By Christan Braswell, edited by Charles Hamaker

Seattle, WA - Competing for a WNBA championship was a goal above all others for the Seattle Storm entering the 2024 season.

Winners in seven of their last 10 games, the Storm sit at 14-7, good for the fourth-best record in the WNBA. They held up their end of the bargain on the court, and the time spent building chemistry and camaraderie off it are the two main catalysts to their success.

“We’re a very competitive group and our vision is clear,” said Storm head coach Noelle Quinn after the 84-71 win over the Chicago Sky. “From day one, we talked about competing for a championship, but also what that entails is being disciplined and competitive and I think we’re showcasing that. We’re halfway through the season and though we’re a new team and growing together, we’re finding moments to capitalize in the game. These are reps this group really needs, especially when we’re trying to find ways to get better on the court, but also win games.”

“Chicago’s record isn’t indicative of the type of team they are,” she continued. “It is very difficult to come by wins in this league. Our team understands that. Not taking our competition for granted but also rallying together on those runs, the timeouts, the talking, the connectivity. These are all moments that we’re growing in and it’s showing up on the court.”

Seattle knows no easy game exists in the WNBA. The two-game set against a budding Sky team proved as much. In the first game on Friday, Quinn’s group made a run in the waning seconds of the fourth quarter but Sky guard Chennedy Carter was unstoppable throughout the second half, netting 20 of her game-high 33 points in the win.

In the head-to-head series finale against the Sky on Sunday, Seattle struggled to establish themselves offensively through most of the first half, largely due to Chicago’s rookie post tandem in All-Star Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso. Reese had nine points and eight rebounds while Cardoso’s 6-7 frame wrecked any hope of consistency within Seattle’s approach. She had four points, eight rebounds — five off the offensive glass — and three blocks in the first seven minutes of the game. Cardoso’s skill in redirecting ball carriers from the paint was monumental.

Chicago Sky post players Angel Reese and Kamilla Cardoso were effective contributors in the weekend series against the Seattle Storm. (Photos by Marriah Menchaca)

Sky rookie head coach Teresa Weatherspoon went away from her talented center after the opening frame, only playing Cardoso a combined nine minutes throughout the second and third quarters. Cardoso didn’t see the floor in the final period to the shock of many given how effective she was early on.

“She’s fine, she’s fine,” said Weatherspoon when asked about Cardoso’s absence. “Izzy [Harrison] was playing fairly well for us, and that’s it.”

Harrison finished with 11 points and four rebounds in 20 minutes, yet was ineffective in the second half, going 2-for-7 from the floor and was unable to defend Seattle’s post players efficiently. With Cardoso out of the game, Seattle was 10-for-15 at the rim in the second half.

When asked about the plus-nine rebound advantage compared to the first game, even Quinn was shocked at the decision that ultimately cost Chicago the game.

“Kamilla only played 20 minutes. She was out a bit more.”

Basketball is a game of runs. Opening the third quarter with an 18-6 run, Seattle’s competitive fervor shined bright as they battled the waves, producing dynamic stretches of their own. Seattle outscored Chicago 53-32 in the second half with Cardoso off the floor for most of it.

A Diggins-Smith pull-up jumper gave Seattle their largest lead at 14, 69-55, at the 7:13 mark in the fourth quarter. Over the next four and a half minutes, Chicago stormed back, igniting a 14-3 run that brought the deficit to a one-possession game with 2:49 left. Reese and Carter combined for eight of those points.

Out of all of Seattle’s runs throughout the game, none was more crucial than the one that put them on top for good. Forward Jordan Horston started it by scoring or assisting on the next three possessions, eventually finding a cutting Magbegor for a layup, stretching the lead to seven. Diggins-Smith drew a foul and connected on one of her two free throws. She made up for the miss with a three-point dagger, Ogwumike made two three throws, and Loyd capped the 12-2 dash with a layup with 33 seconds left on the clock.

After the game, Loyd expressed the same sentiments as Quinn about the team’s effectiveness when communicating more often throughout games and needing time to gel as a unit.

“I think a lot of it comes from talking and communicating, whether it’s midplay, after timeouts, practice, and things we see on the fly.”

Like Quinn and Loyd, Ogwumike is of the same mind.

“Basically what Jewell [Loyd] said, especially putting an exclamation point on time together. I really do feel like it’s really important. Just kind of knowing each other as people and players, knowing our dynamics as pieces of the team. Also, individually with our coach. I think it’s very important to understand those types of relationships for us to develop that chemistry. I think people on the outside like to herald. It’s like, you see this roster on paper and you think automatically it’s about to be on and popping. There’s an element of that that we also experience, but there’s also going to be those synapses that you have to get accustomed to, and that does take time. That does take adversity. Being able to go through that on a daily basis while also building towards the greater goal is a part of the discipline that creates that connectivity.”

It’s no secret that Seattle was thrust into the contender conversation entering this season. Seattle, on paper, stood as one of the most dynamic teams in the league after signing perennial All-Star talents Ogwumike and Diggins-Smith to a roster with franchise cornerstones Loyd and Magbegor. Losing three of their first four games, including back-to-back losses to the Minnesota Lynx, questions loomed from reporters and fans alike on the fit and philosophy behind the roster’s construction. Seattle responded with a six-game win streak, tying their longest since 2021.

“We just needed some time,” Loyd continued. “I’ve never played with players like them [Ogwumike and Diggins-Smith] before so it’s new to me too. So, just really talking, time, film, and just playing basketball.”

Playing four games out of a forty-game schedule, there was widespread belief that Loyd was enduring a shooting slump when she was simply adjusting to a talent-laden team that didn’t need her to lead for forty minutes every night after an 11-29 season in 2023.

Diggins-Smith faced her fair share of criticism. Given she was away from the game for over 20 months on maternity leave, respect and grace should’ve come standard when critiquing her play. It wasn’t, so Quinn emphatically demanded that it be shown. In her last 10 games, Diggins-Smith is averaging 13.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, and seven assists.

On the season, she’s connecting on 44 percent of her 2s and 62 percent at the rim. She’s upped it to a blistering 78 percent in her last three outings. To say that Diggins-Smith has arrived would be an understatement; she’s been productive since the season started. All she needed was time to adjust to being an active player again and working through what that entails. The process hasn’t been easy but with a vast support system in place rich with resources and teammates she considers family, Diggins-Smith has everything she needs at her disposal.

In so many words, Seattle is right where they want to be at the midway point of the season.

“It feels good to me,” said Ogwumike. “A few games ago, someone asked if we’re ‘in our groove’, but I was like, ‘I’m not really trying to find a groove.’ “I’m more interested in the daily discipline and building blocks of being better each time. At the end of the season, there won’t be any games left to play, but you want to build each time, even if you know you’ve played until the very last. That’s how I feel about our day-to-day.

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