Awa Fam and Dominique Malonga are targeted on the current, however their future in Seattle seems to be vivid
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NEW YORK — Awa Fam and Dominique Malonga want to not discuss too extensively about what’s on the horizon for the Seattle Storm.
They would moderately give attention to what they will see, at the same time as they endure a disappointing 8-31 stretch, as if to mood their pleasure about what comes subsequent.
It feels akin to the superstition in baseball when a pitcher is nearing a shutout, solely to return to the dugout every inning to finish silence from these on the squad. There isn’t any want to speak about what’s going down. To accomplish that might probably disrupt what’s in entrance of them.
Malonga and Fam already know: Something particular is brewing in Seattle.
“We are not thinking about it, like, every day. We are here playing, we are here practicing, and we are happy having each other on the team,” Fam mentioned whereas seated subsequent to Malonga at Barclays Center final month. “We already know that this is going to be, in the future, a really good thing. It’s already a really good thing.”
Much of the optimism in Seattle falls on the shoulders of Fam and Malonga, the generational worldwide prospects who type probably the most intriguing duos within the WNBA. Both simply 20 years outdated and radiating with on-court potential, they are going to be tasked with restoring the Storm to its title-contending type.
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The success of Malonga, a local of Cameroon who grew up in France, and Fam, a local of Spain, can also be of paramount significance to the WNBA because it continues to carry an ardent push towards globalizing its model. In a interval of immense on-court worldwide development inside the league, Malonga and Fam — who will signify their respective nations in September’s FIBA Women’s World Cup — stand as two of the faces of a brand new wave within the WNBA.
Their focus is on constructing chemistry and persevering with to acclimate to one another’s kinds on the ground. They know as soon as these powers are unlocked, the sky’s the restrict.
Until then, it’s one step at a time.
“One thing we’re good at is just to be where [our] feet are. Right now, we’re just here, grateful to have this opportunity and make the most of it,” Malonga mentioned.
The first time Malonga and Fam performed on the identical courtroom was in the summertime of 2022.
Years earlier than they’d swimsuit up as Seattle Storm teammates, the frontcourt duo squared off within the semifinals of the U17 World Cup in Hungary, representing their respective nations.
“I lost, that’s all I know,” Malonga recalled of the 66-59 Spain victory, to Fam’s amusement.
At the time, Fam and Malonga have been unknown to the vast majority of American basketball followers, however on the worldwide circuit they have been two of probably the most promising prospects on the earth, guarding one another on every finish of the ground. Top European prospects are all conscious of each other, Malonga mentioned, and Fam had been on Malonga’s radar for some time.
“It was good to play against another prospect like me,” mentioned Malonga, who completed with a game-high 21 factors and 14 rebounds. Fam had 12 factors, 9 rebounds and 5 steals. “She was really good. I love competitiveness, and she was great.”
Four years later, the 2 are WNBA teammates. They have spent the stretch studying about one another, utilizing their shared however barely differing European experiences as a place to begin for chemistry constructing.
Malonga has loved Fam’s fondness for French music. Malonga’s mom, a former European basketball professional, grew to become pregnant with Malonga whereas enjoying in Valencia, Spain.
“That means you’re Spanish,” Fam mentioned, laughing.
Malonga, as if catching the lob from Fam, mentioned affirmatively, “I’m kind of Spanish.”
On the courtroom, the 6-foot-4 Fam and 6-foot-6 Malonga mentioned constructing chemistry has come naturally to them. The parts that haven’t come as naturally, reminiscent of realizing the place the opposite is on the courtroom or likes to obtain the ball, are points they know will include reps and time.
“We both have a good feel for the game, so we can naturally play off of each other,” mentioned Malonga, who’s averaging 17.0 factors, 8.8 rebounds and 1.7 assists in an All-Star stretch. “She has a great 3-point shot, so she stretches the floor well, and it helps me to be inside. We communicate pretty well.”
Perhaps most significantly for Fam, Malonga has served as a crucial bridge to enjoying within the WNBA. Beyond which motion or counter to carry out on the courtroom, Malonga has crammed Fam in on what occurs on a sport day and what she must convey on a highway journey.
“She was the rookie last year, so she knows everything. She’s the first person that [I’m] like, ‘OK, help me because I need to know everything,’” mentioned Fam, who’s averaging 10.3 factors, 5.7 rebounds — which leads all rookies — and 1.8 assists this stretch. “We totally like each other; we’re helping each other.”
