After being drafted by the New York Liberty, Mercedes Russell has found herself on the Seattle Storm roster in what can be considered a good season.

In a surprise on draft day Mercedes Russell was selected with the 22nd pick of the 2018 draft by the New York Liberty. Prio to the draft some pundits had suggested she might go late in the first round. however, such was the depth of this draft, Russell fell to late in the second round.

After playing just two games with the Liberty, Russell was cut to make room for Kia Vaughn  who returned from playing overseas. Russell played 33 minutes for the Liberty, at an average of 16.5 per game. In that time she averaged 2.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 0.5 blocks per game.

However, this is a small sample size. After the Seattle Storm signed her at the end of May, Russell played a total of 22 games. She averaged 4.7 minutes per game but showed what she could do in two games she played. These games bookended her season with the Storm.

In her first game against the Las Vegas Aces, Russell collected eight rebounds and had a season high two blocks. Russell fans had to wait until the last game of the season to see her shown her brilliance again. Against the Dallas Wings Russell played a season high 17 minutes and was just shy of a double-double with nine rebounds and eight points, both season highs.

It will be interesting to see if Russell has done enough to stay on the Storm roster for next year. However, given that the Storm are so close to a championship, if she does not make it next year, what a season she has had.

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