Layup Lines: Golden State looks the part

Hello to the weekend and welcome back to Layup Lines, your quick recap of what’s going on in the WNBA. It was a wild Thursday night:

• Two double-digit underdogs (Phoenix, Golden State) beat two of the best offenses in the league (New York, Indiana).

• Caitlin Clark had maybe her worst game as a pro (11 points, 3-14 shooting, zero 3-pointers) and is now 0-5 against former Iowa teammate Kate Martin.

• And we lost our big bet on the Valkyries / Fever under by half a point (pain).

This 446 word newsletter should take about 2 minutes to read.

Today’s games

• We’re 36-32 this season with a $79 profit off an initial $1,000 budget.

• There are three games tonight, all on ION — Washington @ Atlanta (7:30pm ET), Dallas @ Connecticut (7:30pm) and Seattle @ Las Vegas (10pm).

  • The Dream wiped the floor with the Mystics last Sunday, but it’s not easy to do that to a team twice in a week.

    • Bet: Washington +8.5, $50 to win $44.

  • It will be a pro-Paige Bueckers crowd in Eastern Connecticut and the Sun are playing their fourth game in six days.

    • Bet: Dallas -4, $50 to win $44.

  • The Aces are a pretty average team without A’ja Wilson and I don’t think she’s back until Sunday. Proceed with caution if she does play tonight.

    • Bet: Seattle -1.5, $50 to win $46.

Top plays from last night

• The Liberty in transition

• Perfect backdoor dime from Laeticia Amihere

• Sami Whitcomb seals it

• Former Hawkeye on Hawkeye crime

Take of the day

• I can’t get over how impressive the Valkyries have been in their first season. They already have a home court advantage, an amazing coach in Natalie Nakase and an intensity that allows them to compete even with four of their top seven players in minutes per game out to play in EuroBasket.

• Adding another team to the league has also shown how much women’s basketball talent is still out there. The trickle down from an additional 12 new roster spots has not just been unheralded players like Kayla Thornton and Veronica Burton starring for the Valks, but others like Kitija Laksa (Phoenix), Olivia Nelson-Ododa (Connecticut) and Kennedy Burke (New York) showing what they can do with more playing time.

Graphic to go

Thornton is currently scoring double her average career points per game for Golden State and let it rip last night.

Layup Lines is written 100% by human beings and we appreciate your support. If you’re still reading, you must like this newsletter enough to share it with a friend. We’ll see you back here tomorrow.

— Everett Cook, Founder & Editor