| 2017 Los Angeles Sparks season | |
|---|---|
| Coach | Brian Agler |
| Arena | Staples Center |
| Attendance | 10,687 per game |
| Results | |
| Record | 26–8 (.765) |
| Place | 2nd (Western) |
| Playoff finish | Lost 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.
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.
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | School/Team/Country |
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| 1 | 11 | Sydney Wiese |  United States | Oregon State |
| 3 | 35 | Saicha Grant-Allen |  Canada | Dayton |
| 2017 Los Angeles Sparks roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 2017 pre-season game log | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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May: 1–2 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–2)
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| 2017 pre-season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 game log Total: 26–8 (Home: 16–1; Road: 10–7) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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May: 3–2 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–2)
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June : 8–1 (Home: 4–0; Road: 4–1)
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July : 6–3 (Home: 5–1; Road: 1–2)
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August : 4–2 (Home: 1–0; Road: 3–2)
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September : 2–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 0–0)
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| 2017 season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 playoff game log Total: 5–3 (Home: 3–1; Road: 2–2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WNBA Semifinals: 3–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–0)
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WNBA Finals: 2–3 (Home: 1–1; Road: 1–2)
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| 2017 playoff schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| # | Western Conference | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Conf. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minnesota Lynx - (1) | 27 | 7 | .794 | – | 15–2 | 12–5 | 13–3 |
| 2 | Los Angeles Sparks - (2) | 26 | 8 | .765 | 1 | 16–1 | 10–7 | 12–4 |
| 3 | Phoenix Mercury - (5) | 18 | 16 | .529 | 9 | 9–8 | 9–8 | 7–9 |
| 4 | Dallas Wings - (7) | 16 | 18 | .471 | 11 | 10–7 | 6–11 | 7–9 |
| 5 | Seattle Storm - (8) | 15 | 19 | .441 | 12 | 10–7 | 5–12 | 8–8 |
| 6 | San Antonio Stars - e | 8 | 26 | .235 | 19 | 6–11 | 2–15 | 1–15 |
| 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 | 79 | 86 | 89 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Connecticut Sun | 83 | 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 66 | 72 | 87 | |||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 79 | 5 | Phoenix Mercury | 88 | 1 | Minnesota Lynx | 84 | 70 | 64 | 80 | 85 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Seattle Storm | 69 | 2 | Los Angeles Sparks | 85 | 68 | 75 | 69 | 76 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 | Minnesota Lynx | 101 | 93 | 81 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | New York Liberty | 68 | 6 | Washington Mystics | 81 | 83 | 70 | |||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Washington Mystics | 86 | 6 | Washington Mystics | 82 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Dallas Wings | 76 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Note: Teams re-seeded after second round and semi-finals.
| Legend | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games 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 game | Team leader | League leader | ||||
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nneka Ogwumike | 34 | 34 | 30.9 | 56.1% | 34.0% | 87.0% | 7.7 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 18.8 |
| Candace Parker | 33 | 33 | 30.5 | 47.8% | 35.4% | 75.6% | 8.4 | 4.3 | 1.5 | 1.7 | 16.9 |
| Chelsea Gray | 34 | 34 | 33.1 | 50.7% | 48.2% | 82.7% | 3.3 | 4.4 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 14.8 |
| Odyssey Sims | 31 | 14 | 24.3 | 44.7% | 19.0% | 88.6% | 1.9 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 0.2 | 9.6 |
| Jantel Lavender | 32 | 0 | 17.3 | 48.8% | 31.3% | 84.6% | 3.0 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 7.3 |
| Alana Beard | 34 | 34 | 30.8 | 49.7% | 31.6% | 80.4% | 3.3 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 0.5 | 6.9 |
| Riquna Williams | 23 | 6 | 17.7 | 32.1% | 27.0% | 86.4% | 1.4 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 6.4 |
| Essence Carson | 24 | 14 | 19.3 | 40.4% | 25.0% | 48.5% | 1.7 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 4.8 |
| Sydney Wiese | 28 | 0 | 7.9 | 38.3% | 40.0% | 50.0% | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 2.3 |
| Tiffany Jackson | 26 | 1 | 5.7 | 46.2% | 0.0% | 62.5% | 1.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.1 |
| Sandrine Gruda | 7 | 0 | 4.0 | 36.4% | — | — | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.1 |
| Ify Ibekwe | 6 | 0 | 3.8 | 11.1% | 0.0% | 66.7% | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| Maimouna Diarra | 10 | 0 | 2.0 | 20.0% | — | 50.0% | 1.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| Recipient | Award | Date awarded | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Candice Parker | Player of the Week | June 19, 2017 | [2] |
| Brian Agler | Coach of the Month - June | July 5, 2017 | [3] |
| Candice Parker | Player of the Week | July 31, 2017 | [4] |
| Candice Parker | Player of the Week | August 28, 2017 | [5] |
| Candice Parker | Player of the Month | August 2017 | [6] |
| Alana Beard | WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award | September 12, 2017 | [7] |
The Los Angeles Sparks are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Sparks compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded before the league's inaugural 1997 season began. Like some other WNBA teams, the Sparks have the distinction of not being affiliated with an NBA counterpart, even though the market is shared with the Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Washington Mystics are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Mystics compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Eastern Conference. The team was founded prior to the 1998 season, and is owned by Ted Leonsis through Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which also owns the Mystics' NBA counterpart, the Washington Wizards. The team plays in the Entertainment and Sports Arena in the Congress Heights neighborhood of Washington DC. Sheila C. Johnson, co-founder of BET and ex-wife of Charlotte Sting owner Robert L. Johnson, is the managing partner.
