It is a series-ending day in baseball, and I have to admit, most of the series to start the week haven’t been all that intriguing to me. I love daily baseball as it gives a great option for us to bet on, but sometimes the pitching matchups or the games in general leave a lot left to be desired. Tonight, I’m going to the hardwood and the WNBA where the Liberty take on the Sky.
The New York Liberty are expected to be one of the best teams in the league, and to this point, they look like it. They are 10-4 for the season, and they are dealing with the absence of one of their best players. That is mostly a testament to their depth. Sabrina Ionescu, the missing player, did return the other night for just the second game of her season, and scored five points in 26 minutes off the bench. If she can get back into game speed/form, she will add another level to a dynamic offense.
I expect the Liberty to try and do some inside-outside game here. Their goal, right now at least, should be trying to get Ionescu back into the flow of the team. If they can send the ball into the post with Jonquel Jones or Breanna Stewart, they can encourage the Chicago Sky to collapse on them and then kick it out to Ionescu for some open threes.
The Sky are struggling to this point in the season. After a hot start, they lost their leading scorer, Rickeya Jackson. She is done for the season, and though they have some players who will step up, they still have some work to be done to figure out how to make this work for some wins. Jackson went down in the fourth game and the Sky were 3-1. Since then, they’ve gone 1-8.
Their other big veteran they added in the offseason was Skylar Diggins. She has already said this has been a frustrating season and that the team doesn’t really know how to turn it around. At this point, I wouldn’t try to turn it around. They have a good chance to earn the No. 1 pick in the draft and they should go that route. JuJu Watkins was injured last season and will be back this year. If she is the same player she was, she is franchise changing if they can draft her.
When I saw the line on this game I was a bit shocked. The Sky have lost their past three games by eight points, seven points and 17. The five previous losses were all by double digits or more. They aren’t close in most of these games.
The last game the Sky played was against the Fever, and everyone tries harder against Indiana. They still lost, in overtime, by eight. The Liberty, meanwhile, have been crushing teams, winning each of the past five games by at least eight points. They will make it six straight with wins of at least eight points. Give me the Liberty -7.5.
