Sami Whitcomb is a perfect teammate

Relentless, pesky, determined. Sami Whitcomb is everything you want it a teammate and everything you hate in an opponent.

After sitting for games 1 and 2 of the semifinals, Sami Whitcomb finally got her chance to play. Phoenix went on an offensive barrage in the first half of game 3 which resulted in a lineup change from Dan Hughes. Whitcomb made the most of her eleven minutes, hitting two clutch threes and providing a much-needed defensive boost. Despite losing the game, she had an opportunity to showcase what she could do on a big stage. Hughes took notice.

Through the final three games of the semifinals, Whitcomb totaled thirty-seven minutes, scored nineteen points, grabbed four rebounds, dished five assists, and had one block. She shot 7–13 from the field, including 4–7 from deep, which is good for 1.37 points per scoring attempt.

Hughes gave her only 5 minutes in a close game 4 that Seattle lost at the buzzer. However, he went back to the well for game 5 and she played 21 glorious minutes of basketball. While she churned out an impressive box score (11 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 4–9 from the field, 2–3 from three), her intangibles were what made the difference. She was a total pest of defense, hustled for every loose ball that came near her, was a team cheerleader, and displayed boundless enthusiasm that kept Seattle in the game.

A few examples of her EXCEPTIONAL ability to be the best teammate on Earth:

• With 3:01 left in the third, she drives through traffic, misses the layup, gets her own rebound, only to find Alysha Clark wide open outside. She passed the ball from under the basket to a wide-open Clark, who proceeded to bury a three. You can see Sami point up to her to Shoot! Shoot! Shoot! She knew. She knew it was going in. Teammates feed off of that kind of energy. It’s electric.

• With less than 30 seconds left in the 3rd quarter, Sami blocks a layup attempt by Yvonne Turner which ended up out of bounds, giving Seattle possession. While it didn’t ultimately lead to a score by the end of the quarter, this was the moment when you could feel the tide turn in Seattle’s favor.

• For the first basket in the 4th, Sami obliterates DeWanna Bonner for an easy layup to bring Seattle within two.

For all of these impressive hustle plays by Whitcomb, you might think Whitcomb is one of the best players on the Storm. But, consider this: She averaged only 8.9 minutes per game in the regular season.

Will Dan Hughes continue to put his trust in Sami in the WNBA Finals? Considering her level of play through the final three games of the semis, I’d say yes. We will find out in Friday’s game 1 against the Mystics.

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All data taken from the WNBA.com database as of 9/5/18.