Date, Time, and Location: Wednesday, July 29th, 7:00pm, Mortgage Matchup Center (Phoenix)
Broadcast Information: KPYX (San Francisco Bay Area) and KMAX (Sacramento Area), Arizona’s Family Sports and Merc+ (opposition’s broadcast area), USA/CNBC (full national)
The Golden State Valkyries return to action on Wednesday with a road game against the Phoenix Mercury. Both teams are playing for the first time after the All Star Break and are finishing their regular season series after the Valkyries won both games in San Francisco. This game will have national broadcasts on USA and CNBC as well as the local broadcasts, but that means that those outside of the home markets who usually watch on WNBA League Pass will not be able to do so live.
The Valkyries
It is not a clear initial injury report for the Valkyries for this game. Gabby Williams is listed as questionable in her return from the All Star Game, which feels precautionary. Golden State will be trying to bounce back from the loss that ended their winning streak and will have had time during the break to reflect on their season so far. Phoenix has tended towards their smallball lineup recently, which means that the Valkyries will have the flexibility to match them and also utilize some depth that they did not quite feel ready to use back in the early June game.
The Opposition
Phoenix has had a pretty mixed record since the last time that the two teams met, which was the start of a four-game losing streak. They did win four out of five games after that only to lose five consecutive games next. Their last two games were wins though, including a win at Los Angeles on Wednesday, although neither team that they defeated sits in a playoff spot. Those results leave them with a 10-18 record, six games outside of the playoffs in the loss column right now.
The big player news for the Mercury since the teams last played happened when Jovana Nogic opted to leave the team in the middle of a promising rookie season where she was averaging double-figures in scoring. Her contract is suspended right now, meaning that they only have eleven regular roster players present. One of those players is Valkyries draftee Marta Suarez, who just signed her third seven-day contract with the team, which means that she is now very much auditioning for a deal that cover the rest of the season. Her developmental spot had been filled by Sha Carter, who was been waived before her original contract was fully guaranteed, but there was another move on it recently when Carter was replaced by rookie Kara Dunn, who had been with the team in training camp. The other developmental spot has been filled by Shay Ciezki, who was also in training camp with them.
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