On a young Lynx team that is incredibly guard heavy, experience in the post is needed. Katryna Gaither, albeit overseas, has years of experience and should play a pivotal role--excuse the pun--on this team. Following a long, tough scrimmage at practice Saturday night, new Lynx player Katryna Gaither sat down for a chat with me, so Lynx fans can get to know another of the new faces.
SL: Are you excited to play the up-tempo style of play that Coach Zierden and the coaching staff are stressing in camp?
KG: This is my first year playing for the Minnesota Lynx, so I’m just really excited to be here. I’ve been here a week and we’re working really hard. We’ve really been working on a fast pace, trying to change the image that we had last year. Just looking at it now, it just seems like it’s a much better team then last year. Everybody likes to go out and hustle, work hard and we’ve got this theme of ‘We’ve Got Each Other’s Backs.’ We’re playing together.
SL: You are obviously only a week into training camp, yet, at this point, what do you feel will be your role on this team?
KG: As a post, my job will be to rebound, be strong on the boards, defense and help out on defense. That’s the main thing. When it comes down to doing the little things on defense, that’s my particular job. Even on offense, setting screens, crashing the boards and being a key rebounder. So, I’m working on that this week and getting stronger in the upper body and just being a force in there in the paint.
SL: You know, the next closest teammate you have in age is Tamika Raymond…and she’s five years younger then you.
KG: Yeah, I know. I’m still young. I’m 31, but I don’t feel the age. My body is in shape and a lot of people were shocked when I told them that I’m 31 years old. So, maybe we should just keep that a secret, you know? But, my body feels in great shape and I’m able to compete at this level. These young kids have so much energy and that makes you pick up your game a notch, so that’s really good.
SL: Have any players been particularly welcoming to you?
KG: Oh my goodness, there’s been a lot. When I first got here, I met Seimone. Her attitude is so calm and low key. I’m a quiet person myself. I like to show my attitude on the floor. You can include Tamika Raymond. She’s, like, a clown. She says a joke and we all laugh and it really makes you comfortable. During a really intense practice, she’ll say a joke or something and that really breaks the ice. It’s good to have people like that on the team because it makes you more comfortable and makes it feel more like a family.
SL: Are you concerned at all about the lack of post players on this team?
KG: Well, you know, we have to keep up. That’s the main thing is we have to keep up. This team is not a slow team. We’re a very fast team and everybody is athletic. We’ve got to keep up the same pace as the guards. The main thing in this camp, everybody is thinking about making this team or making the league, but right now, already, we need to be thinking about winning. What are you going to bring onto this team to win games? The guards have to have a relationship with the posts and the posts have to have a relationship with the guards and guards have to do their job as well as the posts. We do have a lot of guards on the team, but the coaching staff is responsible for finding a perfect fit for this team. Everybody has been working hard. The guards are phenomenal, they’re getting in there on defense and nobody is letting up. You just saw our scrimmage a couple minutes ago and it was high paced, high energy.
SL: Kathrin Ress looked good in the scrimmage. Be a scout for me now and tell me what you’ve seen from her so far in camp.
KG: She’s really strong. I mean, I’ve been working with her after practice on post moves and she’s really strong. She’s got these strong hands. I don’t think you could rip the ball out of her hands. She knows the game from two perspectives. She’s from Italy and she’s also played basketball in college, so she has a lot of knowledge of the game. That may be key for her. I’ve also been playing overseas and there are certain things that I’ve learned that may help me gain an edge over here. I mean, I’ve been playing there for seven years. I think with her, it’s just that she’s really strong. She’s tough. She’ll knock you down and she’s a force in the paint to be reckoned with.
SL: This team is coming off a 10 win season last year. The key acquisitions are rookies, talented rookies, but rookies nonetheless and yourself. What is a realistic expectation of this team this season?
KG: We’re going to take it one game at a time, but we are definitely going to do way better then ten wins. I just feel it and I hope that each and every one of us feels that. We’ve got to go into each game thinking ‘We’re going to win.’ We can’t think about last year and what happened then. We’ve got to think about this year because this is a totally different team. We have to just really focus on the things that were lacking last year and take it one step at a time. We’re going in thinking that we’re going to win, but we’ve got to prove to everybody in the league that we’re not that same team.
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