DHJ Quick Take: Wings Bring the WNBA’s Best Offense to a Reeling Sparks Defense
The Dallas Wings (6-3) carry a three-game winning streak and the WNBA’s most efficient offense into Friday’s Commissioner’s Cup game at the Los Angeles Sparks (4-5), who rank last in the league in defensive rating.
- Strength on Weakness: Dallas’s top-ranked offense (111.3) faces the Sparks’ last-ranked defense (112.8).
- Tempo Battle: The deliberate, ball-moving Wings meet a Sparks team that wants to push the pace. Frontcourt Test: Jessica Shepard and a thinned Dallas frontcourt face Nneka Ogwumike and Dearica Hamby.
- Injury Picture: Awak Kuier and Li Yueru are both out for Dallas; Kelsey Plum returns for Los Angeles, with Rae Burrell (ankle) planning to play.
LOS ANGELES — The Dallas Wings (6-3) visit the Los Angeles Sparks (4-5) on Friday in a Commissioner’s Cup matchup at Crypto.com Arena. Dallas has won three straight, and a victory would extend the streak to four, its longest since the 2023 regular season.
The Wings are also chasing their first regular-season road win over the Sparks since May 26, 2024, with Los Angeles having taken seven of the last 10 meetings.
The most recent meeting at Crypto.com Arena produced one of last season’s signature performances. On Aug. 20, 2025, Paige Bueckers set a WNBA single-game rookie scoring record with 44 points on 17-of-21 shooting, but the Sparks won 81-80 on a Kelsey Plum buzzer-beater. Both are in the lineup Friday, with Plum back from an ankle injury.
Dallas comes in off a 79-56 win over Seattle on Monday in its Commissioner’s Cup opener, a 23-point victory before a sellout crowd at College Park Center. The Wings held the Storm to a season-low 56 points, the lowest single-game total in the WNBA this season, with Aziaha James scoring a season-high 18 points. The streak also includes a 95-87 win over Las Vegas on May 28 and a 91-76 win at New York on May 24.
“I think honestly we found our momentum. We kind of found where we want to be at,” Wings guard Odyssey Sims said. “We’re still slowly but surely finding our identity, but we’re on a three-game winning streak.”
Head coach Jose Fernandez credited better shot-making and improved defense for the run.
“It helps when the ball goes in the basket and we’re defending a lot better,” Fernandez said. “Making sure that great shots are taken, because bad ones lead to bad transition defense.”
He said the Wings have shown they can win without a clean shooting night.
“Last game we didn’t shoot the ball particularly well, but we did rebound, we did take care of it, and we did defend,” Fernandez said. “So when you can do that on nights that the ball doesn’t go in the basket, that’s what needs to be done.”
Los Angeles dropped its last outing, falling 79-69 at home to Las Vegas on Tuesday, with Rae Burrell leading the way at 22 points. Head coach Lynne Roberts is in her second season with the Sparks.
The Statistical Matchup
The numbers frame a lopsided contrast. Dallas ranks first in the WNBA in offensive rating at 111.3 and fourth in defensive rating at 103.2, giving it the league’s second-best net rating at plus-8.0. The Sparks rank eighth in offensive rating at 107.9 but last in defensive rating at 112.8, resulting in a minus-4.9 rating.
The Wings have built their offense on ball movement rather than tempo, leading the league in assist ratio at 19.9, ranking second in assist rate at 71.8% and posting the second-lowest turnover rate at 14.8%. They do it at a deliberate pace of 94.73 possessions per 48 minutes, among the slowest in the league.
Los Angeles plays faster at 97.67, setting up a tempo battle: the Sparks want to run, while Dallas prefers to grind out efficient half-court possessions.
The Frontcourt Battle
The matchup inside is the headliner. Jessica Shepard, the reigning WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week, anchors a Dallas frontcourt that will be tested by the Sparks’ veteran bigs. Shepard outlined the challenge.
“Nneka has been one of the best players in the league for a very long time. And then Dearica is playing at an amazing level since going to LA,” Shepard said. “I think it’s their physicality and their ability to score at all three levels as post players.”
Head coach Jose Fernandez said containing that interior presence is the top priority.
“I think interiorly we have to do a really great job defending their post presence, number one,” Fernandez said.
The complication for Dallas is depth. Forward Awak Kuier (right wrist) and center Li Yueru (left ankle) are both out, leaving more of the interior load on Shepard.
