Around the W - Week 9

A vast summary of what took place in the WNBA during the 9th week.

The WNBA has finally reached the Olympic break as the season is now on hiatus for the next five weeks as Tokyo hosts the Olympic games. The WNBA All-Star game will take place in Las Vegas on Wednesday, July 14th, and the Commissioner’s Cup between the Seattle Storm and Connecticut Sun will be played on August 12th.

Let’s go over how each WNBA team over this final week of the pre-Olympics schedule.

Atlanta Dream

Weekly Record: 0-2
Overall Record: 6-13

The Dream continue to stumble losing all four of their games in the month of July and seven out of their last eight games. Over this past week, they lost two more games against the Connecticut Sun and Indiana Fever.

Connecticut defeated Atlanta 84-72. Cheyenne Parker finished with 15 points and six assists. Crystal Bradford had 12 points and five rebounds and Aari McDonald added 10 points, four rebounds, and three assists against the Sun.

Then on Sunday, the Indiana Fever beat the Dream 79-68. Odyssey Sims led Atlanta with 20 points on 50% shooting (7-14). Crystal Bradford added 14 points. No other player scored in double figures for the Dream.

Chennedy Carter remains suspended indefinitely from the team but recent conversations sound like she will return before the end of this season.

Atlanta is currently tied with the Los Angeles Sparks for the 2nd worst record in the WNBA (6-13).

Chicago Sky

Weekly Record: 0-1
Overall Record: 10-10

The Chicago Sky have only played one game this past week and only two games total in the month of July before the Olympic break.

They ended up losing that game in overtime to the Washington Mystics by a final score of 89-85. Stefanie Dolson led the Sky with 20 points and added six rebounds. Candace Parker had an impressive stat line with 17 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists. Courtney Vandersloot had an amazing double-double with 13 points and 15 assists! Kahleah Copper added 11 points and Allie Quigley contributed with 16 points off the bench.

The Sky’s season has been filled with ups and downs. They started the season 2-0 and then lost seven games straight with Candace Parker out with an injury. Chicago then turned things around by winning seven straight games. But ended their pre-Olympic schedule losing three of their last four games.

With a record of 10-10, the Sky currently holds the 5th seed in the WNBA. They are definitely on pace to reach the playoffs but likely won’t qualify for the first-round bye unless they go on another 5-7 game winning streak.

Connecticut Sun

Weekly Record: 2-0
Overall Record: 14-6

The Connecticut Sun continue their impressive play by winning two more games before the Olympic break.

Four of Connecticut’s starters scored in double figures as they defeated the Atlanta Dream 84-72. Jonquel Jones continues to put up MVP-type numbers as she scored 24 points and pulled 16 rebounds. DeWanna Bonner added 22 points, five rebounds, and four assists. Brionna Jones continues her All-Star season by scoring 16 points, nine rebounds, and four assists. Briann January added 11 points in the victory.

The Sun dispatched of the New York Liberty 71-54 on Sunday. Jonquel Jones had a near 20-20 game with 17 points and 17 rebounds. She also added five assists. Jasmine Thomas contributed with 12 points. Briann January was the only other player to score in double figures with 10 points.

With a record of 14-6, the Connecticut Sun currently sit with the third-best record in the WNBA. If the season ended today, they would qualify for a first-round bye and play a single-elimination game in the second round. However, the Sun have bigger goals in mind and are currently just 1/2 game behind the Las Vegas Aces that would put them into the two seed and give them the important double-bye and automatic advancement to the Semi-Final Round of the WNBA Playoffs.

Dallas Wings

Weekly Record: 0-3
Overall Record: 9-12

The Dallas Wings have had an up and down season but ended the pre-Olympic schedule struggling. They lost all three games they played this past week. First, they lost to the New York Liberty on Monday, July 5th. The Liberty defeated the Wings 99-96 in an excellent game.

