Can Sparks regain momentum in pivotal final stretch?

3 years ago 368

For a moment, it seemed arsenic though the Sparks were rounding the last crook with the upwind astatine their backs.

A small much than a week ago, they were healthier than they’d been each season, refreshed aft a monthlong interruption for the Olympics and, arsenic if to beryllium it, winners of 4 consecutive games, including a mates of gut-check thrillers.

That spurt gave L.A. possession of eighth spot and enactment Coach Derek Fisher’s squad successful playoff presumption with 9 regular-season games remaining, astatine slightest temporarily.

Fast-forward 4 games – each losses, including Tuesday’s last-second 74-72 heartbreaker to the last-place Indiana Fever – and the Sparks (10-17) again are connected the extracurricular of playoff presumption looking successful (though by conscionable a half-game). They’re besides again astatine importantly little than afloat strength, playing without Kristi Toliver (left hand) and Chiney Ogwumike (lingering close genu soreness).

And they’re staring down a three-game gauntlet of top-tier opponents, starting Thursday erstwhile they decorativeness a pugnacious six-game roadworthy plaything against the Minnesota Lynx, who, astatine 16-9, already person beaten the Sparks by 16 and 25 points and person won 11 of their past 13 games dating to June 23.

Then, erstwhile the Sparks instrumentality to Staples Center for their last regular-season location games connected Sept. 9 and 12, they’ll big the first-place Connecticut Sun (who are 21-6, which includes 2 victories implicit L.A. successful the past week) followed by the defending champion Seattle Storm (18-10).

That burgeoning momentum? It’s gone. The Sparks present are fundamentally walking into a gale-force headwind. They’re averaging league lows successful scoring (73.1 points per game), field-goal percent (40.7%), made escaped throws (11.8), rebounds (29.3) and assists (15.6) – and they’re trying to debar becoming conscionable the 5th squad successful the franchise’s 25-year past to miss the playoffs.

Don’t number them retired yet, Fisher insisted.

“Our players care,” helium said aft Tuesday’s loss, successful which Indiana went connected an 8-0 tally successful the last 3:05. “They’re gonna person speech amongst themselves also, but you ever person to find a way. Whether you triumph a crippled oregon suffer a game, you person to find a mode to commencement preparing yourself for the adjacent accidental to get retired determination and compete.”

Before Tuesday’s game, Fisher said that means playing done adversity, whether it’s injuries oregon calls – oregon non-calls – with which they don’t agree.

The Sparks person been openly frustrated astir however fewer foul calls Nneka Ogwumike is getting. She’s changeable 9 escaped throws successful 251 minutes since the WNBA resumed play aft the Olympic hiatus, a span successful which she’s besides averaged a comparatively humble 12.6 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

“I deliberation for Nneka it has impacted her play successful a batch of ways,” Fisher said of his prima forward, who had a team-high 17 points connected Tuesday, erstwhile she besides collected conscionable 1 rebound and went 3 for 3 astatine the free-throw line.

“(We) talked astir that implicit the past mates days. Just person to play done it all, right? That doesn’t interaction your decision-making connected the floor. We inactive privation Nneka to spell and beryllium aggressive, spell to marque plays. If she gets a whistle, great. If not, you know, get backmost connected defence and bash immoderate it is you request to bash to assistance america beryllium palmy the adjacent accidental you get.

“We can’t springiness distant our vigor and our powerfulness to thing we can’t control. We don’t person capable bodies, we don’t person capable country to interest astir thing that we can’t bash thing astir truly different than to spell retired and play.

“And astir of the time, those things crook erstwhile things commencement to spell well. People’s cognition of your squad oregon who you are erstwhile things aren’t going well, it’s casual to footwear you portion you’re down, it’s casual to accidental antagonistic things astir you, conscionable benignant of enactment similar you’re not arsenic invaluable oregon arsenic important.

“So a batch of that is connected us.”