Subscribe
Follow Us
The Los Angeles Sparks dropped their second straight game, falling to 1-2 after their 89-86 loss to the Phoenix Mercury on Wednesday. In what’s been a recurring theme in these two losses, the Sparks were essentially ‘out-toughed’ by their opponents. The WNBA is a physical league and the Sparks need to adapt to it. Following the Sparks’ loss, Kelsey Plum spoke about how the level of physicality from the Mercury may have affected her game.
“They [Mercury] play physical. It is frustrating as a player, feeling like they can put hands on you the whole game. And I try to get them off, and I got two offensive fouls like that, and I’m just trying to get them off me,” Plum said. “I’m not pushing off, I’m just trying to swim. There’s a lot of players in the league that do the same thing and get calls. So I guess it’s just a learning process for me, and I’ll be better.”
Part of it could be the way opposing defenses are loading up on Plum this season. With the ball in her hands more often, and an increased level of offensive freedom, she’s the main target on opposing team’s scouting reports. When Plum was playing with the Las Vegas Aces, she was alongside other great scorers.
But overall, teams have been playing physical with the Sparks, as is to be expected in this league. Following the team’s loss to the Minnesota Lynx last Sunday, head coach Lynne Roberts explained how the Sparks need to play with more toughness.
“You can’t just say, ‘let’s be tough,’ and then, ‘okay,’ you have to develop it,” Roberts said. “It’s highlighting those examples when it’s shown and then highlighting examples when it’s not. It has to be a constant drip of this is what it looks like.”
“What I saw when things didn’t go our way, we kind of looked visibly frustrated. And not only is that not going to help you as a player, the other team, they noticed that too,” Roberts continued. “They see some frustration, they see some cracks, they’re going to step on your throat.”
Despite the loss, Plum continued her strong start to the season. She finished with 25 points and six assists while shooting 4-0f-9 (44.4 percent) from the three-point line and 7-of-10 from the free-throw line.
Through the Sparks’ first three games of the season, Plum is averaging 26.7 points, 2.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 2.7 steals with splits of 44.2 percent shooting from the field, 45.8 percent shooting from the three-point line and 82.1 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
Plum is second in the league in scoring and fourth in the league in steals. The All-Star guard joined the Sparks this offseason via a sign-and-trade involving the Aces and Seattle Storm.
