Sug

Sutton

Sutton entered Thursday’s game averaging 3.8 assists, her highest mark since 2023 as a member of the Mercury. Since the August trade deadline, the Mystics guard has dished out at least five helpers on seven occasions, including Thursday’s loss to Phoenix. Also of note was Sutton’s “ball control,” as she only committed one turnover. While Sutton did not have her best night shooting the basketball, the point guard once again did a good job of finding her teammates in spots where they could be successful.

While Saturday’s defeat officially eliminated Washington from playoff contention, Sutton’s performance was a positive development. She shot the ball well from the field, and the 17 points are the most she’s had in a game since hitting that number in a June 26 win over the Aces. In the six games ahead of Saturday’s matchup with the Valkyries, Sutton averaged 5.5 points while shooting 34.2 percent from the field. While Washington’s decision to trade Brittney Sykes may have opened up more scoring opportunities for Sutton, it also meant that opposing defenses would pay her more attention. That likely negatively impacted her production in Washington’s games since the trade at the August deadline.

Sheldon will miss a fifth straight game due to a sprained right ankle suffered during an August 13 loss to Golden State. Mystics coach Sydney Johnson said Thursday that the guard still has not reached the point where she’s doing 3-on-3 work, which may not be the best sign regarding how close Sheldon is to a return. Starters Sug Sutton and Sonia Citron continue to approach, if not exceed, 30 minutes on a nightly basis, and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.

Sutton was one of several Mystics players to struggle on the offensive end against the Sun. She made just one shot on inefficient shooting and tallied only two points at the charity stripe. Yet, she led Washington in assists and was the only player on the team with more than two. But like many of her teammates, Sutton will look to bounce back on Saturday against the Aces and help the Mystics remain in a good spot in the race for a playoff spot.

Sutton created a lot of her own offense. She succeeded making a bunch of difficult shots including four mid-range long twos. With over a minute left in regulation and the Mystics up just three points, Sutton came off a dribble handoff with Kiki Iriafen and hit a 11-foot pullup over Odyssey Sims to put the Mystics up by two scores with less than a minute left in the game. In addition to shot making, Sutton also created offense as a facilitator. She found four different teammates for scores including three-point makes from Stefanie Dolson, Sonia Citron and Alysha Clark. Sutton also found Iriafen cutting off the ball for a score midway through the second quarter.

Clark racked up her third double-digit scoring outing of the season on Friday. She hit three three-pointers, two coming on passes from Jade Melbourne where Clark didn’t have a defender anywhere near her, in addition to a three-point make that was set up on a screening action from guard Sug Sutton. Clark’s only other made field goal came on a driving floater that came off her own paint penetration where she was able to back down Sophie Cunningham and then take her off the dribble.

After going scoreless on 0-of-4 shooting in Washington’s win over the Wings on August 10, Sutton got untracked Wednesday night. Not only were the 15 points the most she’s scored in a game since June 26, but the tally was three more than her total in Washington’s prior three games combined. With Brittney Sykes now in Seattle, Sutton will have more opportunities to score while running the Mystics’ offense. The consistency isn’t there yet, but she may be able to offer sneaky deep-league value as Washington closes out its season.

Austin didn’t shoot efficiently on Thursday night, and that was in part due focused defense played on her from Temi Fágbénlé, but also Austin forced more difficult shots rather than being opportunistic. Austin did have one of the most important makes down the stretch for the Mystics. After both teams had gone scoreless for around four minutes in the fourth quarter, Austin scored on a putback coming off a missed floater from Sug Sutton. She used her impressive footwork and athleticism to squirm around Fágbénlé and turn around to score with under 1:15 left in regulation. Austin was a facilitator on Thursday night also as she found Sonia Citron for two of her scores in addition to pass and then screen for Lucy Olsen to come off of and score.

Sutton scored in double figures for the first time in July to finish as one of Washington’s leading scorers on Tuesday. She was fairly quiet through the first three quarters before the bulk of her scoring production came in the final frame, when the game was mostly out of reach in terms of the Mystics’ chances of logging a comeback win. Still, she finished with double-digit points and could look to carry her late success on Tuesday into next week’s rematch against the Sparks.

On a night when no Mystics starter scored more than ten points, Olsen stepped up to provide solid value off the bench. The rookie guard’s point total was a season-high, and she did so on 70 percent shooting from the field. Interestingly, Olsen only played 17 minutes after logging 24 and 38 in the two games prior. While Jade Melbourne’s return from a mouth injury was a factor, the Mystics were without Sug Sutton (leg) on Thursday. Washington won’t play again until July 8, so there’s no need for fantasy managers to add Olsen following her performance against the Lynx.