A Premium-Grade Team
Just as an engine loaded with horsepower can’t deliver with clogged fuel injectors, the bevy of talented Spark players wouldn’t mean a thing if the Sparks couldn’t get them the ball.
The Sparks are winning games again, winning when it matters most, because they always seem to get the ball to the right place at the right time.
They finished off the Seattle Storm, 69-59, Saturday at Staples Center to complete a two-game sweep in the first round of the playoffs.
They did it even though top scorer Mwadi Mabika didn’t have it--and the Sparks didn’t have her for a while after she went out with a sprained ankle in the second half.
They did it even though Lisa Leslie, who edged Mabika by a tenth of a point in scoring average this season, didn’t get a point in the final 3 1/2 minutes.
They did it because, sooner or later, they’re going to find someone who can beat you. In this case, it was Tamecka Dixon coming on to score seven of her 15 points in the final 1:46.
“They have so many weapons,” Seattle Coach Lin Dunn said.
“We’ve always had those weapons, it’s just a matter of us working it into our game plan,” Spark forward Delisha Milton said. “We’re playing smart basketball now, from the coaches on down to the players on the court.”
They manage to get the ball to Leslie even though she’s the focal point of every defense. They also use her as a decoy effectively. They can swing the ball to the outside, but more importantly they can work the ball inside.
Their ball movement can be beautiful to watch. Take the first-half play when four Sparks combined to give L.A. its first lead. Mabika drove the right side and passed out to Dixon. Dixon found point guard Nikki Teasley at the top of the key, and she hit Mabika on the left side of the hoop. Mabika went up, drew two defenders and dropped the ball off to Leslie for an open layup.
Earlier in the season, the passes weren’t as crisp. Even when they found the right person, they wouldn’t hit her in the right place, with the ball coming in too high or too low to allow a quick and easy shot.
The Sparks corrected that the hard way, with sweat and aching muscles. During the course of practice, the coaches kept track of how many bad passes they made, and that would dictate the number of 17s they had to run. Seventeens are 17 sprints from sideline to sideline, to be completed in anywhere from 45 to 90 seconds depending on Coach Michael Cooper’s mood.
“Those hurt bad,” Milton said.
They’re getting the payoff in playoff victories. It’s not just execution, it’s attitude.
“No one’s selfish here,” Dixon said. “I think that’s the biggest key to our team. No one cares who gets the two points.
“We just try to let the ball find the open player. We’re very talented and can score from every position. Even when we bring players in off the bench, those are players that could start on any other team.”
Or start for the Storm, at least, the way the Sparks have been talking about them.
Earlier in the week, Milton described Seattle as “a team that’s full of a lot of players that would likely not be in the league if that team wasn’t in existence.”
Saturday, Teasley didn’t sound too impressed by Seattle All-Star point guard Sue Bird.
“Sue Bird is the same as any other player,” Teasley said. “They set a lot of screens on her and that is how she gets her plays. She can’t break anyone down one-on-one, they just set a lot of screens for her and do a lot for her and that is what makes her who she is.”
Well, Bird is a player who has great anticipation on defense, can get to the basket quickly and made the open shot.
But Saturday Dixon got the better of her in the last two minutes after she took over at the point for the Sparks. With Mabika shooting three for 14, Leslie had carried the Sparks for much of the game. Leslie had 17 of the team’s 33 first-half points and 21 of their first 50. But she faltered down the stretch, making only one of her last five shots. That’s where Dixon came in.
After the Storm sliced a 15-point Spark lead to two, Dixon drove down the middle, made a layup and was fouled for the three-point play. Forty-five seconds later, she went baseline for another bucket. She tacked on two free throws in the final minute to give the Sparks their final cushion.
“We needed somebody from a guard position to step up and be a leader,” Dixon said. “We’ve got a point guard who’s a rookie. When you have that she’s going to make some mistakes.
“In any situation, especially a playoff situation like this, you want your veterans to step up and take charge.”
Dixon is a huge fan of “The Sopranos,” and she’s fired up because the DVD collection of the third season is coming out Aug. 27, with new episodes hitting HBO in September. A picture of Tony Soprano’s crew hangs above her locker, with the boys looking as tough as ever.
You know what? The Sparks have a pretty impressive lineup themselves.
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J.A. Adande can be reached at: j.a.adande@latimes.com.