Athlete of the Week: Alissa Pili, from the Dimond Lynx to Minnesota Lynx
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - On Monday night in New York, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert walked up to the podium to announce the top draft pick for the Minnesota Lynx, one of 12 teams in the growing women’s basketball league.
“With the eighth pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, the Minnesota Lynx select Alissa Pili, University of Utah,” Engelbert said, eliciting cheers from fans inside the Brooklyn Academy of Music.
An emotional Pili, seated at a roundtable in the first row of the venue, began a round of hugs with loved ones and her Utah coach before gracing the stage and accepting her new jersey.
Pili was officially a pro.
“I am very excited to just be able to play at the next stage and improve in areas that I need to to really excel at the next level,” Pili said at the WNBA post-draft press conference.
From a Dimond Lynx to a Minnesota Lynx, the organization posted a video to their social media of Lynx Coach and President of Basketball Operations Cheryl Reeve celebrating with staff after calling in the pick from the draft room.
“I suspect that Alissa, every day she wakes up, she can shoot the ball; every day she wakes up, she is strong enough to finish around the basket,” Reeve said. ”I think what defines her ... you don’t see the blips of ups and downs. She is just really steady. You can directly communicate with her, she is engaged and she understands what needs to happen.”
While Alaska may be familiar with parts of Pili’s story, the rest of the country has some learning to do about her background.
”I was wondering if you could talk about growing up in Alaska?” one Minnesota sports reporter asked.
“I always say I loved my childhood, it was so much fun — camping, fishing, doing a bunch of outdoor stuff. It is a beautiful state,” Pili said.
First living in Utqiagvik and then Anchorage, Pili has always been proud of her home state and culture, which was on full display during the draft in her black and gold tribal-printed dress.
“I’m a humble person and someone who is really for the community and loves to represent my people,” said Pili, who is of Alaska Native and Polynesian heritage. “I think, especially this year, just try to tap into representing my culture and just being that inspiration for young kids who look like me and are of my same background. I think that impact is something that I will carry with me to the WNBA and I just hope that is what people see.”
Pili will immediately join the Lynx and prepare for her rookie season set to begin next month. She would become the sixth Alaskan to play in the WNBA when she steps on the court, behind Fairbanks’ Ruthy Hebard, who recently signed a training camp deal with Minnesota, though Reeve said that was not a part of some master plan.
“I can’t say that there was any intention around connecting two Alaskans, but that is kind of fun,” Reeve said at the post-draft media availability. ”I just know they are both really quality people and I know their families are important to them and they are two Alaskans that are happy to represent their home and we are excited to have them.”
Pili said she is ready to get to work, finding a role on a team with all-star forward Napheesa Collier.
”I am just super excited to come in and learn from players like [Collier] and I think that’s the fun part about it, we think we have been playing for so long, we know about the game, but there is so much more to learn and I am just looking forward to that,” Pili said. “I just bring versatility and physicality to the game of basketball.”
The Lynx are set to tip off their 2024 season on May 3 with a preseason game against the Chicago Sky.
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