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Preview: Mystics play Sky on Tuesday

2025-08-04T13:00:00-04:00

Thankfully, Washington is playing one of the league’s more disappointing teams.

The Washington Mystics play the Chicago Sky on Tuesday evening. Here is the preview.

Game info:

When: 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Aug. 5

Where: Wintrust Arena, Chicago, IL

How to watch: Monumental Sports Network

Injuries:

For the Mystics, Sika Kone (AfroBasket), and Georgia Amoore (knee) are out.

For the Sky, Courtney Vandersloot (knee) is out. Angel Reese and Angel Reese are day-to-day.

Game notes:

The Mystics have lost two games in a row and are now sitting with a 13-15 record. If the season ended today, they will not make the postseason. That said, the Mystics will play against the 7-21 Chicago Sky, where they are int he middle of an eight-game losing streak.

If there is a game that the Mystics should be able to win without overextending themselves (and not get cocky), it’s this one. Let’s hope for a big W tonight so Washington gets back in a playoff spot.

Recap: Mystics lose to Dream, 99-83

2025-08-03T19:40:44-04:00

Kiki Iriafen led Washington with 22 points.

The Washington Mystics lost to the Atlanta Dream on Sunday, 99-83.

If you watched this game for just the first quarter, you were thinking that the Mystics were going to be in the driver’s seat, you’d be right. Washington led, 23-12 shooting 60 percent while holding Atlanta to just 23.1 percent shooting.

But there are three more quarters after that. A turnover filled second quarter flipped the script and allowed the Dream to have a 40-39 lead at the half. Then in the third quarter and fourth quarter, it was just a complete butt kicking at the Mystics’ expense. There isn’t much to be said there.

For the Mystics, Kiki Iriafen led with 22 points with Sonia Citron adding 16 more. For the Dream, Brionna Jones led with 23 points while Naz Hillmon added 14 points and 13 rebounds.

The Mystics’ next game is on Tuesday against the Chicago Sky. Tip off is at 8 p.m. ET.

Corey Kispert: Not Bad, Not Better, Not a Bargain

2025-08-03T07:00:00-04:00

Washington Wizards wing Corey Kispert | Photo by Chris Schwegler/NBAE via Getty Images

No doppelgangers, just analysis

I was about to get started writing what I thought would be a fun piece about Corey Kispert’s statistical doppelgangers. I figured The Machine would spit out a list of good shooters, and it does. But I kept getting stuck on some of the narratives about Kispert that...well...don’t hold up under scrutiny.

The biggest of these is that of Kispert’s improvement. The Official Narrative is that he’s gotten better. Except...he hasn’t. Here’s his progression year by year, according to my PPA metric.

(PPA is my all-around rating system that rewards players for doing things that help a team win and dings them for things that hurt the cause. It’s pace neutral and includes accounting for role and defensive impact. In PPA, 100 is average and higher is better. Replacement level is 45.)

2021-22 — 87
2022-23 — 95
2023-24 — 80
2024-25 — 57

You’ll find something similar using other metrics with slight differences. John Hollinger’s PER, for example, rates Kispert’s rookie year as his worst and his third year as his best, but a) rookie year and last season were about the same (10.9 PER vs. 11.0), and b) PER rewards inefficient usage. Year three was Kispert’s high-water mark in possession usage.

Other advanced metrics (RAPM, DARKO, LEBRON, MAMBA) show a neutral to modestly positive contribution on offense and a significantly negative defensive impact.

We see the same when looking at the numbers on a per possession basis. Kispert’s rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks have bounced within a narrow range for four seasons. His turnovers have ticked up (though not egregiously) as his usage has risen.

His offensive efficiency has been meh except for year two — his offensive rating was about +2 per 100 possessions compared to league average as a rookie, -1.3 per 100 in year three, and -2.5 per 100 last season. The one exception: year two, when is offensive rating was +9.2.

Drafted as a three-point marksman, Kispert’s three-point shooting has been decent but unexceptional...except for year two (42.4%) and kinda year three (38.3% vs. a league average of 36.6%. Last year, he shot 36.4% — league average was 36.0%.

I had accepted the narrative that Kispert had improved as a driver, but the numbers don’t agree. Last season, at-rim attempts became a bit less frequent in his shot diet (20.0% of his FGA in 2023-24 down to 18.9% last season), and his at-rim conversion rate fell to a career low (but still excellent) 72.9%.

In other words, Kispert does a good job of converting when he’s able to get to the rim, but he seldom does. He also experienced a dropoff in floater range conversion rate (46.6% last season vs. 50+% each of the previous three, but he took more of them. That 3-10 foot range is the place of dead or dying drives — a player has attacked, can’t get to the rim, and has to put up something. That something is often heavily contested, often by a big, and those are tough shots for nearly everyone, including Kispert.

Elite players often draw fouls in this area. That’s not Kispert, however. He’s an excellent free throw shooter, he just doesn’t stress the defense enough to get to the line with any regularity.

