After break, Lynx are better prepared for rematch with Seattle

The Lynx are coming off a week's worth of practices, period of eight days between games coach Cheryl Reeve called "golden." But don't expect that time to be the silver bullet that solves all the team's issues.

The Lynx — who blew a 15-point halftime lead in a loss to Seattle at Target Center last week — get a rematch against the Storm in Seattle on Friday night.

The Lynx, 0-3 without Napheesa Collier, have her back. A carefully constructed week off (five practices with three off days and an early trip to Seattle, allowing for a workout there Thursday) has allowed for team-building and a team assessment. Getting a top-five player back is big. Getting time to work together as a team was big, too.

"I want to see them rewarded for the work they put in this week," Reeve said. "But we shouldn't think, 'So we had a week together. Silver bullet. Poof, we're going to win everything.' It's not that. It's more that we've gotten more comfortable with what we're doing, why we're doing it and better at what we're doing. Those were the goals. And I think we did that.

"Sometimes [people think] the only barometer is whether you win your next game. Certainly we want to come to Seattle and win. But if we didn't win this game doesn't mean it was a lost week. This will be valuable for us going forward."

A disjointed training camp that was run without Collier or Kayla McBride, and Collier's having to miss the first three games certainly contributed to the 0-3 start. The consensus on the team is the past week was more productive than the entirety of training camp.

"I can't even put it into words," said guard Crystal Dangerfield, whose recent stint of coming off the bench will end. A hamstring injury to Aerial Powers will put Dangerfield back into the starting lineup Friday. "Our pace has picked up. We're really focused on our points of emphasis, what we want to do offensively."

Said Collier: "I do feel integrated with the team. I think this week was great for us."

Reeve said she felt her team played well enough to win for the first 35 minutes of last week's loss to Seattle. The Lynx led by 19 in the second quarter, by 15 at the half, and were still leading in the fourth quarter before the offense stagnated. Missed shots and turnovers fueled Seattle's strong finish. Reeve said her team played very good defense in the half court, falling victim late to the fast break.

Well, the best way to combat the break is to be more efficient on offense, with fewer turnovers and more efficient scoring.

"I don't think we have massive problems defensively," Reeve said. "I don't think we're going to be an elite defensive team. I do think our offense will make our defense a little bit better. And then maybe we can start our push toward getting to the plus side on offensive rating, defensive rating."

Much of that starts with the addition of Collier, a top player in the league. Her presence will make is easier on center Sylvia Fowles, who is already off to a strong start. Collier will also create room for McBride.

That said, Reeve stressed she didn't want Collier trying to do too much.

"Phee just has to be Phee," Reeve said. "She plays with great activity on both ends of the floor. She doesn't have to do anything beyond that. I don't want her to think she has to do hard things, and sort of save us. Just get in there and do what you do."