Back in the WNBA after an extended absence, Chamique Holdsclaw gets her first national TV exposure of the season on Wednesday when her Atlanta Dream hosts the Minnesota Lynx (June 30, 7/6c, ESPN). The woman who led the University of Tennessee to three-straight NCAA championships in the late ’90s and was once considered the future of the WNBA has had limited exposure the last few years. After
struggling with depression, the six-time All-Star abruptly left the league early in the 2007 season.
After playing in Europe she moved to Atlanta and quietly became a fan of the city’s young WNBA franchise attending home games. Dream coach Marynell Meadors recruited her to rejoin the league, and thanks in large part to Holdsclaw the team is off to a 4-5 start, already matching its win total from last year’s debut season (4-30).
Holdsclaw currently leads the team in scoring (14.7 ppg) and is also contributing 4.0 rebounds per game. "Everything I've gone through I've put behind me and I'm ready to come out and just enjoy [the game],"
she told USA Today earlier this month. "I'm going to have a smile on my face every day for this opportunity."
The game also gives a national TV audience its first look at the Dream’s star rookie, Angel McCoughtry, the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s WNBA draft.