Around the W - Week 7
A vast summary of what took place in the WNBA during the 7th week.
Another week in the WNBA season has ended as we approach the midway point of the regular season. The Seattle Storm remain the number one overall seed, but just barely after losing back-to-back games for the first time this season. Which teams had a successful week and which dropped in the standings? Let’s find out!
Atlanta Dream
Weekly Record: 0-2
Overall Record: 5-9
The Atlanta Dream lost both of their games this past week and have now lost three games in a row. At 5-9, they currently sit towards the bottom of the WNBA standings as the 11th seed.
On Wednesday, the Dream lost a heartbreaker to Minnesota 87-85. Atlanta held an 18-point lead in the game but scored just nine points in the final quarter to lose by two. Courtney Williams led the way with 24 points. Chennedy Carter returned from her injury to score 16 points. Odyssey Sims added 13 points, while Aari McDonald contributed 10 points off the bench.
Then on Saturday, Atlanta was blown out by the New York Liberty 101-78. Chennedy Carter led the Dream with 24 points. Cheyenne Parker added 14 points and Courtney Williams pitched in with 12 more.
While Atlanta hasn’t quite played half a season, they are close (14 games played, 18 remains). You have to say this season has been really disappointing. If the season ended today, they’d miss the playoffs for a third consecutive year. I’m sure losing Coach Nikki Collen right before the season to Baylor certainly didn’t help things. But with the talent on their team, you’d think they’d be in the playoff hunt. It’ll be interesting to see if they can turn things around in the second half or if they end up in the lottery once again.
Chicago Sky
Weekly Record: 2-1
Overall Record: 9-8
The Chicago Sky had another successful week going 2-1 over the past seven days. They won their first two games of the week which gave them a seven-game win streak. That streak finally ended when they matched up with the Connecticut Sun.
First, the Sky defeated the New York Liberty 92-72. Candace Parker led the team with 23 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists. Allie Quigley provided 14 points off the bench. Courtney Vandersloot had another double-double with 10 points and 10 assists. Diamond DeShields (11 points) and Kahleah Copper (10 points) were the other two players to score in double figures.
Chicago then beat New York again by, even more, 91-68. Five players scored in double figures with both Diamond DeShields and Kahleah Copper leading the team with 18 points apiece. Vandersloot had 13 points, nine assists and her wife Allie Quigley added 13 more off the bench. Candace Parker had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds in the victory.
The Sky finally lost a game for the first time this season with Candace Parker in the lineup when the Connecticut Sun defeated them 74-58. Only two players managed to get into double figures in this game with Copper and Quigley both scoring 11 points.
Through 17 games, the Sky have played more than half their season. They are 9-8 and currently hold the 4th best record in the WNBA. If they keep that up, they would get a first-round bye in the WNBA Playoffs and only have to play one single-elimination game.
The better outlook for them is that they are 9-1 in the 10 games that Candace Parker has played (0-7 in games she’s missed). However, they will have a tough test remaining in their schedule. Of their 15 games remaining, six of them are versus the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces. They’ll also have to face the Washington Mystics and Dallas Wings.
Chicago has a ton of talent on their roster, but can they make a serious run in the playoffs? We will find out.
Connecticut Sun
Weekly Record: 2-0
Overall Record: 10-5
After losing three games straight with Jonquel Jones absent from the team (temporarily playing overseas), Connecticut rebounded well this past week going 2-0.
On Tuesday, they defeated the Dallas Wings 80-70. DeWanna Bonner and Brionna Jones did the heavy lifting. Bonner finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds while B. Jones finished with 26 points and five rebounds. Kaila Charles also had a double-double scoring 12 points and pulling down 12 rebounds. Jasmine Thomas offered up 11 points. It’s a good thing four out of the five starters had really good games because Connecticut’s bench only scored one single point!
As mentioned above, Connecticut ended the Chicago Sky’s 7-game win streak by beating them 74-58. DeWanna Bonner led the team again with 23 points and seven rebounds. Brionna Jones added 21 points and nine rebounds. And Jasmine Thomas gave them 18 points. Those three combined to score 84% of the Sun’s points on Sunday.
