WNBA Draft 2016 Preview: Minnesota Lynx


2015 Record:
22-12; won WNBA Finals (3rd championship in last five years)

Key Offseason Moves:
Re-signed Sylvia Fowles and Renee Montgomery
Traded Devereaux Peters to Indiana in exchange for Natasha Howard

Last Year’s Draft Picks:
2nd Round/16th Overall: Reshanda Gray
3rd Round/35th Overall: Shae Kelley

This Year’s Draft Picks:
2nd Round/14th Overall
2nd Round/22nd Overall
3rd Round/35th Overall

Season Highlights:

 

Team Needs:
The age-old question: What do you give for someone who has everything? The Minnesota Lynx just won their third WNBA title in the last five years and feature a roster chock full of All-Stars. Minnesota earned the top seed in the West with a 22-12 record, had the fourth-best offense in the league (101.3 points per 100 possessions) and the second-best defense (allowing 96.3 points per 100 possessions).

Minnesota had three players — Maya Moore, Seimone Augustus and Lindsay Whalen — selected to the All-Star Game, but only Moore was able to play (and just so happened to win MVP honors) as Augustus and Whalen sat out with injuries. If there is one red flag about this Lynx team, it’s that they have one of the oldest rosters in the league, with their starting five averaging 9.4 years of experience and three (Augustus, Whalen and Rebekkah Brunson) in double figures.

Adding some youth to this roster to build for the future and allow these championship-holding veterans to impart some of their wisdom upon them would help ensure the future of the team. Unfortunately, the Lynx are without a first round draft pick this season.

While they may not be able to infuse much young talent through this year’s Draft, this team as it is currently constructed is built for another title run this season. The Lynx have had their luck with the odd-numbered years of this decade. Can they finally get a title in an even year and secure their first back-to-back?