On the day veteran point guard and team leader Lindsay Whalen announced her plan to retire once the Lynx season concludes, the team received disheartening news about a second critical player in the backcourt.
Point guard Danielle Robinson underwent ankle surgery Monday and is out indefinitely.
Robinson was injured in the second quarter of Thursday's game against Las Vegas. Originally diagnosed with a high ankle sprain, the ankle — which had bothered her much of the season — ultimately needed surgery.
With Robinson out indefinitely, the Lynx waived forward Endy Miyem, making room on the roster to sign a backup guard. The Lynx are expected to sign free agent guard Sydney Colson Tuesday.
The 5-8 Colson, 29, has appeared in 112 games with nine starts in four WNBA seasons. After helping lead Texas A&M to the 2011 title Colson was taken by Connecticut with the 16th pick in that year's draft. She was traded to New York, where she played her rookie season. She spent the next four seasons playing overseas before being signed by San Antonio in 2015, where she played the next three seasons. She has career averages of 3.5 points with 2.2 assists.
In Robinson's place, Tanisha Wright and Whalen will have to tag-team for now to take care of point guard duties. Whalen, during her retirement address, pointed that out she was examined for a sprained finger. The Lynx have played recently without forward Rebekkah Brunson, too. Brunson sustained a hairline nose fracture and a concussion.
In the meantime, Maya Moore was named the WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week for the third time this season. Moore scored 31 points with six rebounds and five assists in a win over the Sky on Aug. 7. She added 34 points against the Aces and scored 12 in a loss to Seattle on Sunday.
The Lynx have three more regular-season games remaining — Tuesday at home against Chicago, Friday at Connecticut and Sunday at Target Center against Washington. The first round of the WNBA playoffs begin on Aug. 21.