At 10-5, the Sun currently hold the 3rd best record in the WNBA just behind the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces. They have a two-game lead over the Chicago Sky currently. The team is 2-3 without Jonquel Jones and 8-2 with her. J. Jones is set to return very soon. She’s questionable to return against the Washington Mystics on Tuesday the 29th. Otherwise, she’ll likely return on Thursday when the Sun face the Indiana Fever.
Connecticut is in a great position to earn at least a first-round bye in the playoffs and they’re definitely well within striking distance to claim a top-two seed which would grant them a double-bye and automatic bid into the semi-finals. Connecticut is also the leader in the Eastern Conference when it comes to the Commissioner’s Cup with a 5-1 record. They split their two Cup games with the Chicago Sky who have the 2nd best record in the conference at 6-3.
DeWanna Bonner was also named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week after averaging 24 PPG, 10.0 RPB, 3.5 APG.
Dallas Wings
Weekly Record: 2-1
Overall Record: 8-8
The Wings started the week off by losing to the Connecticut Sun 80-70. Arike Ogunbowale led the team with 18 points and five assists. Satou Sabally was the only other player to score in double figures with 16.
After a disappointing performance on Tuesday, the Wings responded by winning their next two games. First, a 25-point victory over the Indiana Fever 89-64. Six players scored in double figures for Dallas in this game. Satou Sabally led the team with 15 points and a game-high nine rebounds. Marina Mabrey (14 points), Allisha Gray (13 points), and Isabelle Harrison (10 points) all reached double figures off the bench. In total, the Wings’ reserves scored 46 points! Number one overall pick Charli Collier also set a new career-high with 12 points. She also had seven points. And Arike Ogunbowale finished the game with 10 points.
On Saturday, the Wings toppled the Washington Mystics 85-74. Arike led all scorers with 30 points. Allisha Gray (14 points) and Isabelle Harrison (10 points) added excellent support off the bench. Satou Sabally finished the game with 12 points and tied for a team-high eight rebounds.
At 8-8, the Dallas Wings have climbed up to the 6th overall seed and have played exactly half of their regular-season games. Coach Vickie Johnson has this team moving in the right direction. Dallas missed the playoffs by just one game last season, can they get over the hump this year?
Indiana Fever
Weekly Record: 0-1
Overall Record: 1-15
The best news I can give to Indiana Fever fans is that they only lost one game this past week. Of course, they only played one game but that’s neither here nor there.
Indiana dropped their one-game 89-64 to the Dallas Wings. Kelsey Mitchell led the Fever with 24 points. Jantel Lavender added 14 points and Tiffany Mitchell gave them 12 more points.
Their last three lottery draft picks (McCowan, Cox, and Gondrezick) combined for just three points and nine rebounds in 39 total minutes.
That would end up being Lauren Cox’s final game with the Fever as the team announced they had waived her on Sunday. Cox was the 3rd overall pick in just last season’s WNBA Draft. She was selected over Chennedy Carter with the hope that the team could pair her with Teaira McCowan for a dominant frontcourt duo. While McCowan has had moderate success in this league, Cox has not provided much on the stat sheet in limited minutes.
Cox averaged just 1.4 PPG and 2.0 RPG in under nine minutes per game. She also only played in 11 of the team’s 16 games this season. Not due to injury but just due to the coach’s decision.
Will any other WNBA team pick her up and give her a chance this season? The way the league works, I have my doubts. Roster spots are so few and far between, if you’re not producing immediately you need to improve overseas before returning to the W.
Las Vegas Aces
Weekly Record: 1-1
Overall Record: 11-4
The Las Vegas Aces went 1-1 this past week losing to the Minnesota Lynx in OT before defeating the Seattle Storm in OT. For Vegas, the Storm win was significantly more important as it gave them the season-series victory over the defending champions. Meaning, if both teams finish with the same record, the Aces will own homecourt advantage.
Minnesota defeated the Aces 90-89 in overtime on Friday. A’ja Wilson led the team in scoring with 28 points and 14 rebounds. Liz Cambage added 18 points and 20 rebounds. Kelsey Plum added 15 points off the bench and Dearica Hamby added 13 more.
