In case you couldn’t tell by the name and physical resemblance, Rashanda McCants is the younger sister of former Timberwolf Rashad McCants. Rashad, who was selected 14th overall by the Wolves in the 2005 NBA Draft, spent 3 ½ seasons in Minnesota before he was dealt to Sacramento in February.

Like her older brother, Rashanda attended the University of North Carolina, wore #32 and helped her team reach a Final 4.  Despite the similarities, they are different people. While Rashad gained the reputation of being outspoken and even confrontational at times, Rashanda is good natured and amiable.

Rashanda took some time out after Thursday’s practice to chat about her rookie season, her older brother and her off-season plans.

DZ:  Obviously you guys aren’t playing as well as you’d like right now, but it looks like you are staying upbeat. What do you to get through these times?

McCANTS: As a rookie, I am not really used to losing – losing (multiple) games in a row. You just have to look forward to the next game, be as competitive as possible and to at least try and figure something out about what’s going on – what you are doing wrong.

DZ: You guys sometimes have 3, 4, 5 or more days between games. Is it hard to sometimes shake off those losses when you have so much time to think about it?

McCANTS: Yeah. When you hate losing, it is very difficult to not think about the loss, why you lost and what you did wrong. At the same time, it gives us a lot of time to practice what we did wrong, watch film and analyze all the small things that made a big difference.

DZ: How about you personally? Your rookie season is winding down, how would you gauge your progress so far?

McCANTS: I think that over the past four months, I’ve grown a lot as a person and as a player. Going through all of these struggles of winning and losing, it makes you grow – it forces you to get better. In practice, that’s all I’ve been doing, just trying to add something to my game each time so whenever I get on the court I am more confident.

DZ: Let’s go back to draft day – way back then – it must seem like a long time ago now. Everybody knows that your brother played here, what was your reaction when you found out you were drafted by Minnesota?

McCANTS: I was absolutely shocked. Off all places, I kind of thought maybe in a million years I would end up here when it actually happened and they called my name – and it was the 15th pick, I thought it was the most ironic, weirdest thing in the world because my brother and I have followed each other’s footsteps for so many things and to actually have one that you are not in control of happen was very weird. I was happy with their decision and it’s a great organization.

DZ: What was Rashad’s reaction?

McCANTS: I think he was more shocked than I was. He was like, “What? You’re my little sister, but you don’t have to do everything I do.” It was fun; it was something to talk about for a little bit.

DZ: You get to enjoy a little better time of year in this state than he did.

McCANTS: That’s exactly what he said, “At least you are there in the summer time because it gets too cold (in the winter).”

DZ: Have you gotten a chance to get around the city at all, check things out?

McCANTS: A little bit. Mall of America is my best friend, I go there watch movies and stuff. Other than that, I really haven’t been able to get to any of the lakes or the historical places here. Next year I will try and do that.

DZ: Do you plan on playing overseas after this season?

McCANTS: Yeah, I am going to Israel.

DZ: Israel has a lot different culture than the United States, do you know much about it?

McCANTS: They say it is the most Americanized country as far as the teams go, so I think I will be pretty comfortable over there. (It’s) a good fit for my first year overseas.

See more of David Zingler’s interviews with Lynx players:

July 27: Renee Montgomery
July 18: Roneeka Hodges
July 12: Quanitra Hollingsworth
July 1: Charde Houston