Sparks’ Azurá Stevens is ready to win over fans in home debut
Before her long-awaited season debut, Azurá Stevens needed a moment to collect herself inside Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena. The Sparks forward’s time had finally come.
“I’ve worked really hard to get here,” Stevens said.
The Sparks’ top free-agent signing will make her home debut Friday against her former team, the Chicago Sky, at 7 p.m. at Crypto.com Arena. The game will be televised nationally on ION.
With Stevens back, the Sparks (3-3) are nearing full health as guard Jasmine Thomas was upgraded to available for Friday’s game. The point guard suffered a torn ACL last May. Stevens, an athletic 6-foot-6 center who helped Chicago to the WNBA championship in 2021, missed the first five games of the season because of a lingering back injury suffered while playing in Turkey.
The setback was a rare moment of rest for the energetic post player who has played overseas almost every offseason since getting drafted sixth overall in 2018 by the Dallas Wings. After previously playing in China and Russia, the 27-year-old helped Galatasaray to a third-place finish in Turkey’s top pro league and a second-place finish in the EuroCup.
The Sparks were the first beneficiaries of the WNBA’s expanded travel policy involving charter flights when playing back-to-back games. A look at how that went.
Stevens averaged 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds during league play, but the season was condensed because of the devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria in February. Between the twice-weekly league games and travel for the EuroCup, the second-tier international competition for European clubs, Stevens’ back started aching.
The toll of year-round play adds “wear and tear” to players’ bodies, Stevens acknowledged.
“I love basketball, so I’m pushing through,” Stevens said. “But I just think my body needed some time to rest after overseas.”
In her season debut against Seattle on Tuesday, Stevens had four points and three rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench. Having participated in only minimal five-on-five contact periods leading up to the game, she had three turnovers. The Sparks turned the ball over a season-high 21 times while squandering a 21-point first-quarter lead in the 66-63 Seattle victory. It was the Storm’s first win of the season.
“Azurá obviously impacts the game with her length,” Sparks coach Curt Miller told reporters after the game. “She has a unique ability to fly around the floor, but you know you see someone that hasn’t played for a while … so just a little rusty.”
Stevens, whose open personality and broad smile make her an ideal cultural fit for the new-look Sparks, said she put extra pressure on herself during the much-anticipated debut. She was so focused on the game plan that she wasn’t smiling the way fans have grown accustomed to seeing.
But teammates from former most valuable player Nneka Ogwumike to rookie Zia Cooke propped her up with positive feedback. It’s exactly the type of environment Stevens wanted when she signed up for the Sparks’ rebuild.
Injuries interrupted most of her WNBA career, including a knee injury that cut a promising 2020 season short. Teams still clamored for the former WNBA all-rookie honoree after she proved her potential by starting every postseason game during the Sky’s 2021 championship run.
Sparks general manager Karen Bryant called Stevens the team’s No. 1 free-agent target during the offseason after she averaged 10.6 points and 3.9 rebounds last year.
Stevens envisioned helping turn the struggling franchise around after a two-year playoff drought. Watching the first three weeks of the season from the bench hasn’t diminished that hope.
Nneka Ogwumike had 22 points and 11 rebounds, but the Storm rallied from 21 points down to beat the Sparks 66-63 on Tuesday night in Seattle.
“Since I got here, the team’s been great.” Stevens said. “The attitudes all around are really positive and joyful and I’m a positive and joyful person, so I’ve loved it.”
The former Duke and Connecticut star’s positive personality has helped endear her to fans all over the world. She made a point to connect with supporters at each of her international stops, and she knows how she can make the best first impression on L.A. fans this weekend.
“I’m really excited just to play in front of them and most importantly, to get this win on Friday,” Stevens said. “That’s the main thing.”
