The 'Ball-Knowers' WNBA Watch Guide & Thursday Recap: Weekend of August 22 - August 25

As the WNBA regular season prepares to make way for the playoffs, we at No Cap Space WBB wanted to do something for the fans that just can’t get enough. On Friday mornings here and on YouTube, we’ll have a recap of Thursday’s game action as well as the Watch Guide in video and podcast form. Now, you’ll get the best of every world: A week recap/weekend preview on Friday, a weekend recap/week preview on Monday and the biggest topics in the game on Wednesdays for Ball Up Top. Today we’re discussing Angel Reese’s impact now that she’s fully healthy for Chicago, the Aces complete turnaround and where Phoenix goes from here. After the review, we look at the week ahead. The Watch Guide remains the same, giving you even deeper dives on what to watch for as the standings get tighter and the stakes higher. We’ve gotten some requests recently about additional donations for the NCS crew. If you don’t want to do a full subscription but want to support our work in any capacity, we are also opening up donations via Venmo as well. For those that have asked, we can’t tell you how much we appreciate and rest assured it is going back into the company to provide you with the best WBB coverage you can find!Friday, August 15Minnesota Lynx (28-7) vs. Indiana Fever (19-16): 7:30 PM ET, IONWhy It’s Worth a Watch: Minnesota is on the final leg of a three game road trip that included New York and Atlanta (both losses). Oh, and it’s a back-to-back tonight against the Fever who are coming off five days rest. Tired legs vs. fresh legs. You do the math. Yet in spite of that disadvantage, I wouldn’t be shocked if the Lynx made this a game. Matchups like this are the difference between playoff contenders and champions. Meanwhile, Indiana is fighting for their postseason lives. A win here could get you closer to Phoenix and New York, but a loss brings you a bit too close to the 8th or even 9th seed. There’s your stakes. What to Watch For: Jessica Shepard had a phenomenal night against Brittney Griner and Bri Jones, pacing Minnesota with 15 points and 16 rebounds so I’m interested in her upcoming battle with Aliyah Boston. Courtney Williams will probably want a bounceback game after a 3-14 performance in the loss to Atlanta. For the Fever, I’m watching how Odyssey Sims plays given her ever increasing significance. They need to start fast because Minnesota won’t let them back into a game the way Connecticut did. Must Watch Score: 8.5/10Seattle Storm (18-18) vs. Dallas Wings (9-27): 7:30 PM ET, IONWhy It’s Worth a Watch: The Storm, like the Fever, are trying to stave off postseason elimination. With about eight or nine (depending on the team) games left in the regular season, every win counts. Seattle has just a half game lead on Los Angeles who don’t play again until next Tuesday. All the pressure is on them in this matchup as Dallas just plays for the end of the year. What to Watch For: Paige Bueckers went thermonuclear against L.A., setting multiple records en route to a 44 point performance, and I’m curious how she follows that up. Skylar Diggins and Brittney Sykes are much better defenders than Kelsey Plum and Julie Allemand, so how will Bueckers adjust? In light of her performance, will Chris Koclanes decide to empower her by running things through her more? There’s a lot of cool to follow there. Unfortunately, I have a feeling the Storm frontcourt is going to tear the Wings apart. To that end, Dominique Malonga may have herself a game. If we get big minutes from her, this game turns into a really fun future superstars showcase. Must Watch Score: 7.5/10Golden State Valkyries (18-17) vs. Phoenix Mercury (21-14): 10:00 PM ET, IONWhy It’s Worth a Watch: This game has some of the highest stakes of the weekend from a postseason positioning standpoint. The Mercury were run out of the gym on Thursday night against Las Vegas and now welcome in a Valkyries team that has the capability of doing the same. Golden State, for their part, wants to keep pace with Indiana and can draw level with them if the Fever lose to Minnesota. What to Watch For: The Mercury started to flow in the second quarter when they ran the offense a little less through Alyssa Thomas. The unintended consequence was Thomas looking visibly frustrated at times. I can attribute that to a fierce competitor who really wants to win but sometimes it feels like Kahleah Copper needs to be a bit more than a spot up shooter. How this big three of AT, Kah and Satou Sabally handle these big moments is important