Sky’s Dana Evans finally gets her shot to start at point guard
The more minutes Sky guard Dana Evans played in a game last season, the better she shot from the field and from the three-point line.
Charles Rex Arbogast/AP
Sky guard Dana Evans and new coach Teresa Weatherspoon had a number of conversations before their first training camp together.
From the moment Weatherspoon was hired in October, she made known her belief in Evans. Still, when she said just how valuable she believes Evans is to this team, it came as a surprise to the Sky’s longest-tenured player.
“I trusted her,” Evans said. “I knew she meant business. But, I mean, she really pours into us. I’ve never had so much communication, positive communication.”
Evans is one of the few threads of continuity that remain for the Sky on a team that has seen a complete overhaul from the front office to the roster. While her first three seasons in the WNBA were spent making the most of limited playing time, she still brings a valuable sense of calm associated with much older veterans.
It’s a characteristic that will serve her well as she steps into a solidified point-guard role.
“I don’t feel pressure,” Evans said. “I honestly feel more relieved knowing that I’m really going to get my opportunity.”
Evans always has made known her belief that she can be a starting point guard in the WNBA. At the same time, however, she never has approached playing behind veterans like Courtney Vandersloot and Courtney Williams with negativity.
In 2021 she averaged just 8.6 minutes. But during the Sky’s championship run, the attention Evans paid to Vandersloot and others was apparent. She was often the first player off the bench during timeouts, listening intently in huddles and talking with teammates about what was transpiring on the court.
Her minutes in 2022 saw a slight uptick. Last year it looked like Evans would step into a more significant role, but offseason deals once again delayed her opportunity. Williams was tapped as the Sky’s starting point guard and Marina Mabrey, who was acquired in a trade, filled out the backcourt alongside Kahleah Copper.
Now, there’s no one ahead of Evans on the depth chart. In her fourth season she is the veteran voice teammates are listening to.
“She wants it,” Weatherspoon said. “As a playmaker, it’s important that you lead by example. You know exactly what the head coach wants, being an extension of who I am.
“She’s fighting, scratching and clawing for us to be better.”
Evans’ splits from the 2023 season show an interesting trend.
In games where she played between 10-19 minutes, her field-goal percentage was at 25%. When her minutes shot up to between 20-29 she improved to 39.7% shooting from the field and 32.1% from thre-point range. When Evans played 30 minutes or more, she was shooting 46.3% from the field and 54.5% from three.
Of course, more minutes are going to translate to more shots. But Evans also recognized a difference in her shot selection.
“A lot of players say, ‘I have to get into a rhythm,’ ” Evans said. “But it’s a real thing. If I don’t get a chance to take that next one [after missing an attempt], now it’s a mental game.”
This offseason, Evans focused on the mental aspect of her game. She paid close attention to how she responded to an off night shooting and her shot selection when she was playing limited stretches.
“If I missed three shots I thought, ‘How am I going to go about that next time?’ ” Evans said. “Am I going to mope? Or am I going to get somebody an easy layup?”