2015 Los Angeles Sparks season

Last updated

2015 Los Angeles Sparks season
Coach Brian Agler
Arena Staples Center
Attendance7,464 per game
Results
Record14–20 (.412)
Place4th (Western)
Playoff finishLost in Conference Semifinals
Team Leaders
Points Candace Parker – 19.4 ppg
ReboundsCandace Parker – 10.1 rpg
AssistsCandace Parker – 6.3 apg
Media
Television Time Warner Cable SportsNet
ESPN2, NBATV

The 2015 Los Angeles Sparks season was the franchise's 19th season in the Women's National Basketball Association, and the first full season under head coach Brian Agler. The season began on June 6, on the road against the Seattle Storm. [1] The Sparks lost that game, and went on to lose all seven of their games in June. Their closest losses were on June 23 and June 26 against the Washington Mystics and Connecticut Sun. Both losses were by four points, but the Sun game went into overtime where the Sparks lost 80–76. The Sparks' first win of the season came on June 2 against the San Antonio Stars. The followed the win with a defeat of Tulsa. A five game losing streak followed the two wins. The streak started with an overtime loss against Phoenix. The Sparks ended the streak with a five-point win over Phoenix. The Sparks lost two games and won the final game of July to finish the month 4–7. The Sparks experienced a resurgence in August, winning their first three games of the month, which included an 83–61 victory over Minnesota. They would then lose to Minnesota and Seattle before winning four of their next five games. Their loss during this stretch was against Indiana. They achieved three of their five road wins during the streak. They lost to Tulsa and defeated San Antonio to end the month 8–4. They began September with home defeats of Washington and Tulsa and finished with road losses against Atlanta and Phoenix. The Sparks finished 2–2 in September to finish with a final record of 14–20.

Contents

Their 14–20 record earned them the fourth seed in the Western Conference. Therefore, they faced-off against first-seed Minnesota in the first round of the 2015 WNBA playoffs. During the regular season, the teams met four times, with Minnesota winning three match-ups. The first game was in Minnesota and the Sparks lost a close game 67–65. The series returned to Los Angeles, where the Sparks won 81–71 to force a third game. In the final game of the series, back in Minnesota, the Sparks were defeated 91–80 to end their season. Their fourteen total wins were their lowest since 2010, and this was their fourth straight playoff appearance.

Transactions

WNBA draft

RoundPickPlayerNationalitySchool/Team/Country
17 Crystal Bradford Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States Central Michigan
214 (through Sea.) Cierra Burdick Tennessee
331 Andrea Hoover Dayton

Trades/Roster Changes

DateTransaction
February 11Signed Erin Phillips [2]
February 26Signed Alana Beard [3]
March 18Signed Jantel Lavender [4]
March 23Signed Temeka Johnson [5]

Roster

Source: [6] [7]

2015 Los Angeles Sparks roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.Nat.NameHeightWeightDOBFromYrs
F 13 Flag of Sweden.svg Abdi, Farhiya 6' 2" (1.88m)180 lb (82kg)1992-05-31 Sweden 2
G/F 0 Flag of the United States.svg Beard, Alana 5' 11" (1.8m)160 lb (73kg)1982-05-14 Duke 9
G 15 Flag of the United States.svg Bradford, Crystal 6' 0" (1.83m)170 lb (77kg)1993-11-01 Central Michigan R
G 23 Flag of Serbia.svg Dabović, Ana 6' 0" (1.83m)157 lb (71kg)1989-08-18 Serbia R
C 5 Flag of the United States.svg Hamson, Jennifer 6' 7" (2.01m)210 lb (95kg)1992-01-23 BYU R
G 2 Flag of the United States.svg Johnson, Temeka 5' 3" (1.6m)142 lb (64kg)1982-09-06 LSU 10
C 42 Flag of the United States.svg Lavender, Jantel 6' 4" (1.93m)185 lb (84kg)1988-11-12 Ohio State 4
F 30 Flag of the United States.svg Ogwumike, Nneka 6' 2" (1.88m)188 lb (85kg)1990-07-02 Stanford 3
F/C 3 Flag of the United States.svg Parker, Candace 6' 4" (1.93m)175 lb (79kg)1986-04-19 Tennessee 7
G 31 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Phillips, Erin 5' 8" (1.73m)165 lb (75kg)1985-05-19 Australia 7
C 22 Flag of the United States.svg Snow, Michelle 6' 5" (1.96m)145 lb (66kg)1980-03-20 Tennessee 12
G 20 Flag of the United States.svg Toliver, Kristi 5' 7" (1.7m)130 lb (59kg)1987-01-27 Maryland 6
Head coach
Flag of the United States.svg Brian Agler (Wittenberg)
Assistant coaches
Flag of the United States.svg Curt Miller (Baldwin Wallace)
Flag of the United States.svg Amber Stocks (Cincinnati)
Athletic trainer
Flag of the United States.svg Courtney Watson (California)
Strength and conditioning coach
Flag of the United States.svg Kelly Dormandy (Springfield)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Cruz Roja.svg Injured

