[Hieronymus]

Very strange Sparks game - no starters with double digits. Not sure I have ever seen that before, and predictably the Sparks lost by 20. Brink with a nice game 10 points on 4/5 shooting and 2 rebounds in only 15 minutes. Fouls were not an issue - she only had 1 foul and also only 1 turnover. Seems like a game where she should have had more minutes, especially in a 20 point loss.

In general, I don’t understand what LA is doing this season. Maybe not Sky bad, but it’s still a roster that is trying to contend and just isn’t close while starting two newly-acquired 35+ year old players. Nneka is still elite, but Wheeler is shooting 32.5%/25.4% this year. But they added Nneka, Wheeler and Atkins (who has also been bad, shooting close to Wheeler’s numbers) this year; so they definitely were trying to contend.

My view is they need to accept that they aren’t close to being contenders and start getting more minutes to younger players. Maybe trade Nneka to a contender, and go into a true rebuild mode. They are likely stuck with Atkins and Wheeler. But what they are doing right now is just stupid. I guess they are hoping that with all the new faces the team eventually comes together. Hope isn’t a plan.

I've seen most of the Sparks games. I don't think Lynne Roberts has a very good plan for this group. They have the talent, but they do not play well together. Hamby is so inconsistent. Great rebounder, but just not very skilled. She does well when she decides to play hard and the defense lets her go where she wants. IMO, she should come off the bench and be the veteran-in-the-locker-room type. I think Roberts should start Plum at PG, Atkins and Burrell on the wings, and Nneka and Cam as posts. Let that group play together and gel. There's enough talent there to make a playoff run. 

As for Cam - she continues to get better and better. This is really only her second season, and with the right coaching and system she will be an all-star. She has the talent on both ends. Not many bigs can defend and alter shots like Cam. Granted, that means 30 mins/game and in order for that to happen she needs to stay out of foul trouble. It's always been her weakness, but you can see she's learning. She needs to clean up the moving screen/offensive foul/over the back fouls and save calls for the plays where she's contending shots. She also needs to shirk this injury bug. I've never seen anyone get hit in the face so much.

I definitely like your lineup better. So maybe fire the coach and see what can be improved. Current state looks stuck at .500 level.

[Hieronymus]

Very strange Sparks game - no starters with double digits. Not sure I have ever seen that before, and predictably the Sparks lost by 20. Brink with a nice game 10 points on 4/5 shooting and 2 rebounds in only 15 minutes. Fouls were not an issue - she only had 1 foul and also only 1 turnover. Seems like a game where she should have had more minutes, especially in a 20 point loss.

In general, I don’t understand what LA is doing this season. Maybe not Sky bad, but it’s still a roster that is trying to contend and just isn’t close while starting two newly-acquired 35+ year old players. Nneka is still elite, but Wheeler is shooting 32.5%/25.4% this year. But they added Nneka, Wheeler and Atkins (who has also been bad, shooting close to Wheeler’s numbers) this year; so they definitely were trying to contend.

My view is they need to accept that they aren’t close to being contenders and start getting more minutes to younger players. Maybe trade Nneka to a contender, and go into a true rebuild mode. They are likely stuck with Atkins and Wheeler. But what they are doing right now is just stupid. I guess they are hoping that with all the new faces the team eventually comes together. Hope isn’t a plan.

I've seen most of the Sparks games. I don't think Lynne Roberts has a very good plan for this group. They have the talent, but they do not play well together. Hamby is so inconsistent. Great rebounder, but just not very skilled. She does well when she decides to play hard and the defense lets her go where she wants. IMO, she should come off the bench and be the veteran-in-the-locker-room type. I think Roberts should start Plum at PG, Atkins and Burrell on the wings, and Nneka and Cam as posts. Let that group play together and gel. There's enough talent there to make a playoff run. 

As for Cam - she continues to get better and better. This is really only her second season, and with the right coaching and system she will be an all-star. She has the talent on both ends. Not many bigs can defend and alter shots like Cam. Granted, that means 30 mins/game and in order for that to happen she needs to stay out of foul trouble. It's always been her weakness, but you can see she's learning. She needs to clean up the moving screen/offensive foul/over the back fouls and save calls for the plays where she's contending shots. She also needs to shirk this injury bug. I've never seen anyone get hit in the face so much.

I definitely like your lineup better. So maybe fire the coach and see what can be improved. Current state looks stuck at .500 level.