TORRANCE — Sparks center Azurá Stevens is more than ready to make her Sparks home debut, especially against her former team, the Chicago Sky.
“I’m really excited to be playing in front of the fans,” Stevens said after Thursday’s practice at El Camino College. “I love connecting with the fan bases wherever I’m at, whether I’m in Turkey, Dallas, Chicago and now I’m here in L.A. I love the city and the energy that they have for sports teams, especially the Sparks and the tradition we have here.”
Stevens missed the first five games of this season recovering from a back injury she suffered while playing two games a week overseas in Turkey, but she will be on the court Friday night when the Sparks (3-3) host the Sky (5-3) at Crypto.com Arena.
“Honestly, we play year-round. This is my fourth season straight I’ve been playing,” Stevens said. “I love basketball so I’m pushing through, but I think my body just needed a little time to rest after overseas and that’s what I got. Day by day, I’m just working my way back but I feel good. I feel great.”
A versatile inside-outside player, Stevens is intimately familiar with the Sky. That’s because she was a key piece on their 2021 WNBA championship team and played in Chicago again last season before signing with the Sparks as a free agent in February, seeking an expanded role.
Over her six-year WNBA career, the 27-year-old has shot 33.8% from 3-point range, an intriguing wrinkle for a post player, especially in the era of position-fluid basketball. She has averaged 8.9 points and 4.4 rebounds in her six-year career while playing 21.1 minutes per game.
At 6-foot-6, she’s the team’s tallest player by three inches, adding much-needed height to support former All-Stars Nneka Ogwumike, Chiney Ogwumike and Dearica Hamby.
“I’ve had injuries throughout my career so this is really nothing new for me. For me, it’s staying patient and my team is doing a really good job of helping me to focus and encouraging me,” Stevens explained. “I put a lot of pressure on myself when I’m playing and I think people could see in the Seattle game. I was so laser-focused. I wasn’t smiling but the team is doing such a great job. Nneka is in my ear all the time. Jaz (Jasmine Thomas), Chiney, Zia (Cooke), even rookie Zia is in my ear like ‘you got it, you’re doing good’ so they’re helping me to remember to take it day by day and it feels so nice to be here with my team.”
Sparks coach Curt Miller is still in the process of learning how to best use Stevens’ unique skill set but envisions her being able to play center, power forward and even small forward this season.
“Excited about the potential, but again, have to get cobwebs off people that missed significant time,” Miller said before sharing that point guard Thomas is now “day-to-day” as she continues to recover from an ACL injury.
“It will be next Jasmine the same way. Dearica is still trying to get back to her form, so you have to be patient. At the same time, they all want to be coached and pushed to become their old self but again you have to give them some time to get back into a rhythm.”
The Sparks are coming off a 66-63 loss in Seattle on Tuesday night. They led by 21 points early in the second quarter but they faltered when Seattle pressured the ball more and finished with a season-high 21 turnovers.
In her first game back, Stevens finished with four points and three rebounds in 15 minutes. She was playing on a minutes restriction, Miller said, but she also dealt with foul trouble.
Stevens said she’s excited to be back on the court and feels more comfortable going into her second game of the season, especially against her former squad.
This year’s iteration of the Sky relies on its talented guard play with Kahleah Copper, Marina Mabrey, Dana Evans and Courtney Williams.
Copper is averaging 18 points per game. Mabrey, 2019 second-round draft pick by the Sparks, is averaging 16.7 points per game.
“They are playing really hard together,” Miller said. “Different team but really talented backcourt still.”
“It’s a new look for them,” Stevens added. “They’re a scrappy team. They play hard. They have amazing guards. They had a good group and James (Wade) is really coaching them up well.”
Miller said it will take a team approach and a variety of defensive looks to counter Chicago, emphasizing individual intensity on defense.
“You have to dig in and have to guard at times one-on-one because you know they’re going to find the space,” Miller said. “They’re going to find their opportunities to play one-on-one against you.”
