DiJonai Carrington’s case for Most Improved Player

Drafted in the second round of the WNBA Draft to the Sun back in 2021, Carrington averaged only 2.8 points and 0.5 steals per game in her rookie season. Her production has improved each season in Uncasville, and last season she finished second place in voting for the Sixth Woman of the Year award. This season Carrington moved into a larger role with the team and has started in all but one game. Her tenacity and defensive intensity fit right in with Connecticut’s style of play.

“It is not easy when you go from being a sixth player and a Sixth Player of the Year type of player with limited minutes, to then go into where you’re playing 30 plus minutes every game … and [DiJonai] has been incredibly consistent defensively first and foremost, which is what we needed from her, but I feel like offensively as well,” Connecticut Sun head coach Stephanie White told reporters.

This season Carrington is averaging 12.7 points, 1.6 steals and 4.8 rebounds per game — a notable jump from last season’s 8.3 points, 0.6 steals and 2.9 rebounds per game. Carrington brings so much energy on and off the court to the Sun and has been what exactly what they’ve needed.

Prior to Thursday’s game against the Chicago Sky, Coach White identified that many great defensive players in the league may take a break on offense, and great offensive players may take a break on defense. White noted that Carrington doesn’t do that, always giving 100% on both sides.

“She sets the tone for us on both ends of the floor with her aggressiveness. She’s the juice, right? And to have to bring the juice every single night is not easy, and she’s done that — and that is not something that’s gone unnoticed by our staff, for sure,” White said.

Carrington has undergone six knee surgeries after suffering two ACL tears and a torn patellar tendon — all of which happened before she was the age of 25.

“It was a lot of mental work, a lot of strength training — just making sure that my body was ready to play, just by not being able to physically work on my skills, as far as moving around, jumping and all of those things,” Carrington told The Next before Tuesday’s matchup against the Minnesota Lynx. 

“But I think throughout the season, just continuing to watch film, continuing to keep the mental part of my game together — I know what I can do physically, but you know — you got to put it all together every single night in order to be successful in this league,” Carrington said.

White appeared on The Pull Up podcast recently where she discussed Carrington’s worthiness to receive end-of-season awards, and how injury has impacted her as a player. During the podcast the word she used to describe her was consistency.

“I think [DiJonai is] certainly blessed with just great instincts, certainly great athleticism. I don’t know that she ever gets out of shape and you think about the growth that she’s had, and at least in the two seasons I’ve been here, she’s been injured in the offseason and hasn’t really had an opportunity to work skill development,” White said. “I think she’s taken advantage of that opportunity throughout the course of the season to continue to work on her skill development.”

Connecticut Sun forward/guard DeWanna Bonner has seen Carrington improve over the course of the season and during her time with the Sun.

“Just look at her stats,” Bonner said. “She does a lot for our team, we put her on the best players of the night, and she still comes out and produces. And I’m just lucky to have her on my team. I actually enjoy seeing her growth. And every year she comes in and adds something different and it’s been an honor to be a part of.”

With the season Carrington has had, she has the chance to win Most Improved Player. White said right after the Olympic break that there’s also a case for her to take home Defensive Player of the Year.

Defensively, she locks down the opposition’s star players. At the beginning of the season Carrington welcomed Rookie of the Year frontrunner and Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark to the league with suffocating defense.

Carrington forced Clark to commit turnovers and miss shots, all while scoring 16 points on the other end of the floor. Clark was 4-for-11 from the 3-point line and 5-for-15 on all field goal attempts. Carrington has had many similar defensive performances, holding Dallas Wings guard and elite shooter Arike Ogunbowale to only 11 points on 2-for-15 shooting from the floor.

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Carrington knows her worth as a player and told The Next that even if she doesn’t win MIP it won’t change anything.

“I don’t think I’m gonna win personally, but that’s okay,” Carrington said. “I know it doesn’t change the value that I have. It doesn’t change my own personal worth and value. But it would be really cool to win it, just to be recognized for the hard work that I’ve been putting in over the years. And just the resiliency of going through a lot of injuries and uncertainty, and really working my way up a ladder to this position.”