Jewell Loyd still eye of the Storm as ‘Core Four’ plot return to elite status

SEATTLE – It’s Jewell’s team.

To avoid any awkwardness and to give their budding super team that might emerge in Seattle the best chance of success, Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins-Smith – without prompting or coordination – upon their arrival laid out the Storm’s pecking order, which starts with Jewell Loyd.

“Sometimes that can become an argument that brings teams down,” said Ogwumike, an eight-time WNBA All-Star and 2016 WNBA MVP with the Los Angeles Sparks, during her introductory news conference in February. “I’m coming into a very cozy home that was built. I’m going to find my room, but I also understand that this is a house that has to be operated by a new family and you have existing members of this family that leads the way, and Jewell is one of those.

“I think Skylar and I going to follow her lead, but we’re also going to know when to step up. When it comes to divvying out those responsibilities, it might be different every night, but we also know there has to be a consistency to our discipline and we can offer the team.”

Before securing Ogwumike to a one-year, $204,500 deal in free agency, the Storm targeted Diggins-Smith and renewed plans to add the six-time All-Star who last played with the Phoenix Mercury in 2022 and sat out the 2023 season after giving birth to her second child.

“It actually started happening in conversations that I really didn’t know that was going on when Phoenix was trying to shop me around,” Diggins-Smith said, noting a contentious breakup with the Mercury. “Seattle called and I was like, ‘Well, I’m eight months pregnant. So, I can’t come right now. But let’s have these conversations again next year.’ And so, it kind of set us up for being a team that I was really interested in.”

It’s no coincidence, Loyd, who signed a two-year, $491,016 extension last September, and Diggins-Smith, who agreed to a two-year, $422,685 contract, have deals that expire after the 2025 season.

“I connected with one person very early in the (negotiating) process and that was Jewell,” Diggins-Smith said when asked about Loyd, her former Notre Dame teammate. “If I wasn’t talking to Jewell, I was talking to Nneka. So, those are the two players that I was talking to the most. They were my Option 1 and Plan A.

“I want to be around winners. It’s really important at this point in my career to be around people that know me. (Loyd) knows me and I know her. I don’t tell anybody anything, but I tell her because I trust her.”

Loyd is the linchpin who connects the Storm’s latest star-studded collaboration, which also includes the often-overlooked and soft-spoken Ezi Magbegor.

The team’s preseason marketing campaign dubbed the quartet the ‘Core Four,’ but Ogwumike offered another option.

“It’s more like the Fantastic Four,” she said. “I really do feel like that because (Magbegor) holds her own. She really does hold her own. She’s unforgettable because she’s playing the full length of the court. She’s a threat everywhere.

“I don’t think she realizes how impactful she is on the game. You can just tell that she wants to do well. She wants to win. She wants to do well and she wants to get better. And I’m very happy to have the Fantastic Four together for this season.”

The 24-year-old Magbegor, who was a first-time All-Star last season, is nearly a decade younger than Ogwumike and Diggins-Smith, who turn 34 this year.

Theoretically, the burden of resurrecting the Storm, who finished next to last in the league last year at 11-29 isn’t as heavy for Magbegor as it is for her teammates who have vast experience playing alongside WNBA greats.

During her MVP season in 2016, Ogwumike averaged 19.7 points and 9.1 rebounds while paired with Candace Parker (15.3 ppg.) and Kristi Toliver (13.2) for the Sparks who went 26-8 en route to a league title.

In 2021, Diggins-Smith averaged 17.7 points, 3.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists and comprised a formidable trio with Brittney Griner (20.5 ppg.) and Diana Taurasi (15.2) for the Mercury who went 19-13 and advanced to the WNBA Finals.

Loyd teamed with Sue Bird and Breanna Stewart to win WNBA championships in 2018 and 2020.

The 10-year veteran and five-time All-Star, who led the league in scoring (24.7 ppg.) and set a record for most points (939) in a season last year, has a different role now.

“Obviously, I’ve been here the longest and I’ve seen all sides of the Storm, the good, the bad and the ugly,” the 30-year-old Loyd said. “It’s very clear, Nneka and Sky have both said it’s my team. That’s been out there. … I respect that they have said that publicly on their own accord.

“But I need them and they need me and we need each other to get what we want to do done.”

Loyd didn’t always taken ownership of team-building dynamics early in her career, but Quinn noted her leadership skills grew immensely last year when she mentored forward Jordan Horston and was the Storm’s de facto spokeswoman during a trying season when they lost the most games in franchise history.

With the addition of Ogwumike and Diggins-Smith, Loyd likens her leadership style to a DJ at a party who “understands the vibe of what’s going on and adds here and there.”

On the court, Loyd immediately renewed a kinship with Diggins-Smith, who built a reputation as a fiery competitor during her decorated 10-year-career.

“When I hear leader on this team, I just feel old,” Diggins-Smith said. “It’s from how I approach the game. I’m super intense. I’m competitive. I don’t really take plays off and coaches want to see that on both sides of the basketball.

“I guess that’s why they say I’m a leader, because it’s more like from an example and (my) approach. How I prepare for the games, how I prepare for practice (and) how to take care of my body.”

Ogwumike, the WNBA Players Association president since 2016, is a natural leader who led the Sparks during her 12 years in Los Angeles.

She expects a different role with the Storm.

“The beauty of the composition of this team is that we have so many different styles of leadership,” Ogwumike said. “Me, Sky and Jewell talked a lot about how we feel we can add value and present to the team and what we can do in our own individual ways. But then we also leaned into like our vulnerabilities.

“There’s definitely a burden lifted and not necessarily having to always be the one to solve the problem. And I’m getting used to that. I think I’ve been in that space for so long that I started forgetting how fun it is to just play and compete.”

Because Magbegor, who spent the WNBA offseason playing in Czech Republic, arrived late and sat out the first week of training camp, the Storm’s star quartet will have just five days of practice together before Tuesday’s regular-season opener against the Minnesota Lynx at Climate Pledge Arena.

It’s uncertain if the Storm will look as good as they did when they rolled over the Phoenix Mercury during an 85-59 rout in Tuesday’s exhibition finale.

“We’re still getting to used to each other,” Loyd said. “It’s going to take some time.”

After two weeks, Diggins-Smith still sometimes refers to the Storm as “they” and “them,” and admits: “I don’t feel like I fit in here, but I’ve definitely feel like I belong here.”

Ogwumike expressed similar sentiments.

“The adjustment has been quite seamless, to be very honest,” she said. “The organization has made it so I don’t really have to think about much besides coming in here and being ready to compete and to play. I’ve always said interestingly enough (when asked) which away city was my favorite to play in, Seattle was always my answer.

“So, it’s kind of serendipitous that I’m here. I’m learning more about how embedded the Storm is into the community and I really do love that.”

Thanks to Loyd’s influence and gravitational pull, the Storm secured two future hall of famers in free agency and enter the WNBA season as a challenger to the Las Vegas Aces’ bid to win three straight titles.

“I’ve said this is Jewell’s team and I wouldn’t be here if Jewell wasn’t here,” Diggins-Smith said. “If she didn’t want me to play with her, I wouldn’t be here.

“So, yeah she did this and put this together. … Jewell’s been here. She’s won here and we respect what she’s built. Now, what can we do to add to that? That’s what I’m excited about and can’t wait to find out.”