12th Storm Preview: Li Yueru adjusts her state and waits for a trade The opponent Bobcats are 9-0 and undefeated

At 10 a.m. Beijing time on June 12, the WNBA President's Cup continues as the Seattle Storm hosts the Minnesota Bobcats. Li Yueru, who has already applied for a trade, is expected to have a hard time to get more playing time. She will continue to adjust her form and wait for the team to trade. The Storm are currently 5-4 compared to the 9-0 Bobcats and are undefeated so far this season.

So far this season, Li Yueru has played in 9 games, averaging only 8.7 minutes per game, contributing 2.8 points and 1.6 rebounds, and shooting 30% from the field. Previously, Li Yueru said that the team has four interior players, and she decided to request a trade because she didn't think she had enough playing time. Some US media pointed out that Li Yueru's predicament proves that the WNBA is no longer a traditional inside world.

The outlet also pointed out that for Li Yueru, unfortunately, her three-point shooting ability may actually reduce her valuable playing time, as she hits one or two three-pointers that could cause opposing coaches to replace traditional interior players who can't effectively defend her, which in turn will prompt Storm coach Quinn to replace Li Yueru to match the opponent's now smaller lineup. This is what happened during the game against the Flying Wings, when Li Yueru made 2 of 2 three-pointers, and as the opponent replaced the center, Li Yueru was also replaced by the coach.

The opponent Bobcats started the game with a 9-0 record, and the core Collier played an MVP-level performance, playing in 8 games so far this season, averaging 25.5 points, 8.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.4 blocks per game, both offensive and defensive. The Bobcats had their best start to the season since 2017, the most recent year they lifted a WNBA championship.

However, the Storm fought the Bobcats until the very last minute in the first meeting between the two sides. Now that the Storm have won two in a row, they will be looking to battle the Bobcats again until the final minute of the game.