Another (partially true) narrative that needs some nuance is the (repeated) assertion by ~~chief propagandist~~ play-by-play guy Chris Miller is that Kispert is a great cutter.

Last season, NBA tracking data had Kispert as a cutter 0.7 times per game, which was about 6.6% of his possessions. In other words, a Kispert cut that led to finishing a play happened about once every six quarters. Those cuts produced nearly 1.5 points per possession, which ranked in the 83rd percentile.

The point? Kispert is an effective cutter...when he cuts, which is actually pretty rare. I’m ready to believe that he could be a more frequent cutter with the right teammate (it’d be cool to see him with Nikola Jokic or Lebron James and Luka Doncic or with a healthy Tyrese Haliburton). But a cut every six quarters? That doesn’t scream “greatness” at that particular aspect of his game, especially when his cut frequency is basically right at the team average, and his reputation as a shooter should lead to defensive overplays and more cutting opportunities.

Where does all this leave the Wizards? If Kispert is going to survive as a shooting specialist — and based on his performance thus far, that’s what he’ll need to do — he needs to make more threes. Last season, nearly a third of his three-point attempts were wide open, and he shot just 37.5%. On open looks: 37.9%. That’s not good enough to create the defense-distorting three-alarm fire that creates openings for teammates.

The rest of his game hasn’t improved in a meaningful way through four seasons and isn’t likely to take a big leap forward in the years ahead. That is to say, he’s not about to become an impactful defender, a strong rebounder, or a stellar playmaker. He might shoot better and generate more opportunities to attack closeouts — exactly the kind of thing that becomes more probable if he’s with better teammates.

Given his age (entering his age 26 season), and that he’s starting a contract paying him nearly $14 million per season, the best hope for the Wizards is that he starts the season hot (40+% from three) and entices a team to trade a first round pick to add him to their rotation.

Preview: Mystics play Dream on Sunday

2025-08-02T16:33:15-04:00

Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images

The Mystics look to get back in the win column after a few days off.

The Washington Mystics play the Atlanta Dream on Sunday afternoon. Here’s the preview.

Game info:

When: 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Aug. 3

Where: Gateway Center Arena, College Park, GA

How to watch: Monumental Sports Network

Injuries:

Mystics — Sika Kone (AfroBasket), Georgia Amoore (knee), Aaliyah Edwards (wrist) are out.

Dream — Brittney Griner is day-to-day and Rhyne Howard is out (knee).

Game notes:

The Mystics have spent the last few days off and will look to get back to .500, a mark that they have hovered around most of this season. Meanwhile the Dream have won four of their last games and are now 17-11. Hopefully Washington can get a big win here and perhaps get above .500 as this season continues!

Recap: Mystics lose to Valkyries, 68-67

2025-07-31T22:10:22-04:00

Photo by Kenny Giarla/NBAE via Getty Images

This was also a not so great game in general but Sonia Citron scored 16 points.

The Washington Mystics lost to the Golden State Valkyries on Thursday night at home 68-67.

Washington started this game on a poor note with Golden State outscoring them 30-20. While the Mystics were able to stabilize things and ultimately make things more interesting in the second half, including leading by one point in the fourth quarter, this wasn’t enough.

Sonia Citron led the Mystics with 16 points. Meanwhile, Kate Martin led the Valkyries with 14 points.

Washington’s next game is on Sunday when they go on the road to play the Atlanta Dream. Tip off is at 3 p.m. ET. See you then.

Preview: Mystics host Valkyries in crucial midseason matchup

2025-07-30T21:00:00-04:00

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Mystics and Valkyries are fighting for playoff positioning.

The Washington Mystics are hosting the expansion Golden State Valkyries tomorrow night. I’ve got you covered with the preview ahead of the action.

Game info:

When: 7:30 p.m. EST on Thursday, Jul. 31

Where: CareFirst Arena in Washington DC

How to watch: Amazon Prime Video

Injuries:

Mystics — Sika Kone and Georgia Amoore remain OUT. Aaliyah Edwards is listed as DAY-TO-DAY with a wrist injury.

Valkyries — Kayla Thornton is out for the season after undergoing knee surgery. Monique Billings is DAY-TO-DAY with an ankle injury.

Game notes and more:

The Mystics (13-13) are half a game up on the Valkyries (12-13) for the eighth and final WNBA playoff spot. There’s still a lot of season left to play, but this is the Mystics’ biggest game of the season so far.
This game is the Mystics’ fourth in six days. Check out my recent column about the WNBA scheduling crunch and what the players’ union should do to address the issue.

Recap: Mystics beat Sky, 103-86

2025-07-29T23:17:08-04:00

Photo by Kenny Giarla/NBAE via Getty Images

Sonia Citron scored 28 points in the win.

The Washington Mystics defeated the Chicago Sky, 103-86 on Tuesday night at CareFirst Arena. The Mystics now improve to 13-13 while the Sky fall to 7-19.

