2017 Los Angeles Sparks season

Last updated

2017 Los Angeles Sparks season
Coach Brian Agler
Arena Staples Center
Attendance10,687 per game
Results
Record26–8 (.765)
Place2nd (Western)
Playoff finishLost WNBA Finals 3–2 (Minnesota)
Team Leaders
Points Nneka Ogwumike 18.8 ppg
Rebounds Candace Parker 8.4 rpg
Assists Chelsea Gray 4.4 apg
Media
Television Spectrum SportsNet
ESPN2, NBATV

The 2017 WNBA season was the 21st season for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association. The Sparks were the defending WNBA champions. The season tipped off on May 13.

Contents

The Sparks started the season winning two games, losing two games and then winning two more games. This stretch was followed by a loss to Dallas before the Sparks won eight straight games. Their winning streak was ended as they lost a Finals re-match with Minnesota. They lost the following game to Seattle before winning five of their next six games. They started August slowly, going 2–2 in their first four games of the month, but finished the month on a five game winning streak. The Sparks only had two regular season games in September, and they won them both. They finished the regular season with a 26–8 record, and secured the second seed in the 2017 WNBA Playoffs, finishing one game out of the first seed.

As the second seed in the playoffs, the Sparks earned a bye into the Semifinals. There, they faced-off against the Phoenix Mercury. Los Angeles had won the regular season series between the two teams 3–0 and won the playoff series by the same result. The closest game was Game 3, which Los Angeles won 89–87 to complete the sweep. The victory setup a finals re-match with Minnesota. The Sparks won the first and third games of the finals, but could not finish off the Lynx and lost the Finals 2 games to 3. The closest game was Game 1, which Los Angeles won by a single point. Minnesota won the final two games of the series by eleven points and nine points.

WNBA draft

RoundPickPlayerNationalitySchool/Team/Country
111 Sydney Wiese Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States Oregon State
335 Saicha Grant-Allen Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Dayton

Trades and Roster Changes

DateTransaction
February 8, 2017 Alana Beard resigned with Los Angeles Sparks [1]
July 28, 2017Signed Sandrine Gruda [1]

Roster

2017 Los Angeles Sparks roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.Nat.NameHeightWeightDOBFromYrs
G/F 0 Flag of the United States.svg Beard, Alana 5' 11" (1.8m)160 lb (73kg)1982-05-14 Duke 11
G 1 Flag of the United States.svg Sims, Odyssey 5' 8" (1.73m)160 lb (73kg)1992-07-13 Baylor 3
G 2 Flag of the United States.svg Williams, Riquna 5' 7" (1.7m)154 lb (70kg)1990-05-28 Miami (FL) 4
F 3 Flag of the United States.svg Parker, Candace 6' 4" (1.93m)175 lb (79kg)1986-04-19 Tennessee 9
C 7 Flag of France.svg Gruda, Sandrine 6' 4" (1.93m)185 lb (84kg)1987-06-25 France 5
G 12 Flag of the United States.svg Gray, Chelsea 5' 11" (1.8m)170 lb (77kg)1992-10-08 Duke 2
F 17 Flag of the United States.svg Carson, Essence 6' 0" (1.83m)163 lb (74kg)1986-07-28 Rutgers 9
G 24 Flag of the United States.svg Wiese, Sydney 6' 0" (1.83m)1995-06-16 Oregon State R
F/C 26 Flag of Senegal.svg Diarra, Maimouna 6' 6" (1.98m)1991-01-30 Senegal R
F/C 30 Flag of the United States.svg Ogwumike, Nneka 6' 2" (1.88m)174 lb (79kg)1990-07-02 Stanford 5
F 33 Flag of the United States.svg Jackson, Tiffany 6' 3" (1.91m)185 lb (84kg)1985-04-26 Texas 8
C 42 Flag of the United States.svg Lavender, Jantel 6' 4" (1.93m)185 lb (84kg)1988-11-12 Ohio State 6
Head coach
Flag of the United States.svg Brian Agler (Wittenberg)
Assistant coaches
Flag of the United States.svg Tonya Edwards (Tennessee)
Flag of the United States.svg Bobbie Kelsey (Stanford)
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

2017 pre-season game log
May: 1–2 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
1May 2 New York L 65-81 Samuelson (9) Wiese (6)Tied (2) Mohegan Sun Arena
2,782		0-1
2May 3 Connecticut L 62-79 Sims (12) Warley-Talbert (11) Sims (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
2,809		0-2
3May 6 San Antonio W 73-59 Ruef (18) Ruef (7) Gray (5) Pasadena College
1,000		1-2
2017 pre-season schedule