to understanding just how far they can this postseason. Must Watch Score: 9/10Saturday, August 16New York Liberty (22-14) vs. Atlanta Dream (23-13): 2:00 PM ET, CBSWhy It’s Worth a Watch: I think Phoenix is fading a bit so I’d argue that New York, Atlanta and Las Vegas are the three teams vying for that second seed. Right now, the Dream hold a half game lead on the Aces and a full game lead on the Liberty. You see where I’m going with this? One game can be the difference between 2nd and 4th. Every single game matters especially in the W’s playoff format. A top four seed has home court advantage for the Best-of-3 first round. If you’re Atlanta or New York and drop one too many, you might end up in a much harder do-or-die playoff situation if it comes to that. Plus, we get some amazing individual matchups. Game of the Season candidate if both teams play to their potential. What to Watch For: Sabrina Ionescu and Rhyne Howard feel very similar in that they can run hot and cold as shooters. When they’re on, the 2020 and 2021 number one picks are top 8 players in the league. When they’re off, it can look like Spice Adams shooting threes in open gym. If even one is cooking on Saturday, we’re in for a treat. Natasha Cloud vs. Allisha Gray is a great defensive stopper vs. dominant scorer matchup while the chess match between Sandy Brondello and Karl Smesko should be a blast for scheme scholars. Must Watch Score: 9.5/10Las Vegas Aces (23-14) vs. Washington Mystics (16-20): 3:00 PM ET, League PassWhy It’s Worth a Watch: The Mystics are on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoffs but that doesn’t mean they’re completely out. All it would take is a couple wins to be right back in the mix. The only tough part is they’re facing off against the hottest team in the WNBA right now. Could it get out of hand? Maybe. But there’s a cool narrative thread happening with these two teams. Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen bear some resemblance as players to Jackie Young and A’ja Wilson which gives us this cool young team vs. what-they-can-be story. What to Watch For: A’ja Wilson has been on fire this August which will make this game a great test for Kiki Iriafen. In a lot of ways, it’s A’ja vs. Baby A’ja. A matchup of single-leg-sleevers. Potentially great television. Speaking of must-watch players, Chelsea Gray has successfully turned the clock back three years. The Point Gawd has returned to form at last and looks as good as she looked in the 2022 Conference Semifinals vs. Seattle. If you’ve been around, you know what I mean. If you haven’t, here you go. Enjoy. How Sonia Citron handles her and Jackie Young will be a fun storyline as well. Must Watch Score: 7.5/10Connecticut Sun (8-27) vs. Chicago Sky (9-26): 4:00 PM ET, CBSSNWhy It’s Worth a Watch: Both the Sky and Sun have been eliminated from the playoffs so you’d expect this to be a pair of teams that are just going through the motions before the year is out. Right? Wrong. Tyler Marsh and Rachid Meziane are building cultures in their respective cities and a game like this matters. It’s why you see the Sky beating New York and the Sun winning three in their last four. I expect the players to come out with the same energy they have all season and treat this like something it may not even be. That’s what makes both teams fun future buys… What to Watch For: This frontcourt battle is going to be a blast. Olivia Nelson-Ododa, who has come on strong late in the year, and Tina Charles taking on Kamilla Cardoso and Angel Reese. Size, scoring, versatility, intensity. You get it all. There’s also a fun LSU vs. LSU story with Reese meeting Sun rookie Aneesah Morrow. Connecticut’s backcourt duo of Saniya Rivers and Leila Lacan is quickly becoming one of my favorite tandems in the league and when they’re shooting well it’s legitimately a treat to watch. Must Watch Score: 7/10Sunday, August 17Seattle Storm (18-18) vs. Washington Mystics (16-20): 3:00 PM ET, League PassWhy It’s Worth a Watch: Not only is this Brittney Sykes’ first trip back to Washington since they traded her, this one feels like a bit of a make-or-break for the Mystics. A loss to the Aces will put them right on the edge of the cliff but a second loss to Seattle would tip them off the rocks and into the water. The schedule feels ripe for the Storm to rip off two wins before the last two games (Indiana, Minnesota) of their five game road stand. Can they do it against a Mystics team — one that’s won the previous two matchups against Seattle, it should be noted — that will probably be fighting for