
There are three WNBA games on the card tonight, with the spotlight game taking place in Dallas, where the Wings host the Las Vegas Aces. Have the defending champion Aces taken over the No. 1 spot in the pollsters' eyes? They've taken over the No. 1 spot in the Commissioner's Cup race, but it's not locked up. The Wings could throw a wrench in that tonight.

(Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Minnesota Lynx return home after losing in Las Vegas on Saturday, and host the expansion Portland Fire. Dangerous game for the Fire, as the Lynx will be angry after falling short. The nightcap pits the Los Angeles Sparks against the Golden State Valkyries, as the two meet in the Bay Area.
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I'm going to Dallas and Golden State for tonight's prop plays, as I think the game in Minneapolis could go awry with the Lynx looking to avenge Saturday's loss. Starters could approach their prop marks and then get pulled if a comfortable lead is in place. Not taking a chance.
But the other two games could truly come down to the end, and I'm attracted to a few plays in this one.
The Wings return home after a shocking loss in Portland on Saturday. The one-point setback will have the Wings looking to bounce back, and they might be in the right spot to catch a hungover Aces team that survived Minnesota's late rally on Saturday. Las Vegas coach Becky Hammon was happy with the win, but unhappy with her defense.
And an area of concern for her, I would imagine, is the Aces' defense to start games, as they're allowing 21.2 points in the first quarter - sixth-highest in the WNBA. Perhaps it's because Las Vegas comes out flying, with a league-high 24.8 first-quarter average. Dallas, meanwhile, might rank 13th with its 19.5 first-quarter tally, but that number bumps to 21.5 (8th) at home. I like these to open this game with a flurry.
It's a long shot, but I don't mind the investment in Maddy Siegrist to score Dallas' first points, as I would think the Aces' defensive effort will focus on Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd. It's not as if the Aces will discredit what Siegrist is capable of, but when the game starts with Paige and Azzi on the floor, teams can get sidetracked.
Get this, over the Wings' first seven games, the Wings got first scores from Bueckers (5), Fudd (1), and Alanna Smith (1). When Dallas hosted the Aces on May 28, it was Siegrist with the first score for the Wings. She also got the first bucket against the Lynx three games later. Those are the only two games she's been the first scorer, and it makes you wonder, since Hammon and Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve are defensive-minded coaches and would emphasize the early clench on Bueckers and Fudd.
In just four career games against the Valkyries, Kelsey Plum is averaging 20.3 points per game, second-highest of any other opponent. And while a lot of her work has been done with that patented kick to the paint, Plum has averaged 2.5 treys against the Valkyries, hitting 10-of-28 from beyond the arc. Plum is coming off a 43-point performance in Phoenix, and now she faces a defensive scheme she's well familiar with, under the watch of Golden State coach Natalie Nakase, a by-product of Hammon.
Nakase and Plum became very close in Las Vegas. And if there is anyone who knows how to play against Nakase's scheme, it's Plum. Analytically speaking, Plum has popped for four or more 3-pointers five times this season. The first four times, she followed up by hitting just one in three games. The fourth? She buried six against the Aces. Plum is one of the smartest guards in the league and knows how to play against specific coaches and teams.
W.G. Ramirez is a veteran sports writer from Las Vegas and a Senior Staff Betting Analyst at Ballislife Bets. Follow him on X at @WillieGRamirez.
