TORRANCE — Rae Burrell is in the middle of her second WNBA season with the Sparks but the No. 9 pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft admits she still feels like a rookie.
That’s because the former Tennessee standout played just three games last year, hampered by what quickly became a season-ending knee injury that required surgery to alleviate what became debilitating pain.
“I definitely still feel like a rookie,” Burrell shared on Wednesday at the team’s training facility at El Camino College. “I played those first three games last year but I was injured, had not had knee surgery yet, wasn’t moving exactly how I know I can move and how I want to move so I would definitely count this as more of a rookie year.”
Sparks forward Rae Burrell explains how she’s using her hardship contract as an audition to showcase her abilities to cement her future in the WNBA. #WNBATwitter #WNBA pic.twitter.com/kKXIMSTgq7
— John W. Davis (@johnwdavis) July 26, 2023
Burrell played overseas in Australia during the offseason and participated in the Sparks’ training camp, but she was waived before the season started in May. However, the 6-foot-2 guard/forward has found her way back onto the roster, playing in 13 games this season on two emergency hardship contracts because the team lacked healthy players.
“Being on a hardship (contract) it’s not guaranteed, you can be released at any moment, so just making sure that I go out there and show what I can do and showcase my abilities is what I try to do every time I step on the floor,” Burrell explained.
She’s also been focused on being a positive asset off the bench, finding playing time at shooting guard, small forward, and as the team’s emergency power forward.
“Just bringing energy,” Burrell said. “Trying to be that spark off the bench and going in and giving whatever the team needs, whether it’s rebounding or defense or just running the floor and spacing out, just giving energy off the bench to…
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