The Los Angeles Sparks are in a bad spot right now. Two of their best players are hurt, and on Sunday they had to face the Minnesota Lynx, the team with the best record in the WNBA. The final score was 99-83 Lynx, which sounds about right for a team that’s missing key pieces. But in the middle of a loss, head coach Lynne Roberts saw something she liked from a player who’s barely touched the floor this season.
Emma Cannon didn’t check in until about four minutes were left in the fourth quarter, when the game was already decided. But after the loss, Roberts made a point to mention her in the postgame press conference. Specifically alongside Jihyun Park, another deep bench piece who doesn’t get regular minutes.
“The two bright spots I pointed out with the team were Emma and JP,” Roberts said. “I thought Emma came in ready. She talks on defense, she’ll set hard screens, she executes. I think she earned opportunity. That’s what you do when you get a chance, you make it count and she did.”
Here’s the thing: this might not be a one-time cameo. Cameron Brink is out with an ankle injury, and the Sparks haven’t announced a timetable for her return. That leaves a hole in the frontcourt. Against the Lynx, Roberts used both Cannon and second-year center Sania Feagin to fill in. Cannon was the one who made the most of it.
Cannon is 33 years old and in her eighth WNBA season. She went undrafted in 2011 and has bounced around the league. This year she’s barely played — less than three minutes across three games before Sunday. The Sparks brought her back in the offseason mostly because she’s a strong locker room presence and gets along with everyone. But now, with Brink out, she might actually need to contribute on the court.
“I know that me being an aggressive post player is something that we need,” Cannon told reporters after the game. “Me setting screens, me helping my teammates get open, get rebounds, anything and everything that I’m able to do to help my team get a win, I’m willing to do.”
She’s also a legit three-point shooter. Over the two seasons she’s played with the Sparks, she’s hit 38.9 percent and 66.7 percent from deep. That’s small sample size territory for the 66.7, but last year she took 36 attempts from three, a career high. If she can stretch the floor while Brink is out, that could open things up for the guards.
Asked if she thinks she earned more minutes with her performance against Minnesota, Cannon just shrugged it off. “I’m not a coach, I’m a player,” she said. “I show up how I show up. I show up and do what I do and I do it well. I lead by example.”
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