As the saying goes, you only get one chance to make a first impression.
With just a handful of days gone by in the 2018 WNBA regular season, those first
impressions are forming around the league. To be clear, a first impression is
far different than a final conclusion, but there are some early things worth
noting as the schedule gets into full swing.
The Phoenix Mercury have reloaded and are ready to challenge the Sparks and the
Lynx. The Mercury’s 2-0 start includes two wins over teams that are expected to
be much improved in Dallas and Seattle, two teams that have two of the best post
players in the league on their rosters in Liz Cambage and Breanna Stewart,
respectively. Diana Taurasi is rested and motivated. DeWanna Bonner is back on
the floor and as versatile as ever. Brittney Griner looks typically dominant and
Briann January is the floor leader that Phoenix has been looking for. The
Mercury have come to play. The last two seasons that Phoenix started the season
2-0 – 2009 and 2014 – they went on to win titles. Don’t say you weren’t warned.
Dallas is going to need to rely on Liz Cambage early and often. A hamstring
injury to Glory Johnson will keep the forward out for at least a month. Theresa
Plaisance isn’t ready to play yet as she preps a return from her ACL injury, and
the Wings are going to need Cambage to hold things down in the middle. After
five years away from the WNBA, Cambage put up 21 points and nine rebounds
against the Atlanta Dream on Sunday. She also blocked four shots. Dallas will
need more of that.
The Sparks don’t need to be a full-strength to be one of the best teams in the
league. Candace Parker stayed in Los Angeles with a minor back injury as the
Sparks made the opening-game trip to Minnesota to face their rival Lynx. And Los
Angeles won anyway. The Sparks followed up that game with a win vs Indiana on
Tuesday. Los Angeles is hungry, experienced and following coach Brian Agler’s
“no excuses” mantra. Parker will only make them more formidable.
Elena Delle Donne wants into the MVP race. The Mystics’ star was settling in a
year ago to her new home in Washington and Mike Thibault’s position-less
basketball game plan. She was hardly slacking, but averaged less than 20 points
a game for the season for the first time in three years. She is off to a strong
start 2018, doling out seven assists to go with 13 points in the season opening
win over Indiana and then followed up Tuesday with a 23-point, 11-rebound effort
in the second game against Las Vegas.
Change is going to be good for the Chicago Sky. After three games, including
their first two at Wintrust Arena in downtown Chicago, the remade Sky have
jumped out to a 2-1 record. In the absence of point guard Courtney Vandersloot,
veteran guard Allie Quigley has picked up the slack and is among the early
league leaders in scoring. With rookies Diamond DeShields and Gabby Williams
playing well early, the team who was picked 10th in the preseason WNBA.com Power
Rankings, looks energized.
Diamond DeShields is pro ready after her time in Turkey. Speaking of DeShields,
who let go of her final year of college eligibility to begin her professional
career this past winter in Turkey, it might have been the right move. DeShields
already looks pro ready, with 18 points in her WNBA debut against Indiana.
DeShields could be a darkhorse candidate for Rookie of the Year.
Minnesota is going to be mad for a while. They got their championship rings.
They sold out the arena. The fans celebrated the huge Nike billboard of Maya
Moore on the way into the newly remodeled Target Center. And then they lost on a
buzzer-beater to their heated rival, the Los Angeles Sparks. That’s going to
sting for a while. And there is a decent chance that the Lynx will be taking out
that frustration on their upcoming opponents. While they wait for their next
shot at L.A. on Sunday, June 3.
The Atlanta Dream chemistry is going to take some time to develop. Angel
McCoughtry is back and new head coach Nicki Collen wants her team to be a
defensive power in the league, but both of those things are going to take time
to settle in, if the Dream’s first game is an indication. A 101-78 loss to
Dallas shows that the defense still needs work and McCoughtry, who scored 13
points in the opener, needs more minutes with her new teammates to pull it
together. Wednesday’s 81-63 victory over the Sky is a definite sign of
improvement.
The Las Vegas Aces need to score more. The Aces are averaging less than 70
points a game so far. But when you are missing all three of your starting
guards, that tends to put a drag on your offense. Kayla McBride and Kelsey Plum
are on the way back after finishing their seasons in Turkey. That should provide
Las Vegas a boost.
The Connecticut Sun are going to score. Can the opponents keep up? Every single
Sun player scored in their season-opening win over Las Vegas. The Sun shared the
ball, racking up 27 assists on 37 field-goals. They hit 11 3-pointers.
Connecticut has as many scoring options as any team in the WNBA, especially with
the addition of Chiney Ogwumike back into the lineup. The challenge for the rest
of the league will be to keep pace.
Seattle’s point guard of the future has already arrived. Jordin Canada was
drafted to be the heir to Sue Bird at point guard. And while Bird isn’t going
anywhere yet, Canada, the UCLA product, scored nine points in 20 minutes in the
opener against Phoenix and collected four steals. She was on the floor during
crunch time of a close game against one of the WNBA’s most experienced teams.
All of that bodes well for a bright future.
Longtime WNBA reporter Michelle Smith writes a weekly column on WNBA.com
throughout the season. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the
views of the WNBA or its clubs.
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