WNBA: Lynx' last stand?

By Marcus R. Fuller
St. Paul Pioneer Press
MINNEAPOLIS - Will this be the last time Maya Moore, Lindsay Whalen, Seimone Augustus and Rebekkah Brunson play for a WNBA title together?
The Minnesota Lynx foursome is making its fourth Finals appearance in five years and can win its third championship Wednesday with a victory in Game 5 against the Indiana Fever at Target Center.
But it also could be the end of a dominant era in Lynx basketball.
That makes the Lynx appreciate the moment even more.
“Nothing is guaranteed,” coach Cheryl Reeve said. “We’ve kind of made the climb. We know that we’re not still on the rise; we know that we’re on the top, this group going through all this together each year, going to the Finals. So I think there’s a heightened awareness that we have a really nice opportunity in front of us.
“And we’re going to have to play great.”
The Lynx would have preferred to clinch the title in Game 4 on the road and avoid a pressure-filled, winner-take-all fifth game. But the Lynx now have a chance to clinch a championship at home for the first time in franchise history.
The Lynx won the 2011 and 2013 titles on the road against the Atlanta Dream.
“We’ve never experienced winning on our home floor and enjoying this moment with our fans, with this city, with this town,” Augustus said. “(Fans) know the excitement and everything that’s surrounding this Game 5. We’re going to have an impact on this city, future WNBA players, parents and everyone else that’s going to be in here.”
Augustus, the 2011 WNBA Finals MVP, didn’t know if the Lynx would ever get back to the Finals after their first trip. But she had a feeling that if the core of Moore, Whalen, Brunson and herself stayed intact, Minnesota would be in the mix for years to come.
“We figured we could be very successful,” Augustus said. “Kind of like the San Antonio Spurs. You never really talk about them, but that doesn’t mean they don’t make the playoffs or make it to the Finals (almost every year). So we always felt like we had a chance.”
The Spurs won five NBA titles (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014) in six appearances, losing only in 2013 to the Miami Heat. If the Lynx win a fourth WNBA title, their only series loss in the Finals would be to the Fever in 2012.
Indiana forward Tamika Catchings was the MVP of that championship three years ago, but she will retire after the 2016 season.
Catchings realizes that Wednesday’s game could be her last opportunity to win it all.
“I said that I’m coming back next year and love the opportunity to play,” she said. “But we still have a long time before next year comes. You never know what will happen in the offseason. So you really do take advantage of every single opportunity.
“Being with these ladies, this is the last time that this team will be together.”
Moore should remain one of the game’s elite players. She was the 2013 Finals MVP and the WNBA MVP last year. This year, she was an all-WNBA first-teamer for the third straight season.
At 26, Moore is clearly in her prime. That can’t be said for her three fellow starters from the 2011 Lynx team, who are all older than 30. Brunson and Whalen are 33, Augustus is 31.
Brunson, who was out two months with a knee injury in 2014, was the team’s most durable starter this year, playing all 34 games. But Augustus (foot) and Whalen (Achilles’ tendon) missed a combined 23 games.
Anna Cruz and Renee Montgomery produced in expanded roles during the absence of Whalen and Augustus - and they’ve continued to be a big help. But another playoff run wouldn’t have been possible without Whalen and Augustus returning for the postseason.
Augustus is averaging 12.4 points in nine playoff games this year. Whalen, who split time at point guard with Cruz during the Finals, snapped a five-game streak under double figures scoring with 16 points in Sunday’s loss at Indiana.
Whalen’s biggest contribution was arguably the inbounds pass to Moore for the game-winning shot in Game 3 against the Fever, which made sure the Lynx would at least return home.
If this is the last time Moore, Augustus, Whalen and Brunson play for the title, they’ve enjoyed the ride.
“It adds a lot of appreciation for each other and a lot of camaraderie,” Whalen said. “We’ve done it so long together. You just want to take advantage of every chance you have.”