UNDER HER WING

From the bargaining table to the court, quintessential role player Alysha Clark has helped drive the WNBA's metamorphosis

- EMMA BACCELLIERI

ALYSHA CLARK can measure her WNBA career in points, games and championships. But there is nothing that marks the passage of time quite like her 15-year-old Chihuahua, Sly.

She adopted him when she was desperate to land her first roster spot and he was just a puppy. Now, he's "a little deaf and a little blind," Clark affectionately says at her 16th training camp.

The two of them have seen the WNBA through striking change, including with a landmark new CBA.

Clark, 38, is the oldest player in the WNBA. It took her years to crack a roster.

She is the last player standing from the 2010 draft class, with a career built on thankless defensive work, and she is now the resident veteran on a young, fun Wings roster.

"She's been around so long and seen the league through so many different iterations,— says Dallas coach Jose Fernandez.

—She's just been very, very impressive in every single way.—

It did not occur to Clark that she might play in the WNBA until she was almost finished at Middle Tennessee. She was selected in the second round by the San Antonio Silver Stars. What she did not grasp was how much of a grind it would be to make her league debut.

She was waived by the team on the final day of training camp in both 2010 and '11. She played overseas in Israel and began thinking about how a basketball career might look without a spot in the WNBA.