“Everything happens for a reason, right? There’s always going to be more opportunities.”
That was Michelle Onyiah’s mindset in early June, when that pursuit led her to the UPSHOT League – an upstart pro league built on the promise of opportunity.
Nearly two months later, that opportunity has come knocking for the young forward.
The Indiana Fever announced their signing of Onyiah on Friday, making her the first player in UPSHOT League history to earn a WNBA contract.
“It was amazing,” said Onyiah of getting the call. “It was just so real. I was sitting on my couch like, ‘Oh my God, are you lying to me? Are you being serious?’ It was crazy.
Onyiah jumped onto the Crown roster following the team’s season opener and almost immediately became a pillar of the squad. Working with the Charlotte coaching staff to quickly get up to speed, the 24-year-old became dominant down low and helped drive the Crown up the standings.
“Coach TSO believed in me really quickly,” said Onyiah. “She helped me get here by far. Her and MG [assistant coach Morra Gill McDaniel] both did it.”
“I’m ecstatic,” said Crown head coach Trisha Stafford-Odom. “This was the whole goal of UPSHOT – and me, personally – so to know that Michelle’s dream has come true to some degree right now and that I had a small portion of influence or the opportunity to assist her in this process, it makes me feel great.”
Onyiah has been on the cusp of the WNBA before. After wrapping up a standout college career at Cal, she nearly joined the New York Liberty but instead went to play in Belgium when that fell through. Then she did join the Liberty in April of this year on a training camp contract, but was cut prior to the start of the regular season.
Rather than dwell on that disappointment, though, Onyiah used it as fuel.
“If the letdown didn’t happen, I don’t know if I would have received the same Michelle,” said Stafford-Odom. “She came here with a real focus and a real goal of getting back to where she felt she belonged. So that’s been her drive. That’s the reason why she’s been extremely hard on herself.”
Onyiah established herself as one of the UPSHOT League’s premier bigs, currently sitting tied for the league lead in blocks per game and ranking third in rebounds while also averaging 9.6 points per game.
While the stats are eye catching, they don’t tell the whole story of Onyiah’s impact.
“Her goal is always to be efficient,” said Stafford-Odom. “She didn’t care about points.
She didn’t care about numbers, she cared about efficiency. Like my mom used to tell me, if you’re gonna do something, do it right the first time so you don’t have to come back and do it again. And Michelle – at a young age – personifies that. No wasted time, no wasted space, let’s attack what needs to be attacked and move on.”
That approach endeared Onyiah to the close-knit Crown, and as opposed to seeing this level of basketball as beneath her, the young forward fully bought in.
“She had the hardest time breaking the news to her teammates,” said Stafford-Odom. “She was locked in. Before she left she said to me that this is the best team she’s ever played for. She’s had the most fun and she’s grown, and that makes me feel great as a coach, having had the opportunity to coach her.”
One of the foundational beliefs in the creation of the UPSHOT League is that there is more high-level talent than there are roster spots in the WNBA. Now there’s a groundbreaking move to back that up.
“This validates every vision that [UPSHOT League Commissioner] Donna [Orender] and [Zawyer Sporta & Entertainment CEO] Andy [Kaufmann] had,” said Stafford-Odom. “It verifies the fact that this is a legitimate league. It verifies and validates the fact that the WNBA powers that be – the general managers and coaches – do have their eye on this league. UPSHOT is real.”
Onyiah may be the first, but there could be plenty more to follow in her footsteps.
“I think there’s so many more in the UPSHOT league that could be in the position of Michelle. And I’m just grateful and thankful and happy for her that it is her.”
“It’s the inaugural season so you’re testing the waters, you don’t know how people will react or how things will be,” said Onyiah. “But being able to put your head down and trust in your coaches.They want you to be successful and be ready when the W calls. Just do what excites you and have fun with that part. That’s my biggest thing, honestly. Just go for it.”