The Whiteboard: 4 stats to know for the WNBA playoffs

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The WNBA playoffs kick off today with single-elimination matchups between the Connecticut Sun and Chicago Sky (7 p.m. ET) and the Washington Mystics and Phoenix Mercury (9 p.m. ET). The winners will advance to another single-elimination round against the Minnesota Lynx and Los Angeles Sparks. The top two seeds — the Seattle Storm and Las Vegas Aces — are lurking beyond that waiting for best-of-three matchups in the semifinals.

This was an abbreviated WNBA season and one run concurrently with the NBA, which overshadowed things a bit. If you haven’t watched as much WNBA as you’d like and are looking to get your footing for the postseason, here are a few key statistical nuggets to keep your eye on.

What numbers do you need to know for the WNBA playoffs?

Seattle Storm: 93.3 defensive efficiency

The Storm allowed just 93.3 points per 100 possessions this season, the best mark in the league and the lowest mark by any team since the New York Liberty in 2015. It’s a reflection of a historically strong defense, headlined by Natasha Howard and Breanna Stewart who combined to average 5.0 steals and 2.6 blocks per 36 minutes. The Storm also had the best offensive efficiency in the league and the difference between their point differential (plus-15.0 points per 100 possessions) and the second-place Las Vegas Aces is enormous, even though the two teams finished with identical records.

Courtney Vandersloot: Plus-9.3 points per 100 possessions

Vandersloot ran a darkhorse MVP campaign this season, averaging a double-double with 13.6 points and 10.0 assists per game on a 61.0 true shooting percentage. By Positive Residual’s Estimated Contribution metric, she was the most impactful offensive player in the league by a wide margin and the Sky were terrific when she was on the floor, outscoring opponents by 9.3 points per 100 possessions. The problem for the Sky is that they were outscored by18.7 points per 100 possessions in the 9.5 minutes per game she was on the bench. Vandersloot could max out her minutes if necessary in the two single-elimination rounds but if they make a surprise run to the semifinals, a lack of effective depth could be their limiting factor.

Las Vegas Aces: 11.5 3-point attempts per game

The Aces’ extremely low 3-point totals are one of the biggest statistical outliers in the league and part of a multi-year trend. The next lowest total came from the Atlanta Dream who averaged 16.9 3-point attempts per game and eight of the league’s 12 teams were over 20 per game this season. The Aces compensate with A’ja Wilson’s interior dominance and a league-leading free-throw rate, which helps them generate easy points. However, it does give them a little less elasticity — they spent less than five percent of their possessions this season trailing by double-digits. If a team is able to get some separation from them, it could be hard to close the gap in a hurry.

Myisha Hines-Allen: 23.4 points per game

The Washington Mystics are the defending champions but a roster decimated by wubble opt-outs saw them slide to the No. 8 seed. They’ll need to get past Diana Taurasi and the Phoenix Mercury in an elimination game (always a long-shot proposition) to keep their slim repeat hopes alive. But if they do advance, it will probably be because of Myisha Hines-Allen. The third-year pro has stepped up in a huge way, becoming the new fulcrum of the Mystics offense. She’s led the team in scoring all season long, more than doubling her scoring average from last season. Over the last five games (which included four wins), she’s averaging 23.4 points, 10.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.8 steals per game, shooting 59.7 percent from the field, 60.0 percent from the 3-point line and 94.1 percent from the free-throw line. She’s as hot as any scorer in the WNBA right now and she’ll have a chance to really solidify herself as a future star.

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If you’re looking for more WNBA playoff coverage, make sure to subscribe to the fantastic newsletters from Matt Ellentuck and Lyndsey D’Arcangelo, as well as The Next.