Game Log

Preseason

2015 pre-season game log
May: 2–0 (Home: 0–0; Road: 2–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
1May 27vs. Chicago W 76–67 Nneka Ogwumike (15) Lavender, Ogwumike (10) Erin Phillips (8) Mohegan Sun Arena
3,947		1–0
2May 28@ Connecticut W 64–57 Nneka Ogwumike (14)Jantel Lavender (10)Erin Phillips (7)Mohegan Sun Arena
4,006		2–0
2015 pre-season schedule

Regular season

2015 game log
Total: 14–20 (Home: 9–8; Road: 5–12)
June: 0–7 (Home: 0–3; Road: 0–4)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
1June 6@ Seattle L 61–86 Alana Beard (20) Jantel Lavender (12) Erin Phillips (5) KeyArena
9,686		0–1
2June 14Seattle L 54–60 Jantel Lavender (12)Jantel Lavender (9)Erin Phillips (5) Staples Center
12,148		0–2
3June 16 Minnesota L 52–67 Jantel Lavender (12)Jantel Lavender (13) Temeka Johnson (7)Staples Center
6,968		0–3
4June 21 Connecticut L 68–76 Jantel Lavender (17)Jantel Lavender (10)Temeka Johnson (10)Staples Center
6,875		0–4
5June 23@ Washington L 80–84 Jantel Lavender (18)Jantel Lavender (9)Temeka Johnson (10) Capital One Arena
7,400		0–5
6June 26@ Connecticut L 76–80 (OT) Jantel Lavender (22)Jantel Lavender (12)Temeka Johnson (4) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,542		0–6
7June 28@ New York L 70–79 Kristi Toliver (30) Nneka Ogwumike (16)Temeka Johnson (6) Madison Square Garden
8,926		0–7
July : 4–7 (Home: 3–3; Road: 1–4)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
8June 2 San Antonio W 86–81 Nneka Ogwumike (27) Jantel Lavender (10) Temeka Johnson (5) Staples Center
6,287		1–7
9June 3 Tulsa W 98–95 Kristi Toliver (43)Nneka Ogwumike (10)Kristi Toliver (9)Staples Center
6,358		2–7
10June 5 Phoenix L 91–94 (OT) Nneka Ogwumike (26)Nneka Ogwumike (19)Kristi Toliver (8)Staples Center
9,069		2–8
11June 8@ San Antonio L 63–70 Jantel Lavender (19)Nneka Ogwumike (13)Kristi Toliver (7) Freeman Coliseum
3,100		2–9
12June 11@ Tulsa L 67–82 Nneka Ogwumike (22)Nneka Ogwumike (13)Kristi Toliver (6) BOK Center
6,144		2–10
13June 15@ Seattle L 61–68 Nneka Ogwumike (12)Nneka Ogwumike (7)Temeka Johnson (6) KeyArena
9,686		2–11
14June 16 Atlanta L 72–76 Jantel Lavender (20)Jantel Lavender (11)Kristi Toliver (8)Staples Center
14,510		2–12
15June 21Phoenix W 70–65 Jantel Lavender (19)Jantel Lavender (11) Dabović, Johnson (4)Staples Center
7,146		3–12
16June 22 New York L 53–59 Kristi Toliver (16)Nneka Ogwumike (8) Erin Phillips (4)Staples Center
7,354		3–13
17June 29@ Minnesota L 76–82 Jantel Lavender (15)Jantel Lavender (10) Candace Parker (9) Target Center
8,913		3–14
18June 31@ Chicago W 88–77 Candace Parker (31)Candace Parker (9)Johnson, Parker (4) Allstate Arena
7,014		4–14
August : 8–4 (Home: 4–2; Road: 4–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
19August 2@ San Antonio W 80–78 Jantel Lavender (20) Candace Parker (11) Alana Beard (7) Freeman Coliseum
5,416		5–14
20August 4 Minnesota W 83–61 Candace Parker (18)Lavender, Parker (13)Alana Beard (7) Staples Center
8,746		6–14
21August 6 Tulsa W 84–57 Nneka Ogwumike (26)Candace Parker (12)Candace Parker (6)Staples Center
8,056		7–14
22August 9@ Minnesota L 64–72 Nneka Ogwumike (18)Lavender, Parker (8)Parker, Toliver (6) Target Center
9,021		7–15
23August 11 Seattle L 77–85 Jantel Lavender(22)Candace Parker (10)Candace Parker (9)Staples Center
8,068		7–16
24August 16 Chicago W 76–64 Candace Parker (21)Lavender, Parker (8)Candace Parker (10)Staples Center
9,053		8–16
25August 18 Indiana L 68–79 Candace Parker (25)Candace Parker (10)Candace Parker (6)Staples Center
7,046		8–17
26August 21@ Phoenix W 78–68 Candace Parker (26)Jantel Lavender (11)Lavender, Parker, Toliver (3) US Airways Center
11,237		9–17
27August 23@ San Antonio W 90–59 Jantel Lavender (22)Candace Parker (12)Candace Parker (9)Freeman Coliseum
3,972		10–17
28August 26@ Indiana W 81–79 Ana Dabović (18)Candace Parker (10)Candace Parker (9) Bankers Life Fieldhouse
6,822		11–17
29August 28@ Tulsa L 66–76 Candace Parker (24)Candace Parker (11) Johnson, Parker, Toliver (4) BOK Center
4,776		11–18
30August 30San Antonio W 60–52 Jantel Lavender (24)Candace Parker (11)Ana Dabović (6)Staples Center
19,076		12–18
September : 2–2 (Home: 2–0; Road: 0–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
31September 3 Washington W 93–91 Candace Parker (26)Candace Parker (11)Candace Parker (6) Staples Center
7,223		13–18
32September 6 Tulsa W 92–73 Candace Parker (33) Lavender, Ogwumike (9) Kristi Toliver (6)Staples Center
10,114		14–18
33September 9@ Atlanta L 60–90 Jantel Lavender (14) Abdi, Lavender (6) Ana Dabović (8) Philips Arena
3,856		14–19
34September 11@ Phoenix L 65–70 Jennifer Hamson (12)Jennfier Hamson (7)Ana Dabović (7) US Airways Center
12,296		14–20
2015 season schedule

