Emily Potter: Becoming A Pro

Hey Utah Fans!

My time with the Seattle storm was so great and I have nothing but good things to say about the organization. Looking back it went by so fast, but I learned so much in my short time with the team.

Since coming to college and realizing that I had potential to play professionally, it's been my dream to be drafted in the WNBA. The WNBA is extremely competitive as there is only 12 teams with 12 players on each roster. For the WNBA draft, there are three rounds of 12 picks for a total of 36 draft picks. I had a fairly successful college career and I knew that I probably wasn't in a place to get drafted, but I was still hoping for a chance.

The night of the draft, I was talking with my agent and right after the draft ended no one had contacted her yet. I was nervous and stressed that I wasn't going to get a chance to go to a training camp. She called me back a little bit later and informed me that Seattle wanted to bring me into camp and I had never been more happy.

Getting that phone call made me feel like all my hard work was worth it. Just getting the opportunity to be there with other amazing players and show what I can do on the court is all I have dreamed of. Later that night I also got a called from the GM and it was so nice to be welcomed to Seattle and thought of when they were deciding who to invite to training camp. I had a smile on my face that I could not get rid of.

Over the next few days I had to sign all the contracts and wait until it was announced by the team before I told everyone. I only told close friends and family but once it was released I was so excited to share it with the rest of my friends.

I felt extremely thankful for the opportunity but also some pressure to perform well. I am the first person from my home province of Manitoba to sign any type of contract with a WNBA team. I had a lot of people asking me questions, but also congratulating me on making the team, when in reality I hadn't made it at all yet! I am so proud of where I come from and my city, and my only hope is that I continue to make them proud and that the game of basketball continues to grow in Winnipeg.

I went into training camp a couple weeks later at the end of April with the mindset of making the team. I think anytime you are going into a competitive environment you need to think positively and believe in yourself, because if you don't who will?

Over the week and a half that I was in Seattle, I loved everything about training camp. The practices, the women on the team, the trainers and all the support staff was all top notch. Everyone in that environment is a professional and it's their job to be there, but you can tell that they really love what they do as well. There's plenty of other things all these people could be doing to make money, but they were with the Storm because they loved basketball, and that was exciting to be a part of because I love the game so much.

There was a lot of energy in practice and a lot of leadership within the team to improve themselves. Before the coaches even had to say anything, all of the players were there with tips or insight of what to improve or with praise for each other. Playing with the women on the Storm roster elevated my game so much because when you are around greatness, it immediately raises your level of play.

I remember the first day of practice I was super tired, but I again could not wipe that smile off of my face. I really felt like I was living a dream. It was reassuring to know that I can succeed as a pro, because every time there is a big change, I can be hesitant because I don't know if I will enjoy it as much as what I was doing before. I will miss the U and my teammates so much, but being in Seattle made me realize I am ready for this next chapter.

Aside from practice, I love how personalized everyone's day was. We had personalized lifts and times with the trainer and then individual player development work was also scheduled in. All of this takes place before practice even starts and I liked that approach because it gave me a lot of time to warm up and take care of anything I felt like I needed to before we got going.

We practiced for a couple of hours every day and then had time for recovery before we headed back to the hotel. I stayed right in downtown Seattle so I had a lot of time to walk around and explore. I walked down to Pike Place Market one afternoon and I walked all around downtown to eat and shop every day.

The weather while I was in Seattle was great! I had only ever visited in the winter to play Washington or play in the Pac-12 tournament, and over the years I'm pretty sure it rained every single time I had been there. But in the summer it is amazing. It was sunny and not too hot and I loved that there was water all around that I could see on the drive to practice or if I wanted to walk down to it I easily could.

Getting waived last week was a tough pill to swallow because I had the mentality of making the team, but I quickly had to accept that I tried my best and that's all I could do. The league is very, very competitive and only 12 people can make each team.

I know that I have a lot to learn, but I also know that I will be back again soon. I will keep coming back until I can crack a roster, and until then I will benefit from playing overseas. Everyone was so welcoming to me in Seattle and I will be forever thankful for that, because it made my first experience as a pro a very memorable one.

I am so thankful I got to just play and enjoy myself. Sure it was stressful and I wanted to play my best, but I also told myself going in that I wanted to have fun and learn as much as I could. How many people get to say they were in a WNBA training camp? I just wanted to enjoy every minute of it and I had the most fun I have had in a long time playing the game I love.

I have to change my mindset now to the next step in my career and that is finding a place to play this fall! I already love being a pro and I can't wait to see where I will go next.

- Emily Potter

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Players Mentioned

Emily Potter

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Eastern Kentucky on March 19, 2026 , Loss , 58, to, 72

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus #9 Seed BYU on March 5, 2026 , Loss , 52, to, 70

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Arizona on February 28, 2026 , Win , 81, to, 67

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Colorado on February 24, 2026 , Win , 67, to, 64

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus BYU on February 21, 2026 , Loss , 74, to, 86

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Oklahoma State on February 16, 2026 , Loss , 55, to, 73

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Cincinnati on February 14, 2026 , Win , 67, to, 59

Completed Event: Women's Basketball at Arizona State on February 11, 2026 , Loss , 61, to, 71

Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus Iowa State on February 7, 2026 , Loss , 72, to, 79

The University of Utah Athletics