San Antonio Silver Stars forward Gwen Jackson is not used to losing. In her college career at Tennessee, the 6-foot-2 forward only experienced three conference losses -- total over four years.
After back-to-back losses by the Silver Stars in this young WNBA season, Jackson is in unfamiliar territory.
"I'm not used to losing. I hate losing. That's the hardest thing for me. But we'll make the adjustments and get better," Jackson said. "The experience will make me stronger and make me a better player."
Under the tutelage of legendary coach Pat Summitt, Jackson developed into a complete basketball player. As a freshman, she averaged merely 5.5 points and struggled with consistency. In her senior season, Jackson scored 16.1 points and pulled down 6.2 rebounds per game, while shooting 57.2% from the floor and 40.0% from beyond the arc. The Lady Vols went 14-0 in conference play, losing to UConn in the NCAA Championship game.
Jackson was selected by the Indiana Fever with the sixth overall pick of the 2003 WNBA Draft and anticipated being united with former Tennessee players Tamika Catchings and Nikki McCray. But plans changed when Jackson was included in the trade that sent Natalie Williams and Coretta Brown to Indiana in exchange for Sylvia Crawley and Jackson.
The trade bolstered the Silver Stars' depth, versatility and athleticism at the 4-spot. Both Crawley and Jackson can post up, shoot from the perimeter, run the floor and defend.
Jackson's new teammates expect she will make a quick impact on the squad.
"Gwen's got a great work ethic. She plays and practices hard. Coming from the program at Tennessee you know she's smart and disciplined. You know she'll give you 100% night in and night out," commented veteran Adrienne Goodson.
"She's strong and athletic. Gwen works very hard," praised guard Marie Ferdinand. "I think she's going to see good minutes and contribute for us."
Jackson realizes that it may take a few games for this team to mesh, but knows they have the personnel to win.
"We're a new team. Over half of us haven't played together before. So it's a matter of getting into a flow as a team," said the 22-year-old Jackson. "It's just little adjustments that are going to make a big difference for us."
And Jackson is starting to get comfortable in San Antonio. She visited the city in 2002 when playing in the Final Four and is happy to be back in the Alamo City.
"The fans are great -- very supportive, smart basketball fans. The organization is great and it's a nice city. It's very warm. I'm getting used to it, but bugs are always biting me. Hopefully soon they'll get used to me too and stop."
