3 Highlights of the WNBA this week
Indiana Fever win Commissioner's Cup
Despite missing Caitlin Clark, the Indiana Fever were able to get their first franchise Commissioner's Cup Championship on Tuesday night. They started slow against Minnesota, but surged forward in the second half on a 16 point performance from Natasha Howard. Aliyah Boston was big for Indiana as well, scoring 12 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. With this Championship of course comes the trophy, but the Fever will now have $500,000 to split between players, and have made a $23,000 donation to their local charity of choice, Peace Learning Center.
Paige Bueckers wins first Rookie of the Month Award
After missing some time in May with a concussion, the No. 1 overall draft pick in Paige Bueckers had a fantastic month of June. She averaged 21.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game in June, and continues to lead the entire league in field goals attempted (53) and field goals made (30) from 10-15 feet from the basket. All of this led to her winning her first Rookie of the Month award for the month of June, and has catapulted her to the top of Rookie of the Year conversations. Her well-rounded game, high basketball IQ, and ability to shoot from distance make her game super enjoyable.
Natalie Nakase wins her first Coach of the Month Award
Keeping the conversation on awards this week, another WNBA legend was able to get her first monthly award for the month of June. Natalie Nakase, who is leading the Golden State Valkyries through their first franchise season, is also in her first season as a head coach of a WNBA team. She's been thriving, leading the Valkyries to an impressive 9-7 record, currently holding a playoff spot. In June, Golden State had a record of 7-4, beating teams like Seattle, Indiana, and Las Vegas.
2 Games to Watch this weekend
Golden State Valkyries vs Minnesota Lynx: Saturday, July 5, 8:00 pm
The Minnesota Lynx struggled heavily in the Commissioner's Cup game, and just looked fatigued. You could see it in the way Napheesa Collier's shots were all JUST a bit too short. They've had a packed schedule, and if it was going to hit them at any point, it was best it did during a game that technically does not count toward their season record. Unfortunately, though, that does mean that the Lynx did not get the 3-4 days of rest that every other team was able to have this weekend. With the Valkyries ability to push more experienced teams to their limits, they could very well steal a win here.
Las Vegas Aces vs New York Liberty: Tuesday, July 8, 8:00pm
One of the WNBA's most exciting match ups faces off again this Tuesday as the Las Vegas Aces take on the New York Liberty. The Liberty have already beaten the Aces this season, beat them in last year's WNBA Semi-Final series, and beat them multiple times last season as well. Yet, New York has been struggling a little over the past few weeks. They are missing Jonquel Jones, who is still recovering from a sprained ankle, and there is no confirmation she will be back for Tuesday's game against the Aces. They have also been missing Leonie Fiebich due to EuroBasket, but she is back now. IF Jones continues to be out, the Aces could take advantage of the mismatch in the post, leaning heavily on A'ja Wilson to score on the inside. Regardless, these games are always extremely fun and competitive.
1 storyline to watch: Caitlin Clark continues to struggle with groin injury
Last week, we talked about the implications of Caitlin Clark missing more games with another injury. First, it was her quad strain, and now she's been out for over a week with a groin issue. She missed the Commissioner's Cup game on Tuesday, and she has already been listed as out for the Fever's Thursday night game against the Las Vegas Aces.
The Fever are trying to be extremely careful with their star, making sure she is not rushing back from anything too soon. She risks re-aggravating or even further injuring herself if she comes back before her body is ready. She is day-to-day at the moment, and there has been no confirmation about if she is on track to return to the court on Saturday. That means that her team has had to adapt to playing without her contributions - which hold extreme weight on their success.
The good thing though, is that the Fever's coaching staff seems to be trying to get he rest of the team to improve on the things Caitlin thrives at, in an attempt to make up for her efforts when she is out. In the Commissioner's Cup final, they relied heavily on their post players in Howard and Boston, which ended up being their key to success. Clark is fantastic at passing the ball into the post and letting Howard and Boston cook with it, a reason her assist numbers are so high. The other thing the Fever have been doing well is passing the ball back out to the perimeter. With Clark out, players like Lexie Hull and Kesley Mitchell need to be ready to receive those passes from the inside and convert them into points.
All of this to say though, hopefully Clark can return to the lineup soon. The Fever are currently 8-8 in the regular season, and sit on the fringe of a playoff spot, 8th place. If they are going to not only stay in that playoff spot, but also rise enough to gain home court advantage in the playoffs, Clark is a huge factor for them.