 Jackson is ready to begin terrorizing defenses for another season. Nick Hura/WNBAE/Getty |
Still, Jackson's mere presence was enough to change the mood at the Storm's training camp, according to Coach Anne Donovan.
"Everything changed when she walked in the gym last night, everybody couldn't wait for the drill to stop to come over and see her," said Donovan. "There's just a calming presence for everybody to know that help is here."
That was far from the only praise Donovan had her for her star player on the day of her return.
"There are no words for Lauren Jackson, her passion for this game" Donovan continued. "She is the MVP of this league and she will remain the MVP of this league because of what drives her. Tremendous skill level, but it's what drives her that sets her apart. There's no better player to coach for me. It's a coach's dream to have somebody like that.
"It's contagious for other players. When you've got your superstar that wants to be on the floor, wants to go through drills when I'm telling her she doesn't have to practice until she feels like that, that sends a message to everybody else: 'It's a passion for her and it better be a passion for me.'"
It's been more than seven months since Jackson celebrated winning MVP honors with Seattle fans, and over eight since she last took the hardwood for the Storm. That will have to wait for another day, with Jackson still fighting the effects of the lengthy flight from Russia, and with several weeks until the start of the regular season, the Storm can wait.
Jackson is coming off of a disappointing experience in Russia, where she was signed by UMMC-Ekaterinburg to play in the league title series, but saw surprisingly little action as her team was swept 3-0 by a VBM-SGAU featuring, amongst others, Storm center Kamila Vodichkova.
"I hate to talk about coaches losing their jobs, but how do you bring in a player for that kind of money (and not use her)?" said Donovan, as reporters listened in disbelief. "In one situation, they played her in the second half, she scored 16 points, they took her out with 40 seconds left and they lose by one. I don't know how to comment on that."
Jackson was more diplomatic in her take in the situation.
"I think there's a rule over there that you've got to have a certain amount of Russians on the court to protect their players," she said. "There's different rules involved."
Despite her experience not turning out as well as she'd hoped it would, Jackson said she would consider playing for UMMC-Ekaterinburg again in the future, potentially playing with the team throughout the season after her contract with the WNBL's Canberra Capitals concludes following next season, making it easier for her to fit in.
There is a benefit for the Storm in that Jackson did not play as much as expected and got some extra rest in time for her return to Seattle. That will come in handy throughout what will be a busy summer. In addition to her usual 30-plus minutes a night with the Storm, Jackson is expected to play almost every minute for the Opals during the Summer Olympics, according to Donovan.
Jackson appreciates having a coach who understands how she's feeling and will adjust for it.
"Anne's a great coach and she understands players really well and she knows," Jackson said. "I don't really need to talk to her about that sort of stuff. It's just a mutual thing. She's really good with that."
For now, Jackson is ready to get to work on achieving her individual and team goals. After having watched her new teammates for two practices, Jackson was excited about the Storm's off-season moves.
"Us getting Sheri (Sam) and Janell (Burse), I think it's a great trade and it's certainly going to help us on our way to the championship finals," Jackson said.
"Every time I come in to camp, I'm thinking that (the Finals), but I think this year we have much more of a bench and a much more solid team. I think that's the one thing we've really struggled with. We've always had our starters, but if anyone got injured, we didn't have a very big bench, and I think now we do. It's very exciting."
And while Jackson's individual accolades last season increased her desire to maintain that level of success as a player, she'd gladly give them up for that kind of team success.
"Last year was pretty huge and amazing and everything else and I'm definitely going to strive to get it again and work as hard as I can to do it, but if I can't, it won't be so bad if we can win a championship," she said.
That's a trade that the rest of the Storm would be equally happy to make.
