Lynx pick for now, trade for later

The Lynx, with two of the first three picks in Thursday's WNBA draft, had plenty of options.

The easy choice: Select Virginia guard Monica Wright with the second overall pick, which they did.

The tougher choice: Take Stanford center Jayne Appel at No. 3 overall, or trade the pick for a 2011 selection in hopes of hitting the jackpot in the form of UConn forward Maya Moore, who is expected to be the No. 1 overall pick.

The Lynx went for the jackpot, selecting Nebraska's Kelly Griffin at No. 3 but immediately trading her to the Connecticut for the Sun's first- and second-round picks in 2011. The Lynx's hope is that the Sun will finish out of the playoffs and that first-round pick will be in the four-team draft lottery to be No. 1 overall.

"We went all in, we had to do it," said Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve at the team's draft party, attended by about 125 season-ticket holders. "We weighed risk vs. reward."

The reward, although Reeve could not use her name by WNBA rules, was a chance at picking Moore, a 6-foot junior forward who has led the Huskies to back-to-back NCAA titles and 78 consecutive victories.

"We figured [the Sun's draft pick] is going to better than our pick," she said. "We know we are not going to be a lottery pick."

With that in mind, Wright could be a valuable addition off the bench. The 5-11 shooting guard was the ACC Player of the Year and the coaches' national Defensive Player of the Year. She averaged 23.7 points per game, shot 31.3 percent on three-pointers and had 115 steals, second nationally.

"For me it was Monica Wright from the get-go," Reeve said of the decision of the No. 2 pick. "[The question] was always what we were going to do with [No.] 3? Monica has a great midrange game which bodes well in the WNBA. The most exciting part, she is a great defender. She is physical, and you will really enjoy her in a Lynx uniform. So we're happy."

Wright, who went after the Sun took UConn center Tina Charles at No. 1 overall, said she was nervous Thursday until the Lynx called her name.

"I ran through who I knew was playing for Minnesota," she said. "I realized I would be playing with Seimone Augustus, someone who I watched playing when I was in high school."

Wright describes herself as the ultimate team player.

Reeve said the big question was how to complement the team's already deep talent pool.

"Monica Wright will be able to come off the bench and do what she does instantly," Reeve said. "That's the hard thing when you come off the bench. Can you come in and impact the game instantly in your minutes?"

The Lynx also had the second pick of the third round and with it took 6-1 forward Gabriela Margineau of Drexel. Margineau, a native of Romania, averaged 23.5 points and 7.7 rebounds last season but is a long shot to make the roster.

One former Minnesota high school star was chosen in the draft. Illinois 6-3 forward Jenna Smith, who led Bloomington Kennedy to a state title, was taken No. 14 overall by Washington.