Four of the Wings starters scored in double figures and two more players off the bench did as well. Isabelle Harrison led the team off the bench scoring 23 points and seven rebounds. Marina Mabrey also contributed off the bench with 15 points, seven rebounds, and five assists. Satou Sabally (16 points), Arike Ogunbowale (12 pts), Kayla Thorton (11 pts), and Allisha Gray (10 pts) were the four starters to score double figures.

The Wings then lost another close game on Wednesday, this time to the Minnesota Lynx by a final score of 85-79. Four players scored in double figures but no Dallas player had more than 13 points. Allisha Gray had 13 points, and Isabelle Harrison added 12 points off the bench. Satou Sabally scored 12 points, had a team-high seven assists and six rebounds. Ogunbowale added 11 more.

Dallas was then crushed on Sunday morning by the Las Vegas Aces 95-79. Six Wings’ players scored in double figures but topped out at 14 points. Moriah Jefferson and Allisha Gray each scored 14 points. Charli Collier had one of the best games of her rookie season scoring 13 points and pulling down eight rebounds. Thorton added 10 points and Ogunbowale also had 10 but had a very poor shooting day (4-19 FG). Bella Alarie gave them a nice lift off the bench with 11 points and six rebounds.

With their losing streak, the Dallas Wings have fallen out of the playoff seeding and end the pre-Olympic schedule in 9th place in the WNBA standings. That is exactly where they finished last season which isn’t ideal. This team has had a ton of draft picks in recent years and most of them coming in the Top 5. They are a very young team but they need to start showing more progress and have enough talent where they should make the playoffs this season. Their offense is extremely talented but they will need to improve their defense if they want to experience the postseason.

Indiana Fever

Weekly Record: 2-0
Overall Record: 4-16

One of the hottest teams in the WNBA is none other than the Indiana Fever! Yes, you read that right. The Fever have won three games in a row including two more this past week. They got a big win over the New York Liberty this past Friday, 82-69. Kelsey Mitchell led the way with 20 points and tied with Danielle Robinson for a team-high five assists.

Speaking of Robinson, she was the next leading scorer with 18 points against New York. Teaira McCowan had a strong performance off the bench with 15 points and nine rebounds. Both Tiffany Mitchell and Jantel Lavender added 10 points apiece.

Indiana then defeated the Atlanta Dream 79-68 with a huge game from McCowan. McCowan got the start this game and it paid off as she scored 21 points and had 14 rebounds. That was a game-high between both teams for both points and rebounds. The Fever have not had the greatest success in the draft in recent years despite having multiple Top 5 picks, but McCowan has definitely been a very good addition, especially when she actually gets more playing time.

All five Fever starters scored in double figures. Tiffany Mitchell had 14 points and eight rebounds. Danielle Robinson added 12 points and a team-high nine assists. Kelsey Mitchell added 11 points and Jessica Breland contributed with 10 points and seven rebounds in the victory.

With the worst record in the WNBA (4-16) and just 12 games remaining in their season, it’s unlikely that the Fever will be able to make a run at the playoffs this season. But if they can continue to win, it’ll at least show strong progress towards the future and potentially allow Coach Marianne Stanley to keep her job for another season.

Las Vegas Aces

Weekly Record: 1-2
Overall Record: 15-6

The Las Vegas Aces struggled a little bit in their final week before the Olympics losing two games in a row for the first time this season. They were at least able to end on a winning note when they defeated the Dallas Wings.

On Wednesday, the Aces had an epic clash with the Phoenix Mercury that went into overtime. But the Mercury got hot in the extra period and Las Vegas lost 99-90 in OT. A’ja Wilson had another impressive performance with 25 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists. Chelsea Gray added 19 points, six assists, and five rebounds. Liz Cambage provided 16 points and eight rebounds. And Jackie Young had 12 points and five assists. Kelsey Plum added 10 more off the bench.

