Twelve games into the 2026 season, Kelsey Plum was having the best year of her career, and it wasn’t especially close. She was averaging 23.9 points per game, second in the WNBA behind A’ja Wilson. She was shooting 52.7% from the field and 38.3% from 3-point range. All were career bests for her. She was also up to 6.4 assists per game, which ranked sixth in the league, and playing 34.5 minutes per game as the engine of just about everything the Los Angeles Sparks tried to do on offense.
At a practice open to fans in May, Plum suffered a right ankle sprain, which caused her to miss three games. She came back strong. On June 14, she dropped a career-high 43 points in an overtime win against the Phoenix Mercury.
But a few games later, her left leg started disappearing under athletic tape. She played through it against the New York Liberty on June 21, in a dramatic 98-97 win in the Sparks’ 30th season celebration, but she wasn’t herself, shooting 5-for-14 for 12 points in 36 minutes. Three days later, the Sparks announced that she had sustained a lower left leg injury and that she would be reevaluated in four weeks. There is no set timetable for her return.
At the time of her injury, Plum ranked in the top six in the league in minutes, points, field goals, 3-pointers and assists per game. She assisted on about a third of her teammates’ made field goals when she was on the court. Her 0.17 offensive win shares per 40 minutes, a statistic that estimates the number of wins a player produces on offense, ranked third in the league. Her usage rate was 27.2%, 12th in the league. Perhaps most notably, Plum was shooting 85% from inside the restricted area on almost four attempts per game — as a 5’9 guard.
In short, she is impossible to replace or replicate. But the Sparks had to figure out, in real time, whether a team built around Plum’s shot creation could survive a month without it.
Lots of signs have pointed to no. They are 2-6 without her, compared to 8-8 with her. They lost winnable games to the Seattle Storm and the Chicago Sky. They also got blown out by the Toronto Tempo 125-97, allowing the most points in a regulation game in WNBA history.
On Monday in Atlanta, the Sparks trailed by 11 at the half, clawed back to take an 87-85 lead in the fourth quarter, and then watched the Dream close the game on a 16-5 run. Two days later in Minnesota, they led the first-place Lynx at multiple points in the second half but lost 96-87.
Those are the kind of stretches and situations that Plum has made a career out of ending on her terms. Those finishes look different with her creating instead of the Sparks trying to generate offense by committee.
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But at the same time, there are several bright spots for Los Angeles.
Rae Burrell is having a breakout season, averaging double figures for the first time in her career. In the last eight games, Burrell’s usage rate has jumped from 19.3% to 22.6%, as she’s been asked to do more playmaking. Her turnover rate has stayed consistent, around 13.5%, which is a good sign for the offense once Plum returns. Head coach Lynne Roberts hasn’t been shy about what that unlocks: Burrell is able to get downhill with an athleticism that makes her difficult to guard one-on-one.
Veteran forward Nneka Ogwumike continues to pick up the slack as well. She tied Lisa Leslie for the franchise’s all-time scoring record in the loss to Minnesota on Wednesday. And she’s been the most consistent presence on the roster all year, shooting above 50% and increasing her points per game to over 20 in Plum’s absence.
“We’ve had a rough go, just with people being in and out and [Plum] being out as long as she’s out. Obviously, we have [Cameron Brink] back now, but it’s just been an adjustment for us,” Roberts told reporters before the loss to the Sky on Friday. “I think Nneka has taken it on herself to be more dominant when it’s needed. She’s so intentional with everything she does.”
Erica Wheeler has been tasked with filling the starting point guard spot while Plum recovers, and she may have earned a starting role for the remainder of the season. She’s scored in double figures in five games in a row after only scoring in double figures in three of the previous 11 games.
Perhaps most surprisingly, the Sparks have maintained their offensive production without Plum. In the first 16 games of the season, they averaged 88.4 points per game. In the eight games without Plum, they’re scoring 89.6 points per game. Players at all positions have picked up the slack: Before the loss to the Sky, the Sparks had four games in a row with five players in double figures.
When asked about her team’s ability to adjust, Roberts said, “When you have a system that’s built around KP’s strengths … and then she’s out for [two or three games with an ankle sprain], it was a short-term thing, and we just kind of adapted. But when she’s out for as long as she’s out now, you really kind of have to adjust and change some things up.
“And I think what you’re seeing is the players are more comfortable now, and they’re understanding what their jobs are, what their roles are with the group that we have right now.”
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When Plum reenters the lineup, the Sparks will have to adjust yet again. They will need to get the ball into Plum’s hands as much as possible, but they also can’t lose what they’ve built. Burrell will need to continue carrying some of the playmaking load, Wheeler will need to maintain her leadership and scoring, and the post players will need to continue to move the ball and create space.
There’s a case for patience here. But for a team that is eager to win — and parted ways with its general manager midseason — that may not be in the cards.
There’s a version of this season where the Sparks get their MVP-level guard back for August and September and make a push for the franchise’s first playoff berth since 2020. And a team that gets five players scoring in double figures with regularity (without its best isolation scorer available to bail out a broken possession) is building habits it can use in September. This version of the Sparks passes more and stagnates less, out of necessity as much as by design, and that’s important for a team whose halfcourt offense has too often turned into hero ball.
The Sparks are learning who they are with Plum unavailable. Whether that ultimately matters depends on whether she’s back in time for it to count.
“We’re going to get healthy,” Roberts said after the loss to Atlanta. “We’re going to get [Plum] back and keep moving forward. But we’re only halfway through, so this will not be the story of the season.”
