TORRANCE, Calif. -- She's barely been here a week but Monique Akoa Makani's presence has already been felt.
The Mercury sent Akoa Makani to the Sparks in order to acquire Kelsey Plum. She admitted that she didn't expect to be dealt.
"Yes, a lot," Akoa Makani said at practice on Saturday when she was asked if she was surprised about the trade. "I was in Chicago. Yeah, we had just landed in Chicago that night,"
Then when she was finally able to link with the team, this was what she said:
"I think I got at the hotel the night when they came in. So I didn't get to see them really until the next morning. And yeah, I was just like, you know, discovering a new team, new dynamics. So, I'm pretty chill as a person. I wasn't too hyped or anything, especially because I went through a lot of emotions the night before. So, yeah, I just got good feelings and I was very well welcomed by the team and the staff... everybody."
Akoa Makani notably closed the game on Thursday against the Lynx. She hit a big jumper to put them up five late in the contest and it helped them seal the upset.
"I don't like to get too hyped or anything. But I would say I take pride in it," Akoa Makani said about being out there late. "Because that means I have enough of an impact on the team to be able to be on the court. And as a player, as a point guard, as a person, I always look to be able to have the more impact possible on the floor. And so, yeah, that's a good trust move from her. And I really appreciate that."
What did Coach Lynne Roberts say to her when she first got to the team?
"She said she was very happy to have me, even though she knew I was probably going through a very tough time," Akoa Makani opened. "And that she completely understood my situation. She just wanted me to know that I was very wanted here. And she was very excited about me."
She's also leaned on a very reliable veteran in her first days as a Spark.
"Yeah, Erica (Wheeler). Erica has been very – she's been in my ears a lot because I need that," Akoa Makani said. "I love (feedback). And since we're both point guards, I needed her to give me her senses, like whatever she thinks. And, yeah, she's been very helpful."
With the Sparks heading into the last 14 games, Akoa Makani had a few goals of her own for the team.
"I would say the main thing for me is to be able to play with confidence," Akoa Makani said. "Also, yeah, be able to stay, I don't know if this is the right word, but, like, unified no matter what happens. Because to me, in those situations, you have to take it one day at a time, one game at a time. And so if we are letting, let's say, a loss or anything else take us apart, it's definitely not going to work. So definitely stay together and rely on each other. And that's what I said the other day to my teammates.
"I think to be a great team, you have to be able to trust that you can rely on every teammate," Akoa Makani continued. "And also that they are also wanting to make you better, you know, and serve you. And so my mentality coming into this team is definitely for them to know that I'm here to serve. Whatever they need from me to be able to win games, I will be able to do that no matter what."
Her new teammate, Rae Burrell, knew what she has brought to the Sparks.
"Defense, intensity, I think she came in aggressive. It's what we need, so yeah, I think she's been doing great," Burrell said.
Coach Roberts had a lot of good things to say about Akoa Makani.
"Yeah, I think against Minnesota we saw her a little more comfortable, understandably," Roberts said. "It was a wild four days for her, for us. But just her defense, whether it's off-ball, on-ball, and I said it after the game, but every team has their own verbiage and vernacular, and it's different than the other team. She's come in and picked it up quick, which speaks to her intelligence. But she's a great human being. She's full of gratitude, and humility, and confidence in what she's able to do. That's a great combo.
"She's an explosive athlete," Roberts continued. "I think it's a great trade. I think we got a really good one. She's only in the second year of her contract, has played a lot of basketball internationally, isn't afraid of the moment, just really poised. And in that game down the stretch of Minnesota, she was phenomenal. Defensively, so good. And hit a couple big shots, too. Got a couple and-ones. We're pleased with her."
It's only been a short time but the way she's fit in, it feels that Akoa Makani has been here for a while.
She is looking forward to her first home game as a Spark this coming Sunday afternoon.
"I feel good about it. Yeah, I can't wait to feel that atmosphere being on their side this time."