May 30, 2023
How Dallas Wings added Kalani Brown
Hardship signing can help at center
The Dallas Wings signed Kalani Brown, former No. 7 overall pick in the 2019 WNBA draft, to a rest-of-season contract under the WNBA’s salary cap hardship provision.
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Roster injuries to Lou Lopez Senechal and Diamond DeShields allowed the Wings to qualify for the standard hardship provision (two or more players out for an extended period of time) and Brown will remain with the team until either player returns. Though both players have suffered knee injuries, Lopez Senechal underwent successful surgery on May 24, expecting to return in eight weeks, while DeShields’ recovery could take at least three months.
The Wings will also be without Teaira McCowan after May 31 for most of June, who is scheduled to compete for Turkey in the 2023 FIBA Women’s EuroBasket. Her absence would have qualified the Wings to an emergency hardship provision, with the team having fewer than 10 players available.
The move makes Brown eligible to play in the Wings’ Tuesday night game vs. the Minnesota Lynx.
After being named the 2018 Big 12 Player of the Year as a junior at Baylor, Brown went on to lead the Lady Bears to a 37-1 record her senior season, averaging 15.8 points and 8.0 rebounds while shooting 62.6 percent from the field, helping the program earn its third National Championship in 2019. A three-time All American while at Baylor, Brown was drafted seventh overall in the 2019 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks.
From 2019-2021, Brown has played for the Atlanta Dream and Los Angeles Sparks, having been acquired by the Dream via trade by the Sparks in 2020 and later waived during the 2021 season after playing only one game. Brown’s professional career has taken her to China with the Zingjiang Magic Deer as well as Turkey with Bellona Kayseri and Hatayspor, where she earned a Top Performer for the Round of 16 in the 2021 EuroCup Women Quarter-Finals. This past season with Maccabi Bnot Ashdod in Israel, Brown averaged 22.3 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks.
Brown spent the 2023 training camp with the Wings.
