an extensive collegiate career at California, Harvard, and USC. Her versatility at multiple positions makes her a threat whenever she steps on the court. Forbes, who is 34th on the leaderboard with 571 points, can catch fire at any time for what might end up being a high-scoring Team Bradford squad.

REBEL WITH A CAUSE

Also playing on Team Bradford is former UNLV standout Desi-Rae Young. The two-time Mountain West Player of the Year is dangerous at both ends of the court and is currently 21st on the leaderboard with 792 points. After a sluggish start in her AU debut, scoring just four points in seven minutes for Team Bell, Young scored 14 points in 19 minutes in the second game and then turned in 13 points in 34 minutes. Young is a perfectionist on the court and will be eager to erase the memory of her 28.6% shooting performance in her Week One finale by coming out firing in this week’s opener.

AGENT ORANGE

Five of the top six players on the leaderboard in Week One wore orange last week, including captains Bradford, Nurse, and Harris. Team Westbrook — which wore orange last week — finished 2-1 after averaging 92 points per game. Also coming in the top six are Hartley and Williams. If there is one player donning orange to keep an eye on in Week Two, it’s Cole, who will wear an orange jersey for a career-high seventh time as she suits up for Team Siegrist.

W.G. Ramirez is a 36-year veteran sports reporter in Southern Nevada, serving as a correspondent for Athletes Unlimited. Follow him on X at @WillieGRamirez