After the Seattle Storm's 70-57 loss to the Golden State Valkyries on Saturday, Flau'jae Johnson covered her face with her jersey and tried to hold back tears during the postgame press conference as Awa Fam spoke about the team's difficult season.
"That's who Flau is, that's who our players are," Storm coach Sonia Raman said a few minutes later. "They really care. They want to win, they're really competitive, they're really hungry and they feel it when they lose."
Johnson and the 8-35 Storm have done a lot of losing this season. With one game to play, they've already set the league's single-season losses record and are guaranteed to finish in last place. If they drop Wednesday's finale against the Dallas Wings, they'll record the worst winning percentage in franchise history.
The sting of defeat has been hard to handle for Johnson. The No. 8 overall pick in this year's WNBA Draft, Johnson was traded from the Golden State Valkyries – now in second place and a primary title contender – to the Storm on draft night. In five months with the Storm, she has lost more games than she did in four years at LSU, where she won a national title as a freshman and went a combined 125-20.
"I don't know that I've dealt with [the losing] all the way," Johnson told CBS Sports over the phone earlier this week. "It's kinda just irritating for me because it's hard. Every day you're chasing a goal and you're giving everything you got in these games and they just don't go your way."
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As frustrating as the season has been at times, Johnson is trying to "keep perspective" because "these are the best players in the world and we're giving them a run for their money." The young, rebuilding Storm have six defeats by three or fewer points and 13 by five or fewer points. In "clutch" games, defined as the score being within five points with five or fewer minutes remaining, the Storm are 2-16. The WNBA's clutch game data goes back to 2006, and since then the Storm's 16 defeats are tied for the third-most in a single season. Their .111 winning percentage in such games is better only than the 2012 Tulsa Shock (.077).
The good news in Seattle? The reason for the futility in late-game situations is the same reason the Storm have one of the brightest futures in the league: youth. The 22-year-old Johnson is the oldest member of the team's core, which includes All-Star center Dominique Malonga and Awa Fam, the No. 3 overall pick in this year's draft – both 20.
"Playing with them, they're so smart," Johnson said. "Them being overseas and them being young, we just give each other a lot of grace. We're still kinda learning each other when you don't have a full offseason and then you come in learning a new system, new players. But we have so much time to grow."
Johnson, for her part, has had one of the most productive rookie seasons in franchise history: 14.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Thanks in part to the regular season now being 44 games, Johnson has broken the Storm rookie records for both points (605), 3-pointers (60) and steals (57). She is also the sixth true rookie to record at least 500 points, 100 rebounds, 100 assists and 50 steals. (Cynthia Cooper was 34 and had been a pro for a decade when she averaged 22.2 points in the league's first season in 1997).
Rookies with 500+ points, 100+ rebounds, 100+ assists and 50+ steals
PlayerSeasonCynthia Cooper
1997
Tamika Catchings
2002
2024
2025
2025
Flau'jae Johnson
2026
2026
Among all rookies, Johnson is second in scoring, second in rebounding, eighth in assists, second in steals and fifth in 3s. And though her efficiency has lagged at times, she's made major strides in that department down the stretch. Over her last 10 games, Johnson is shooting 65.2% in the restricted area and 40.8% from behind the arc.
For her play, Johnson should be named to the All-Rookie Team later this fall. For her passion and joy she has become a fan favorite in Seattle as she was in Baton Rouge.
As her rookie season came to a close, Johnson chatted with CBS about the draft night trade to Seattle that changed everything, what she's learned in her first professional campaign and what she's looking forward to with Unrivaled this winter.
The interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
CBS Sports: Let's start by going back to the draft. Have you had a chance to reflect on the trade and how it changed the course of your rookie season and your career? Do you feel any different about it now than you did at the time?
Flau'jae Johnson: I think it was the best thing that happened to me. At first, when things happen, you're like, 'why is this happening to me?' But that's one of those moments where I'm like, 'this is happening for me.' It just kinda proved to be true. I was able to come to Seattle and really become the athlete and player that I knew I could be. It was the perfect opportunity and the best thing that happened. I'm just so thankful that I landed here in Seattle.
