Lynx sign Italian league standout Cecilia Zandalasini

Contending for the No. 1 seed in the WNBA postseason, the Lynx have signed 6-1 forward Cecilia Zandalasini for the remainder of the regular season.

August 28, 2017 at 9:47PM
The Lynx signed Italian forward Cecilia Zandalasini before other interested WNBA teams made her an offer.
The Lynx signed Italian forward Cecilia Zandalasini before other interested WNBA teams made her an offer. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
(The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Contending for the No. 1 seed in the WNBA postseason, the Lynx have signed Italian league forward Cecilia Zandalasini for the remainder of the season.

Zandalasini played most recently in FIBA Eurobasket 2017, where she scored 19 points per game and was third in field goal accuracy at a clip of 51 percent.

The 6-1 forward should give the Lynx some much-needed offensive firepower as they fight to win the last three games of their season to secure the top seed and homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Lynx are coming off a 78-67 loss to the L.A. Sparks, who are now just one-half game behind the Lynx.

Since the injury to point guard Lindsay Whalen, the Lynx have struggled to find a consistent offensive presence. Forward Rebekkah Brunson returned Sunday night after missing games with a sprained ankle, but she was somewhat ineffective.

That makes the timing for Zandalasini, who was in attendance the last time the Lynx played at the Xcel Energy Center, a perfectly timed addition. In 36 Italian league games with Famila Schio, she averaged 9.3 points and 4.3 rebounds per game to guide the club to the postseason.

The Lynx play on the road Wednesday against the Indiana Fever and close out the regular season at the X versus the Chicago Sky on Friday and the Washington Mystics on Sunday.

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about the writer

Kent Youngblood

Reporter

Kent Youngblood has covered sports for the Minnesota Star Tribune for more than 20 years.

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