Without Liz Cambage who had to leave the team to train for the Olympics with Team Australia, the Aces struggled against the Minnesota Lynx losing 77-67. A’ja Wilson was the only starter to score in double figures with 13 points and six rebounds. Kelsey Plum led Las Vegas with 18 points and Dearica Hamby also added 12 points and nine rebounds off the bench.

Las Vegas bounced back against the Wings with a dominant 95-79 victory. Wilson was oh so close to a Triple-Double with 22 points, 13 rebounds, and eight assists. Jackie Young had a strong performance with 17 points, five assists, and four rebounds. Dearica Hamby had a monster game with 22 points and 12 rebounds. And Kelsey Plum added 16 more points off the bench.

In total, with a record of 15-6, the Aces are in a great place in the WNBA standings. They currently hold the second-best record in the WNBA and if the season ended today they would earn an automatic double-bye to the semi-finals of the playoffs.

Vegas also defeated the Seattle Storm in their season series (2-1). They are currently just one game behind Seattle and if they’re able to finish the regular season with the same record they will leap-frog the Storm in the standings.

Los Angeles Sparks

Weekly Record: 0-2
Overall Record: 6-13

The Los Angeles Sparks are really struggling right now. They ended their pre-Olympic schedule losing their last six games including two this past week. With the Indiana Fever now on a winning streak the Sparks are the team struggling the most in the WNBA right now.

They battled hard in Seattle against the defending champions but ultimately fell 71-62. Erica Wheeler was by far LA’s best player scoring 22 points to lead her team. She was the only member of the Sparks to reach double figures and scored more than 30% of her team’s points.

On Sunday, the Sparks simply weren’t competitive, losing 86-61. Erica Wheeler led the team with 14 points and a team-high six assists. Brittney Sykes also had 14 points and Amanda Zahui B. added 10 more. The Sparks shot under 37% (22-60) in this game.

The Sparks have been without both Nneka and Chiney Ogwumike for several weeks now. They are both going to try to play for the Nigerian National Team in the Olympics. Many people feel Nneka was snubbed from the USA National Team when the final rosters were chosen.

I’m a little surprised the Ogwumikes did not return to action with the Sparks prior to the Olympic break. I’ll be curious to see if they start playing with the Sparks again after the Olympics.

The bigger issue for LA is that they’re currently tied with the Atlanta Dream as the second-worst team in the WNBA. Usually, when your team is having a horrible season you can at least look forward to the WNBA Draft lottery. Just look at the two best teams in the WNBA right now. The Seattle Storm landed back-to-back #1 overall picks in 2015 and 2016 and turned those picks into Jewell Loyd and Breanna Stewart. Since 2016, Seattle has made the playoffs for five straight years and won two WNBA Championships. Seattle also had back-to-back #1 picks in 2001 and 2002 where they drafted Lauren Jackson and Sue Bird which also led to two titles.

But it’s not just the Storm that have found major success in the draft. The Phoenix Mercury used #1 overall picks to select Diana Taurasi and Brittney Griner which has led to the Mercury’s three WNBA titles. Minnesota grabbed Maya Moore which helped the Lynx win four championships in seven years.

Most recently, the Las Vegas Aces franchise had back-to-back-to-back #1 overall picks (2017-2019) drafting Kelsey Plum, A’ja Wilson, and Jackie Young. Since acquiring Wilson, the franchise has turned things around making the playoffs in 2019 and reaching the WNBA Finals in 2020.

The Sparks won’t get that luxury, however. If LA lands the #1 overall pick (or #2 overall) it’ll actually be given to the Dallas Wings. Dallas acquired the Sparks 2022 first-round pick by trading them their 7th overall pick in 2021.

Minnesota Lynx

Weekly Record: 3-0
Overall Record: 12-7

No team is hotter currently than the Minnesota Lynx. Minnesota has won seven games in a row! They are also 12-3 since beginning the season 0-4. For the vast majority of the 2021 WNBA season, there have been three teams that have been head and shoulders above the rest (Seattle, Las Vegas, and Connecticut). But the Lynx are quickly rising up the ranks. They sit as the fourth seed in the WNBA and hold that spot pretty comfortably right now. If the season were to end today, they would qualify for a first-round bye and only have to play one single-elimination playoff game.

