Storm Save Season 86-83 Part 2
Additional thoughts, discussion, and interviews from Seattle's playoff win.
The Seattle Storm saved their season with an 86-83 win at home over the Las Vegas Aces. It snapped the Aces' 17-game win streak. Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins combined for 50 points, but it was rookie Dominique Malonga who hit the game-winner. If you missed it, you can read the full game recap at the link below.
In Part 2, I wrote about how the Storm continue to be the WNBA’s enigma. I talked about how Nneka and Skylar came up huge in this game and how this win may shift how the team approaches next season. Then I had to share more thoughts on rookie Dominique Malonga. I’ve also included the post-game press conference interviews.
Jaxon Smith-Enigma?
Sorry, I just wanted to use this because the Seahawks' top Wide Receiver, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, was in attendance for Tuesday night’s Seattle Storm playoff game.
But the Storm are an enigma. It’s probably why this season has been so incredibly frustrating at times. This team can beat the Minnesota Lynx (34-10) down nearly 20 points on the road in Minnesota, but they will also lose by 24 points at home against the Dallas Wings, a team that barely managed to win 10 games this year.
They are the team that lost three times to the LA Sparks and twice to the Washington Mystics, but had multiple victories against all five of the Top 5 teams in the WNBA. That included impressive road wins at Minnesota, New York, and Las Vegas. I believe they were the only team to beat the Minnesota Lynx multiple times this season when Napheesa Collier was in the lineup. But they also lost a game to Connecticut when the Sun were 2-16, and Seattle had led the entire game until they were outscored 27-9 in the 4th quarter.
They’ve been a thrilling team one game and a frustrating team the next. On paper, the Storm have probably a Top 4 roster, but they barely made the playoffs. They lost six games in a row to start the month of August. They nearly choked away their future lottery pick by blowing multiple leads against the LA Sparks in the 2nd half of the season.
I called them a middle-of-the-pack team after the first month of the season because of their inconsistency. And now that inconsistent team just beat the team that hadn’t lost in their last 17 games, dating back to August 2nd. No team has been more consistent over the final two months of the season than the Las Vegas Aces. I joked with others about whether or not the Aces could win out the rest of the way. If they had, they would have finished the year on a 25-game win streak. As is, it’s wild that they went from a borderline playoff team to the #2 seed by winning their last 16 games in the regular season.
This is what makes the Storm such an enigma, though. They literally have the talent to win the Championship. But that same team lost by 25 points in their first playoff game and were a 4th quarter rally away from being swept again for the second straight year.
If they somehow, someway, get past Las Vegas. Things will get very interesting.
Skylar and Nneka
Credit where credit is due. I was ready to write the Obituary of the Skylar and Nneka era if they had been swept again in the playoffs by the Las Vegas Aces for a second year in a row. Maybe a little more than ready. I had a full article on the subject pretty much done. But then they won.
And don’t get me wrong. I’ve really enjoyed covering Nneka and Skylar and getting to know them on a professional level. Diggins’ passion is beautiful in its own creative and chaotic way. Ogwumike is a professional through and through. And she’s still an elite player more often than not. It’s not about not liking them or thinking they aren’t good players. It’s strictly looking at it from a business and team-building perspective. Actually, not even a short-term business viewpoint. If they didn’t get any playoff wins in their two years together in Seattle, it’s hard to justify moving forward relying on two players who will both be 36 years old next season.
I think now more than ever, it makes the decision on what to do next season that much more difficult. Obviously, this next game will add a lot to either argument. If they lose, we can look at the team’s struggles. We can talk about how the team got worse this season than they were a year ago. How they fell apart in the 2nd half of the season and nearly missed the playoffs. And how they still didn’t make it out of the first round. Unfortunately, Father Time is undefeated. Both players have more WNBA seasons behind them than they do ahead of them. And I can make the argument as to why the Storm would be better off going into a full rebuild around their youth.
