One thing the Sparks have struggled with during head coach Lynne Roberts’ tenure is defense. Last year, they had a defensive rating of 108.5, which was the fourth-worst in the WNBA.
So, the Sparks aimed to improve their defense this offseason. They traded for Ariel Atkins and, with Cameron Brink healthy, they were expected to improve on that end of the floor. However, entering this week, they had a defensive rating of 112.8 across their first nine games, making LA the second-worst defensive team in the league.
The effort and execution defensively was so poor that before the Sparks played the Fire, Roberts said there wasn’t a whole lot she liked from her team’s defensive play.
Well, at least for this week, the Sparks have took a step forward. They beat the Fire, holding them to a season-low 72 points, won two of their three games, and finished the week with a defensive rating of 105.7, which ranked seventh among the 15 teams.
This is exactly the kind of progress the Sparks need to make as a team, and if they can build on it, they can still turn this into a winning season. But those are goals that will slowly develop over the course of the year. For now, it’s time to delve into how the players played over the last three matchups.
So, let’s grade this week’s performances. As always, grades are based on expectations for each player. A “B” grade represents the average performance for that player.
Kelsey Plum
33.5 minutes, 20.7 points, 3 rebounds, 8 assists, 2.3 steals, 3 turnovers, 2.7 fouls, 21-43 FG, 4-18 3PT, 16-21 FT, +13
Plum returned this week and was far and away the best player for the Sparks. When she’s on the floor, LA’s offense is immensely better. She had a team-high 27 points against the Wings and had 19 points and 11 assists in a win over the Storm.
Plum is playing at an All-WNBA level, and thanks to her efforts, the Sparks are a .500 team.
Grade: A
Nneka Ogwumike
33.4 minutes, 19.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.3 steals, 0.7 turnovers, 1.0 fouls, 23-40 FG, 4-13 3PT, 7-7 FT, +9
Ogwumike has picked up her production as of late. She’s back to being a walking double-double and is looking like an All-Star again. If she keeps this up, then her return to the franchise will be a fun second act.
Grade: B+
Dearica Hamby
29.5 minutes, 14.3 points, 9.0 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 0.7 steals, 0.3 blocks, 2.3 fouls, 17-30 FG, 0-2 3PT, 9-14 FT, +15
Hamby has been fairly inconsistent this season, and this week was no exception. Yes, she had a strong showing against the Fire, scoring 22 points, but against the Storm, she was a no-show, scoring just six.
Defensively, she looks incapable of keeping up with the speed on the perimeter and too weak to handle the force in the paint. That’s not an ideal combination.
Grade: C-
Erica Wheeler
28.6 minutes, 7.7 points, 1.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 0.7 steals, 2.0 turnovers, 2.3 fouls, 7-24 FG, 5-17 3PT, 4-4 FT, +19
Wheeler is playing way too much, given her offensive limitations. It’s understandable given the players behind her in the rotation, but this is just too much to ask of her.
She works best as a backup guard who can play solid defense, not as a near 30-minute-per-game player who has to score.
Grade: B
Rae Burrell
23.6 minutes, 5.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.0 steals, 1.0 blocks, 2.0 turnovers, 0.3 fouls, 6-20 FG, 3-12 3PT, 2-4 FT, +6
Burrell, like Wheeler, had offensive problems this week. The difference is that when Wheeler misses, it’s usually a good look that didn’t go in, but when Burrell misses, you wonder why that attempt was even tried.
That’s part of Burrell’s style to drive into the paint, contort her body, and chuck up a shot, but it was more bad than good over the last three games.
Grade: C
Ariel Atkins
23.5 minutes, 9.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.0 steals, 1.7 turnovers, 3.3 fouls, 11-29 FG, 5-14 3PT, 2-2 FT, +11
Atkins is on the other end of the spectrum compared to Wheeler and Burrell. Her offense is suspect, but her defense is phenomenal.
Atkins’ ball pressure, help defense and overall IQ have her in the conversation for All-Defense honors.
If she can knock down her open looks a bit more, then she’ll have a very strong season for the Sparks this year.
Grade: B+
Cameron Brink
14.3 minutes, 9.0 points, 3.7 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 0.3 steals, 1.3 blocks, 2.0 turnovers, 4.3 fouls, 8-17 FG, 3-8 3PT, 8-9 FT, +7
Brink is known as a great defensive player, but her offense is catching up now. She is a much more willing 3-point shooter and is shooting 52% from the field. If she keeps this up, she might force herself into the starting lineup very soon.
Grade: B+
Chance Gray, Kate Martin, Jihyun
Park
This trio played for too few minutes to warrant a grade, but Martin is a name to watch. She is on a developmental contract and has already played in seven games for the Sparks.
She can only play in 12 matchups as a developmental player, so we’ll see if LA tries to save those last five games for the rest of the year or gives her a promotion to a standard deal so she can play in any contest they want the rest of the way.
Lynne Roberts
Roberts’ rotations have been solid, and she’s found a way to express her frustrations with her team without it ever feeling like it was a big callout.
Down the stretch in a tight game against the Storm, she won a challenge late that helped seal the win, and did a good job using her timeouts during clutch time.
She has her team playing their best basketball of the year, and if they can have another successful week, they’ll be a top-six team in the WNBA.
Grade B
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.
