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2018 Los Angeles Sparks season

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WNBA team season
2018 Los Angeles Sparks season
CoachBrian Agler
ArenaStaples Center
Attendance10,642 per game
Results
Record19–15 (.559)
Place3rd (Western)
Playoff finish6th seed, Lost in Second Round to Washington 64–96
Team Leaders
PointsCandace Parker – 17.9 ppg
ReboundsCandace Parker – 8.2 rpg
AssistsChelsea Gray – 5.1 apg
Media
TelevisionSpectrum SportsNet
ESPN2, NBATV
← 2017 season 2019 season →

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 Sparks started out strong with a 4–1 record in May. They won their season opener in a re-match of the 2017 WNBA Finals against the Minnesota Lynx. They continued their strong run into June where the team posted an 8–4 record. The Sparks won 6 of 7 to start the month. Two of their June losses game to the eventual WNBA Champion Seattle Storm. However, things started to get shaky in July. The Sparks went 4–6. However, all but one loss came to eventual playoff teams. The other loss was to Indiana, who ended the season with the worst record. The Sparks finished with a 4–4 record in August, including 3–0 at home. However, the Sparks lost 4 of their last 5 (again all against playoff teams).

Their final record of 19–15 was good enough to secure the 6th seed in the 2018 WNBA Playoffs. They met the Lynx in the first round, in a re-match of the last three WNBA Finals. The Sparks prevailed 75–68 at the Staples Center. In the second round, they faced the Washington Mystics in Washington, but were defeated 64–96 to end their season.

Transactions

WNBA draft

See also: 2018 WNBA draft
Round Pick Player Nationality School/Team/Country
1 11 Maria Vadeeva  Russia Dynamo Kursk (Russia)
2 23 Shakayla Thomas  United States Florida State
3 35 Julia Reisingerová  Czech Republic Femeni Sant Adrià (Spain)

Trades/Roster Changes

Date Details
February 1, 2018 Re-sign G Odyssey Sims
February 1, 2018 Sign G Ana Dabovic and G Karlie Samuelson
February 6, 2018 Re-sign G Alana Beard
February 14, 2018 Sign G Cappie Pondexter
February 21, 2018 Re-sign F Tiffany Jackson

Roster

2018 Los Angeles Sparks roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Height Weight DOB From Yrs
G/F 0 United States Beard, Alana 5' 11" (1.8m) 160 lb (73kg) 05-14-1982 Duke 12
G/F 17 United States Carson, Essence 6' 0" (1.83m) 163 lb (74kg) 07-28-1986 Rutgers 10
G 12 United States Gray, Chelsea 5' 11" (1.8m) 170 lb (77kg) 10-08-1992 Duke 3
C 42 United States Lavender, Jantel 6' 4" (1.93m) 185 lb (84kg) 11-12-1988 Ohio State 7
F 30 United States Ogwumike, Nneka 6' 2" (1.88m) 174 lb (79kg) 07-02-1990 Stanford 6
F/C 3 United States Parker, Candace 6' 4" (1.93m) 175 lb (79kg) 04-19-1986 Tennessee 10
G 44 United States Samuelson, Karlie 6' 0" (1.83m) – 05-10-1995 Stanford R
G 1 United States Sims, Odyssey 5' 8" (1.73m) 160 lb (73kg) 07-13-1992 Baylor 4
C 10 Russia Vadeeva, Maria 6' 4" (1.93m) 190 lb (86kg) 06-16-1988 Russia R
G 24 United States Wiese, Sydney 6' 0" (1.83m) – 06-16-1995 Oregon State 1
G 2 United States Williams, Riquna 5' 7" (1.7m) 165 lb (75kg) 05-28-1990 Miami (FL) 5
Head coach
United States Brian Agler (Wittenberg)
Assistant coaches
United States Tonya Edwards (Tennessee)
United States Bobbie Kelsey (Stanford)
Athletic trainer
United States Courtney Watson (California)
Strength and conditioning coach
United States Kelly Dormandy (Springfield)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (IN) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Game log

Preseason

2018 pre-season game log
May: 1–2 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–2)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 May 7 @ Connecticut L 65–68 Thomas (17) Thomas (8) Pondexter (3) Mohegan Sun Arena
 0–1
2 May 8 vs. New York L 75–81 Pondexter (17) Wiese (9) Pondexter (5) Mohegan Sun Arena
1,106 		0–2
3 May 12 China W 82–61 Gray (17) Carson (5) Gray (10) Hutto-Patterson Gym
1,650 		1–2
2018 pre-season schedule