After trailing all game long, the Aces outscored Seattle 26-19 in the 4th quarter to send the game in OT where they were able to out-duel the Storm for a 95-92 victory. Chelsea Gray hit the game-winner in the final seconds of the game on Sunday. Five players scored in double figures with A’ja Wilson leading the team with a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds. Chelsea Gray had 21 points and a game-high seven assists. Both Riquna Williams and Jackie Young added 12 points each. Kelsey Plum continues her hot play scoring another 15 points off the bench. Plum is quickly putting together a claim to be considered for 6th woman of the year.
By beating Seattle, Las Vegas is now just 1/2 a game behind the Storm for first place in the WNBA standings. With all of the Seattle games out of the way, the Aces have put themselves in an excellent position to earn a double-bye as one of the top two seeds in the WNBA. In fact, they are the current favorites to win the whole thing. And in my latest game recap, I talked a lot about that. The time is now if they’re ever going to get it done!
Los Angeles Sparks
Weekly Record: 1-1
Overall Record: 6-8
The Los Angeles Sparks are hanging in there, but currently see themselves out of the playoff hunt with their 6-8 record. They have the 10th best record (or third-worst) in the WNBA right now. But to Coach Derek Fisher’s credit, they’ve lost a lot of talented players in Nneka and Chiney Ogwumike. They also lost first-round pick Jasmine Walker to a torn ACL. Despite all the injuries, Los Angeles is hovering around .500 and only needs to win a couple more games to be right back in playoff contention.
On Thursday, they were able to defeat the Washington Mystics 89-82 behind Te’a Cooper’s career-high 26 points. In fact, LA’s bench played fantastic in this game as Brittney Sykes scored 14 points and Karlie Samuelson (Katie Lou’s sister) added 13 more points off the bench. The three bench players scored 53 of the team’s 89 points! Amanda Zahui B. was the only starter to score in double figures with 17 points and a team-high five rebounds.
The Sparks then lost on Sunday to the Phoenix Mercury 88-79. They battled hard but weren’t able to overcome the return of Diana Taurasi. Erica Wheeler led the team with 21 points while Te’a Cooper had another 20-point game. Amanda Zahui b. gave them 10 points and Sykes provided 11 more off the bench.
If Los Angeles is not able to get back into playoff contention this season, the biggest winner will be the Dallas Wings. Who acquired the Sparks’ first-round pick in 2022. After selecting the #1 overall and #2 overall picks in the 2021 draft (and the #2 overall in 2020), they will likely be drafting again in the Top 4 in 2022 unless LA can really outplay expectations in the 2nd half of this season.
Minnesota Lynx
Weekly Record: 2-0
Overall Record: 7-7
The Minnesota Lynx had an excellent week as they went 2-0 and climbed back to .500 on the season at 7-7. They’re currently holding onto the 8th and final playoff spot but will look to improve that during the 2nd half of the season now that they have their full roster.
Minnesota won both of their games this past week by a combined 3 points. But a win is a win is a win! They rallied from down 18-points to beat the Atlanta Dream 87-85. Sylvia Fowles led the way with 26 points, 19 rebounds, and five blocked shots. Damiris Dantas added 23 points and Napheesa Collier contributed with 12 points. Layshia Clarendon also added eight points and a game-high nine assists.
The Lynx then beat the Aces 90-89 in OT on Friday. Sylvia Fowles dominated again with 30 points, 14 rebounds, four assists, and four blocked shots. Napheesa Collier gave the team a near-triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists. And Layshia Clarendon added 20 points and seven assists. Including several clutch shots down the stretch in the 4th quarter and OT periods.
Sylvia Fowles was also named the Western Conference Player of the Week. Big Syl put up some incredible numbers averaging 28.0 PPG, 16.5 RPG, and 4.5 BPG.
After finishing with the 4th best record in the WNBA last season and reaching the semi-finals, Minnesota has some more ground to climb before they can get back to contender status this season. But they still have 18 games left and they’re starting to click and get better as the season goes on. Clarendon has been a gigantic addition to the team after being cut by the New York Liberty at the beginning of the year.
