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The Dallas Wings’ uninspired very first half of the 2022 WNBA season continued with a 97-89 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks, and as they tread water in the middle of the league standings, disappointments surrounding both the group’s play and procedure are installing.
It’s not unusual, naturally, for things to boil over when a group is having a hard time. The Wings began the season strong, peaking at 5-2 in late May, and whichever concerns that might have surrounded the group prior to the season appeared to be shelved for the time being.
Now losers of 4 of their last 5 video games, the Wings are when again confronted with those concerns, and they’re louder than ever. Dallas has actually been outscored by 7.1 points per 100 belongings throughout that period (just the Indiana Fever have actually been even worse) and has actually protected simply 45.9 percent of readily available rebounds, the most affordable in the WNBA.
The Wings’ second-leading per-video game rebounder, center Isabelle Harrison (5.5 rebounds per game), required to Twitter after the group’s loss to the Sparks, relatively revealing her disappointment with head coach Vickie Johnson’s rotations. Harrison, who began the video game however played simply 9 minutes, quote tweeted a user who asked why Johnson kept subbing her out of the video game, stating “when you find out, lemme know:”
Needless to state, this isn’t a problem the Wings would especially like to see concerned surface area. Beyond the private inflammation of Wings gamers, it reveals that Johnson and her training personnel have yet to completely pin down what was possibly the most significant location of obscurity getting in the season: the group’s logjam in the frontcourt. 2021 No. 1 general draft choice Charli Collier has all however vanished from the Wings’ rotation, while Teaira McCowan, who Dallas gotten through trade last offseason, has actually just just recently discovered herself constant playing time — in some cases at Harrison’s cost.
Don’t ignore Satou Sabally, either. The gifted, flexible forward returned versus the Sparks after missing out on 7 video games with a bone contusion in her knee, and while she can play a number of positions successfully, other Wings will still likely see their minutes take a hit when Sabally is completely reintegrated into the group’s lineup.
Regardless of how Johnson and her training personnel pick to deal with the circumstance, it’s clear that the Wings continue to do not have a recognized hierarchy in their frontcourt, and it’s triggering the group issues. Dallas will get in the 2022 All-Star break with a record listed below .500, and changes require to be produced the 2nd half of the season if the group is to end up strong — even if it suggests Johnson making the hard choice to tighten up the Wings’ rotation.
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