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Storm Draft HQ Gearlds Meets Seattle Media The 2007 WNBA Draft Live Storm News Archive

Kevin Pelton, storm.wnba.com | April 4, 2007

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For a few minutes Wednesday morning, the Seattle Storm's Draft Room may as well have been the stands at KeyArena. Like fans appreciating their team's play, the Storm's braintrust, led by Head Coach and Director of Player Personnel Anne Donovan, let loose with cheering upon hearing that Purdue's Katie Gearlds would be available with the Storm's seventh overall pick.

"We really thought that she was one of the people Washington was considering [with the sixth pick]," Donovan said after the Draft. "A good indication of this - our athletic trainer was in the office down the hall. She heard through closed doors and down the hallway the reaction when Washington made the pick [Baylor's Bernice Mosby]. That shows you how excited we were to get Katie."

"Anybody that wants to double-team off of her is going to pay for it. Teams will have to come at us a different way with Katie on the floor." Gregory Shamus/NBAE/Getty

Throughout the process leading up to the Draft, Donovan never engaged in any subterfuge when it came to her intentions. She made it clear the Storm was looking at a wing player with size and shooting ability. Seattle found that player in Gearlds, a 6-1 guard/forward who made 88 three-pointers at a 39% clip during her senior season at Purdue.

"Anybody that wants to double-team off of her is going to pay for it," said Donovan. "She just changes defenses. That's been one of our problems in Seattle. Sue (Bird)'s a great three-point shooter, Lauren (Jackson)'s been a great three-point shooter for us, but we didn't really have anybody else who could stretch it out. Teams will have to come at us a different way with Katie on the floor."

Despite the contributions by Bird and Jackson, the Storm ranked near the WNBA average in terms of three-pointers (ninth) and three-point percentage (eighth). The rest of the Storm roster shot only 30.6% from three-point range, with only one Storm reserve (rookie forward Barbara Turner) making even 10 three-pointers all season. Gearlds provides a different dimension.

"I grew up watching Reggie Miller come off screens and I think that's where a lot of my game comes from, being able to shoot the ball," Gearlds said during a conference call with Seattle media. "I'm looking forward to being able to play alongside a great point guard who always knows where to get the ball."

Donovan is also enamored of Gearlds' versatility and ability to play both shooting guard, where there may be more opportunity in the Storm's rotation, and small forward. Gearlds' combination of size and shooting ability makes her a weapon at both spots.

"I'm not one that clearly defines a two or a three," explained Donovan. "She's 6-1, 6-2, can post up, so that's a classic three. She's one of the best shooters I've ever seen, so that puts her in the two guard category. She fits nicely at either spot for us and can save some minutes for Sue at the point spot. We've gotten a player that's very versatile that can swing to multiple positions. In the game right now, you want versatility in your players. You want players that can go more than one spot."

Gearlds had heard from Donovan that she fit the Storm's needs and was anticipating the possibility of ending the day as a member of the team as she awaited her selection live at the Draft in Cleveland.

"I think Seattle is the perfect fit to me," she said. "To start the day, that's where I hoped I'd end up, where I thought I'd end up. I feel like I have a great opportunity to play for a great coach and learn from Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson and the others on the team. I'm just looking forward to the challenge."

The Draft capped a wild month for Gearlds. She was outstanding in the NCAA Tournament as her Purdue team advanced to the Elite Eight before falling to North Carolina in the regional final. Last weekend, Gearlds won the State Farm College Three-Point Championship, defeating Oregon's Aaron Brooks in a matchup of the men's and women's winners. She also found time to participate in the WNBA Pre-Draft Camp last weekend.

STORMCAST

A special Draft day edition of StormCast features Storm play-by-play broadcaster Alan Horton and storm.wnba.com's Kevin Pelton discussing the Draft and Horton getting more info in an exclusive one-on-one interview with Anne Donovan.

"I haven't had time to think about a lot of things," said Gearlds. "Obviously, we had a great run to finish the year and make it to the Elite Eight - better than a lot of people expected from us. Then, as soon as I got home from Dallas after we lost, I flew right to Atlanta, then right to Cleveland for the Pre-Draft Camp. I spent a couple of days at home and here I am back in Cleveland again. It's been a crazy couple of weeks. I'm ready to calm back down again and couldn't be happier about the situation I'm going into."

Gearlds' performance in the NCAA Tournament "solidified" her status in Donovan's mind.

"She solidified to me how much heart she had," Donovan said. "That was the question about Katie throughout her career - how much emotion she had about the game, how much passion she had for the game. People attributed that to coaching changes and trying to get some consistency at Purdue, but during March Madness she stepped up. She showed her leadership, she showed gut check, she showed big shots at big times, she showed emotion. Those were great things to see - how much the game meant to her, how much it meant when her career at Purdue finished."

Gearlds showed emotion - excitement - when she found out she would be playing in Seattle. Still, she was not as excited as the Storm's front office.

"If we had one player that we could have written into the Storm roster for a best fit, it's Katie Gearlds," Donovan said, "so we're thrilled with that pick."