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Gary Blair: "I saw her as a WNBA player when she was a junior or sophomore in high school."
POSTED: April 14, 2020 -- 10:55 a.m. CT
The 2020 WNBA Draft takes place Friday, April 17. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Draft will be 'virtual' and be held online. The Draft will be shown on ESPN beginning at 6 p.m. Central Time. Texas A&M guard Chennedy Carter is projected to be one of the top picks in the Draft. Carter's college coach, Gary Blair, saw her pro potential a few years ago.
"I saw her as a WNBA player when she was a junior or sophomore in high school, Coach Blair said. "Chennedy is going to have a great pro career. She had a great college career."
Carter, from Mansfield, TX, posted eye-popping numbers for the Aggies during her collegiate career.
"Chennedy was born to be a pro whenever she got to college," Coach Blair continued. "The kid had the game to be able to create off the bounce. She's not afraid to miss a shot."
Coach Blair compares Chennedy's game to the elite of the elite.
"When you look to the WNBA, you think of Maya Moore and some of the great players back when (Cynthia) Cooper played for the Comets and every thing. That's just who Chennedy is."
"She can create her own shot; but, she can also find you for a shot. When you're open and running the lane, she loves to make the great pass. That's why she will be drafted as high as I think she will go."
ESPN's Rebecca Lowe said of Carter: "I think Chennedy Carter is a talent. I think her game translates well to the WNBA. Her effectiveness in the pick-and-roll game. Some people call her a generational-talent. She's a player who's clearly capable of being a big time scoring threat in the WNBA."
If Carter is selected in the top 4 of the 2020 WNBA Draft, she would be the first Aggie drafted in the top four in Aggie program history. Kelsey Bone was selected 5th by the New York Liberty in the 2013 WNBA Draft.
Coach Blair put on his general manager hat, looked into his crystal ball, and predicted what he thinks the results of the top of the Draft will be:
"New York has the first pick. They're going to take (Sabrina) Ionescu. They can market her and promote her. The second pick is Dallas. I think they'll take (Satou) Sabally. She's 6'4" and very, very good.
"Then, Indiana and Tamika Catchings has the third pick. They have a new coach, Marianne Stanley. She was a great coach at Old Dominion. Coached Nancy Lieberman back in the day. Who are they gonna take? Are they gonna take Lauren Cox or do they need another guard. They have good guards now.
"So, that really falls to the 4 hole and Atlanta. They could take the best athlete available at 4. That's Chennedy Carter.
"Let's just see what happens. If you're Dallas, you have the 2nd, 5th, 7th and the 9th pick. I think I'd make a trade. So, I'd take that 2nd pick. If you wanted Chennedy, who's a Dallas girl from Mansfield, you could trade the 2 for the 3 or the 4 or the 5 or the 7. Who knows what's gonna happen? That's why, sometimes, you'd love to be the General Manager and waving all those draft picks around to see what you can get."
Coach Blair added, "She's going to have to learn how to play a little bit better defense and not take plays off or she'll sit on that bench no matter where she goes."
Rebecca Lobo added her thoughts on what she thinks the Wings will do with all 4 first-round picks.
"Dallas. It will be interesting to see what they do with all four first-round picks," Lobo said. "You could see, potentially, a trade happening either before the Draft or on Draft Day. That might change the number of picks they end up with."
Carter had one year of college eligibility remaining. She decided to forego her senior season at Texas A&M and enter the 2020 WNBA Draft.
"We just kept the talk to she wants to graduate," Coach Blair remarked. "She will do that eventually like all my other kids have done. They've come back and finished their degree. Chennedy Carter will do the same thing."
"Carter, at one time, she knew how good would be next year," Coach Blair commented. "We didn't get to show how good we could be in the playoffs (NCAA Tournament). Next year, we're going to have a senior ball club. Those are kids that she came in with. She would have like to have finished with; so, in one way, she thought there might not be a WNBA season this year. Why not stay (at Texas A&M) because surely there will be a (college) basketball season whenever it gets straightened out with this virus and everything. She really contemplated staying.
"But, forget the money. It's the opportunity for Chennedy and a chance to go as high as she can in the WNBA Draft."
Gary Blair added: "Again, like I said, there's a lot of people that can shoot. A lot of people that can score. But, can you create off of the bounce and do you have the athleticism that she has?"
Chennedy Carter will learn which WNBA franchise she'll play this Friday when WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert says her name in the Draft.
Coach Blair concluded: "We're excited for her."
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