The Indiana Fever announced that they had signed Ugonne "Michelle" Onyiah to theirsecondPlayer Development roster spot last Friday.
Onyiah spoke to the media for the first time since joining the Fever on Wednesday. When she was asked how she can help the Fever, she said, "I'm trying to see, honestly. Rebounding, obviously, is my biggest skill; defense, hands up, playing big, playing strong, playing one through five. And being able to blend in well with the team," per a video from the Fever's YouTube account.
"I want to [have] camaraderie. I know how it is, coming into Upshot [League] late... But let's blend in really well with the team, as a teammate, and make their life easier," she added.
"Also, I'm a killer on the court," Onyiah later continued. "You have to be a dog on the court. If you're not a dog on the court, you're not that good, right? So, know that I'm an awesome person off the court... On the court, I'm a dog, I'm locked in, I'm focused, and ready to kill."
Despite this "ready to kill" mentality, Onyiah did appear to be a very cheerful and approachable person, which is a testament to what she said.
Charlotte Crown Ugonne (Michelle) Onyiah (11) practicing shooting from the free throw line. | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire
It will be interesting to see whether Onyiah can show this mentality on the court for the Fever at some point this regular season, outside of when she's practicing with the team.
It seems likely that Indiana decided to sign Onyiah in part because they've lost Damiris Dantas for the season because of a knee surgery , and therefore needed more depth behind Aliyah Boston .
Still, there's a case to be made that Indiana would benefit more from adding depth at the wing to their roster, especially because Lexie Hull is struggling to make an impact right now. This could make the Fever more likely to elevate Bree Hall (who holds the other Player Development spot along with Onyiah) instead of the 22-year-old forward.
For the time being, Monique Billings and Makayla Timpson have done more than enough playing minutes at center when Boston needs a break. But anything can happen, and all it might take is one injury (which nobody hopes is the case) for the Fever to elevate Onyiah and require her to fill in someone's shoes.
In the meantime, Onyiah must keep displaying that "ready to kill" mentality during practices and hope it produces similar energy among her new teammates.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/wnba/fever as New Fever Forward Michelle Onyiah Explains How 'Ready to Kill' Mentality Can Help Team .
