Pauline Astier hit up new Liberty player development coach Kristen Mann last month in preparation for the French point guard’s first WNBA training camp.
Astier and Mann go back about six years. Astier said she was only 19 when she and Mann were teammates for two seasons on the French club Tango Bourges Basket.
That familiarity has been a source of comfort for Astier as she readies for her WNBA debut.
“I know when I have one question, like, I can ask everybody but it’s easier for me to [ask Mann] because she knows me also, so it’s really easier,” Astier said Friday. “Before I came, I was like, ‘Please, can you send me the playbook, like everything.’ And she was like, ‘Don’t worry, you’re gonna be fine.’ So yeah, it’s nice to have her here.”
Astier, 24, is considered one of the best European guard prospects. Coach Chris DeMarco billed her as a strong pick-and-roll player and fierce competitor with a high upside.
Astier had her choice of WNBA teams in free agency. The Connecticut Sun, Indiana Fever, Minnesota Lynx, Washington Mystics and Toronto Tempo were reportedly all interested in her services for this season.
But once New York called, Astier said it was game over.
“It was really a big deal” that New York reached out, Astier said. “[That was] something really big for me.”
Astier signed a one-year, rookie minimum contract, worth $270,000. She arrived in New York earlier this week and is already making an impression on her new teammates.
Sabrina Ionescu praised Astier for how quickly the young guard has picked up on DeMarco’s new system.
“Today was her second day and she probably stood out the most out of anybody,” Ionescu said. “I would say her ability to adapt, obviously her IQ has to be really high for her to get it this quickly. Some of us have been doing this for a week and a half and still don’t know where to go and she came in two days and is, like, directing, understands where to go, calling the offense.”
Astier’s arrival injects youth into the Liberty and bolsters the team’s guard depth.
There’s expected to be a learning curve for Astier as she adapts to the WNBA. But the Liberty feel like they can aid in her development.
“The national team trusts her with the ball, we will, too,” DeMarco said. “We just have to see what it looks like. I have a ton of confidence in her. I think her ability to read the floor is really, really good, and I think defensively, she definitely wants to pick up and cause some havoc, and I think she’s done a good job of shooting the ball, so she’ll have an opportunity. Do I know if she’s ready for major minutes? I don’t right now, but she’s definitely played at the highest level.”
Astier plays more of a traditional point guard style. She’s got strong passing vision, something Ionescu noticed Friday.
“I’m really excited,” Ionescu said. “Sky’s the limit for her, [I] want to continue to kind of understand how to play with her … I’m excited to see how she’s going to grow. But I think everyone’s going to really love her style of play because it’s super special and fits the system we’re trying to run.”
Astier said she’s still settling into her new situation.
“It’s a lot at the beginning,” she said, “but it’s really nice because I like to play fast, to push the ball, to play in transition, so I think it’s gonna be nice.”
Astier spent part of her day off Thursday playing tourist with her fellow countrywoman Marine Johannès. The two took a trip to Times Square and took in the hectic scene.
Being a part of the city’s hustle and bustle and the Liberty’s championship desires are why she chose to come here.
“I’m so happy,” Astier said. “It’s the first time for me in New York.”
