Lines of The Night....59 Nights Later
What trends do we see in our "Lines of the Night" so far this season?
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We have published our WNBA “Lines of the Night” since the start of the season, highlighting the top three stat lines for a given night (ranked No. 1-3). There is no secret formula; the performances are ranked based on this writer’s assessment. Overall contribution across all the key stats factors into these rankings (points, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals); it’s not meant to be a list of the top scorers each night.
Now that we have reached the Olympic break, the Her Hoop Stats team has taken the time to tally up some interesting stats for our WNBA edition of “Lines of the Night”.
Topping the Leaderboard
It always is fun to be number one. Various players have ranked first on our nightly lines but none more than an MVP candidate in the nation’s capital. The Washington Mystics’ Tina Charles has ranked first on “Lines of the Night” nine times this season. She has made thirteen total appearances, which also ranks first in the W. This feat is indeed impressive; however, it doesn’t necessarily mean that her stat line competition has been lax thus far.
Seattle’s Breanna Stewart and Phoenix’s Brittney Griner have given Tina Charles stiff competition for most times ranked first. Stewart and Griner have ranked first seven and six times, respectively. When it comes to most appearances on "Lines of the Night", Charles' edge over Stewart and Griner (thirteen versus eleven and ten, respectively) is also narrow.
Here are the top five players in terms of most times ranked first:
Tina Charles (9)
Breanna Stewart (7)
Brittney Griner (6)
A’ja Wilson (3)
Tie between: Jonquel Jones, Sylvia Fowles, Courtney Williams, Marina Mabrey, Sabrina Ionescu, and Sami Whitcomb (2)
…and in terms of most appearances:
Tina Charles (13)
Breanna Stewart (11)
Brittney Griner (10)
Jonquel Jones (10)
A’ja Wilson (7)
One and Done
Not everyone will have the opportunity to produce one of the top stat lines, but to rank number one in your first and only appearance this season is a feat worth celebrating. Currently, three players have ranked first in their only appearance to date. These players are:
Sue Bird (5/20) - 21 PTS | 5 REB | 8 AST
Myisha Hines-Allen (6/5) - 32 PTS | 13 REB | 3 AST
Brittney Sykes (7/4) - 19 PTS | 10 REB | 5 AST
Considering that these players are key pieces of their team’s rotation, it is very likely that it isn’t the last we have seen from them. Another first-place rank on “Lines of the Night” could be in the works once the season resumes.
Best Lines of the Season
So, we have discussed rankings and appearances, but what about the stat lines themselves? Who had the best overall lines? The HHS Team went back and looked at each individual stat line that made “Lines of Night”, and have concluded that these are our top lines to date:
Tina Charles (6/22) - 34 PTS | 16 REB | 5 AST
Breanna Stewart (5/22) - 36 PTS | 11 REB | 5 BLK
Sylvia Fowles (6/23) - 26 PTS | 19 REB | 5 BLK
What makes “Lines of the Night” special is that any player can explode and produce a line that makes our list. No player is guaranteed a spot. It is all about who brought their “A-Game” on that night.
Our team will continue to be on the lookout for standout performances when the season resumes. There are multiple things to monitor:
Will Tina Charles maintain her spot as leader, or will someone else have a fantastic run in the second half of the season and overtake her spot? Also, with potential post-Olympics returns of Elena Delle Donne and Emma Meesseman on the horizon, how will that impact Charles’ production?
Will someone else rank first in their only appearance?
Will someone produce a stat line that tops the ones we have listed as the three-best to date?
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51 different players have made at least one appearance. It is a very eclectic list comprised of WNBA players with different skill sets, personas, roles, positions, and everything in between. Here is the complete list of players and total appearances:
Tina Charles (13)
Breanna Stewart (11)
Brittney Griner (10)
Jonquel Jones (10)
A'ja Wilson (7)
Sylvia Fowles (6)
Skylar Diggins-Smith (5)
Arike Ogunbowale (5)
Courtney Vandersloot (5)
Courtney Williams (5)
Liz Cambage (4)
Napheesa Collier (4)
Sabrina Ionescu (4)
Betnijah Laney (4)
Marina Mabrey (4)
DeWanna Bonner (3)
Tiffany Hayes (3)
Jewell Loyd (3)
Candace Parker (3)
Sami Whitcomb (3)
Chennedy Carter (2)
Isabelle Harrison (2)
Brionna Jones (2)
Teaira McCowan (2)
Kelsey Mitchell (2)
Kelsey Plum (2)
Erica Wheeler (2)
Rebecca Allen (1)
Ariel Atkins (1)
Jessica Breland (1)
Brittney Sykes (1)
Myisha Hines-Allen (1)
Sue Bird (1)
Layshia Clarendon (1)
Natasha Cloud (1)
Te'a Cooper (1)
Crystal Dangerfield (1)
Damiris Dantas (1)
Allisha Gray (1)
Chelsea Gray (1)
Dearica Hamby (1)
Leilani Mitchell (1)
Tiffany Mitchell (1)
Kia Nurse (1)
Theresa Plaisance (1)
Satou Sabally (1)
Odyssey Sims (1)
Brianna Turner (1)
Diana Taurasi (1)
Jackie Young (1)
Amanda Zahui B (1)