WNBA groups have benefited from worldwide expertise for the reason that league’s inception, however Fam and Malonga signify one thing distinctive for the league — two extremely touted lottery picks underneath age 21 on the identical squad. It’s a typical scenario within the NBA, the place draft eligibility has freshman-age gamers getting into the league every year. For the WNBA, although, it’s uncommon, as solely worldwide gamers can enter the league at 19 — supplied they flip 20 by the tip of the calendar yr.
“This is a really unique situation, not just in who they are but where they are in their careers,” Seattle head leader Sonia Raman mentioned. “You don’t see that as a lot within the W. When you’ve got two 20-year-olds within the beginning lineup, that’s going to affect so much, proper?
“You have Flau’jae [Johnson], who’s a rookie as well. So you have some young players in the league … and so our ability to kind of develop them internally and, you know, be with them as they grow as a group and keep them together is a really special thing that we have done here.”
As the WNBA continues to develop its home imprint, it additionally has positioned an emphasis on rising internationally. Driven by greater salaries and chartered flights from the newest collective bargaining settlement, a surge of overseas expertise has entered the WNBA. This inflow has quickly accelerated the league’s worldwide development.
Malonga and Fam, the two-highest drafted worldwide WNBA gamers since 2021, shall be integral to the expansion of the league’s international footprint. Fam, who’s of Senegalese descent, and Malonga, who’s of Cameroonian descent, each view themselves as worldwide ambassadors of the game.
“I feel like we are a part of this younger generation that’s growing and shining worldwide,” mentioned Malonga, who in July grew to become the youngest competitor to file a double-double in an All-Star Game. “I hope we’re just going to keep going, keep improving and keep bringing people from all over the world to watch women’s basketball.”
After a 2025 stretch during which the Storm lined its roster with a number of All-WNBA skills, trying to make a deep postseason run that in the end fell brief, Seattle’s entrance workplace opted for an entire reset. They employed a brand new leader in Raman and targeted on rebuilding the roster, putting an emphasis on Johnson, Fam and Malonga because the squad’s future faces.
The 2026 stretch has been a battle. The Storm have already eclipsed their 2023 franchise file for probably the most losses in a stretch. Despite the challenges of a dropping stretch, Malonga and Fam perceive this comes with the territory of a rebuild.
“When you want to get somewhere, it’s a process and you have to trust it. And sometimes you can’t control how the process is, but you just have to trust your peers, trust your teammates, trust the coaching staff. That’s what we do,” Malonga mentioned.
“We’re learning every day, and I think at some point it’s going to click, and it’s going to be amazing what we’re going to be able to produce.”
Other WNBA groups have not too long ago proven that high-level younger expertise and front-office ingenuity can rapidly flip a piece in progress right into a postseason contender.
Washington, which has the league’s youngest roster, is certain for the playoffs in head leader Sydney Johnson’s second stretch. The franchise’s timeline accelerated with the return of a wholesome Shakira Austin to the All-Star duo of Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen.
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The Dallas Wings received a mixed 19 video games over the 2024 and 2025 seasons. After securing consecutive No. 1 total draft picks in Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd in 2025 and 2026, respectively, hiring a brand new leader and bolstering the roster, the Wings clinched a playoff berth this stretch.Coaching staffs of younger groups stroll a tightrope, trying to remain aggressive with out speeding the event of future cornerstone gamers.
“I think it’s just one day at a time, right?” Raman mentioned of managing folks’s expectations of Fam and Malonga. ”It’s sort of microdosing, like, ‘What do we need from you today?’ in order that they don’t should get caught up with this large image and all these expectations.
“When they come into the gym, the outside expectations are always going to be there. They understand they’re just going to get support from us, and we’re going to pour into them.”
Fam and Malonga have but to nickname their pairing, a undertaking Fam calls a piece in progress. So, too, is their time collectively in Seattle as they construct the early foundations of a promising bond on and off the courtroom.
Malonga and Fam will take it someday at a time till it clicks. When it does, the hope in Seattle is that probably the most dynamic and dominant frontcourt duos in league historical past will emerge.
“We know that this is going to be good,” Fam mentioned. “It’s just, be patient. And we know that.”
Sean Hurd is a senior author for Andscape who primarily covers ladies’s basketball. His athletic peak got here on the age of 10 when he was named camper of the week at a Josh Childress basketball camp.
