Why South Carolina women's basketball connections matter for Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever
Victaria Saxton drove Aliyah Boston to the airport for her flight to New York to attend the 2023 WNBA Draft. When Saxton dropped Boston off at the terminal, the South Carolina women's basketball teammates thought they were saying goodbye for a long time.
The Indiana Fever selected Boston, a 6-foot-5 forward, with the first overall pick, then added Saxton, a 6-2 forward, to their training camp roster with the No. 25 overall pick in the third round.
"When I was leaving for the draft, I was like good luck, because I knew that she was putting her name in the draft," Boston said Monday at her introductory press conference in Indiana. "She was like, this is the last time we're gonna see each other for a while ... So for that to really be spoken into existence and her to be here, I'm just super excited that she was given the opportunity. I'm super thankful to (Indiana) for that, because V is just such a special person."
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Saxton isn't the only South Carolina connection for Boston with the Fever. She'll also play alongside former teammate Destanni Henderson, the point guard on the Gamecocks' 2022 NCAA championship team. Henderson was selected No. 20 by the Fever in the 2022 draft and appeared in all 36 games last season. She averaged 5.3 points and 2.5 assists.
Henderson attended this year's WNBA Draft and greeted Boston with a joyful cry of "Reunited!" after she was chosen with the first pick. Boston replied, "And it feels so good!"
"It's just really nice, because we understand each other's game and understand what we like to do," Boston said. "I think she's going to help me especially with the pace of the game. With this team especially being a point guard and being one of the leaders on the floor, she's going to be able to direct me on the path that I need to."
Indiana faces a rebuild in 2023 after finishing last place in the WNBA for the past two seasons and failing to reach the playoffs every year since 2016. The Fever fired coach Marianne Stanley nine games into the 2022 season and enters this year with only four players that have more than one season of experience in the WNBA.
First-year coach Christie Sides spent the WNBA offseason traveling to South Carolina games to scout the future of the franchise, and she said she sees Boston as an impact player on both ends of the floor at the pro level.
"I told her when I went to visit her that I was at some games she didn't even know I was at," Sides said. "I watched a lot of video, and the thing I'm most excited about for Aliyah is the fact that she's going to be able to play in some space (offensively). I believe junk defense is the only thing she's seen for the last couple years ... Defensively she's been a great presence in the paint, and she's a great rebounder. Those are two things that are huge for us.
Indiana enters training camp with 18 players on the roster, but only 12 will make the final cut for the season opener against the Connecticut Sun on May 19. Boston said she expects to lean on her close relationships with Saxton and Henderson to get through the stressful process of officially becoming a pro.
"I think we're just being each other's kind of mental safe space," Boston said. "When we had tough games at South Carolina, V could come up to me and just be like 'Aliyah, you're good, don't worry about that.' We know each other and know how to talk to each other, and now one of the biggest things is just being there to motivate."
This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Aliyah Boston, Indiana Fever building on South Carolina connections