Regular season

2018 game log
Total: 19–15 (Home: 11–6; Road: 8–9)
May: 3–1 (Home: 1–0; Road: 2–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 May 20 @ Minnesota W 77–76 Sims (21) Ogwumike (9) Gray (8) Target Center
13,032 		1–0
2 May 22 @ Indiana W 87–70 Ogwumike (25) Ogwumike (10) Gray (8) Bankers Life Fieldhouse
4,742 		2–0
3 May 24 @ Connecticut L 94–102 Gray (21) Tied (4) Sims (7) Mohegan Sun Arena
5,571 		2–1
4 May 27 Phoenix W 80–72 Gray (23) Ogwumike (8) Gray (8) Staples Center
11,201 		3–1
June : 8–4 (Home: 6–1; Road: 2–3)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
5 June 3 Minnesota W 77–69 Parker (19) Parker (10) Gray (6) Staples Center
13,500 		4–1
6 June 7 Seattle L 63–88 Ogwumike (19) Ogwumike (6) Sims (5) Staples Center
9,204 		4–2
7 June 10 Chicago W 77–59 Parker (24) Ogwumike (8) Sims (5) Staples Center
8,239 		5–2
8 June 12 Atlanta W 72–64 Parker (18) Ogwumike (10) Gray (7) Staples Center
9,215 		6–2
9 June 15 @ Washington W 97–86 Parker (23) Parker (7) Parker (11) Capital One Arena
5,289 		7–2
10 June 17 @ Chicago W 81–72 Gray (21) Tied (11) Gray (6) Wintrust Arena
5,584 		8–2
11 June 19 Indiana W 74–55 Parker (15) Ogwumike (7) Gray (7) Staples Center
8,857 		9–2
12 June 22 @ Dallas L 72–101 Ogwumike (17) Parker (6) Parker (6) College Park Center
5,672 		9–3
13 June 24 New York 80–54 Williams (25) Ogwumike (10) Gray (11) Staples Center
9,203 		10–3
14 June 26 Dallas W 87–83 Parker (29) Vadeeva (6) Parker (7) Staples Center
10,002 		11–3
15 June 28 @ Seattle L 72–81 Parker (27) Parker (11) Parker (3) KeyArena
8,447 		11–4
16 June 29 @ Las Vegas L 78–94 Gray (22) Vadeeva (7) Beard (6) Mandalay Bay Events Center
5,124 		11–5
July : 4–6 (Home: 1–5; Road: 3–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
17 July 1 Las Vegas W 87–71 Lavender (17) Ogwumike (7) 3 Tied (6) Staples Center
12,003 		12–5
18 July 3 Connecticut L 72–73 Ogwumike (20) Parker (8) Parker (4) Staples Center
6,280 		12–6
19 July 5 @ Minnesota L 72–83 Parker (22) Ogwumike (8) Gray (8) Target Center
9,303 		12–7
20 July 7 Washington L 74–83 Gray (23) Ogwumike (13) Ogwumike (5) Staples Center
10,163 		12–8
21 July 10 @ Seattle W 77–75 (OT) Parker (21) Tied (9) Parker (10) KeyArena
9,686 		13–8
22 July 12 Dallas L 77–92 Parker (21) Parker (7) Gray (5) Staples Center
13,502 		13–9
23 July 15 @ Las Vegas W 99–78 Parker (34) Parker (11) Parker (9) Mandalay Bay Events Center
4,810 		14–9
24 July 20 Indiana L 76–78 Parker (24) Parker (12) Parker (7) Staples Center
10,532 		14–10
25 July 22 @ Chicago W 93–76 Parker (23) Parker (12) Gray (9) Wintrust Arena
6,477 		15–10
26 July 24 Atlanta L 71–81 Gray (18) Parker (9) Parker (5) Staples Center
9,324 		15–11
August : 4–4 (Home: 3–0; Road: 1–4)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
27 August 2 Minnesota W 79–57 Parker (23) Parker (10) Gray (9) Staples Center
9,542 		16-11
28 August 5 Phoenix W 78–75 Gray (24) Parker (14) Parker (8) Staples Center
19,076 		17-11
29 August 8 @ New York W 82–81 Gray (19) Parker (8) Parker (6) Westchester County Center
2,481 		18-11
30 August 9 @ Atlanta L 73–79 Parker (20) Parker (12) Tied (4) McCamish Pavilion
4,235 		18-12
31 August 12 @ Phoenix L 78–86 Parker (23) Parker (8) Sims (6) Talking Stick Resort Arena
10,618 		18-13
32 August 14 New York W 74–66 Gray (26) Parker (10) Gray (5) Staples Center
11,067 		19-13
33 August 17 @ Washington L 67–69 Williams (14) Tied (8) Parker (7) Capital One Arena
7,400 		19-14
34 August 19 @ Connecticut L 86–89 Parker (20) Parker (10) Gray (7) Mohegan Sun Arena
8,040 		19-15
2018 season schedule

