I Want to Go Left
The Sparks Still Lack Identity
“I want to go left,” Olivia Miles shouted after finishing again at the basket.
Everyone in the arena knew where she wanted to go, and the Sparks still couldn’t stop it.
By the end of the night, Miles exposed more than a defense. She had exposed why the Sparks remain far from being championship contenders.
My seat at Crypto.com Arena gave me an up-close look at why the Sparks have struggled this season.
The Trade
Over the summer, the LA Sparks and the Chicago Sky engaged in a player exchange. Chicago got the better deal. While the Sparks attempted to sell fans on the idea that Atkins’ defensive aptitude would put the team in playoff contention, I didn’t see the vision.
The Sparks lost a formidable second scorer by trading Jackson, and Atkins’ defense hasn’t influenced winning — not that one player’s efforts have the power to do so — especially when you consider how poor the defense has been from her teammates.
Trading Jackson left the Sparks too dependent on Kelsey Plum, and the Lynx game exposed exactly how fragile that roster construction is.
Sparks vs Lynx Revelations
The LA Sparks were without Kelsey Plum and Cameron Brink in the home game against the Minnesota Lynx. The Sparks started out strong in the first quarter. Despite Olivia Miles starting out hot, the Sparks kept the score close.
However, that didn’t last long, as the Sparks gave the ball up far too many times to secure a win, finishing with 19 turnovers. Many of the turnovers were direct results of lazy passes, unforced errors, and poor basketball fundamentals.
Once the Sparks’ scoring slowed down, the point differential grew out of reach. Multiple times in this game, Sparks defenders missed assignments on pick-and-roll actions, rotational help defense, and defensive rebounding.
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The Lynx ran the same action three or four times in a row with Miles finishing each time at the cup on the left side of the basket. At one point, her confidence was so high after finishing the lay-up with a foul call that she shouted, ‘You [expletive] can’t guard me’ to a defender she’d beat.
Miles figured out the Sparks’ weaknesses early and exploited them repeatedly, finishing with 31 points and 4 assists.
Offensively, the Sparks looked disorganized and unsure of what they wanted to do. There were also times when it looked like players didn’t want the ball, rushing to get rid of it as soon as they got it without even looking to score.
It made me ask: What is the Sparks’ identity? What do they hang their hats on?
Without Plum, it became clear the Sparks lacked a clear offensive identity.
The difference between Miles and the Sparks’ rookies was noticeable. Miles played with the poise of a veteran, while Latson and Gray looked like players still adjusting to the speed and physicality of the WNBA.
Despite the abysmal loss, Plum remained engaged with her teammates on the bench. She coached up Burrell during timeouts and encouraged the rookies when the game was out of reach.
The Win Against New York Liberty
If the Lynx game exposed the flaws in the Sparks’ construction, the Liberty game showcased their potential.
The Sparks bounced back with a huge win versus the New York Liberty in their next game. By all accounts, the Sparks looked better and more motivated after their loss to the Lynx.
The win was impressive, but it didn’t change my opinion about the Sparks’ shortcomings.
Since the Liberty are a top five team, their game plan for the Sparks was similar to many other top teams: get the ball out of Plum’s hands. However, they also decided to go big against the Sparks, which proved to be a challenge for the smaller team.
Nonetheless, the Sparks did utilize Ogwumike more on the offensive side of the ball, as she finished the game with the game-winning shot and 24 points on her stat line. Five other players on the Sparks finished with double-digit points, creating more balanced scoring for the team.
They also cut down on turnovers, finishing with 9 in total. Still too many, but a significant decrease from the previous game.
The victory over New York showed the Sparks can compete when they defend, rebound, and share the ball. It also highlighted the challenge ahead. Good teams can steal a game from great teams. Championship contenders do it consistently. Until the Sparks establish an identity beyond Kelsey Plum’s shot creation, they remain a team capable of surprises but unlikely to make a serious title run.
