Indiana Fever head coach Stephanie White discussed the reasons why they signed Michelle Onyiah as a development player.
Ahead of their home game against the Las Vegas Aces on Thursday, coach White spoke to the media on practice day and answered questions.
One of the subjects raised was Onyiah's signing as a development player for the Fever, and White explained why they liked this addition.
“I think with Michelle, you like her size, you like her length,” White said. “She’s got long arms, her wingspan is massive.”
The Fever coach also pointed out that, even though she’s a raw talent, Onyiah has shown flashes of her upside in team practices.
“She’s a young post player who’s continued to get better, you know, post her collegiate career and getting an opportunity," White continued. "I think, to practice against our post players every day and to really evaluate and develop is going to be good for her.”
Onyiah was a standout at the University of California, Berkeley before playing for the Charlotte Crown in the Upshot League. She is the first Upshot player to be signed by a WNBA team. This roster move by the Fever was somewhat unexpected, as they opted to bring in a talent from Upshot rather than signing any available free agents with WNBA experience.
Once activated by Indiana, Onyiah can play up to 12 games this season and can beef up the team’s frontcourt that already has Aliyah Boston, Monique Billings, Myisha Hines-Allen and Makayla Timpson.
These stars could accelerate Onyiah’s development given the level of competition on the team.
The 6-foot-3 forward averaged 9.6 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game for the Crown.