Playoffs

2018 playoff game log
Total: 1–1 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–1)
WNBA First Round: 1–0 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 August 21 Minnesota W 75–68 Gray (26) Parker (6) Gray (6) Staples Center
8,598 		1–0
WNBA Second Round: 0–1 (Home: 0–0; Road: 0–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 August 23 @ Washington L 64–96 Parker (16) Parker (8) 3 Tied (3) Capital One Arena
3,548 		1–1
2018 playoff schedule

Standings

# Western Conference W L PCT GB Home Road Conf.
1 Seattle Storm (1) 26 8 .765 – 13–4 13–4 11–5
2 Phoenix Mercury (5) 20 14 .588 6 9–8 11–6 8–8
3 Los Angeles Sparks (6) 19 15 .559 7 11–6 8–9 9–7
4 Minnesota Lynx (7) 18 16 .529 8 9–8 9–8 9–7
5 Dallas Wings (8) 15 19 .441 11 10–7 5–12 7–9
6 e –Las Vegas Aces 14 20 .412 12 8–9 6–11 4–12

Playoffs

Main article: 2018 WNBA Playoffs
First round:
Single elimination
(Aug. 21)		Second round:
Single elimination
(Aug. 23)		Semifinals:
Best-of-five
(Aug. 26 – Sept. 4)		WNBA Finals:
Best-of-five
(Sept. 7 – Sept. 12)
1Seattle Storm9191668494
4Connecticut Sun865Phoenix Mercury8787868684
5Phoenix Mercury1015Phoenix Mercury961Seattle Storm897598
8Dallas Wings833Washington Mystics767382
2Atlanta Dream8478817681
3Washington Mystics963Washington Mystics8775769786
6Los Angeles Sparks756Los Angeles Sparks64
7Minnesota Lynx68

Note: Teams re-seeded after second round and semi-finals.

Statistics

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

Regular season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% PPG RPG APG SPG BPG
Candace Parker 31 30 30.6 .471 .345 .808 17.9 8.2 4.7 1.2 1.1
Nneka Ogwumike 27 27 30.8 .525 .346 .816 15.5 6.8 2.0 1.6 0.4
Chelsea Gray 34 34 32.7 .484 .392 .835 14.9 3.4 5.1 1.4 0.2
Odyssey Sims 34 24 25.5 .388 .273 .722 8.2 2.5 2.8 0.6 0.0
Essence Carson 34 15 23.1 .435 .361 .938 7.5 2.6 0.9 0.9 0.4
Riquna Williams 33 3 16.5 .407 .375 .800 7.1 1.4 0.7 0.7 0.1
Jantel Lavender 30 7 17.0 .428 .188 .900 5.2 3.7 0.7 0.4 0.2
Alana Beard 30 30 25.5 .392 .400 .810 4.0 3.3 1.7 1.5 0.2
Maria Vadeeva 25 0 8.2 .527 .333 .750 3.6 2.2 0.4 0.4 0.4
Karlie Samuelson 20 0 4.2 .389 .313 .000 1.0 0.5 0.3 0.1 0.3
Sydney Wiese 11 0 3.3 .000 .000 .000 0.0 0.3 0.2 0.0 0.0

Awards and honors

Recipient Award Date awarded Ref.
Chelsea Gray WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week May 29, 2018
Candace Parker July 15, 2018
Nneka Ogwumike WNBA All-Star Selection July 17, 2018
Chelsea Gray
Candace Parker WNBA All-Star Captain
Candace Parker WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week August 6, 2018
Alana Beard WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award August 31, 2018

References

  1. "2018 Los Angeles Sparks Schedule". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  2. "Odyssey Sims re-signs with Los Angeles Sparks". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. February 1, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  3. "Los Angeles Sparks Sign Ana Dabovic and Karlie Samuelson". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. February 1, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  4. "Sparks re-sign 2017 WNBA Defensive Player of the year, Alana Beard". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. February 6, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  5. "Sparks sign top WNBA free agent Cappie Pondexter". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. February 1, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  6. "Tiffany Jackson re-signs with Sparks". sparks.wnba.com. WNBA. February 21, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
  7. "Alyssa Thomas, Chelsea Gray Named WNBA Players Of The Week". wnba.com. WNBA. May 29, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  8. "Atlanta's Breland, Los Angeles' Parker Named WNBA Players Of The Week". wnba.com. WNBA. July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 16, 2018.
  9. "2018 WNBA All-Stars Announced; Elena Delle Donne, Candace Parker To Serve As Player-Captains". wnba.com. WNBA. July 17, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2018.
  10. "Atlanta's Hayes, Los Angeles' Parker Named WNBA Players of the Week". wnba.com. WNBA. August 6, 2018. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  11. "Sparks' Alana Beard Named 2018 Defensive Player Of The Year - WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved August 31, 2018.

External links

Los Angeles Sparks
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Owners
Jerry Buss
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Penny Toler
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