Alana Monique Beard is an American former professional basketball player. After playing college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils, she was drafted second overall by the Washington Mystics in the 2004 WNBA draft. She signed on with the Los Angeles Sparks as a free agent in 2012. Beard was the 2017 and 2018 WNBA Defensive Player of the Year. However, she was injured next season, only contributing a few points for the Sparks. Beard announced her retirement from the WNBA on January 23, 2020.
Candace Nicole Parker nicknamed "Ace", is an American former professional basketball player. Widely regarded as one of the greatest WNBA players of all time, she was selected as the first overall pick in the 2008 WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks. She spent 13 seasons on the Sparks, two seasons with the Chicago Sky, and one season with the Las Vegas Aces, winning a championship with each team.
The 2008 WNBA season was the 12th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. It was the first WNBA season with a franchise in Atlanta as the Dream were announced in late 2007.
Nnemkadi Chinwe Victoria "Nneka" Ogwumike is an American professional basketball player for the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), after being drafted No. 1 overall in the 2012 WNBA draft. Soon after being drafted, Ogwumike signed an endorsement deal with Nike. She is the older sister of Chiney Ogwumike, who most recently played for the Sparks. Ogwumike was named WNBA MVP for the 2016 WNBA season and won the WNBA Finals the same year She was named to The W25 the league's list of the top 25 players of its first 25 years, in 2021.
The 2013 WNBA season was the 17th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. The regular season began on May 24, and playoffs concluded on October 10. The Minnesota Lynx won their second league championship, defeating the Atlanta Dream three games to none in the 2013 WNBA Finals. The year represented a positive turning point for the long-struggling league. Both attendance and television viewership were up, driven by an influx of talented rookies, multiple teams reported that they were near a break-even point, and at least one franchise announced that it was profitable.
The 2016 WNBA season was the 20th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Its regular season began on May 14 when the Indiana Fever hosted the Dallas Wings and concluded on September 18, with a Seattle Storm defeat of the Chicago Sky.
The 2016 WNBA Finals was the best-of-five championship series for the 2016 season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The top-seeded Minnesota Lynx held home court advantage in the Finals, but lost three games to two to the second-seeded Los Angeles Sparks. The series followed a 2–2–1 format, and eschewed from the previous tradition of having the Western Conference champion face the Eastern Conference champion. Instead, in the 2016 season, the top eight teams qualified for the playoffs, regardless of conference. Both WNBA Finals teams were from the Western Conference. The Sparks won a semifinal series against the Chicago Sky to determine one of the Finals berths; the first-seeded Lynx defeated the Phoenix Mercury to earn the other. Candace Parker was named the 2016 WNBA Finals MVP. Renee Brown, outgoing Chief of Basketball Operations and Player Relations of the WNBA, issued statements following games 4 and 5 saying the referees had made an error in each game. Nevertheless, the Sparks won the series 3 games to 2.
The 2017 WNBA season of the Minnesota Lynx is their 19th season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Lynx finished the 2016 season with a record of 28–6, finishing first in the Western Conference and qualifying for the playoffs, before ultimately beating Los Angeles in the WNBA Finals to win their league-tying best fourth championship.
The 2018 WNBA season of the Minnesota Lynx was their 20th season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Lynx finished the 2017 season with a record of 27–7, finishing first in the Western Conference and qualifying for the playoffs, before ultimately beating Los Angeles in the WNBA Finals to win their league-tying best fourth championship.
The 2018 WNBA season was the 22nd season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Minnesota Lynx are the defending champions. The regular season began on May 18, with the Phoenix Mercury hosting the Dallas Wings. The season ended with the Seattle Storm defeating the Washington Mystics 3-0 in the WNBA Finals. This was the third championship for the Storm. Seattle's Breanna Stewart was named regular season and finals MVP.
The 2018 WNBA season is the 21st for the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association which began on May 20, 2018. The Mystics qualified for the WNBA Playoffs and reached the WNBA Finals for the first time in franchise history.
The 2018 WNBA season was the 22nd season for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association. The season tipped off on May 20.
The 2018 WNBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the WNBA's 2018 season. The Seattle Storm won the team's third WNBA title, sweeping the Washington Mystics 3–0 in the best-of-five WNBA Finals.
The 2019 WNBA season was the 23rd season for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association.
The 2019 WNBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the WNBA's 2019 season. The Washington Mystics won the team's first WNBA title in their 22-year franchise history.
The 2020 WNBA season was the 24th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Washington Mystics were the defending champions. Planned changes to the league's schedule included an increase from 34 to 36 regular season games for each team, the introduction of a mid-season Commissioner's Cup tournament, and more games broadcast on ESPN and ABC. This was the first season under a new Collective Bargaining Agreement between the league and the WNBA Players Association. However, on April 3, the season was indefinitely postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Under a plan approved on June 15, the league began a shortened 22-game regular season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, without fans present on July 25. A'ja Wilson of the Las Vegas Aces was named the league MVP. The Seattle Storm won the 2020 WNBA Finals over the Aces, and Breanna Stewart was named the Finals MVP.
The 2020 WNBA season was the 24th season for the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association. The season will tip off on July 25, 2020, versus the Phoenix Mercury.
The 2023 Las Vegas Aces season was the franchise's 27th season in the Women's National Basketball Association and the sixth year the franchise is based in Las Vegas - after relocating from San Antonio and Utah. This was also the second season under head coach Becky Hammon. They were the defending WNBA champions, after defeating the Connecticut Sun in the 2022 WNBA Finals.
