Lynx Acquire Rights To Asjha Jones From Connecticut

The Minnesota Lynx acquired negotiating rights to forward Asjha Jones from the Connecticut Sun, both teams announced Wednesday afternoon. Releases from both teams are listed below.

Minnesota Lynx release

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Lynx today announced the team has acquired exclusive negotiating rights to Asjha Jones from the Connecticut Sun in exchange for Minnesota’s 2016 2nd round draft pick.

Jones, a 6-3 forward, has played 11 seasons in the WNBA, the last nine with Connecticut. She spent two years in Washington after being selected by the Mystics in the 1st round (4th overall) of the 2002 WNBA Draft, and was subsequently traded to the Sun on Mar. 25, 2004 in a three-team deal that also included Phoenix. Jones did not play during the 2013 WNBA season due to lingering injuries and missed the 2014 season after suffering a rupture of her left Achilles tendon.

A two-time WNBA All-Star (2007, 2009), Jones set a then-franchise single-season record for scoring average in 2008 (17.0 ppg) while grabbing 6.1 rpg and hitting a career-best 48.4% en route to being named to the All-WNBA Second Team. In 337 career games, Jones is averaging 11.4 ppg (45.1%), 5.0 rpg and 1.7 apg, while adding 9.6 ppg and 4.4 rpg in 39 postseason appearances.

Jones earned gold medals with Team USA at both the 2010 FIBA World Championship for Women and the 2012 Summer Olympics. She was also named MVP of the FIBA EuroLeague Final Eight in 2012 while playing for Spanish club Rivas Ecópolis. Most recently, Jones finished the 2014-15 winter campaign with Elitzur Ramla (Israel), where she tallied 12.1 ppg (47.4%), 5.3 rpg and 2.2 apg in 18 games. She has also played professionally in Russia, Italy, China, Turkey and Slovakia.

Connecticut Sun release

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (May 13, 2015) — The Connecticut Sun announced today it has traded exclusive negotiating rights to Asjha Jones to the Minnesota Lynx in exchange for a second round pick in the 2016 WNBA Draft.

The 34-year-old Jones has not played for the Sun since the 2012 season, when she averaged 12.2 points and 7.1 rebounds in just 20 games. After a strong start, Jones missed 14 regular season games with a strained Achilles tendon. She returned to average 13.6 points and 6.4 rebounds in the playoffs. Her last outing in a Sun uniform was Game 3 of the WNBA Eastern Conference Finals, when she had 10 points in an 87-71 loss to the Indiana Fever on October 11th.

Citing nagging injuries, the 6-foot-2 Jones announced she would sit out the 2013 season shortly before the start of training camp. Injuries also forced Jones to sit out 2014.

“This was a trade that made sense for us,” Connecticut Sun Vice President and General Manager Chris Sienko said. “Asjha did not want to return to Connecticut so we found what we believe is the best available deal, especially as we continue to add and develop young talent.”

Acquired from the Washington Mystics in exchange for a first-round pick in the 2004 WNBA Draft, Jones played nine seasons for Connecticut. She appeared in 271 games, collecting 3,336 points and 1,447 rebounds with 1,398 made field goals. She ranks second in team history in each of those categories.

 

The Lynx also announced that center Janel McCarville will not play during the 2015 WNBA season.

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL — The Minnesota Lynx today issued the following statement regarding Janel McCarville:

“Janel McCarville recently informed the organization that she will not play in the upcoming 2015 WNBA season.”