NYLiberty.com's Q&A with Kalana Greene
Related Images
Kalana Greene has had a terrific rookie year.
NBAE/Getty Images
Kalana Greene played four seasons for one of the most successful college basketball programs at the University of Connecticut, and now she’s looking to help guard the Liberty win its first WNBA championship. Twenty-three games into her rookie season, she’s doing a pretty good job.
Greene, who has appeared in every game so far this summer, is the Liberty’s second-leading scorer off the bench with 5.8 points per game while shooting an impressive 48.3 percent from the field.
NYLIberty.com caught up with Greene before she scored a career-high 17 points in New York’s 77-72 victory over the San Antonio Silver Stars to help push the Liberty back above .500 at 12-11.
NYLiberty.com: How are you feeling past the midway point of your rookie season?
Kalana Greene: I feel good. I feel blessed to be on this team. I’m learning a lot. It’s a completely different experience than I had in college, but I think this experience is definitely helping me become a smarter player.
NYLiberty.com: How do you feel you progressed on a professional level?
Greene: I think I’m learning tendencies. In college you don’t really have to learn those tendencies that much, but the individuals are all so skilled and talented and have their own special thing that you have to learn. I think in each game you play, you have to be smart. You have to know what a player likes to do, because if you don’t, they’re going to exploit you. They definitely do that to me a lot as a rookie.
NYLiberty.com: What are some obstacles you had adjusting to the professional game?
Greene:Coming out of the college, the game was real quick. But I learned how to use the quickness I have because the game is a lot faster and the shot clock shorter in time. It forces me to be faster.
NYLiberty.com: Is the WNBA everything you expected it to be?
Greene:Yeah, there’s going to be ups and downs, but it’s fun. The group of women I’m surrounded with makes it a good experience.
NYLiberty.com: Are there any players you have been particularly excited about going up against in the WNBA?
Greene:I guarded (Tamika) Catchings, one of the players who I idealized. And I had guarded Dee (Diana Taurasi) before, but not in a real game… Sue Bird… There are just players who have done so much in this league who you sat there and idealized and now you’re out there playing with them. I think those are the three.
NYLiberty.com: What’s it like playing against your former UConn teammate Tina Charles?
Greene:It’s fun. Tina tells me before games “Good luck, psych!” She’ll be like, “I hope you do good, but I hope you guys lose because we’re competing.” I’ll be like, “I hope you lose the rest of the games from here on out,” because we’re competing for a playoff spot. We’re four and five (in the standings entering Tuesday) and it’s the top four teams that go, so every game they play I’m hoping they lose.
NYLiberty.com: So there’s some friendly trash talking?
Greene: I think it’s a good thing. I talk to (Charles) and Renee (Montegomery) all the time. We try not to talk about basketball because when we do it gets pretty heated. Renee called me an idiot for fouling her the last game. She was selling it and I wouldn’t say I fouled her (laughs). But it’s fun. We do a lot of trash talking.
See Kalana and the Liberty in action this summer at Madison Square Garden. Tickets, beginning at $10, are available now by clicking here, visiting The Garden Box Office or calling 877-WNBA-TIX. Group tickets and unique experiences are available by clicking here.
Greene, who has appeared in every game so far this summer, is the Liberty’s second-leading scorer off the bench with 5.8 points per game while shooting an impressive 48.3 percent from the field.
NYLIberty.com caught up with Greene before she scored a career-high 17 points in New York’s 77-72 victory over the San Antonio Silver Stars to help push the Liberty back above .500 at 12-11.
NYLiberty.com: How are you feeling past the midway point of your rookie season?
Kalana Greene: I feel good. I feel blessed to be on this team. I’m learning a lot. It’s a completely different experience than I had in college, but I think this experience is definitely helping me become a smarter player.
NYLiberty.com: How do you feel you progressed on a professional level?
Greene: I think I’m learning tendencies. In college you don’t really have to learn those tendencies that much, but the individuals are all so skilled and talented and have their own special thing that you have to learn. I think in each game you play, you have to be smart. You have to know what a player likes to do, because if you don’t, they’re going to exploit you. They definitely do that to me a lot as a rookie.
NYLiberty.com: What are some obstacles you had adjusting to the professional game?
Greene:Coming out of the college, the game was real quick. But I learned how to use the quickness I have because the game is a lot faster and the shot clock shorter in time. It forces me to be faster.
NYLiberty.com: Is the WNBA everything you expected it to be?
Greene:Yeah, there’s going to be ups and downs, but it’s fun. The group of women I’m surrounded with makes it a good experience.
NYLiberty.com: Are there any players you have been particularly excited about going up against in the WNBA?
Greene:I guarded (Tamika) Catchings, one of the players who I idealized. And I had guarded Dee (Diana Taurasi) before, but not in a real game… Sue Bird… There are just players who have done so much in this league who you sat there and idealized and now you’re out there playing with them. I think those are the three.
NYLiberty.com: What’s it like playing against your former UConn teammate Tina Charles?
Greene:It’s fun. Tina tells me before games “Good luck, psych!” She’ll be like, “I hope you do good, but I hope you guys lose because we’re competing.” I’ll be like, “I hope you lose the rest of the games from here on out,” because we’re competing for a playoff spot. We’re four and five (in the standings entering Tuesday) and it’s the top four teams that go, so every game they play I’m hoping they lose.
NYLiberty.com: So there’s some friendly trash talking?
Greene: I think it’s a good thing. I talk to (Charles) and Renee (Montegomery) all the time. We try not to talk about basketball because when we do it gets pretty heated. Renee called me an idiot for fouling her the last game. She was selling it and I wouldn’t say I fouled her (laughs). But it’s fun. We do a lot of trash talking.
See Kalana and the Liberty in action this summer at Madison Square Garden. Tickets, beginning at $10, are available now by clicking here, visiting The Garden Box Office or calling 877-WNBA-TIX. Group tickets and unique experiences are available by clicking here.
