The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

LIKE most highly touted rookies, Jonquel Jones is facing an adjustment period in her rookie season of WNBA basketball.

A 1-7 start for her Connecticut Sun certainly has not helped the process.

“In college we won a lot of games, but this isn’t college. This is another level. Our team is young, our team has a lot of people that we feel can do a lot of great stuff we just have to click on all levels,” Jones said following the Sun’s 86-77 loss to the Indiana Fever.

“In the WNBA you have to bring everything every night. I think that’s something we’re definitely struggling with right now and we’ll continue to get better . We’re still young, we’re still hopeful for the season. We have a lot of things we want to accomplish.”

Connecticut has lost its last six and is off to the worst start in franchise history. They fell to 1-7 for the first time since 2001 - when they were the Orlando Miracle - with the loss to the Fever.

Despite the slow start, Jones said the Sun fanbase has never wavered.

“Win or lose they’re here. Win or lose they support us. We could never fully show them how appreciative we are except for winning games and right now we’re not doing that but we really appreciate them. I have watched a lot of games in a lot of different places,” he said.

On the season Jones is averaging 10.9 minutes, 4.7 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game.

She posted a career high 10 points in an 93-81 loss to the Seattle Storm on May 28.

Jones and her fellow first round draft picks continue to struggle for playing time early in the season.

The Sun will seek their second win of the season on Friday (June 10) against the Seattle Storm.

While Jones is looking to focus on improving this season, she still also seeks improvement for the state of Bahamian basketball.

Her ultimate vision is for Bahamian basketball to change the structure of its recruiting practices as more countries produce elite prospects.

“We have to develop people that are willing to come back to the Bahamas and work with the youth. That’s one of the places we are struggling right now. We have people like Coach [Moon] McPhee but he’s a rarity. You have to have people willing to invest in the youth and bring them up the right way,” she said. “Eventually people won’t have to do what I did and do what Buddy did. They will be able to stay there and develop their skills and the Bahamas can become a hub for basketball.”