This game was a solid win in Washington’s favor. Besides a short stretch in the first quarter, the Mystics effectively had a wire-to-wire win. Chicago was held to just 18 free throws attempts and shot just 31.6 percent from the three point line. Meanwhile, Washington attempted 27 free throws (making 21 of them) and they also made 10-of-24 three points shots.

Sonia Citron was the Mystics’ standout tonight. She scored 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting, and even made 5-of-6 three pointers. Kiki Iriafen added 22 points and 10 rebounds. Brittney Sykes added 18 points and 6 assists. Let’s call this a win where the Mystics’ stars came out swinging.

For Chicago, Angel Reese led with 22 points (but on 6-of-16 shooting) and grabbed 13 rebounds.

Washington’s next game is on Thursday when they host the Golden State Valkyries. Tip off is at 7:30 p.m ET.

The WNBA needs to fix its schedule

2025-07-29T08:00:00-04:00

Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The WNBA players’ union must push heavily to lengthen the season, which has become far too condensed.

“Pay us what you owe us.”

The now-iconic slogan, donned by the WNBA All-Stars on t-shirts during warmups for the league’s annual All-Star game, underscores the divide in the ongoing negotiations between the WNBA players’ union and the league that employs them.

WNBA players making a statement at the All-Star game:

“Pay us what you owe us.” pic.twitter.com/AL1uf7lfEB
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) July 20, 2025

The WNBA players’ association (WNBPA) is currently negotiating with the WNBA to draft a new collective bargaining agreement after the league signed a gargantuan $2.2 billion media rights deal. Media rights deals are the league’s largest source of revenue (and thus the primary source of player salaries), and the new one is at least four times larger than the previous one with the potential to grow, should even more media partners sign on in the future.

The soon-to-be completely transformed WNBA salary structure warrants volumes of discussion on its own, but for now, there is a different issue I would like to focus on: season length.

Hall of famer Rebecca Lobo recently took to Twitter to point out the dramatic decrease in average rest time between WNBA games — since 2021, the average days of rest between games dropped from 4.03 to 2.7.

A priority of @TheWNBPA in the new CBA has to be addressing the condensed schedule. This season there are too many games in too short a period of time. (Research: Garrett Gastfield)

AVERAGE # OF DAYS BETWEEN GAMES

2021: 4.03
2022: 2.81
2023: 2.88
2024: 3.23
2025: 2.70
— Rebecca Lobo (@RebeccaLobo) July 27, 2025

The week the Washington Mystics are currently enduring exemplifies this schedule crunch: from Jul. 26-29 they play three games in four days, then they get a day off before having to suit up for a fourth game in a six-day span.

The WNBA has added 12 games to the schedule since 2021, an unequivocal positive in the eyes of league sponsors and stakeholders. More games means more eyes on screens, more moments to be turned into highlights, and more to sell to potential sponsors, meaning more money.

For players, the requisite changes to schedule length have not been made. The 2021 WNBA season ran from mid-May to mid-October. The 2025 season runs in the exact same window of time with 12 more games, plus the 2025 Finals will now be a best-of-seven series as opposed to the previous best-of-five format.

This crowding of the schedule is desirable for league partners, as it simply means that more of the WNBA product is being offered to the consumer. But for the players, the condensed rest time means both less time with their families and greater risk of injury due to stress and overexertion.

Given that the WNBA product cannot function without the players, this is not a fair trade-off, and expanding the existing season schedule over a longer period of time should be a crucial point in negotiations for the WNBPA in their ongoing negotiations with the owners.

The primary drawback with such a proposition is the potential for a lengthened WNBA season to interfere with overseas commitments, as a large number of players play overseas in the WNBA offseason to supplement their salaries.

However, since player salaries are set to dramatically increase in 2026, far fewer players will have to play overseas, and most will be able to finally enjoy the type of proper offseason previously only accessible to the players with large endorsement deals and offseason coaching or media jobs.

Additionally, WNBA players wield more influence over foreign leagues than international-first players do over the WNBA. For example, Ivana Dojkić, who during her two years in the WNBA prioritized her overseas commitments in the Italian Lega Basket Femminile, was allowed to report to WNBA training camp late, a standard grace granted to foreign stars. Surely WNBA players still playing in Europe and Asia in the coming years will be given similar grace by their overseas teams should the WNBA season be extended.

During this round of CBA negotiations, the WNBA players have more leverage than they’ve ever had before — the threat of a work stoppage given the WNBA’s exponential growth since 2022 certainly keeps the owners laying awake at night staring at their diamond-encrusted ceilings.

Since the WNBA’s recent growth has been driven by individual players’ star power (plus the players have a viable offseason league in Unrivaled upon which to fall back), the WNBPA is uniquely positioned to force the owners into acquiescing to their demands. Chief among these should be the demand that the timeframe of the season be extended to account for the additional games being worked into the schedule.