The Los Angeles Sparks are looking to get back in the win column after dropping their last game, 88-82, against the Atlanta Dream. For the Sparks to get a win though they’re going to have go through the Las Vegas Aces on the road. And they’ll have to do so short-handed as well. Second-year wing Rickea Jackson was received a new status update on the Sparks’ injury report.

Ahead of the Sparks’ upcoming game against the Aces, Rickea Jackson was listed on the team’s injury report as not with the team due to personal reasons, as per Rey Moralde of The Sporting Tribune. Jackson had recently returned to the lineup after missing three straight games while being placed in the league’s concussion protocol.

Jackson made her return to the court against the Dream, and before the game, head coach Lynne Roberts went into detail regarding Jackson’s recovery and ramp-up after clearing concussion protocol.

“Our medical team did a tremendous job of just making sure her health is first. We don’t want to mess around with concussions. But she’s passed every kind of phase,” Roberts said. “She played a little three-on-three with some of our practice guys. . .just to get used to that kind of contact. . .when you’re in concussion protocol, you’re very limited in what you can do physically.”

Against the Dream, Jackson came off the bench and finished with only one rebound in 12 minutes of play. She was 0-of-3 from the field and clearly looked a little rusty after such a long layoff.

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The No. 4 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft, Jackson emerged as a rookie as a legitimate franchise building block for the Sparks. She appeared in all 40 games, including 35 starts, at a little over 28 minutes per game. She was the only rookie to average double figures in points while shooting at a 45+ percent clip from the field.

This season, through three games played, Jackson is at a little over 23 minutes per game and around nine shot attempts per game. She’s averaging 7.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.3 assists with splits of 31 percent shooting from the field, 33.3 percent shooting from the three-point line and she has yet to take a free-throw attempt.

Jackson’s absence will be a major blow for the Sparks who are already down two players for the foreseeable future. Rae Burrell is out at least six-to-eight weeks with a leg injury while Cameron Brink is still recovering from last season’s ACL injury.

But the matchup against the Aces is a significant one for the Sparks as it’s Kelsey Plum’s first game back as an opponent.