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Brandie Hoskins figured she was unlikely to get selected in the WNBA Draft. The Seattle Storm pleasantly surprised Hoskins Wednesday, taking her with their third-round pick, number 33 overall.
"When I heard Seattle picked me, I just started crying," Hoskins said in a conference call after the Draft. "I'm blessed to have the opportunity, because when I went out hurt, it's like you're taking a risk on a player who's been hurt the last two years. I'm blessed. This is a dream come true to be able to get picked in the WNBA. I'm still in shock, to be honest. I'm really thankful and I'm grateful."
For the Storm, the selection of Hoskins was made with an eye to the future. She will not play this season, but the Storm will maintain her rights and plan to bring her to training camp in 2008. By being patient, the Storm will get a talented player who likely would have gone higher in the Draft if not for her injury - possibly as high as the first round, Nancy Lieberman noted during the broadcast of the Draft and Storm Coach and Director of Player Personnel Anne Donovan confirmed.
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The Connecticut Sun made a similar pick in the 2005 Draft, taking Kansas State's Megan Mahoney in the third round after Mahoney tore her Achilles in the Big 12 Tournament. Mahoney sat out the 2005 season but joined the Sun in 2006, earning rotation minutes as a backup wing.
Hoskins has had horrible luck when her Achilles tendons are concerned. Before tearing the one in her left leg this spring, she tore her right Achilles during the 2006 NCAA Tournament.
"The doctor said it was rare for me to tear my first Achilles, so when I tore the second one, everybody was speechless," said Hoskins. "I recovered from my first Achilles in like six months, so they said about the same. It's all about rehab and the work ethic that you've got to have. I've got a good work ethic, so I've just got to be patient. I should be fine in January, and I'd be going overseas in January anyways. It's a long process, but whatever my trainer tells me to do, that's what I do, and that's why I'll be back in six months."
"The way we look at this, I have no doubt she'll come back," explained Donovan, who said she would like to bring Hoskins to Seattle at some point this summer to get a feel for the Storm. "She's done it before. She's a complete gym rat. It's who she is. We've talked with her coach, her trainer; we've talked to a lot of people at Ohio State. There's no doubt she'll come back."
Donovan sees Hoskins being able to play both guard positions in the WNBA. At 5-10, Hoskins has enough size to defend most shooting guards, but she handled the ball at Ohio State and averaged 4.9 assists per game as a senior. Skilled at getting to the basket, Hoskins shot 52.9% during her college career.
At 14.3 points per game, Hoskins was the Buckeyes' second-leading scorer after center Jessica Davenport, who was selected with the second overall pick by San Antonio and later traded to New York. Hoskins' importance was underscored after her Achilles injury. Ohio State, 22-1and a title contender at the time Hoskins went down, lost its perfect Big Ten season three games later against Michigan State before falling to Purdue in the finals of the Big Ten Tournament. Then came the shocker, a 67-63 upset at the hands of No. 13 Marist in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
"For the first time, when we lost that first game against Michigan State, I felt helpless," recalled Hoskins. "I just felt like I could only talk to them and not be able to show them and give them the fire I could when I was out there playing. I did all I could - I yelled and I screamed and I jumped up, even on my crutches - but I felt helpless like I kind of let my team down."
Backup Point by Committee
A point guard behind All-Star 
Sue Bird was potentially a need for the Storm in the Draft. Edwige Lawson-Wade, the only true point guard besides Bird on the roster a year ago, has opted to remain in Europe this summer, leaving an opening at the position. However, Donovan was unwilling to use a first-round pick on a player who would only play 8-10 minutes per game and hopes to fill the position with minutes from first-round pick Katie Gearlds and holdover 
Tanisha Wright.
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The Storm has invited Yolanda Paige, who played in 13 games for the Indiana Fever as a rookie two seasons ago but was out of the WNBA in 2006, to training camp. Another couple of point guards will likely be in camp as the coaching staff takes advantage of the projected late arrivals of many of the Storm's regulars - including the entire starting lineup - to take a look at players who have been unable to establish themselves in the league.
"There are these players out there that haven't made a team yet that we've always been intrigued by," Donovan explained. "Basically, we've gotten commitments to bring them in and give them a look and see where they are. They're all longshots, every one of them - and we've told them that. But our idea is get them in, evaluate them quickly and, if they don't have a future here, get them out."
The evaluation process goes beyond the free agents the Storm brings to camp and will also mean getting a feel for the progress of 
Shaunzinski Gortman and 
Wendy Palmer as they return from injuries that ended their 2006 seasons and looking at the development of the youngsters in camp.
"It is truly going to be evaluation from top to bottom," said Donovan. "Wendy Palmer coming back from injury, Shaun Gortman coming back from injury. Where (Tye'sha) Fluker fits in - we haven't seen her at all. Tanisha Wright lost a lot of weight. She's had a great year in Israel.
"Then as our starters trickle in, we'll start to see some kind of team."
Hoskins Meets Seattle Media