Playoffs

2015 playoff game log
Conference Semifinals vs.Minnesota Lynx
Lost Series: 1–2
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1September 18@ Minnesota L 65–67 Candace Parker (16)Candace Parker (9)Candace Parker (4) Target Center
8,333		0–1
2September 20Minnesota W 81–71 Candace Parker (25)Candace Parker (10) Ana Dabović (7) Walter Pyramid
3,112		1–1
3September 22@ Minnesota L 80–91 Candace Parker (28)Candace Parker (13) Ogwumike, Parker (4)Target Center
9,014		1–2
2015 playoff schedule

Standings

Western Conference
W L PCT GB Home Road Conf.
z - Minnesota Lynx 2212.647–13–49–816–6
x - Phoenix Mercury 2014.588213–47–1015–7
x - Tulsa Shock 1816.529412–56–1111–11
x - Los Angeles Sparks 1420.41289–85–1210–12
e - Seattle Storm 1024.294128–92–158–14
e - San Antonio Stars 826.235147–101–166–16

Playoffs

Conference semifinals
Best-of-3 		Conference finals
Best-of-3 		WNBA Finals
Best-of-5
         
E1 New York 2
E4 Washington 1
E1 New York 1
Eastern Conference
E3 Indiana 2
E2 Chicago 1
E3 Indiana 2
E3 Indiana 2
W1 Minnesota 3
W1 Minnesota 2
W4 Los Angeles 1
W1 Minnesota 2
Western Conference
W2 Phoenix 0
W2 Phoenix 2
W3 Tulsa 0

Statistics

Legend
  GPGames played  GS Games started MPG Minutes per game RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game SPG  Steals per game BPG  Blocks per game PPG Points per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage 3P%  3-point field-goal percentage FT%  Free-throw percentage TO  Turnovers per game
 PF  Fouls per gameTeam leaderLeague leader

Source: [6]

