The Seattle Storm take on the Las Vegas Aces. Our WNBA odds series has our Storm Aces prediction, odds, and pick. Find out how to watch Storm Aces.

The Las Vegas Aces have waited a long time for this. Guard Chelsea Gray, one of the key players on the team and a central piece of last year's championship run, is expected to return to the lineup for the champions in this game versus the Seattle Storm. Aces coach Becky Hammon said she would go by her feel of the flow of the game to determine when and how much Gray would play.

Gray is undeniably a big part of what the Aces do, but other Las Vegas players have tried not to make excuses for the team's underwhelming start to the 2024 season.

“Chelsea is just a leader and someone that we miss. But that's not an excuse,” Vegas teammate Kelsey Plum said. “We gotta figure it out and get better and when she comes back. She just makes us that much better.”

Plum added about Gray, “She has one of the most gifted basketball minds I've ever seen and the way that she sees things.”

Coach Becky Hammon has not minced words about her team's slow start:

“We're not playing very well. We're not a very good team right now. That's just reality. But we know we can get better, and we still have a lot of basketball to play,” Hammon said.

Indeed, only one-third of the regular season has been played. There's a ton of hoops left to go, and there will be a break for the Summer Olympics in Paris in just over a month. It's not as though the Aces are about to enter the playoffs with huge question marks. No, they will have multiple months to get things lined up the way they want to, provided that Gray stays healthy.

In terms of this game tonight, however, will the Aces be able to integrate Gray into the lineup in a way which helps them? Can Gray instantly find a rhythm and a comfort zone which enable her to blend into the action and work seamlessly with this roster? Gray might have a natural understanding of her teammates, what they do, and how they move around the court, but Gray might not be up to game speed, and rust is a natural concern for Las Vegas against a Seattle team which is ahead of the Aces in the WNBA standings. It will be fascinating to see what Gray is able to do for Vegas in this game. It could be that she will play just 10 to 15 minutes in short stints, but we really don't know what to expect.

Here are the Storm-Aces WNBA Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

WNBA Odds: Storm-Aces Odds

Seattle Storm: +6.5 (-112)

Las Vegas Aces: -6.5 (-108)

Over: 170.5 (-110)

Under: 170.5 (-110)

How to Watch Storm vs. Aces

TV: NBA TV

Stream: WNBA League Pass

Time: 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT

*Watch WNBA games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why The Storm Could Cover The Spread

Start with the point that the Storm beat Vegas by double digits in Las Vegas the last time these two teams played. Seattle was an 8.5-point underdog and covered by more than 20 points. Now the Storm are still getting several points on the spread. There's no doubt that Chelsea Gray makes Vegas a better team. However, in her first game back, Gray should be rusty and is unlikely to be at her very best. Don't expect the very best version of the Aces to show up. It's still a game in which Seattle should cover.

Why The Aces Could Cover The Spread

The Aces have the elite coach, Becky Hammon, who can smoothly integrate Chelsea Gray back into the roster. The Aces have the components of a championship team. They will coalesce around Gray and figure out how to play together. They're good at making adjustments and doing the things championship teams do. They will be very excited to have their core nucleus back and intact.

Final Storm-Aces Prediction & Pick

We're leaning to the storm, but we suggest you pass on this game because we don't know how effective Chelsea Gray will be.

Final Storm-Aces Prediction & Pick: Storm +5.5