Their season will likely come down to how well they perform against Las Vegas and the Connecticut Sun during those remaining games.
New York Liberty
Weekly Record: 1-2
Overall Record: 8-8
For a second consecutive week, the New York Liberty went 1-2 as their record goes to .500 at 8-8. They’ve officially played half their season and overall they’ve definitely been a pleasant surprise. The Liberty have already won six more games than they did in all of 2020 and they still have 16 games to go. As of this writing, New York is the 5th seed and just 1/2 a game behind the Chicago Sky for the 4th seed which gets a bye past the first round of the playoffs.
New York lost to Chicago twice this week by a sizable amount. First losing 92-72 on Tuesday. In that game, the team was led by Betnijah Laney who had 18 points, five assists, and five rebounds. Sami Whitcomb added 10 points and six rebounds. Jazmine Jones contributed with 11 points and five rebounds off the bench.
On Thursday, the Liberty fell to the Sky again, this time 91-68. Rookie Michaela Onyenwere led New York with 16 points and six rebounds. Betnijah Laney added 14 points and five rebounds and Sami Whitcomb tossed in 14 more in defeat.
Then on Saturday, the Liberty got back in the winner’s circle as Sami Whitcomb set a new career-high with 30 points. Whitcomb has really shined in her new starting role for New York. Whitcomb also had six rebounds and five assists. Laney added 28 points and six assists. Onyenwere added 18 more points as she continues to push her Rookie of the Year campaign into full gear. Sabrina Ionescu returned to the starting lineup and had 10 points, eight assists, and six rebounds.
While the Liberty’s 5-1 start to the season may have been a little bit of Fool’s Gold, the team does appear to have a real legit shot at reaching the playoffs this season. Which is a huge accomplishment and a step up from where they were last season in the bubble (finishing 2-20 on the season).
Maybe more impressively, is that they’ve been able to play at a .500 level despite the fact that Sabrina Ionescu has been injured and missed time. That Natasha Howard has been injured and has only played in two games for the team all season long. They’re getting strong contributions from players like Betnijah Laney, Sami Whitcomb, Michael Onyenwere, and Rebecca Allen.
I don’t think anyone expected the Liberty to be championship contenders this season. But what they have accomplished has been really impressive.
Phoenix Mercury
Weekly Record: 1-0
Overall Record: 7-7
Phoenix played just one game this past week on Sunday defeating the LA Sparks 88-79. It was the return of Diana Taurasi who came back in a big win leading the team in scoring with 25 points. She also eclipsed the 9,000 points mark. She is the first player to ever do so and she extenders her lead as the WNBA’s All-Time leading scorer.
The Mercury’s Big 3 all played well with Brittney Griner scoring 22 points and pulling down eight rebounds. Skylar Diggins-Smith scored 16 points and had a team-high four assists.
Kia Nurse added 13 points and six rebounds, while Brianna Turner contributed with eight points, 15 rebounds, and two steals.
After winning two straight games over LA, Phoenix is back to .500 at 7-7 and currently holds the 7th seed in the league standings. With Taurasi back healthy, can they make a run at the 4th seed to secure a first-round playoff bye? It’s possible, but they will have plenty of competition and there are still depth concerns. Phoenix only got four points from their bench in Sunday’s contest. A consistent theme throughout most of this season.
Seattle Storm
Weekly Record: 0-2
Overall Record: 12-4
Seattle had their worst week of the WNBA season losing both of their games. It was the first time all season the team had lost consecutive games. Despite that fact, they still remain 1/2 game above the Las Vegas Aces and (for the time being) hold onto the number one overall seed.
On Tuesday, they lost 87-83 at home to the Washington Mystics. Tina Charles completely dominated them and they didn’t have an answer. Seattle was never able to slow down the Mystics in this game. Jewell Loyd led the way with 23 points and a game-high nine assists. Breanna Stewart added 17 points and eight rebounds. Mercedes Russell added 10 points and six rebounds and Candice Dupree had one of her better games off the bench with 10 points in 16 minutes.