On the other hand, if the Storm pull off the massive upset in Game 3. Then you can make the argument that the team is progressing in the right direction, no matter what happens in the WNBA’s semi-finals. Of course, if they get to the Finals, it wouldn’t make any sense to move on from the core pieces of the team. Instead, you continue to build around them. Add some more three-point shooters and try to win a WNBA Championship as Dominique Malonga continues to grow and get better. Seattle also has LA’s lottery pick. They could bring back their core, have an older, stronger, improved Malonga, and also add someone like Azzi Fudd or Flau’jae Johnson to the roster, plus bring Jordan Horston back.
When the team needed them to step up. They did in Game 2. Skylar and Nneka combined for 50 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists. The Storm will need all of that and more if they want to advance to the next round.
Dom is Unreal
I really don’t think enough people understand how talented Dominique Malonga truly is. In her rookie season, she has broken several records. Skylar joked in the post-game presser that Dom became the youngest to ever do something new every few days this season.
Diggins wasn’t wrong. Malonga became the youngest player ever to score 20+ points and pull down 10+ rebounds in a game. She did that twice this year. On Sunday, she became the youngest player to ever record a double-double in a WNBA playoff game. Dom is also the youngest player to score 300 points or more in league history.
It’s not just the points and the rebounds. I’ve written multiple times about how much she can impact things on the defensive side of the ball. She still has so much room to grow, and yet she has been a terrible matchup for Napheesa Collier. No player in the WNBA this season held Collier to a worse performance.
On Tuesday night, in the 4th quarter of an elimination game, Malonga shut down three-time MVP A’ja Wilson. There were multiple times A’ja got the ball, tried to make some moves, and Malonga just stonewalled her. Dom would go on to hit the game-winning basket and free throw with 30 seconds left in the game.
Malonga is going to terrorize the rest of the league for a long time to come. She’s doing this against the best players in the world, against Napheesa Collier, against A’ja Wilson at 19 years old. She’s basically a child, and she’s giving them the business. What’s going to happen when she’s entering her prime five years from now?
I’d be shocked if she isn’t at least in the MVP discussion by the time she is 25. I also believe she can lead Seattle to another WNBA Championship. But first, it’s time to focus on Game 3. The Storm still have something to play for this season.
Coach Quinn was asked if she plans to start Malonga in the decisive Game 3, knowing how much of an impact she’s had on the game. Quinn wouldn’t answer the question and said that she didn’t want to reveal the game plan.
I wouldn’t expect Dom to start on Thursday, and frankly, I don’t think she should. I’m sure one of the Aces’ strategies will be to try and get Malonga into foul trouble. And there is no one better at drawing fouls, even when a foul doesn’t occur, than A’ja Wilson. Seattle can’t afford to have Malonga foul out or be forced to ride the bench due to foul trouble. Quinn will need to be strategic, like she was on Tuesday night, in order to maximize Malonga’s minutes. And keep Dominique ready to go to play the big moments of the 4th quarter. The Storm’s season might just be in her hands.
Post-Game Press Conference
If you prefer the audio versions of the Storm only, you can listen to them below.
Player Interviews
Coach’s Quotes
Notes:
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Thanks to Her Hoop Stats and Across the Timeline for being great resources.
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Nothing to add to the discussion but I've really enjoyed your content this year. Keep up the good work!
Thanks, Jeff, for your great analysis. The last two home games have been really exciting. Should their next game be their last, at least there were some really great moments to end the season. Helps to wipe away some of the less enjoyable moments of the season. We were at the Dallas loss after the break, the first and only time we have left a game before it ended. That was just too much ugly. But these last two are helping to push out those memories.
Don't get me wrong, I want nothing more than for the Storm to end the Aces' season. I also can't help but think how much of that comes down to what type of performance Dom has on Thursday. How crazy is that for a 19-year old? Obviously Nneka and Skylar are critical. But we've seen so many games this season where she seems to be a catalyst that gets everyone going. Hopefully she is able to avoid foul trouble.
I read a profile article this week about her on ESPN. The article itself wasn't so special, not really providing much in depth analysis of her game. Dom did talk about her lack of playing time. But she said she is trusting the process, and is absorbing so much from her teammates. These close games and playoffs will only add to that experience. Can't wait to see her and Jordan Horston on the court together, so much energy and athleticism.
Not sure what else the Storm's future holds, who will and will not be here next year. But, at least we have one more game until we have to worry about that. Go Storm!