their playoff lives? What to Watch For: I don’t even know if we’d get it but I want to see Dominique Malonga vs. Kiki Iriafen minutes. Those two are, to me, future All-WNBA forwards. In the backcourt, Brittney Sykes sees her old Mystics teammate in Sonia Citron. Given that the trade was, on some level, motivated by Washington going all in on Citron and Iriafen and letting Sykes go to a win-now team, will there be any added intensity? Especially given that the playoffs are more or less on the line? I would like to see it! Must Watch Score: 7/10Golden State Valkyries (18-17) vs. Dallas Wings (9-27): 4:00 PM ET, League PassWhy It’s Worth a Watch: These are the exact games that no playoff hopeful should drop if they want to stay in the hunt. Dallas is inconsistent but has shown the ability to scare the hell out of (or even beat) teams that are better than them on-paper. Golden State is also a somewhat streaky team, winning or losing in bunches. If there’s a game on the schedule that feels like it could become weird in a hurry, it’s this one. What to Watch For: Veronica Burton vs. Paige should be pretty fun. The former Northwestern superstar is a top candidate for Most Improved Player and has really come into her own as an impact player on both ends of the floor. How she defends Paige will be a cool battle to watch. Golden State has the size advantage and I’ve spilt enough ink about the Wings frontcourt issue. It wouldn’t surprise me if we saw a big game out of Iliana Rupert or Janelle Salaun. Must Watch Score: 7/10Indiana Fever (19-16) vs. Minnesota Lynx (28-7): 7:00 PM ET, CBSSNWhy It’s Worth a Watch: All the reasons outlined above, except even more stakes. What to Watch For: What that↑ said. Must Watch Score: 8/10Monday, August 18Connecticut Sun (8-27) vs. New York Liberty (22-14): 7:00 PM ET, League PassWhy It’s Worth a Watch: This might be the most skippable matchup of the weekend but there’s still some possibility.. Belgian superstar Emma Meesseman sees her former national team head coach across the floor in Rachid Meziane and Connecticut does have an advantage in this one, assuming the injury report remains the same throughout the weekend. The Liberty’s loss to the Sky showed that their lack of depth in the frontcourt leaves them vulnerable over the course of a game especially if the threes stop falling. Connecticut does have a decent rotation of Tina Charles, ONO and Aaliyah Edwards. Maybe we might see something we weren’t expecting. After all, it happened at the start of August!What to Watch For: Assuming Izzy Harrison, Nyara Sabally and Breanna Stewart are out for this game as well, the frontcourt minutes for New York will be vital. Jonquel Jones needs to continue to be the 20+ point per game scorer she is capable of being while Sabrina Ionescu just needs a couple threes to fall. But Connecticut will have Tina Charles to counter and Nelson-Ododa, who to me feels like the player that will decide this matchup. If she is playing her best, she can be a dimension New York doesn’t have right now. Must Watch Score: 6.5/10Las Vegas Aces (23-14) vs. Chicago Sky (9-26): 8:00 PM ET, NBATVWhy It’s Worth a Watch: This is another fun frontcourt matchup and while it’s likely to end in a blowout, we get Angel vs. A’ja. How will Becky Hammon handle her interior? Wilson on Kamilla Cardoso with NaLyssa Smith on Reese? Do they go bigger with Kiah Stokes and play them more traditionally, letting the shooters take advantage of the Sky’s perimeter defense? And it’s crazy to believe given that the season is almost over but this Tyler Marsh and Becky Hammon’s first time meeting one another as head coaches. What to Watch For: Wilson is on a tear right now and this feels like one of those games where the master shows the pupils how it’s done. Both Reese and Cardoso will be superstars in their own rite but for now the belt belongs to A’ja. I’m a sucker for young upstars vs. bonafide champions so this is right up my alley. Must Watch Score: 8/10If You Can Only Watch One Game A Day…Friday, August 22 - Minnesota Lynx (28-7) vs. Indiana Fever (19-16): 7:30 PM ET, IONSaturday, August 23 - New York Liberty (22-14) vs. Atlanta Dream (23-13): 2:00 PM ET, CBSSunday, August 24 - Seattle Storm (18-18) vs. Washington Mystics (16-20): 3:00 PM ET, League PassMonday, August 25 - Las Vegas Aces (23-14) vs. Chicago Sky (9-26): 8:00 PM ET, NBATVHonorable Mentions -Friday, August 22 - Golden State Valkyries (18-17) vs. Phoenix Mercury (21-14): 10:00 PM ET, IONNo Cap Space WBB is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nocapspace.substack.com