Seattle had several days of rest and had a great opportunity to put some distance between themselves and the rest of the league if they were able to knock off the Las Vegas Aces on the road on Sunday. For about 35-37 minutes of the game, it looked like they were going to do exactly that. Seattle led almost wire-to-wire but faltered late in the game as they couldn’t stop Chelsea Gray, Kelsey Plum, and the rest of the Aces squad in the 4th quarter. The Aces outscored Seattle 26-19 in the 4th to force OT and 11-8 in the extra period. The Storm lost the game in OT 95-92.
Breanna Stewart led all players with 35 points and 11 rebounds as she continues to put up MVP-type numbers. Unfortunately, several other key players didn’t do enough. One player that did was Mercedes Russell who had an impressive double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Her defense also limited Liz Cambage to just nine points. Jewell Loyd was the only other player to score in double figures but had just 11 points (well below her season average of nearly 19 PPG). Jordin Canada gave them a nice lift off the bench with eight points but only played 14 minutes. Canada needs to play more as I talk about in my full recap.
At 12-4, the Storm are exactly halfway through their regular season. Projecting that out would have them finishing the year 24-8. That record would likely be good enough for a top-two seed and a double-bye advancing them directly to the semi-finals of the playoffs. Seattle’s biggest competition at this time is the Las Vegas Aces (11-4) and the Connecticut Sun (10-5). Seattle swept Connecticut 2-0 but lost the season-series to Vegas 1-2. They’ll need Vegas to lose some more games and keep pace with Connecticut if they want to end the season with the #1 overall seed.
Considering the team lost Natasha Howard, Alysha Clark, and Sami Whitcomb the team has probably played above expectations. That’s mostly thanks to Breanna Stewart and Jewell Loyd who have both taken their games to the next level this season. Both players are averaging career-highs in multiple statistical categories. A lot of people predicted they’d be below the Top 3 this season.
Washington Mystics
Weekly Record: 1-2
Overall Record: 7-8
After an impressive win over the Seattle Storm 87-83, where Tina Charles exploded for 34 points and 16 rebounds and the team knocked down a season-high 16 three-pointers, the team dropped their final two games of the week.
But in the win, not only did Charles play well but Leilani Mitchell scored 19 points and knocked down five triples. Mitchell also had a team-high seven assists. Theresa Plaisance had a near double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds while Ariel Atkins scored 10 points and added six assists.
On Thursday, they dropped a game to the Los Angeles Sparks 89-82. Mitchell once again exploded with 26 points including six made baskets from beyond the arc. Charles had a double-double with 25 points and 10 rebounds. Ariel Atkins had a solid all-around game with 12 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. Plaisance added 11 points and eight rebounds in the losing effort.
Then Saturday the Mystics lost to the Dallas Wings 85-74. Charles, Mitchell, and Atkins led the team again but it wasn’t enough. Charles had 27 points and 10 rebounds. Leilani scored 14 points and dished out a team-high seven assists. Atkins contributed with 11 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
The Mystics currently sit as the first team out of the playoffs as the 9th seed. They have dealt with injuries and missing players all season long. If they can get some of them back, there’s a very good chance they’ll be able to move into playoff contention. However, they likely won’t be challenging for the title unless they get both Elena Delle Donne and Emma Meesseman back in the fold after the Olympic break.
Meesseman remains unsigned as she focuses on training for the Olympics with the Belgian national team. And Delle Donne remains out after having back surgery during the offseason.
Other WNBA News
Several players were waived/cut from WNBA teams over the past couple of days as Monday was the final day to make cuts before guaranteeing roster spots throughout the remainder of the season.
The following players were waived or released within the past few days:
Lauren Cox (Indiana), Emma Cannon (Connecticut), Stella Johnson (Washington), Kiara Leslie (Washington), Megan Gustafson (Washington), Kiana Williams (Seattle), Rachel Banham (Minnesota), Joyner Holmes (Las Vegas), Bria Holmes (Los Angeles), Kristine Anigwe (Los Angeles).
Coach Mike Thibault from the Washington Mystics did a good job of explaining the situation for both the league and his team. You can see that video here.
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