Together with her three co-stars, NaLyssa Smith is finding her footing in a season that is bursting with breakthrough potential. Despite beginning the season outside of the starting lineup, Smith’s return to the starting five has allowed her to step up to a new level.
With seven rebounds per game, the No. 2 selection in the 2022 WNBA draft ranks among the league’s top-16 rebounders. That is fewer than one rebound per game behind Aliyah Boston, the team leader for Indiana.
Smith said, “I want to keep rebounding hard.” “I’m confident that I can rank among this league’s top rebounders.”
With a 50.3 percent field goal percentage, she is among the top 14 players in the WNBA. By this measure, she is the top ranked player for the Fever and has nine games with a field goal percentage of 50% or above.
Coach Christie Sides said, “We just really keep talking about paint touches.” “You must apply paint touches.A paint touch just brings down the defense. Particularly considering how [Smith] and [Boston] are doing down there. It’s not enough to merely beat them and hope they get every shot; you also need to play through your posts. They only provide a wide-open appearance.
With double digits in scoring in six of Indiana’s seven games this season, Smith’s offense has been a key component of the team’s success. Because she feeds off of rookie guard Caitlin Clark’s ability to pull several defenders to the perimeter, her rapport with Clark is increasing Indiana’s offensive effectiveness. Smith benefits from more post touches as a consequence; she makes 72% of her shots near the rim and 59% of them inside 10 feet of the hoop.
As a group, we’ve been focusing on it, according to Clark. Our goal is to be able to play from the inside out. The more we can do that, the better it will be for [NaLyssa] as we want our postings to be seen.In basketball, it is the shot with the greatest percentage. That’s the shot you should aim for.
With five double-doubles this season, Boston has the most, while Smith’s three tie Clark for second most among Fever players. Smith contributes to the defense as well as the offense, and she has been a potent weapon on the attacking end.
Defensively, I’ve had a lot of challenges this year, Smith said. “I saw it as a test…I became much more concerned about my defense.
She has improved her average of little over a block per game during her first two years in the league. For the whole 2023 season, Smith only had 10 blocks. With 21 blocks in only 19 games in the 2024 season, she has already matched that total. In the Fever’s previous seven games, Smith has swatted ten shots, a sharp contrast to her block totals from only a season before.
Smith hopes to play her way onto the floor in Phoenix with the 2024 WNBA All-Stars as she continues to rise in the ranks. She might make an argument to be in the All-Star frontcourt if she keeps up her effective performance.
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