What was supposed to be a heavyweight match between the Minnesota Lynx and the Golden State Valkyries in a battle between the current one and two seeds rapidly became a mess as the Minneapolis crowd was treated to the home team throwing chance after chance at taking a commanding lead away. Without Courtney Williams, the Lynx lacked an additional option to take pressure off of Olivia Miles, and the rest of the roster failed to fill the void.
For Golden State, it was Tiffany Hayes and Veronica Burton who did the most damage, although the larger problem was the disappearing act of the Lynx bench. To compound problems, Minnesota was thoroughly outworked in the paint.
Those are two categories you cannot afford to lose. Add in the 12 turnovers before the end of the third quarter, and it was truly a dreadful showing.
This game was not as much a must-win as it was a potential show of strength for the Lynx, who are so far ahead in the race for the top seed that they would need to lose the rest of their games for the Valks to catch up. Insofar as Super Bowls go, this was not one for Minnesota.
However, the failure to perform in a game of this level is little, if not disappointing. The first half was relatively normal, with the Lynx falling behind by only two, behind Natasha Howard’s seven points and six rebounds.
From there, the game turned into a battle of rebounding, while turnovers completely took over the third quarter. Despite only being down two and preventing a Valkyries lead from ballooning, it was a terrible show of stagnant offense and poor rebounding.
As the Valks opened a 10-point lead throughout the duration of a 10-2 run, they found themselves heading into the last 10 minutes of game time with a seven-point lead, despite a tip-in attempt at the buzzer from Nia Coffey.
This is where some of you might expect a “but.” Something about how the Lynx rallied to push their franchise record against Golden State to a perfect 10-0 all-time. Or maybe it would be something about how the Rookie of the Year lock and MVP candidate superstar came back into the game to take over.
Instead, everything just got worse.
A miserable Lynx showing just got worse. Minnesota was outscored by seven in a fourth quarter that came as the capstone of an already hugely defensive game. As things fell apart, the Lynx gave up a 25-point quarter to a Valkyries team that had barely topped 30 points in the first half.
It’s important not to overreact to a game like this. The Lynx are still the presumptive top seed, and a stumble in late August before the FIBA break is not a backbreaker by any means. This continues to be the championship-favorite team. That cannot be overstated.
Simultaneously, few things bring back memories of the last two years like a failure to produce against a top team after a regular season of carving through everyone.
It’s a hard balance to keep, to be disappointed while also understanding.
Here’s what to look out for as the regular season comes to a close.
Courtney Williams cannot be understated
The loss of Williams feels like what most fans will point to as the reason for this loss. Having previously been on an ironman streak of over 100 games, losing Court 20 minutes before tip-off certainly was not something the team was particularly prepared for.
Additionally, her ability to score effectively when put in even slightly advantageous situations was sorely missed in the half-court. As the Valkyries threw more and more pressure at Olivia Miles, there were fewer and fewer options ready and willing to attack those mismatches.
Williams’ void cannot be filled overnight, and playing without her after years of having her oft-overlooked support caused an abundance of bad shots.
The lack of a real attacker when Williams and Kayla McBride are either injured or absent is a major flaw in this roster. There’s one obvious name that should be on that list, which brings us to…
When can we start having some hard Phee conversations?
Napheesa Collier came off the bench tonight. She is still an excellent player, and certainly one who deserves credit for all the little things she does, as well as her leadership, but one question remains:
Where has her offense disappeared to?
There was one moment in the third quarter where Phee caught the ball on a pick-and-roll with Miles, nearly turned the ball over on the catch, and then threw it away nearly immediately after. She went through hell in the paint tonight, and no one is arguing that, but plays like that kill the game’s momentum. The Lynx can’t afford that from their former top-MVP finisher.
On a night like tonight, when the Lynx could not generate any real offense, her disappearance felt pertinent, not because she was bad but because this team expects more from her.
Next one back
The Lynx play their last game before the International Break nearly a week from today, on the 30th of August against the Atlanta Dream. The Dream currently sit as the fourth seed, so there’s potential for a second-round matchup preview there.
All but one of Minnesota’s final five games will come against playoff opposition. The Lynx need to win just one of those final five to clinch the WNBA’s top seed.
The game will kick off at 7PM CST.
