Where the Mind Wanders

Tonight was WNBA basketball heaven. I watched all five games, so you don’t have to, although it's really not a bad assignment. I bet all of them and came out alright. Maybe one day I’ll include gambling takeaways because, if you’re tapped in, you know how much the oddsmakers cooked tonight.

Starting with Suns vs. Mystics, the first thing I wrote down was, “Dunk contest?” Looking at the players on the floor and thinking about Malonga’s dunk in the All-Star Game made me wonder how close the league is to having enough candidates. Here are a few players I think can do more than a standard two-hand slam, plus some sleepers who could dunk in an empty gym.

That’s 16 players who, at minimum, I think could throw down a two-handed slam with training. That’s based on their build or athleticism. It would be great for the league if dunking became more common. Watching Dom tomahawk one with ease in the All-Star Game made me wonder how popular a WNBA player who did that regularly could become. There has long been an unspoken assumption that women cannot dunk like men. Challenging it would be good for ratings and for the culture around the league.

01Aces Propaganda

Watching the Aces' big three put on a show, I started thinking of NBA comparisons because their cohesion and continuity feel unprecedented. A’ja Wilson is a Tim Duncan type, while Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young are both capable of being number-one options. Gray gets compared to Chris Paul all the time, and tonight she played the part. There is some late-career LeBron in her game, too. She never relies on athleticism. She can look a step slow or pressured, then answer with a brilliant pass or an awkward, difficult layup.

When I watch Jackie, I can’t help but see Jrue Holiday. I thought that from the first game I saw her, and she is a big-game player. These three embody something I’m always talking about: basketball balance. Steph and Draymond have a unique on-court superpower that comes from being completely aligned and prepared. The Aces' big three can reach the same mode. I was happy to check in on the champions tonight, and it remains clear that they are all in on going back-to-back.

02Storm vs Fever

My biggest takeaway from this game, beyond my frustration with the WNBA's injury reporting, is Flau’jae Johnson. First, though, it is baffling that a professional league this size cannot keep the injury reports on its website current. Updates stopped after noon. If that happened in the NBA, it would be major news. It is hard to ask people to take the league seriously when basic reporting and the official website are unreliable. Dominique Malonga threw down a dunk in the All-Star Game three days earlier, then was unavailable tonight without a clear explanation. That disconnect is difficult to understand, and any elite coach would be deeply frustrated by the equivalent situation.

03Liberty

I’m going to write a full article on the Liberty because I still don’t know what to make of what I saw tonight. It is debatable whether “bad wins” are real, but if they are, this was one. The bigger problem is that their current formula is not sustainable. Last year under Sandy, you could see basketball balance, and the system created easy points. This year, almost nothing looks easy. They either live at the free-throw line or shoot 50 percent from three. They are trending toward being one of the season's most disappointing teams, and I don’t think injuries explain enough of it. This feels like a style problem, not a personnel problem. The dependence on threes and free throws reminds me of the Celtics, except the Liberty are even more talented relative to their league. Sabally and the other returning players do not fix that fundamental issue. I don’t want to pile on Chris DeMarco because I have called his position the “hardest easiest job” in the WNBA. Still, with all due respect, the Liberty's offense resembles a teenager playing 2K. There is little structure despite some of the greatest offensive talent in league history. Elite offensive players are not a substitute for a good offense. The Liberty-Lynx Finals made me fall in love with the WNBA, so I hate seeing Sabrina Ionescu hit this kind of detour.

Those are my thoughts from tonight. If you can’t tell, I don’t really break down the games. I reference specific moments when they help make a point, but I’m mostly here for the bigger picture. It was a great first day back. If anyone cares, I went 3-1 against the spread, and the loss came by half a point after the WNBA's injury reporting failed to provide a clear picture.