Regular season

2017 game log
Total: 26–8 (Home: 16–1; Road: 10–7)
May: 3–2 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
1May 13 Seattle W 78-68 Ogwumike (23) Jackson (8) Gray (8) Staples Center
10,603		1-0
2May 19 Washington W 99-89 Ogwumike (23) Parker (8) Parker (5) Staples Center
12,127		2-0
3May 24 Indiana L 90-93 Ogwumike (24) Parker (12) Parker (6) Bankers Life Fieldhouse
5,875		2-1
4May 27 Atlanta L 73-75 Gray (25) Ogwumike (7) Parker (6) McCamish Pavilion
4,253		2-2
5May 30 New York W 90-75 Ogwumike (22) Parker (11) Gray (6) Madison Square Garden
8,108		3-2
June : 8–1 (Home: 4–0; Road: 4–1)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
6June 6 Chicago W 79-70 Ogwumike (20) Ogwumike (11) Gray (5) Staples Center
8,523		4-2
7June 9 Dallas L 90-96 Ogwumike (28) Ogwumike (13) Sims (5) College Park Center
3,169		4-3
8June 10 Phoenix W 89-87 Gray (24)Tied (5) Gray (8) Talking Stick Resort Arena
10,223		5-3
9June 13 Dallas W 97-87 Gray (24) Parker (7)Tied (5) Staples Center
7,233		6-3
10June 15 San Antonio W 80-75 Parker (20) Ogwumike (9) Parker (4) Staples Center
9,104		7-3
11June 18 Phoenix W 90-57 Ogwumike (18) Parker (8) Parker (6) Staples Center
9,916		8-3
12June 24 Indiana W 84-73 Ogwumike (21) Parker (13) Parker (7) Bankers Life Fieldhouse
9,241		9-3
13June 27 Connecticut W 87-79 Ogwumike (21) Ogwumike (9) Gray (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
6,899		10-3
14June 30 Atlanta W 85-76 Parker (21) Parker (13) Parker (5) McCamish Pavilion
4,119		11-3
July : 6–3 (Home: 5–1; Road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
15July 2 Washington W 76-69 Tied 17 Parker (11) Parker (4) Staples Center
9,185		12-3
16July 6 Minnesota L 77-88 Ogwumike (27) Ogwumike (14) Ogwumike (5) Xcel Energy Center
9,821		12-4
17July 8 Seattle L 69-81 Ogwumike (21) Ogwumike (9) Gray (6) KeyArena
7,104		1125
18July 13 Connecticut W 87-77 Ogwumike (29) Ogwumike (11) Parker (6) Staples Center
9,918		13-5
19July 17 Indiana W 80-62 Gray (16) Ogwumike (12) Ogwumike (6) Staples Center
11,386		14-5
20July 20 Chicago L 80-82 Ogwumike (24) Ogwumike (10) Gray (6) Staples Center
16,166		14-6
21July 25 Seattle W 68-60 Parker (17)Tied (10) Gray (5) Staples Center
10,012		15-6
22July 28 San Antonio W 85-73 Sims (22) Parker (17) Parker (11) AT&T Center
5,777		16-6
23July 30 Dallas W 95-74 Parker (23) Parker (10)Tied (8) Staples Center
11,053		17-6
August : 4–2 (Home: 1–0; Road: 3–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
24August 4 New York W 87-84 Parker (24) Gray (7) Parker (6) Staples Center
11,617		18-6
25August 6 Dallas L 79-85 Tied (21) Parker (9) Gray (4) College Park Center
3,903		18-7
26August 11 Minnesota W 70-64 Gray (23) Parker (10) Sims (5) Xcel Energy Center
11,533		19-7
27August 13 New York L 69-83 Sims (18) Parker (7) Sims (5) Madison Square Garden
10,083		19-8
28August 16 Washington W 95-62 Parker (21) Parker (7) Sims (7) Capital One Arena
7,279		20-8
29August 18 Chicago W 115-106 Ogwumike (32) Parker (12)Tied (10) Allstate Arena
6,826		21-8
30August 22 San Antonio W 75-55 Ogwumike (22) Ogwumike (14) Parker (6) Staples Center
12,433		22-8
31August 24 Phoenix W 82-67 Sims (28) Ogwumike (10) Sims (8) Talking Stick Resort Arena
9,890		23-8
32August 27 Minnesota W 78-67 Parker (24) Parker (10) Gray (5) Staples Center
19,282		24-8
September : 2–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 0–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Record
33September 1 Atlanta W 81-56 Parker (18) Ogwumike (6) Sims (7) Staples Center
12,163		25-8
34September 3 Connecticut W 81-70 Ogwumike (21) Parker (14) Gray (7) Staples Center
12,236		26-8
2017 season schedule

