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Jaylyn Sherrod knows she is good enough to be in the WNBA, even if her journey to the New York Liberty roster wasn’t the traditional path.
The undrafted rookie played with the Liberty in training camp before the team waived her prior to the season. They brought her back on a trio of seven-day deals earlier this month. On Saturday, the team announced it signed Sherrod for the rest of the season.
With the Liberty plugging two former MVPs, a former No. 1 draft pick, and one of the greatest distributors in WNBA history into their starting lineup, there’s not much room for someone like Sherrod. She’s going to have to force her way into the lineup the only way she knows how: by working her tail off and not giving coach Sandy Brondello a choice.
“If I’m not the hardest working, most passionate player on the court, I’m not doing my job,” she said on Thursday. “I never held myself to the standard of scoring 30 points or putting up numbers. It's just simply, I gotta be the hardest working.”
We saw that in Thursday’s game, a 79-71 win over the Dallas Wings. In a game where the Liberty struggled to score, she provided energy on both ends.
Saturday was a different story. In a frustrating 72-64 loss to the Connecticut Sun, she didn’t play until the final minute. Her energy was maybe a little over the top as she picked up a technical just seconds after checking in when she had a run-in with Dijonnai Carrington. But that’s the edge she brings.
Laughing at how Jaylyn Sherrod moved the referee to stand up pic.twitter.com/VQJkUpQdm2
— CJ Fogler account may or may not be notable (@cjzero) August 25, 2024
“She’s put in the work and she’s just going to be a testament to those who might not be drafted but can still make a roster,” Breanna Stewart told reporters before the Sun game. “Hopefully that will just keep others at the top of their game and ready for when their number is called.”
Jaylyn Sherrod didn't expect to be here
Sherrod didn’t expect to be in the WNBA. When she says that, she’s not referring to her childhood self. She’s talking recently.
The guard isn’t just a professional basketball player, she’s still a student. The girl who grew up with dreams of being a forensic pathologist is now pursuing her third degree, after graduating from Colorado with a 3.82 GPA and the title of Pac-12 women's basketball scholar-athlete of the year.
She just started classes this week as she works toward a second master’s in criminal justice at University of Colorado — Denver.
“I've always been an academic kid, so having this become what it has,” she said, “it's really special and you don't have a lot of kids from my hometown come out and be able to go back and say, ‘oh, I played professional basketball and I did this.’”
The Birmingham, Alabama native knows that she has little girls looking up to her, at home and in Boulder. She recalled 14 girls from Colorado following the Buffaloes to the Pac-12 tournament last year in Las Vegas.
“I really love that,” she said. “That’s really what my story’s about, giving back, because like I said, this wasn’t mine. I didn’t grow up like ‘yeah, I want to be in the W.’”
Sherrod has earned her Liberty teammates' trust
Sherrod won't play a ton. That’s just the reality of being a rookie on a team loaded with stars that are getting healthy again. Sabrina Ionescu returned to the lineup on Saturday after missing two games with a neck injury and Betnijah Laney-Hamilton is on track to return Monday night in Phoenix.
That’s not to say her teammates didn’t immediately see her value. Stewart noted that Sherrod could give the team a different dynamic defensively.
“[She’s] someone that can pick up 94 feet from the basket,” she said, and “really be an energizer bunny.”
After the game on Thursday, Jonquel Jones told reporters that the Sherrod you see on game day is the same Sherrod she interacts with each day in practice. Jones lauded the rookie’s mindset and awareness of her role.
“She does a good job of not letting exterior sources or anything shape the way that she approaches the game and the things that she knows that she can do to be successful,” Jones said. “Obviously, we were short on ball handlers and so when we can have somebody else that could kind of get downhill and make plays, it was really good for us.”
NYNY SAID "GIMME THAT" 😮💨
JAY SAID "GOTTA BLAST" 🚀💨@nyarasabally ➡️ @JaylynSherrod | #LIGHTITUPNYL pic.twitter.com/y5YaOgRftS
— New York Liberty (@nyliberty) August 23, 2024
Her coach seemed happy to have her as well, telling Her Hoops Stats’ Alford Corriette that she sees the work Sherrod puts in.
“You can't control how many minutes you play, but you can control your attitude and how hard you work,” Brondello said. “Jaylyn's a fierce competitor, she loves harassing opponents all the way down the floor.”
That’s why Sherrod played important minutes on Thursday, then signed for the rest of the season on Saturday. From here, the Liberty head west for three games, continuing a marathon of six games in 11 days. With four players deprived of an Olympic break, Brondello will need to keep her stars fresh.
Sherrod will have her moment that she never saw coming.
