The Weekly Roundup: Atlanta’s Improbable Start, Fake Free Throws, and Barking at the GOAT
Recapping the action from week 4 in the W
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A pair of clashes in the desert between the league’s two best teams, fake free throws/scorer’s table destruction, signs of life from New York, six-game marathons, and players barking at GOATS - this past week of WNBA action had it all. It’s time to dive into what last week had to offer - the good, the bad, and the downright hilarious.
Player of the Week: Kelsey Plum
In a preseason conversation with The Athletic, reigning Sixth Woman of the Year Kelsey Plum expressed her desire to be in the starting lineup. “I’m so sick of the bench. I’m a starter in this league and I know it, and I think everyone else does.”
In the immortal words of Biggie Smalls, if you don’t know, now you know. Beyond earning a spot in Las Vegas’ starting lineup, Plum has compiled MVP-caliber numbers through the opening third of the season. The only player this season to rank in the top five in scoring (second) and assists (fourth), Plum’s knack for getting to the rim and reliably knocking down the long-distance shot is a major reason why Las Vegas boasts the league’s best offensive rating at 107.6 points per 100 possessions (second-best all-time behind the 2019 Mystics). How good has her performance from behind the arc been? Historic. She’s on pace to become the first player not named Diana Taurasi to hit at least three triples per contest in a season. Her mind-boggling 46% three-point percentage would be the best all-time among players attempting at least five three-pointers per game.
Her latest stroke of basketball genius came this past week, leading her team to a 2-1 record and averaging 24.3 points, 6.7 assists, and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 42.9% from long distance (which astoundingly lowered her season average). In addition to a pair of solid performances against the now 9-3 Connecticut Sun, Plum dropped a career-high 32 points and played all 40 minutes in the Aces’ 84-78 win over Dallas on Sunday (highlights from the Wings game are in the video below).
Stat of the Week: Despite turnovers, Atlanta keeps winning
Stat of the week: There have been four games this season where the Atlanta Dream won despite committing at least 20 turnovers. That's already tied for the second-most such games in a season since 2011 (the 2021 Connecticut Sun had six such games).
“All I do is win, win, win no matter what…”
That’s the opening line to DJ Khaled’s smash hit “All I Do Is Win” and the first thing that came over the loudspeakers at Gateway Center Arena at College Park following Atlanta’s 75-66 victory over Indiana Sunday afternoon. It’s a perfect encapsulation of the Dream’s 7-4 start - they continue to win despite leading the league in turnovers. If the season ended today, Atlanta’s 18.8 turnovers per game would be the fourth-worst all-time and the most in a season since the 1997 New York Liberty.
Look, I’m not here to rain on the Dream’s parade. Following the tumult of last season that included three different head coaches, an eight-win season, the Chennedy Carter suspension, and the off-court fight involving Courtney Williams, Crystal Bradford, and Kalani Brown, Atlanta’s turnaround has been one of the feel-good stories this season. Of course, the Dream have won despite committing so many turnovers for several reasons, including their league-best defense (defensive rating of 87.4 points allowed per 100 possessions), Rhyne Howard’s superb rookie campaign, unexpected contributions from Kristy Wallace, and yes, playing Indiana three times helps matters.
It’s nevertheless baffling that a team with such historically high turnover numbers currently sits in the upper third of the WNBA standings. Is it sustainable? Almost certainly not. Either Atlanta takes better care of the ball or what’s been a dream of a season will quickly turn into a nightmare.
False start: Arike Ogunbowale
What’s the deal with faking free throws recently? Until a few months ago, I had never witnessed this in my three-plus decades of watching basketball (to be sure, a quick search on YouTube reveals multiple instances of this happening in the NBA). Then, in the second round of the NCAA tournament, UCF committed the violation in the final minute of its epic battle with UConn. It happened again last Tuesday when Arike Ogunbowale, after missing her first free throw with her team trailing 83-81 and 0.8 seconds remaining, pump faked the second free throw.
There’s almost no benefit to performing the maneuver, so let’s just call these momentary lapses in judgment. Pump fakes are an effective way to get a defender off balance…just not at the free-throw line.
Who let the dogs out?
In case it wasn’t clear above, Kelsey Plum is great. The reigning Sixth Woman of the Year has placed herself squarely in the MVP conversation, leading the league’s top team in scoring and assists. But what solidified her in my pantheon of favorite WNBA players was her recent meeting with Tom Brady at the Aces-Sun game last week.
She barked at the GOAT (Greatest of All-Time). Yes, you read that correctly. Please, just watch the following video of Plum, A’ja Wilson, and Jackie Young recapping an encounter Tom Brady likely won’t forget.
Her Hoop Stats Power Rankings
Here are this week’s power rankings from the Her Hoop Stats team. As always, these are based on the criterion of who would beat whom in a hypothetical neutral court matchup today.
WNBA schedule this week (All times Eastern)
Here is a full listing of this week’s games, start times, and where you can catch the action.
Her Hoop Stats content in case you missed it
Perhaps you’ve seen his Wetz Sets videos that explain various basketball actions, sets, and defensive schemes. Calvin Wetzel is now building a library of these great videos, complete with mini-articles that describe in further detail each video’s topic. Check out Calvin’s library of Wetz Sets Explainers here!
Check out the Her Hoop Stats Podcast Network later today for a new episode of Dice it Up with Dano Mataya and Ice Young!
In the debut of his Liberty Notebook column, Heaven Hill broke down New York’s rough start, the impact of Crystal Dangerfield’s arrival on Sabrina Ionescu’s game, and Han Xu’s promising play.
Richard Cohen analyzed New York’s early woes, Las Vegas’ zone defense, and why tanking is less likely to happen this season in the latest edition of WNBA Dissected.
Other recommended content
An in-depth piece by The Athletic’s Chantel Jennings and Mike Vorkunov revealed new details of the WNBA’s plans for expansion.
For The Washington Post, Gerald Imray covered Nigeria’s recent decision to withdraw its basketball teams from international competitions for the next two years (including this year’s FIBA women’s World Cup).
For The Next, Hayden Cilley discussed Phoenix’s dismal start to the season and what needs to change in order for the Mercury to right the ship.
The New York Times’ Kurt Streeter explored the difficulty of making a WNBA roster through the recent experience of former NC State guard Raina Perez.
Trivia question of the week
First, here’s the answer to last week’s trivia question:
Who is the highest-ranked player on the WNBA career points list to have never won a WNBA championship?
Answer: Tina Charles. The Phoenix center currently ranks sixth on the all-time scoring list but has never won a WNBA title.
And now, here’s this week’s question:
Sue Bird, Ticha Penicheiro, and Courtney Vandersloot are currently first, second, and fourth in career assists. It only makes sense that they occupy the top three spots on the list of number of games (including playoffs) with at least 10 assists - who is fourth on this list (number of games with more than 10 assists)?
Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter. If you like our work, be sure to check out our stats site, our podcast, and our social media accounts on Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.