Being a WNBA rookie is never easy -- and these days especially -- but Los Angeles Sparks forward Cameron Brink said her teammates and even veterans from other teams are helping her embrace the right mentality.
"Diana Taurasi came to me at the free-throw line and she was like, 'You know, you're going to be dealing with this crap for 20 more years,'" Brink told CBS Sports. "And I was like, 'Oh my god. Not with the way I'm playing now.'"
"Just give yourself grace," Taurasi told Brink.
Caught up with Los Angeles Sparks rookie Cameron Brink. She said Mercury veteran Diana Taurasi recently gave her some advice.
— Isabel Gonzalez (@cisabelg) June 3, 2024
Taurasi: You are going to be dealing with this crap for 20 more years
Brink: Not with the way I'm playing now
Taurasi: Just give yourself grace pic.twitter.com/YVuoaTQS7I
The former Stanford star was named the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year just a few months ago, and those skills are already translating into her professional career. Brink, the second overall selection from this year's draft class, recorded a total of 19 blocks in May, the most ever by a player in their first month in the WNBA.
Brink's 2.6 blocks per game places her third league-wide, just behind Seattle Storm center Ezi Magbegor and Las Vegas Aces forward A'ja Wilson. In her first nine games, Brink has also been averaging 8.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.0 steals.
Wilson, last season's WNBA Finals MVP, is one of the players Brink admires, and they got to play each other on May 18, when the Aces pulled out an 89-82 win over the Sparks. After the game, Wilson complimented Brink and said the rookie has a "bright future."
"I've obviously looked up to her for a long time," Brink said. "Before the game I told her I'm just really happy for her and her success. She is definitely one of the best. She's the MVP for a reason in this league, because she is just versatile, she can literally do everything. She has great size. She was Defensive Player of the Year as well, which I look up to.
"That means a lot coming from the MVP. I just hope to have an impact like hers. I want to play in this league for a long time and continue build it up like she has."
However, not everything has gone smoothly. Although Brink has shown she can contribute on both ends of the floor, Brink said some of her performances have fallen short of her own expectations. One of the main issues has been staying out of foul trouble, which she has struggled with since playing for Tara VanDerveer at Stanford.
"Foul trouble has definitely carried over from college to the W, which I was expecting," Brink said. "It's something rookies have to kind of navigate through. I'm not getting frustrated with it, I just know I have to adjust to a new style of play, officiating is different. I take it with a grain of salt. I watch a lot of film and I think I'm learning a lot."
Brink said it has been "a whirlwind of a couple months," but in quieter moments she finds herself getting emotional, in a good way, about how everything is coming together. She is trying to enjoy all the little things, such as sitting in her new apartment talking to her parents and getting a new bed. The 6-foot-5 Brink said one of the most enjoyable features of her new home is her new California King mattress gifted to her as part of a partnership with Mattress Firm.
"It's amazing," Brink said with a laugh. "I'm used to my feet hanging off of every single mattress I have ever owned."
Being a rookie has its ups and downs -- especially with the Sparks sitting at 2-7 -- but she said it helps to know that other newcomers are having similar challenges. Brink said the rookies talk often and share their experiences.
"I still feel like none of the rookies really have had time to adjust to this new norm that is our lives," Brink said. "All of our lives have kind of been flipped upside down -- in a good way, but it is still kind of jarring. I think we are all still adjusting, I know I am. Every day is a pinch-me moment. Life has completely changed for me, but I'm just thankful for it all and just leading with gratitude because it's amazing."
