After a frenzied weekend of free agency activity, the Toronto Tempo almost have a fully formed inaugural team (all the players that are currently on the Tempo roster can be found here). The fact that they have the sixth pick in the WNBA rookie draft is simply a cherry on top!
Toronto does not have to overthink this. They should simply take the best talent available.
Here are the top 3 players who we think the Tempo should consider picking with the 6th pick and how they might fit with the current roster.
1. Kiki Rice
Recent NCAA National Champion, Kiki Rice, already has a very polished game. A 5’11” point guard, Rice has size, athleticism, poise, intelligence, and leadership. Her drives to the basket on fast breaks and in the half court are elite. She is unflappable with the ball in her hands and rarely turns the ball over. Over recent years, she has improved her shooting. On defense, she is an elite perimeter defender who can guard players bigger than her. What further separates Rice apart are her intangibles. If you’re not convinced, read Jack Moloney’s piece on Rice’s work ethic and leadership qualities and you will see that she will be a winning player in the W, maybe even on day one.
Fit with Tempo: Rice offers a clean fit. While she might come off the bench to start the season, she can be mentored by Julie Allemand, while commanding the second unit. Then, we can anticipate that Rice can take over the starting role by the end of the season.
2. Flau’jae Johnson
Flau’jae Johnson is an electric talent. She is dynamic offensively with an array of step back, pull up, and side-step jumpers, and drives to the basket. She is also an accomplished defender. Off the court, Flau’Jae trailblazes as a hip hop artist and fashion icon. Yes, these off-the-court accomplishments shouldn’t matter as much, but we just think that Torontonians would love Flau’Jae and Flau’Jae would love Toronto in return. The only knock on Flau’Jae is that her stats last season dipped from past seasons. We think she is still very much worth the pick.
Fit with the Tempo: There would be an immediate logjam with Flau’Jae and Sykes at the shooting guard position. Knowing Sandy Brondello’s preference for playing veterans, it would be shock if Flau’Jae would win that starting spot over Sykes. However, Flau’Jae could start the season as the team’s sixth player to provide instant offense off the bench with the potential of becoming a full-time starter.
3. Gianna Kneepkens
While best known as someone who can shoot the lights out from 3, Kneepkens should actually be billed as a 3-level scorer. Yes, she can shoot the 3, but she can also put the ball on the floor, get to a gap in the mid-range and shoot a fadeaway or a spinning one-legged shot. Kneepkens is a very creative and fearless scorer who was 0.7 field-goal percentage points shy of a 50-40-90 shooting season (49.3 FG%, 42.9 3PT%, 93.3 FT%).
On the defensive side, Kneepkens might have a hard time staying in front of quicker guards on defense, but she’s a good enough passer and cutter to contribute in areas beyond only shooting.
Fit with Tempo: similar to Flau’Jae, considering the money that has been devoted to Sykes and Mabrey, it would be hard to picture Kneepkens’ role other than coming off the bench to start the season. How her role evolves over the course of the season will be determined by how quickly her game develops to be able to contribute consistently.
