Lynx Guard Kayla McBride Named Turkish League Player of the Month

Dec 3, 2022 - 9:00 PM

Minnesota Lynx guard Kayla McBride earned Turkish Basketball Federation Women’s League Player of the Month honors for November while playing for global powerhouse Fenerbahçe over in Istanbul.

McBride picked up right where she left off in EuroLeague play last spring when Fenerbahçe fell in the championship to Sopron Basket. The three-time WNBA All-Star showed why the people call her McBuckets. She averaged a team-high 25.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists in three games, leading Fenerbahçe to a 2-1 record in last month.

The 30-year-old sharpshooter is averaging 23.3 points on 53.9% FG/54.3% 3PT/95.5% FT shooting splits, 6.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists and has averaged a +14.2 in a team-high 32 minutes per game across six contests so far this season in the Turkish League for Fenerbahçe, whom McBride has led to second place in the standings.

The beloved Lynx leader has also gotten off to a blazing start in EuroLeague play. The Erie, Pennsylvania native is averaging 18.5 points on 44.3/43.5/100 shooting splits, 4.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.3 steals across 36.6 minutes per game.

After missing the start of the 2022 WNBA season due to her contractual obligations in Turkey, McBride returned to play very well for the Lynx, averaging 13.3 points on 40.5/35.6/90.9 shooting splits, 2.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.0 steals in 29.8 minutes per game across 31 contests, all starts.

With prioritization rules coming into effect for the 2023 season, players who do not report to their teams by day of the team’s first game (now confirmed to be May 19), will be ruled ineligible for the entire season. McBride will not be among those ineligible.

“I won’t miss any part of Minnesota Lynx anything. My overseas team knows that, my agent team knows that,” McBride said. “This is my number one priority.”