USC Projan Rayah Marshall states further goal intention after making Connecticut Sun

Making a WNBA roster is one of the most difficult feats in sports. For USC Projan Rayah Marshall, she has accomplished her first professional goal and has made the Connecticut Sun roster.

The reason why it is one of the toughest things among all of the professional leagues is due to the limited teams and roster size. Although some teams are about to be added, the Golden State Valkyries currently provide a 13th landing spot for rookies.

The inherent limitation and need for rosters to have players conceivably ready for a long stretch of minutes at any point makes it so that drafting and stashing or developing a talent is not a current reality in the league, and certainly not anywhere near to that of other leagues. In the NFL or NBA, for example, someone can be drafted as a long-term prospect. That's not the case due to the current limitations in the WNBA.

Marshall's making this roster speaks to her as a player now and how well coach Lindsay Gottlieb and the staff developed their players. USC's ability to have Trojans as pro-ready as possible is one of the great testaments to the program as a whole.

After finding out that she has made the roster cut, as reported by ESPN's Brendan Glasheen, Marshall took a moment to reflect on her journey to this point:

"It’s hard to put into words. I’m here and my entire family lives in Los Angeles. I’m going to embrace this as long as possible."

For Marshall, it must be something of a bittersweet moment. A SoCal native, she had a great career at USC. Her tenacity and willingness to leave it all out on the court were evident throughout her time as a Trojan.

Continued push from former USC player

Now on the East Coast, Marshall appears focused on not only earning her initial roster spot but also keeping it and making an impact in the league for a long time to come. Connecticut will start off their season against the Washington Mystics.

The preseason is not necessarily the sole tell-all. Based on those exhibition games, Marshall should be able to get steady minutes behind Tina Charles and even share the court with one of the WNBA greats.

The Sun's offense also looks to give their bigs a lot of looks in the post. In terms of professional fit, it may be far from USC and her family, but everyone will be eager to watch Marshall continue her basketball journey. Knowing what fans saw of her as a Trojan, she'll continue to do well.