{"id":66528,"date":"2025-08-08T02:10:07","date_gmt":"2025-08-08T02:10:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/66528\/"},"modified":"2025-08-08T02:10:07","modified_gmt":"2025-08-08T02:10:07","slug":"los-angeles-sparks-rookie-sania-feagin-is-adapting-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/66528\/","title":{"rendered":"Los Angeles Sparks rookie Sania Feagin is adapting again"},"content":{"rendered":"

This success set rookie forward Sania Feagin<\/a> up for a challenge: not just making the roster, but carving out a role on a team laden with experienced post players. But she did, and she repeatedly used her limited minutes to prove her worth.<\/p>\n

Despite glimpses of her potential \u2014\u00a0and a knack for hustle plays and defensive bursts \u2014\u00a0her evolving role faces another challenging turn with Brink\u2019s return.<\/p>\n

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At first glance, Feagin\u2019s stats of 1.3 points and 0.6 rebounds<\/a> in 5.3 minutes per game show a deeper bench player backing up two All-Star-caliber players. But her on-floor moments tell a different story.<\/p>\n

After only playing seven minutes all season, Feagin entered the game against the Seattle Storm on June 17, played 11 minutes, and turned her minutes into a statement despite the 31-point loss. She had three blocks, including a statement rejection on Storm guard Erica Wheeler<\/a> in the third quarter. She showed flashes of confidence in the high post, finding cutters and distributing the ball.\u00a0<\/p>\n

After the game, Sparks head coach Lynne Roberts told reporters, \u201cI wanted to give her a shot here and just see if she could bring some life. We needed some life. \u2026 She had a great block. She\u2019s a big, strong kid and she just brings energy, she talks, all those things. So we can build on that with her.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

A few weeks later, Feagin had a career-high 8 points in 13 minutes against the Washington Mystics on July 15. That performance came two days after Roberts said Feagin would get more of an opportunity following the Sparks waiving center Mercedes Russell<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know she\u2019s ready. She\u2019s been doing a good job of staying engaged,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cIt\u2019s hard. It\u2019s hard as a rookie anyways, and it\u2019s hard when you\u2019re not playing to stay engaged, but she\u2019s done a good job of that. This will give her a chance to learn by being out there a little bit more, playing through mistakes, and getting the intensity and speed of things.\u201d<\/p>\n

Feagin made an impact again in the Sparks\u2019 best win of the season on July 26. In a 101-99 victory over the New York Liberty, Feagin notched 4 points on 2-for-2 shooting and strong defense on 6\u20196 Liberty center Jonquel Jones<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt good, honestly,\u201d Feagin told The Next before Tuesday\u2019s game against the Indiana Fever about how it felt to make an impact on the court. \u201cIt felt good to get a little burn, just to go out there and show what I\u2019m capable of doing. \u2026 My team has given me the confidence to go out there and just be who I am and be great.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Immediately after she began to pick up speed, the momentum shifted, as Brink returned on July 29 after a 13-month recovery from a torn ACL. As an offensive threat and a defensive powerhouse, Brink\u2019s role on the Sparks was cemented even before she returned to the court. In her return against the Las Vegas Aces<\/a>, Brink notched 5 points, three rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block, all within her 15-minute limit. In the next game, she filled the stat sheet again.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So where does that leave Feagin?\u00a0<\/p>\n

She\u2019s on the short end of a classic rookie adjustment arc: moments as an energetic spark and glimpses of opportunity, then taking a back seat to an established talent. It\u2019s hardly unusual. For rookies like Feagin, their first season in the WNBA is met with a common refrain: \u201cstaying ready.\u201d Her further-reduced minutes now will be about a block here, a hustle rebound there, smart passes \u2014 all things Feagin has shown she\u2019s capable of. In fact, this was something that drew the Sparks staff to Feagin in the draft.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Her leaders have told her to \u201cstay ready no matter what,\u201d Feagin said. \u201cMy time will come. I\u2019m a rookie, so just keep taking my time and keep showing what I\u2019m capable of.\u201d<\/p>\n

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In an era where college players are consistently transferring, Feagin \u201cstuck it out\u201d at South Carolina and played behind players like Aliyah Boston<\/a> and Kamilla Cardoso<\/a>. Both Roberts and Sparks general manager Raegan Pebley<\/a> found that admirable<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Roberts told reporters on draft night, \u201cTo have a player like her in a program like that stay all four years, when she\u2019s kind of had to wait her turn, I think speaks volumes to her work ethic and character. And those are things that we want in our franchise. We want players that are willing to put in the work and improve.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

When asked about Feagin\u2019s role going forward after Brink\u2019s return, Roberts said, \u201cWe are still figuring it out. You bring a player back of Cam\u2019s caliber and her potential, she\u2019s still on a minutes restriction, so to be completely candid, I\u2019m still figuring it out. I don\u2019t have an answer right now. But to have depth is a blessing.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs I\u2019ve said all season long, Sania will be a WNBA player. She\u2019s done a good job of staying engaged, and it\u2019s hard as a player. You play and then you don\u2019t, but she can just control what she can control with her work ethic and her attitude and all the things, and she\u2019s done a tremendous job of that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

When asked about her goals for the rest of the season, Feagin said she wants to keep learning and growing,\u00a0and maybe spend some more time on her 3-point shot \u2014\u00a0a major key\u00a0in Roberts\u2019 dynamic offensive system. In other words, she\u2019s continuing to adapt, in a season when she\u2019s done so much of that already.<\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a><\/p>\n

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