One year after posting the best record in the WNBA, San Antonio fell off to 15-19, losing in the first round of the playoffs to the Phoenix Mercury. That gave the Silver Stars the fifth pick in each of the 2010 WNBA Draft’s three rounds, as well as the 2010 Dispersal Draft.
2010 WNBA Dispersal Draft (December 14, 2009)
The Sacramento Monarchs ceased operation following the 2009 season. With the fifth pick in the draft, the Silver Stars selected forward/center Laura Harper. During her first two years in the WNBA, Harper averaged 5.0 points, and 3.4 rebounds, but San Antonio waived her late in training camp. Harper signed with the Washington Mystics prior to the 2012 season, but was cut before the start of the regular season.
2010 WNBA Draft (April 8, 2010)
In the first round, San Antonio took Stanford’s Jayne Appel. The 6-4 center played in 28 games for the Silver Stars as a rookie, all as a reserve. She averaged 3.4 points and 2.5 rebounds while making 53.5 percent of her field goal attempts.
During her sophomore campaign, Appel once again came off the bench, but in 2012 she broke into the starting lineup and over the next five years, she started 155 of the team’s 170 games. During her first three years as a starter, Appel connected on 55.3, 57.9 and 53.8 percent of her shots from the field.
Her best year in the W came in 2013 when she averaged 5.9 points and 8.9 rebounds. Appel retired after the 2016 season, finishing her career with averages of 4.0 points and 6.1 boards.
In the second round, San Antonio selected Middle Tennessee State forward Alysha Clark. Clark scored 1,756 points in her two-year career with the Blue Raiders, and averaged 27.9 points and 10.7 rebounds during her tenure. The Silver Stars waived her late in the 2010 preseason, brought Clark back for training camp in 2011, before again waiving her prior to the start of the regular season.
Clark eventually caught on with the Seattle Storm in 2012, and became a full-fledged starter in 2015. She helped the Storm to WNBA Championships in both 2018 and 2020, and was named to the WNBA All-Defensive Team in 2019 (second team) and 2020 (first). Clark also led the WNBA in 3-point field goal percentage in 2019 and 2020.
On February 1, 2021, the small forward, who was born in Denver, lived in Las Vegas while growing up and graduated from Mount Joliet High School in Tennessee, signed with Washington as a free agent, but an injury kept her out of the 2021 campaign. She bounced back in 2022 to lead the WNBA in two-point field goal percentage (.629), helping the Mystics to a 22-14 record.
On February 3, 2023, Las Vegas signed Clark as a free agent. She went on to be named the WNBA’s Sixth Player of the Year while helping the Aces to their second championship, her third overall. Heading into the 2024 season, Clark ranks second in WNBA history in two-point field goal percentage and effective field goal percentage.
With their final pick in the draft, the Silver Stars picked up Mississippi State guard Alexis Rack. Rack was the Bulldogs leading scorer as a senior at 15.8 points per game, and led the team to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. San Antonio waived her prior to the start of the regular season.