CBS Sports: Olivia Miles is the only rookie who has played more minutes than you. How has the opportunity to play through some early struggles and mistakes helped your development?
Johnson: Yeah, it's helped tremendously. But I do feel like the type of player I am, the type of competitor I am, any roster I got on. I would have been making an impact. But being in Seattle is special because we have such a young core that we can build and grow with. Me being a competitor and my will to win, it's kinda helping me to adjust to the game rather quickly. I'm thankful for my coaches and teammates helping me with that adjustment period – playing all those minutes and just learning. I really feel like experience is the best teacher. With so much experience, you're gonna get good. It's just a blessing to have the opportunity.
CBS Sports: You were emotional after a recent loss. How hard has it been dealing with so much losing after being so successful at LSU?
Johnson: I don't know that I've dealt with it all the way. It's kinda just irritating for me because it's hard. Especially when you're chasing a goal and you're giving everything you got in these games and they just don't go your way. I think you gotta keep perspective. These are the best players in the world and we're giving them a run for their money. I'm just trying to be a professional about it and come play and stay ready.
CBS Sports: You've lost 13 games by five points or fewer. Does it make it more frustrating that you've been right there so often? Or do you view it as a sign of what this group can do in the future?
Johnson: Both. I think both are true. It's like, 'damn, we're close.' It feels hard when something's within reach but you can't grab it. But it's also like, wow, imagine next year how we're gonna be able to be better at closing games.
CBS Sports: Has it helped having other young players alongside you going through this process?
Johnson: Playing with them, they're so smart. Them being overseas and them being young, we just give each other a lot of grace. We're kinda learning each other when you don't have a full offseason and then you come in learning a new system, new players. But we have so much time to grow.
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CBS Sports: Where do you feel you've grown the most over the course of the season?
Johnson: I would say reads. Having the ball in my hands more and making the right reads, and I think I gotta continue to get better at that and not be tunnel vision. Being a playmaker has made me much better as a scorer.
CBS Sports: You hear a lot of players talk about the game slowing down for them at a certain point. Have you experienced that at all?
Johnson: Yeah, these last couple of games have been really decent. I think the game's been slowing down, and I've just been learning. I can read things better because I have a lot of experience playing these teams, so I've been able to read the defenses better and adjust in real time.
CBS Sports: Speaking of real-time adjustments, I saw in a post-game presser you talked about seeing Jackie Young use a move and then stealing it from her in the middle of the game. How did it feel have that instant success?
Johnson: I like to pride myself on really being good at in-game adjustments. It was something I was very aware of. I practice those moves all the time, but seeing it in real time and how she manipulated the defense, I just wanted to try it and it worked.
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CBS Sports: You've set a number of Storm franchise records. Can you enjoy that despite the record?
Johnson: It's a blessing. It's a lot for me to wrap my head around, even right now. It's like, I want to win, I'm a winner, you feel me? But at the same time you gotta take pride in what God's given you. He allowed me to show who I am and be my best self. I don't know. I'm just thankful. It's crazy. Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson, Breanna Stewart. Those are the names of the people that I'm with. It's a blessing and I don't know. I thank God for it.
CBS Sports: You had an awesome reaction to blocking A'ja Wilson recently. Are you still adjusting to the reality of being on the floor with players like her?
Johnson: It's hella surreal. You're talking about the GOATs of my generation. The people we look up to in my generation, you know what I'm saying? Just seeing them play on TV in college and all that, so to share the floor with them it's like, 'damn this is what I can ascend to, this is the greatness I want to try to ascend to.' So I don't know, it means a lot
Flau'jae Johnson was over the moon after blocking A'ja Wilson, but also wants everyone to know that she didn't mean any disrespect by accidentally shouting an expletive in the face of Wilson. 😂 #WNBA (🎥: @seattlestorm) pic.twitter.com/bhbYupU3AK
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) September 21, 2026
CBS Sports: You're going to play with Unrivaled this winter. How do you think that can help you develop, and what are you looking forward to the most about that experience?
Johnson: Being with the likes of all those great players, I'm gonna be picking their brain. I already told Paige [Bueckers] I'm gonna be training with her every day. Just learning, growing, training every day and getting better. That's all I want to do.
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