It’s a three-game Saturday in the WNBA.
Things get started with the Chicago Sky hosting the Minnesota Lynx at 1 p.m. ET on CBS. At 6 p.m. ET, turn to WNBA League Pass to catch the first matchup between the W’s newest teams, as the Portland Fire visit the Toronto Tempo. Then, the action concludes with the Las Vegas Aces and Los Angeles Sparks at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.
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Here’s what to watch for in each game. In the comments, be sure to share what you’ll be watching.
Minnesota Lynx vs. Chicago Sky (1 p.m. ET, CBS)
In their second game without Rickea Jackson, the Sky will aim to return to win column and restore the positive momentum with which they began the season. Eric Nemchock identified five things the Sky can do to survive their injury-ravaged state.
I think his fourth point—“Play Natasha Cloud at forward”—is most intriguing. Taking advantage of versatile players to conjure up funky lineups might be Chicago’s best path to wins. Can they, even as they are depleted, make opponents adjust to them, rather than finding themselves trying to chase opponents?
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As Eric emphasized, Cloud can unlock some alternative defensive looks for Chicago because of her ability to guard bigger players. Offensively, Cloud, a shaky outside shooter for a guard, becomes a higher-value outside shooter as a forward, which could create a more open floor for Skylar Diggins to run pick-and-roll actions with Kamilla Cardoso, or for Gabriela Jaquez and Jacy Sheldon to cut to the basket.
However, the Sky likely are thrilled that Eric’s fifth suggestion—“Wait for reinforcements”—might come to fruition on Saturday, as Azurá Stevens is expected to make her re-debut for Sky.
Of course, if any opponent will be prepared for whatever the Sky and head coach Tyler Marsh might try, it will be Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve, especially after Chicago secured the 86-79 on Minnesota’s home court less than one week ago.
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The Lynx themselves are quite depleted, losing promising rookie Emma Čechová to her own ACL injury as Napheesa Collier and Dorka Juhász remain sidelined. Ola Kosu also will be out on Saturday, as she is in concussion protocol after breaking her nose during Wednesday’s win over the Toronto Tempo.
That victory is illustrative of how Minnesota is making it work with all their absences, as five Lynx scored in double figures, led by Maya Caldwell’s 16 bench points.
With the boost provided by Azurá, do you expect Chicago to return to their winning ways? Or, will someone else on the Lynx—from the revitalized Natasha Howard to the underrated Nia Coffey to rookie sensation Olivia Miles—step up and lead Minnesota to a second-straight win?
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Portland Fire vs. Toronto Tempo (6 p.m. ET, WNBA League Pass)
The Tempo return home after falling flat in the final game of their four-game road trip, losing in blowout fashion to the aforementioned Lynx.
Before that game, I had highlighted the MVP-level impact of Brittney Sykes. Unfortunately for Toronto, Thursday’s loss shows why Sykes is not a true MVP contender. Her offensive production relies on converting tough buckets and getting to the foul line. When the shots don’t fall and the whistle doesn’t blow, she struggles to contribute positive offense, as seen in the six points she scored on 2-for-7 shooting and just one free throw on Thursday.
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The same applies to her million-dollar backcourt mate Marina Mabrey. A high-volume shooter, Mabrey also can look like an MVP when the shots are falling, proven by her record-breaking Philly is Unrivaled performance. But when she goes 0-for-8 from 3? Those nights are almost destined to doom the Toronto offense.
The Tempo are banking on two inconsistent offensive options to be the best versions of themselves more often than the worst versions of themselves. Are both due for a big bounce back on Saturday?
Look for the Fire to make it difficult for them.
As Josh Felton analyzed, Portland has implemented one of the most aggressive fullcourt pressing schemes in the league—and it’s working. While the Tempo feature lots of ball handlers, with Kiki Rice and María Conde joining Sykes and Mabrey in Toronto’s most-recent starting group, the Fire will test their resiliency.
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Can Portland cause the kind of duress that makes Toronto’s offensive operators, particularly the tempestuous Mabrey, to lose their cool and commit costly mistakes? And if so, can the Fire then cash in on the chaos they create? Yes, head coach Alex Sarama is introducing inventive schemes, but does Portland have the personnel to translate tactics into victories?
What’s your prediction for this all-expansion affair? Which team, at least temporarily, will be able claim to be the WNBA’s best newcomer?
Los Angeles Sparks vs. Las Vegas Aces (8 p.m. ET, CBS)
Both Josh and Edwin Garcia have highlighted how the Aces are just as good—and maybe even better—than ever, thanks not only to the standard-setting excellence of A’ja Wilson but also to the introduction of Chennedy Carter, who Josh perfectly described as “an absolute shot of adrenaline.”
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The Sparks already experienced Carter’s impact, as she led the Aces with 22 points in their win in LA on May 10. Wilson had ho-hum game for her in that one, with 19 points on 14 shot attempts, and Vegas still won by almost 30 points.
Does Los Angeles, off to an uninspiring start, have a chance of keeping up with the Aces?
The Sparks, at least, are coming off their best game of the young season, when a double-double from a determined Dearica Hamby delivered the road win over the Phoenix Mercury. Hamby finished with with 27 points and 15 boards.
Look for A’ja to be primed to prevent her former teammate from producing at that level, instead adding to her 19 blocks. (Dearica, as she declared in the Instagram comments, will not be deterred by the threat of additional A’ja rejections.)
Both Hamby and Kelsey Plum, unsurprisingly, have struggled against their former team.
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Per Across the Timeline, Plum owns a positive plus/minus against every team expect two, and one of them is the Aces. In her five games against Vegas since departing for LA, the Sparks have been outscored by an average of 17.4 points per game in Plum’s minutes. Hamby’s stats aren’t much better, with Aces besting the Sparks by almost 12 points per game in Hamby’s 13 career games against Vegas.
How surprised would you be if Dearica and KP manage to reverse this trend? Would just keeping it close count as a victory for the Sparks? Or, should an actual win be the standard?
