Chicago Sky’s Rebekah Gardner becomes the oldest WNBA All-Rookie selection at 32: ‘You never know how fast things can change’

As the Chicago Sky prepare for a semifinal playoff series against the Connecticut Sun, Rebekah Gardner’s teammates have heard it all.

So when Gardner, 32, was selected to the WNBA All-Rookie Team on Thursday, wing Kahleah Copper already was in position to head off the inevitable storyline.

“Yes she the oldest & yes we tired of hearing it,” Copper wrote on Twitter.

But for Gardner, nothing about her first season has grown old just yet. The edge from spending a decade fighting for a roster spot in the WNBA honed Gardner’s focus in her debut season — and gave her more to play for.

So even if talk of her age becomes repetitive, Gardner said the spotlight is still welcome.

“It doesn’t really bother me,” she said. “I feel like people are tired of hearing it but I’m glad it’s happened. … This story getting out there means that other players are being inspired. Maybe even hopefully it can spark up thoughts of opening up more roster spots on more teams in the league so that other great players who aren’t in the (WNBA) can get into the league.”

It took a decade for Gardner to secure one of the 144 roster positions in the WNBA. After going undrafted in 2012, she kept chasing a WNBA contract while bouncing from leagues in Israel and Turkey to Romania and Spain. She made it into training camp with the Atlanta Dream at 22 only to pull both quad muscles after two weeks, then earned a trial with the Sky in 2017 only to leave without a contract.

That tryout was the start of a second chance for Gardner, who returned to Europe reinvigorated in her focus to improve enough to carve out a spot in the WNBA. It took nearly five years for that dedication to pay off when Sky coach James Wade made a trip to see Gardner play in Spain.

Wade lives in the Southern France with his wife, Edwige, who encouraged him to take a look at Gardner during the offseason during on his frequent travels throughout Europe to scout players who might have fallen off the WNBA radar.

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When Wade saw Gardner defensively match current and former Sky stars such as Copper, Gabby Williams and Diamond DeShields in the Spanish league, he knew the guard had potential to break out in the WNBA.

The Sky needed a replacement for the offensive spark and bounce of DeShields, who no longer fit under the salary cap heading into 2022. Gardner seemed like a natural fit.

“My whole mindset going into free agency knowing we probably couldn’t afford to keep Diamond was, ‘How do we replace that speed and athleticism?’ ” Wade said in May. “I saw (Gardner) once, and a lightbulb went off. I knew we had something there.”

Gardner made an immediate impact in her first season in Chicago, averaging 8.4 points and 1.3 assists as one of the first players off the bench alongside Azurá Stevens. Gardner recorded the first double-double of her WNBA career in a July win over the Sparks in her hometown of Los Angeles, notching 18 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in front of a crowd full of family and friends.

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Although her scoring deepened the Sky’s offensive rotation, defense truly cemented Gardner as one of the team’s most critical bench players. Gardner averages 1.4 steals per game — second only to starting center Emma Meesseman — as she uses her length and deft hands to pick pockets and disrupt passing lanes.

Gardner has become a blanketing presence on top ballhandlers, creating much-needed secondary pressure for the Sky when perimeter defenders Allie Quigley and Kahleah Copper are on the bench.

“Being that I was a newcomer, I came into games trying to do my best and trying not to be a liability in any way,” Gardner said. “That’s where I zoned in on defense. … We have so many great offensive weapons, so I came from a perspective of creating offense from the defense and in doing that I’ve grown into being a different player. I really take pride in that today. I don’t like being scored on.”

Gardner already knows how she wants to celebrate making the All-Rookie roster: winning a championship with the Sky, who need six more victories to become the first team in two decades to repeat.

But as she looks ahead, Gardner also hopes her breakout rookie season will encourage more European players to remain persistent.

“It’s encouraging to other players who may have been in my position, just for them to know that when they get the opportunity to take advantage of it,” Gardner said. “You never know how fast things can change.

“I just want to keep inspiring those people to keep chasing their dreams. You just have to be ready for your opportunity.”