Top > Sport > 2004 > October > 2004-10-08

Storm`s unsung Sam: Small forward comes up big in her own quiet way

In Seattle, she`s more than happy to shine from the shadows.

Maybe that`s because the rugged 6-foot forward has ridden her role with the Storm all the way to one of the sport`s biggest stages. For the first time in her career, Sam will play for a major championship, beginning this afternoon when Seattle and Connecticut tip off Game 1 of the WNBA Finals on the Sun`s home court at Uncasville, Conn.

``I just want my ring,`` said Sam, who has ramped up her performance in the postseason, helping bring the Storm to the brink of the big prize. ``My main thing for the playoffs is to make things happen on the defensive end. Go to the boards, get some deflections, keep our energy up and get the team running. When we run, that`s our game.``

It`s no secret that the Storm offense runs in large part through Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson. On Tuesday night, Bird set a WNBA playoff record with 14 assists, Jackson racked up 27 points, and Seattle closed out Sacramento in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals, 82-62.

Where was Sam? Merely everywhere, quietly contributing 12 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals.

And if all the folks with the notepads and cameras go to the other dressing stalls for postgame comments ... well, Sam doesn`t seem to mind.

``Those two have earned it,`` Sam said of the team`s two high-profile catalysts. ``We`ve all gone through our careers where we`ve been there. In Miami, I experienced it -- I know what it`s all about.

``I just enjoy winning.``

Sam was indeed a focal point during her days with the now-defunct Sol. She spent the 2000, 2001 and 2002 seasons with Miami, averaging 12.8, 13.9 and 14.5 points, respectively.

Then, after the 2002 season, the Sol sank, and Sam wound up with Minnesota via a dispersal draft.

Even then, she was wishing she could be here, if for no other reason than in Minnesota, she wound up playing shooting guard most of the season -- a spot where the Lynx had an abundance of players.

``If I had to pick any team, I would have picked Seattle,`` Sam said. ``Knowing Anne Donovan and Jenny (assistant coach Boucek, who was an assistant with Miami during Sam`s tenure there), and having Sue and Lauren here, it just seemed like a recipe for a championship team.``

Sam got her wish when Donovan traded for her and Janell Burse a couple days before the college draft in April. Sam immediately earned a starting spot, was on the verge of losing it after the month-long Olympic break, but won it back and has had a firm grip on it ever since.

``Sometimes, you get a little complacent and take things for granted,`` Sam said. ``It made me look in the mirror. I knew I hadn`t been performing the way I wanted to. I wasn`t helping them at all in those losses (three straight to start September).

``I`m just happy I was able to turn it around.``

After averaging 9.1 points and 4.1 rebounds during the regular season, Sam is up to 9.4 and 6.4 in five playoff games. She`s whipping the ball around, too, averaging 4.2 assists per game (up from her regular-season average of 2.4).

All to get to this moment, where the spotlight shines not so much on Sam, but on something more important to her.

``I can taste it,`` said Sam, who won a championship in the powerful Southeastern Conference with Vanderbilt in 1995, but never went to the Final Four. ``There`s no more tomorrows. In the regular season, you can say, `I`ll get it next time.`

``But here,`` she said, ``you have to do it now.``

Or that spotlight will go elsewhere.