Sparks start road trip with momentum and an eye on the postseason

After 14 games, more than a third of the WNBA’s record-long 40-game regular season, the Sparks are on the road to checking off several boxes.

First off, the Sparks are 7-7 overall, despite recently missing two key starters: Lexie Brown (non-COVID illness) and Layshia Clarendon (foot).

Secondly, only four teams – the Las Vegas Aces, Connecticut Sun, New York Liberty and Washington Mystics – have winning records, so the Sparks’ .500 record has them fifth in the WNBA standings, putting them in prime position to end a three-year postseason drought.

“The encouraging thing that everybody keeps talking about is that we haven’t had this full team and full roster together for more than maybe two or three games, so very excited about the future,” said Sparks forward Dearica Hamby, who was acquired in January via trade with Las Vegas, where she helped the Aces win the 2022 WNBA title.

The Sparks are coming off a five-game homestand, which started with a three-game losing streak but ended with comeback wins against the Dallas Wings.

“These kinds of games are good momentum,” Hamby added.

The Sparks are entering a pivotal six-game stretch before the All-Star break in mid-July. It begins with a three-game road trip, with games at Chicago on Wednesday and Friday and at Atlanta on Sunday, before returning home for another game against Atlanta on July 5.

Last seaosn, the Wings earned the No. 6 seed in the playoffs with a .500 record. In 2021, former Sparks superstar Candace Parker and the Chicago Sky earned the No. 6 seed in the playoffs with a .500 record, before going on to win the WNBA championship.

The Sparks are 1-0 against the new-look Chicago Sky this season, courtesy of a 77-62 home win, in which All-Star starter Nneka Ogwumike’s 19 points and 14 rebounds paced the Sparks to their third-largest margin of victory this season.

Ogwumike, the 2016 MVP, is averaging 20.2 points, 9.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.7 steals per game. The 6-foot-2 forward, who is in her 12th year in the league, is shooting 52.2% from the field and 87.5% from the free-throw line.

Chicago (5-9), mired in a six-game losing streak, is led by a quartet of talented All-Star caliber guards in Kahleah Copper (2021, 2022 selections), Courtney Williams (2021 selection), Marina Mabrey, and Dana Evans.

However, winning on the road is never easy in the WNBA. The Sparks are 5-4 at home, after playing the most home games in the league so far this season. In contrast, the Sparks are 2-3 on the road, twice blowing double-digit leads at Seattle and Minnesota.

The Sparks believe every opportunity is a learning opportunity – in particular, closing out games like they did in winning their season series against Dallas on Sunday.

“For us, there’s no better teacher than experiences,” said Sparks head coach Curt Miller, a self-professed film junkie and basketball strategist. “What we talked about was putting ourselves back in a position to get to the finish line and have a chance again (against Dallas) … some of those struggles help you focus and really be able to teach those difficult moments.

“We probably wouldn’t have been so hyper-focused on those last five minutes of the fourth quarter if we didn’t have some disappointing losses along the way.”