The Perimeter and the Los Angeles Sparks’ Half-Court Offense
On the wings, Dallas’s ball movement runs into a Sparks group built on veteran defenders. Bueckers said the Sparks execute at a high level on offense.
“We talked about on the scout how they’re the most efficient half-court offense. They really execute their sets,” Bueckers said. “They change sides of the floor.”
She said the offseason additions raised the team’s floor.
“They brought in Ariel Atkins, who’s a great perimeter defender. Erica Wheeler is a great perimeter defender and a veteran with a lot of experience. And then obviously one of the greatest players ever in Nneka,” Bueckers said. “It’s definitely a different team than last year.”
Arike Ogunbowale said the Sparks’ veterans give them a dependable identity.
“They just have threats from all angles, and they know their role,” Ogunbowale said. “Erica and Ariel, they’ve been doing consistently the same thing every year. Good basketball IQ. Obviously Nneka, a very efficient player.”
Shepard cautioned that the Sparks can hurt teams in several ways.
“LA is a very talented team. They like to score in the paint. They have guards that can go off on any night, and they also have great post players,” Shepard said.
Burrell looms as a particular concern after her career-high 22 points on Tuesday. Fernandez, who has crossed paths with her through USA Basketball, laid out the defensive plan.
“I like Rae a lot,” Fernandez said. “I think she’s very dangerous in the open floor. She can get downhill. She plays with a lot of passion, a lot of energy. So we’ve got to keep her in front of us, make sure we run her off the arc, and do a great job keeping her off the glass.”
Aziaha James and Azzi Fudd Provide a Spark
Fernandez has leaned on his younger guards during the streak. James, who scored a season-high 18 points off the bench against Seattle, has earned that trust.
“I think defensively she’s really, really improved,” Fernandez said of James. “She’s a huge addition when she can come off the bench and give us a huge spark on both ends of the floor.”
He pointed to Azzi Fudd, the No. 1 pick in the 2026 WNBA Draft, as a focal point now that she has moved into the starting lineup.
“She was a number one pick and we took her for a reason, and it’s great that now as she’s increased her minutes, she’s a starter,” Fernandez said. “We look forward to continuing to find her in open space and in transition and getting her the basketball, because we’re going to need her to continue to do what she’s been doing.”
Injuries on Both Sides
Dallas is down two bigs, with both Kuier and Yueru ruled out. The Sparks, by contrast, get a boost: leading scorer Kelsey Plum, who had been nursing an ankle injury, returns to the lineup. Burrell’s status is unclear heading into the game after turning her ankle in the final seconds of Tuesday’s loss, but she said she intends to play after Thursday’s practice.
Sims said Dallas will not adjust its focus based on who is available.
“Regardless of who’s playing and who’s not, just making sure we don’t overlook who is and who’s not,” Sims said. “Continue to play Wings basketball.”
Keys for Dallas Wings
The Wings’ formula starts with their identity on both ends. Sims said the group is at its best moving the ball and getting out in transition.
“I don’t think we need to change anything. Continue to do what we’ve been doing, get out and run,” Sims said. “Obviously, we’re the best when we’re out in transition.”
Fudd said slowing a high-efficiency Sparks attack starts with collective defense.
“We know their offensive efficiency is incredibly high, so making sure that we’re limiting them and making things as difficult as possible,” Fudd said. “Playing team defense, clogging the paint.”
Bueckers pointed to the defensive end and the glass as the difference-makers.
“Playing aggressive on both sides of the floor, continuing to rebound together as a group, pushing the pace, and hopefully making more shots than we did last game,” Bueckers said.
How to Watch
The Wings visit the Sparks on Friday at Crypto.com Arena with tip-off set for 9 p.m. CT. The game airs nationally on ION.
More Wings Coverage on Dallas Hoops Journal
- Dallas Wings Release Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu From Developmental Contract
- Dallas Wings’ Jessica Shepard Named WNBA Western Conference Player Of The Week
- ‘She Was Aggressive’: Aziaha James Scores Season-High 18 Points In Dallas Wings’ Rout Of Seattle Storm
- ‘Not A Pretty Basketball Game’: Dallas Wings Grind Out 79-56 Win Over Seattle Storm For Best Start Since 2016 Move To Texas
- Dallas Wings’ Awak Kuier To Be Evaluated In One Week With Wrist Injury
- ‘Communication Solves A Lot Of Problems’: Elite On Offense, The Dallas Wings’ Next Step Is Defense
- ‘Another Angle Of Attack’: Dallas Wings’ Elite Offense Keeps Adding Layers With Jessica Shepard As An Initiator