The Lynx won three games over this past week prior to the Olympic break. They defeated the Dallas Wings 85-79. Six players on Minnesota scored in double figures including all five starters. Kayla McBride led the team in scoring with 25 points, five assists, and five rebounds. Sylvia Fowles had a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Damiris Dantas, Napheesa Collier, Layshia Clarendon, and Bridget Carleton all scored 10 points in this game.

Minnesota then defeated the Liz Cambage-less Aces 77-67 on Friday. Clarendon led the team with 18 points, five rebounds, and a game-high nine assists. Fowles and Dantas both had exactly 14 points and nine rebounds. McBride added ten more points.

Lastly, the Lynx crushed the LA Sparks 86-61. Napheesa Collier had a game-high 27 points and seven rebounds. Clarendon added 14 points and a game-high eight assists. Fowles and Carleton both added 10 points in the victory.

New York Liberty

Weekly Record: 1-2
Overall Record: 10-11

The New York Liberty are almost like the opposite of the Minnesota Lynx. They started the 2021 season with a very impressive record of 5-1. But since then, over their last 15 games, they are just 5-10. They have now fallen all the way down to the sixth seed in the league standings. The Liberty are probably good enough overall to make the playoffs which is a huge accomplishment in itself considering they only won two games total in 2020. But are they ready to compete for a championship this season? I don’t think they’re quite there yet.

In the final week prior to the Olympic break, the Liberty went 1-2, winning their first game on Monday and then dropping two straight.

New York defeated the Dallas Wings 99-96 on Monday, July 5th. Five Liberty players scored in double figures. Sami Whitcomb led the team with 26 points including 6-11 from the three-point range. Whitcomb also had seven rebounds and four assists. Betnijah Laney was the next leading scorer with 18 points. She also had seven assists. Sabrina Ionescu had a double-double with 13 points and 12 assists. Jazmine Jones contributed 16 points and Reshanda Gray added 11 points and six rebounds, both off the bench.

Indiana then defeated New York 82-69. Laney led the way with 23 points, eight rebounds, and four assists. Kylee Shook had 13 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Whitcomb and Gray both added 10 points and five rebounds.

Then on Sunday, the Liberty were handed another loss by the Connecticut Sun 71-54. Laney, Whitcomb, and Ionescu combined for just eight points total. Shook actually led the team with 16 points. Michaela Onyenwere had 12 points as she continues her Rookie of the Year campaign. Jaz Jones added 10 points off the bench.

Phoenix Mercury

Weekly Record: 2-1
Overall Record: 9-10

The Phoenix Mercury had one of their best weeks leading into the Olympic break. They defeated the two best teams the Las Vegas Aces and Seattle Storm. And they also nearly beat the Storm a second time.

They beat the Aces 99-90 in Las Vegas in a game that went to OT. Brittney Griner and Skylar Diggins-Smith combined for 60 points in the victory. Griner had 33 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. Diggins-Smith added 27 points and a game-high eight assists. Sophie Cunningham filled in for Diana Taurasi and had one of her best games of the season scoring 13 points and added seven rebounds. Brianna Turner played good defense, scored six points, and pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds.

Phoenix followed that up by defeating the Seattle Storm in an impressive 85-77 victory. Seattle was without Stephanie Talbot and Ezi Magbegor and the Mercury took advantage. Once again, Griner and Diggins-Smith were dominant, combining to score 55 points. Griner had a game-high 29 points and 15 rebounds. Diggins-Smith had 26 points and a game-high six assists. No other player on Phoenix scored in double figures but three scored eight points apiece including Kia Nurse, Megan Walker, and Shey Peddy.

