Former Stanford star Brooke Smith can only hope she did enough in the Phoenix Mercury's final WNBA exhbition game on Saturday to stay around awhile.
Smith was signed to a training-camp contract by the Mercury and is trying to make the regular-season roster with her work in the preseason. She scored just two points in the Mercury's 61-58 victory over the Seattle Storm in Phoenix on Saturday, but she had a team-high six rebounds.
The Mercury coaches, including head coach Corey Gaines, are obviously taking a close look at Smith, who played in 10 games with the Mercury as a rookie last season. She played 22 minutes in Phoenix's first exhbition game on Wednesday, and she played 16 minutes in Saturday's win.
She attempted only one shot, but she made it, and it came with less than five minutes left and gave Phoenix a one-point lead. Three of her six rebounds were on the offensive end and she also had a blocked shot. Perhaps most important, the Mercury rallied in the fourth quarter when Smith was on the floor.
WNBA teams must cut down to the 11-player limit before the regular season opens Saturday, June 6, and Smith is right on the bornerline of making the team.
Smith was one of the top 25 players on our alltime Stanford women's team.
Seattle rookie Ashley Walker, who played for Cal last year, had a big game on Saturday, collecting 12 points and 12 rebounds (including nine offensive boards) in just 20 minutes of action.
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