If you think you've ever had a crazy emotional rollercoaster of a week, you've never talked to Monique Currie.
One day after losing to Maryland in the National Championship game--"It really hurts right now," Currie said after the game--the star Blue Devil forward was taken by the Charlotte Sting with the third pick in the WNBA Draft. And it's not even like Currie had the luxury of time to catch her breath between her pro and college careers: The draft and the National Championship game both took place in Boston, less than 24 hours apart.
Currie's Duke teammates Mistie Williams and Jessica Foley were also selected in later rounds-Foley by the Indiana Fever and Williams by the Phoenix Mercury (who traded her to the Houston Comets).
For all three players, the quick turnaround was enough to make their heads spin.
"I am really not sure if I've got it all together because everything is happening so fast," Currie said after the draft. "I'm just really excited. I had a pretty tough loss last night, so I have a lot of mixed emotions and feelings. I'm a pro now, and it feels great, and I am just looking forward to getting started with everything."
Since then, the versatile player has done more than gotten started-she's excelled. As of June 1, nearly halfway through the WNBA's 34-game regular season, Currie had been in the starting lineup for 15 of the Sting's 16 games, and her 27.5 minutes per contest was better than all but two of Charlotte's players. The aggressive, basket-attacking style familiar to Duke fans had translated well to the pros-Currie's 94 free-throw attempts were third in the league.
Though Charlotte hasn't had too much success this year-its 3-13 record was second-worst in the Eastern Conference as of June 1-Currie has been a bright spot.
"This is a dream come true for me, to be in the WNBA," Currie said after the draft.
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