On Sunday, the Mercury lost in the rematch against the Storm in Seattle 82-75. Kia Nurse exploded for 28 points including knocking down 7-14 FG from beyond the arc. Diggins-Smith scored 17 points and Griner finished with 16 points and nine rebounds. In this game, their bench only scored two points which really hurt the Mercury.

With a record of 9-10, Phoenix currently holds the 7th seed. The Mercury definitely have enough talent to make the playoffs but it’ll be difficult for them to move into a Top 4 seed in order to qualify for a first-round bye.

Seattle Storm

Weekly Record: 2-1
Overall Record: 16-5

The Seattle Storm finished their pre-Olympic schedule with the best record in the WNBA. An impressive accomplishment considering they lost a ton of talent in the offseason including Natasha Howard, Alysha Clark, and Sami Whitcomb.

Over the past week, Seattle went 2-1 defeating the Los Angeles Sparks, losing in Phoenix, and then defeating the Mercury in Seattle.

Breanna Stewart took over late in the game scoring 12 of the final 14 points for Seattle in the 4th quarter of their 71-62 victory over Los Angeles. Stewart finished with a game-high 27 points and 11 rebounds. Jewell Loyd added 18 points and six rebounds.

As mentioned above, the Storm fell in Phoenix losing 85-77 to the Mercury. All five of Seattle’s starters scored in double figures but none of them had more than 16 points. Whereas Phoenix had two players that nearly scored 30 points each. Jewell Loyd led Seattle with 16 points. Breanna Stewart added 15 points and 12 rebounds. Katie Lou Samuelson scored a career-high 14 points. Mercedes Russell added 12 points and six rebounds. And Sue Bird had 10 points and five assists.

Seattle was able to even the series against Phoenix 1-1 on Sunday by picking up an 82-75 victory. Once again, the Storm had a very balanced attack with Epiphanny Prince leading the team in scoring 15 points off the bench. Seattle’s reserves outscored Phoenix’s 26-2. Katie Lou Samuelson tied her career-high with 14 points. Breanna Stewart and Sue Bird each added 13 points. And Mercedes Russell had a near double-double with eight points and 10 rebounds. She also did a much better job defensively on Griner limiting Brittney to under 20 points in this game.

Seattle has 11 games remaining after the Olympic break with the first five all being on the road. The goal for the Storm is to maintain a top-two seed so that they can earn the double-bye and an automatic bid to the semi-finals playoff round.

Washington Mystics

Weekly Record: 1-0
Overall Record: 8-10

The Washington Mystics only played one game over this past week before the break and it was a great one. They defeated the Chicago Sky 89-85 in OT. Tina Charles continued her MVP campaign scoring 34 points and pulling down 17 rebounds. Ariel Atkins scored 14 points and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough added 12 more. Walker-Kimbrough was traded to Phoenix last year and then cut earlier this season. She was recently re-signed by the Mystics, the team that originally drafted her. Natasha Cloud also returned from injury putting up strong numbers with seven points, five rebounds, and a team-high 11 assists.

Overall, the Mystics have had a disappointing season due to injuries to Elena Delle Donne and Alysha Clark. They currently hold the 8th and final playoff spot which is exactly where they finished last season in the Wubble. Clark is definitely out for the rest of this year with her Lisfranc injury. But is it possible for Delle Donne to make her return after the Olympics? What about Emma Meesseman? If either of them returns, the Mystics could turn into title contenders. But if they don’t then Washington will likely be battling with a couple of other teams for one of those final playoff spots.

Other WNBA News

Brittney Griner was named the Western Conference Player of the Week. Griner averaged 26 points and 11 rebounds while leading Phoenix to a 2-1 record. Griner is quietly having an MVP quality season.

Jonquel Jones was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week. Jones averaged 20 points and 16 rebounds as the Connecticut Sun went 2-0 this past week.

Those two players, along with Breanna Stewart, Tina Charles, and A’ja Wilson are the top candidates for the MVP award this season.

The WNBA All-Star Game takes place on Wednesday, July 14th at 4:00 PM PT and will air nationally on ESPN.

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