Julie

Vanloo

Jackson and Allemand are the only two players on the Sparks’ injury report ahead of their season finale on Thursday. Both players participated in the Sparks’ most recent game against the Mercury on Tuesday. Yet, with Los Angeles now officially eliminated from playoff contention, the statuses of the two players ahead of their matchup with the Aces will be worth monitoring. Should either player miss Thursday’s game, Rae Burrell, Julie Vanloo and Sarah Ashlee Barker would all be candidates to fill in as starters.

Jackson left the Sparks’ Tuesday night game against the Mercury at the end of the third quarter with an apparent left ankle injury. While she returned to the game in the middle of the fourth quarter on Tuesday, Jackson remains questionable on Friday night. Head coach Lynne Roberts told reporters pregame that if Jackson can’t play that Rae Burrell will take her spot in the starting lineup. Expect guard Julie Vanloo and wing Sarah Ashlee Barker to get some more minutes on the floor if Jackson if unavailable.

Hamby struggled to begin the game, missing her first three shots to begin the game in the first quarter. She struggled with the physicality of Wings’ front court players Luisa Geiselsöder and Maddy Siegirst. On switches Dallas wing Grace Berger even made it very difficult in the first half for Hamby to get good looks at the basket. Hamby got going in the second quarter scoring six of her 13 points off of getting better seals on the block and back-up point guard Julie Vanloo recognizing the advantages that Hamby created. During the final four minutes of the fourth quarter, Hamby created two old fashioned three-point plays for herself off two passes from wing Rae Burrell. Her two and-ones gave the Sparks significant momentum after being down by as many as seven points to start the fourth quarter.

The Sparks used a balanced offensive effort to rebound from a slow start on Tuesday, with four starters scoring in double figures. Plum needed a dagger three late to join the double-digit scoring party, but of greater importance to the Sparks was that she was on the court. The All-Star guard rolled her right ankle during the third quarter and exited briefly to get re-taped. Plum returned later in the quarter and did not experience any further issues. With the Sparks’ road trip continuing in Connecticut on Thursday, there would be additional playing time available to Julie Vanloo (3/1/2 with one three-pointer) if Plum’s ankle flares up.

It had been a while since Vanloo was as efficient as she was on Thursday afternoon. She played confidently coming off of high ball screens and just let it fly when the Lynx defense either went under or didn’t chase her quickly enough. The last time Vanloo hit five three-pointers was on May 16, when she was playing for the Golden State Valkyries. This was Vanloo’s first appearance with the Sparks that lasted more than 10 minutes. Vanloo isn’t quite fantasy-relevant yet, but more usage and lines like this would make her an interesting pickup.

Thursday’s game is the Sparks’ first since waiving Odyssey Sims and Shey Peddy, with the latter’s exit opening up a spot in the starting lineup. She’ll be replaced in the lineup by Allemand, who has returned from playing in EuroBasket for tournament winners Belgium. Her fantasy ceiling will be raised with the new role, and the Sparks are also expected to give Julie Vanloo some time off the bench mere hours after her signing became official.

Surprisingly waived by the Valkyries on Monday, Vanloo has a new home. The Sparks have signed the Belgian point guard, who will have the opportunity to log significant minutes after Los Angeles waived Odyssey Sims earlier in the week. With Golden State, Vanloo averaged 4.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 20.0 minutes per game. Among her new teammates is guard Julie Allemand, with whom Vanloo won FIBA Women’s EuroBasket last week.

Not long after the Valkyries waived Bree Hall and Chloe Bibby, the team announced they’d also bid farewell to Vanloo. Given her place within the rotation before leaving the team to play for Belgium at FIBA Women’s EuroBasket, this is a surprising move. Vanloo appeared in nine games for the Valkyries, averaging 4.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 20.0 minutes.

With Julie Vanloo away from the team to compete in FIBA Women’s EuroBasket and Tiffany Hayes sidelined with a nose injury, Leite was inserted into the Valkyries’ starting lineup Saturday night. One game removed from scoring 15 points off the bench in a win over the Sparks, the rookie guard had another solid showing against the Storm. Leite shot 60 percent from the field and recorded a few assists, with the four turnovers being the lone negative. And while plus/minus is a flawed way in which to measure a player’s impact, Leite’s +14 was tops on the Valkyries. How long she remains in the starting lineup depends on Hayes, who will likely need a few contact practices before being allowed to play. Golden State visits Dallas on Tuesday.

With Veronica Burton and Julie Vanloo struggling to score the basketball for the Valkyries, head coach Natalie Nakase put the ball in Carla Leite’s hands. She scored 10 of her 15 points in the second half including an incredibly clutch drive and layup right at the basket to tie the game in the fourth quarter with 25 seconds left. There’s something about the Sparks for Leite. In her last two games against Los Angeles, Leite has 34 of her 53 career points to date.