From dormant to dominant: Why Dominique Malonga could save the Storm

DOMINIQUE MALONGA SETTLES her 6-foot-6 framework into a seat successful a Brooklyn edifice connected a blistery July 4 evening. The Seattle Storm rookie is caller disconnected a signifier astatine Barclays Center aft arriving successful New York from Atlanta that afternoon.

It's a infinitesimal of calm. The 19-year-old, who played 4 seasons of nonrecreational hoops successful Europe, became the youngest subordinate ever drafted by the Storm erstwhile they chose her with the No. 2 prime successful April. Her tallness and agility drew comparisons to French countryman Victor Wembanyama. She moved 5,000 miles from Nanterre to Seattle successful May. She dunked successful her archetypal practice. Praise poured in.

"She's a unicorn. One of one," Storm manager Noelle Quinn said. "She's going to beryllium a star," teammate Gabby Williams said. There was statement among the Storm: Just you wait.

But Dominique Malonga was sent to the bench. And mostly stayed there. Through her archetypal 18 games, she averaged 4.4 points and 2.3 rebounds successful 9.1 minutes. The nighttime before, she went scoreless against the Dream arsenic Nneka Ogwumike and Ezi Magbegor hoarded the minutes successful the paint.

"It's frustrating, for sure," Malonga tells me.

Emotion acknowledged, she moves on. She refuses to linger successful the gloom. "Never person this antagonistic religion oregon antagonistic temper that tin impact the squad oregon the bench," she says. "That's not what I privation to bring."

She tells maine however she claps from the sideline and zeroes successful connected Ogwumike and Magbegor. How tin she bash what they're doing better?

"I privation to respire that energy," she says.

She yearns to crook the expectations into thing concrete. She's watching film. She's learning the intricacies of American basketball. She's grooming harder than ever.

"I'm not a dreamer," she says. "I'm a realist."

As the WNBA play turned to its 2nd act, Malonga delivered with a flurry of head-turning performances. She became the youngest subordinate successful league past with 100 tract goals. The youngest subordinate to grounds a double-double. Youngest subordinate to people 300 points. Youngest subordinate to station back-to-back 20-point and 10-rebound games.

But adjacent arsenic Malonga's milestones mounted, the Storm struggled down the stretch. With their playoff hopes successful jeopardy, it was Malonga who jumped successful from the seat and lifted the squad with her size, smarts, velocity and energy.

In the 20 regular-season games she played aft the All-Star break, she had a team-high 4 double-doubles. She averaged 11.4 points, a team-best 6.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocks successful 20.3 minutes per game. She changeable 57.6% from the field, which ranked apical 10 successful the league. "I emotion playing with her," constituent defender Skylar Diggins says. "I'm gladsome to spot her thrive."

Two months ago, it would person been intolerable to foretell that Seattle's playoff hopes would onshore connected the shoulders of a 19-year-old rookie who struggled to find her mode successful the market store, fto unsocial connected the hoops court. But 1 happening became wide during the regular season's last weeks.

The Storm need Malonga to support their rubric hopes alive. Never has that been much existent than today. After getting blown retired by the Aces successful Game 1 of their best-of-three first-round playoff bid successful Las Vegas, Seattle needs a triumph connected Tuesday astatine location oregon its play is over. Malonga scored 12 points and had 11 rebounds connected Sunday night, but she struggled with the Aces' gait and physicality. The Storm request Malonga now. They request the committedness of the past decennary to travel to pass.

Outside Malonga's Brooklyn edifice room, the fireworks are astir to begin.

MALONGA STANDS UP from her chair, a brushed grin connected her face. The assemblage astatine The Shed astatine Hudson Yards -- an arts halfway successful the bosom of New York City wherever the 2025 WNBA draught is being held -- erupts into applause and the cameras zoom successful connected her.<...