Playoffs

2017 playoff game log
Total: 5–3 (Home: 3–1; Road: 2–2)
WNBA Semifinals: 3–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–0)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1September 12 Phoenix W 79–66 Ogwumike (19) Ogwumike (9) Gray (6) Staples Center
7,963		1–0
2September 14 Phoenix W 86–72 Parker (24) Parker (13)Tied (6) Walter Pyramid
4,023		2–0
3September 17 Phoenix W 89–87 Sims (22) Ogwumike (12) Parker (11) Talking Stick Resort Arena
12,043		3–0
WNBA Finals: 2–3 (Home: 1–1; Road: 1–2)
GameDateTeamScoreHigh pointsHigh reboundsHigh assistsLocation
Attendance		Series
1September 24 Minnesota W 85–84 Gray (27) Parker (11) Gray (6) Williams Arena
11,823		1–0
2September 26 Minnesota L 70–68 Parker (17) Ogwumike (13) Parker (6) Williams Arena
11,434		1–1
3September 29 Minnesota W 75–64 Tied (16) Ogwumike (10) Gray (7) Staples Center
13,500		2–1
4October 1 Minnesota L 69–80 Ogwumike (17)Tied (8) Gray (9) Staples Center
13,500		2–2
5October 4 Minnesota L 76-85 Parker (19) Parker (15) Gray (8) Williams Arena
14,632		2-3
2017 playoff schedule

Standings

# Western Conference
W L PCT GB Home Road Conf.
1 Minnesota Lynx - (1)277.794–15–212–513–3
2 Los Angeles Sparks - (2)268.765116–110–712–4
3 Phoenix Mercury - (5)1816.52999–89–87–9
4 Dallas Wings - (7)1618.4711110–76–117–9
5 Seattle Storm - (8)1519.4411210–75–128–8
6 San Antonio Stars - e826.235196–112–151–15

Playoffs

First round:
Single elimination
(Sept. 6)		Second round:
Single elimination
(Sept. 10)		Semifinals:
Best-of-five
(Sept. 12 – Sept. 17)		 WNBA Finals:
Best-of-five
(Sept. 24 – Oct. 4)
2 Los Angeles Sparks 798689
4 Connecticut Sun 835 Phoenix Mercury 667287
5 Phoenix Mercury 795 Phoenix Mercury 881 Minnesota Lynx 8470648085
8 Seattle Storm 692 Los Angeles Sparks 8568756976
1 Minnesota Lynx 1019381
3 New York Liberty 686 Washington Mystics 818370
6 Washington Mystics 866 Washington Mystics 82
7 Dallas Wings 76

Note: Teams re-seeded after second round and semi-finals.

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

Regular season

PlayerGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
Nneka Ogwumike 343430.956.1%34.0%87.0%7.72.11.90.518.8
Candace Parker 333330.547.8%35.4%75.6%8.44.31.51.716.9
Chelsea Gray 343433.150.7%48.2%82.7%3.34.41.10.214.8
Odyssey Sims 311424.344.7%19.0%88.6%1.93.51.50.29.6
Jantel Lavender 32017.348.8%31.3%84.6%3.00.90.30.27.3
Alana Beard 343430.849.7%31.6%80.4%3.32.22.10.56.9
Riquna Williams 23617.732.1%27.0%86.4%1.40.70.80.16.4
Essence Carson 241419.340.4%25.0%48.5%1.71.20.60.34.8
Sydney Wiese 2807.938.3%40.0%50.0%0.80.30.20.12.3
Tiffany Jackson 2615.746.2%0.0%62.5%1.20.10.10.11.1
Sandrine Gruda 704.036.4%——0.60.00.00.01.1
Ify Ibekwe 603.811.1%0.0%66.7%0.80.00.20.01.0
Maimouna Diarra 1002.020.0%—50.0%1.10.10.20.00.3


Awards and honors

RecipientAwardDate awardedRef.
Candace Parker Player of the WeekJune 19, 2017 [2]
Brian Agler Coach of the Month - JuneJuly 5, 2017 [3]
Candace Parker Player of the WeekJuly 31, 2017 [4]
Candace Parker Player of the WeekAugust 28, 2017 [5]
Candace Parker Player of the MonthAugust 2017 [6]
Alana Beard WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award September 12, 2017 [7]

References

  1. 1 2 "Transactions".
  2. ↑ "Connecticut's Jones and Los Angeles' Parker Named WNBA Players of the Week". wnba.com. WNBA. June 19, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Los Angeles' Brian Agler Named WNBA Coach of the Month". wnba.com. WNBA. July 5, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  4. ↑ "Candace Parker, Tina Charles Named WNBA Players of the Week". wnba.com. WNBA. July 31, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  5. ↑ "New York's Charles, Los Angeles' Parker Named WNBA Players of the Week". wnba.com. WNBA. August 28, 2017. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  6. ↑ "New York's Charles, Los Angeles' Parker Named WNBA Players of the Month". wnba.com. WNBA. September 6, 2017. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  7. ↑ "Los Angeles' Alana Beard Named 2017 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year". wnba.com. WNBA. September 12, 2017. Retrieved October 5, 2017.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.