Despite the individual accolades, Delle Donne remains focused on what she hopes to help the Sky achieve.
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“It’s such a humbling thing with all the superstars in the league for me to be named MVP this season”, Delle Donne said in a phone interview Wednesday night.
The most satisfying personal aspect of Delle Donne’s season, she said, was how she made her game more complete.
Delle Donne finally got the illness, which has no known cure, under control but in 2010 she said she “had a really bad relapse” and has been troubled by it ever since, causing the Delaware native to miss a chunk of last season, including the All-Star game.
LeBron James was among those who tweeted their congratulations to Delle Donne after the news was announced on ESPN’s Sports Center. My teammates are the ones that have the credit, the coaches as well.
NEW YORK – With the playoffs set to begin later this week, the WNBA will start handing out its season awards. Phoenix’s Brittney Griner was fourth and LA’s Candace Parker was fifth.
Seeded No. 2 in the Eastern Conference, the Sky (21-13) opens a best-of-three playoff series Thursday at 8 p.m. (ESPN2) against visiting Indiana (20-14).
“The end goal is the WNBA championship”, Donne said. Her 95.0 percentage was the seventh-best single-season mark in league history and the highest all time among players with more than 100 free throw attempts in a season. “But I’ve felt like that many times over the last five years and then had a awful relapse”. This year, though, pretty much nothing has gotten in her way.
Her strong – and healthy – season should be a springboard for Delle Donne earning a spot on the United States team for next summer’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
“It showed I was more than just an offensive scorer”, Delle Donne said. “Of the eight teams remaining, you really could say that majority have a legitimate chance to win the title and it wouldn’t be shocking”.
Game 3 * – Monday .
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Chatman, the Sky coach, said when she sees the “glassy look” in Delle Donne’s eyes, she knows it is time to sit her down. To commemorate the achievement, the Beaverton, Ore.-based athletic brand has released a sneaker inspired by Delle Donne. “They had our backs, and now, we’re going to the playoffs”.
