Through the first four games of the season, Sparks guard Kelsey Plum proved she can put a team on her back and score 26 points a night. She became the only player in WNBA history to begin a season with four consecutive games of at least 25 points while shooting 55% or better from the floor.
Despite Plum’s elite contributions, the Sparks went 1-3 to start the season, with a frustrating loss to the Toronto Tempo, a blowout at the hands of the Las Vegas Aces and a defensive lapse against the Indiana Fever. After the loss to the Tempo, head coach Lynne Roberts commented that others on the team needed to step up for a more balanced attack.
“We’re not in rhythm offensively right now … It makes KP have to do too much, and she was phenomenal today, but we got to have other people share the load and be fearless and move the ball,” Roberts told reporters.
On Thursday, in Los Angeles’ fifth game of the season, a 97-88 victory over the Mercury, the Sparks proved they’re are a better team when Plum doesn’t have to produce at that historic level.
After the win, Roberts addressed Plum and her teammates in the locker room, saying, “KP, way to trust your teammates.” Referring to an unselfish pass Plum made to Hamby to close the third quarter on a three, she said, “That kick to [Hamby], that was the backbreaker. That was the backbreaker.”
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In the Sparks’ win over the Phoenix Mercury on Thursday, Plum had, statistically, her quietest game of the year. It was also the Sparks’ best-looking offensive night, and a win — which Plum will be the first to tell you matters to her infinitely more than any of the personal statistics.
Plum is a fiery competitor. She’s said, again and again, that while she came to Los Angeles to build something new — effectively striking out on her own to take a bet on a rebuild — she also wants to win, and she wants to win now.
Without the quiet reliability of Julie Allemand’s 3.1 assist-to-turnover ratio this year, the Sparks have turned to Plum as their primary ball handler. While that’s by no means new territory for KP, it’s changed the offensive dynamic, no longer allowing her to play off the ball. She’s dazzled fans with athletic drives to the basket and offensive heroics, but has also, often, looked solo out there. While Plum has by no means played selfishly, like her coach said, she has simply had to “do too much” — creating shots for both herself and her teammates, who have often looked stagnant on offense, without much ball movement or intensity. Plum has been playing a lot of one-on-one basketball.
The Mercury game offered a different version of this team. Ariel Atkins drained two 3-pointers to open the third quarter. The team shot over 30 threes for the first time this season, making 46.9% of them, with seven players hitting shots from long range. That’s not a one-woman show. That’s a team that’s moving, spacing and trusting each other.
With the return of Atkins from concussion protocol and rotating veteran point guard Erica Wheeler into the starting lineup to replace Rae Burrell, Roberts’ team has better flow, fiery off-the-bench presence and a balanced offense.
“Offensively, the numbers tell the story,” Roberts said after the game. “We had 23 assists on 31 made field goals, and we got back to attempting 32 threes, which is what we want to do in terms of attacking and spraying it out if they collapse. I thought our guards, and really everybody, did a good job of not forcing things and finding open shooters. I thought the ball movement was much better, and our spacing was better too, just being more organized out there.”
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While there’s no question that the Sparks are better when Plum gets a touch on each offensive possession, taking her into her more natural two-guard role is to their benefit. Before the game, Roberts noted that Wheeler would start the game in an effort to move “KP off the ball, off the one, to start to get the ball movement really going.”
Plum finished Thursday with 16 points and seven assists in a 97-88 win, by no means a meager stat line. But the Sparks looked visibly different. Plum’s fingerprints were all over the team win, but she didn’t have to put the team on her back, giving fans a vision of the Sparks that can be the scoring, fast-paced team that they’ve been promised.