Regular season

PlayerGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
Candace Parker 161634.448.9%27.9%81.5%10.16.31.91.819.4
Jantel Lavender 343433.852.5%33.3%88.2%8.31.80.41.214.5
Nneka Ogwumike 242332.752.5%8.3%86.6%7.02.11.00.515.8
Kristi Toliver 282830.944.9%38.4%90.3%2.33.70.80.012.4
Erin Phillips 121230.928.6%26.7%85.0%3.03.10.90.26.8
Alana Beard 151124.349.0%18.2%90.0%2.92.51.10.57.3
Ana Dabović 24822.144.6%33.3%80.8%1.61.90.90.08.8
Jennifer Lacy 8422.040.9%29.6%—2.90.60.30.15.5
Temeka Johnson 341121.232.3%24.6%84.1%2.43.60.7—5.1
Marianna Tolo 281419.046.2%0.0%80.6%3.01.00.31.04.9
Andrea Hoover 12114.331.9%28.6%100.0%1.30.30.20.13.8
Farhiya Abdi 18513.235.4%27.3%57.1%1.70.50.40.13.8
Michelle Snow 2013.042.9%—0.0%1.5——0.53.0
Crystal Bradford 1519.527.8%23.1%71.4%1.30.50.40.12.7
Jasmine Lister 709.353.3%80.0%—1.30.60.3—2.9
Jennifer Hamson 2526.555.2%—27.6%1.50.20.20.51.6
Courtney Clements 2515.00.0%0.0%—1.0————

Playoffs

PlayerGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
Candace Parker 3338.341.8%38.9%84.2%10.74.72.31.323.0
Alana Beard 3335.033.3%0.0%75.0%4.31.71.70.76.3
Jantel Lavender 3334.357.7%100.0%60.0%6.71.00.70.311.3
Nneka Ogwumike 3330.760.0%—83.3%4.32.01.00.311.7
Kristi Toliver 3329.736.7%38.5%75.0%1.73.01.0—10.0
Ana Dabović 3019.750.0%71.4%71.4%1.73.70.3—11.7
Temeka Johnson 3012.325.0%0.0%0.0%2.01.70.7—1.3

Awards and honors

RecipientAwardDate awardedRef.
Jantel Lavender All-Star Injury Replacement July 5 [8]
Nneka Ogwumike Western Conference Player of the Week July 5 [9]
WNBA All-Defensive First Team September 27 [10]
Candace Parker Western Conference Player of the Week August 24 [11]
September 8 [12]
Western Conference Player of the Month – August September 3 [13]
All-WNBA Second Team October 8 [14]
Ana Dabović WNBA All-Rookie Team September 24 [15]

References

  1. ↑ "2015 Los Angeles Sparks Schedule". WNBA . Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  2. ↑ "Sparks Sign Two–Time WNBA Champion Erin Phillips". Los Angeles Sparks. February 11, 2015. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Veteran Alana Beard re-signs with Los Angeles Sparks". USA Today .
  4. ↑ "LA Sparks re-sign center Jantel Lavender". USA Today.
  5. ↑ Lee, Albert (March 23, 2015). "Temeka Johnson signs with the Los Angeles Sparks". swishappeal.com. SB Nation . Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  6. 1 2 "2015 Los Angeles Sparks Stats". basketball-reference.com. Sports Reference . Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Los Angeles Sparks Roster 2015". basketball.usbasket.com. USBasket . Retrieved June 23, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Tulsa's Williams, San Antonio's McBride, And Los Angeles' Lavender Named Injury Replacements For Boost Mobile WNBA All-Star 2015". WNBA. July 23, 2015. Retrieved July 5, 2025.
  9. ↑ "SPARKS FORWARD NNEKA OGWUMIKE NAMED WNBA PLAYER OF THE WEEK". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. July 6, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Mercury's Brittney Griner headlines 2015 WNBA All-Defensive Team". NBA PR. September 27, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Delle Donne, Parker Earn Player Of The Week Awards". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Sky's Courtney Vandersloot, Sparks' Candace Parker named WNBA Players of the Week". pr.nba.com. NBA. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Liberty's Prince, Sparks' Parker Named WNBA Players Of The Month Presented By Samsung". WNBA. September 3, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2025.
  14. ↑ "WNBA MVP Elena Delle Donne Headlines 2015 All-WNBA First Team As Unanimous Pick". wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Storm's Jewell Loyd Headlines 2015 WNBA All-Rookie Team". storm.wnba.com. WNBA. September 24, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2025.
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