The WNBA came back from the All-Star break Wednesday night and immediately reminded everyone why this league is must-watch television. Two games, two one-possession margins, a pair of comeback wins, and a Caitlin Clark line that headlines the setup for Friday. That's where we start.
WNBA Picks Today: Wednesday's Results and What They Move
Atlanta took the first game, edging Dallas 82-81. Allisha Gray scored five of her 25 points in the closing seconds, and Angel Reese filled every column on the stat sheet: 22 points, 12 rebounds, four assists, four steals. The Dream trailed by 15 at some point. That detail matters. Dallas played deep into a deficit, found nothing, and still nearly stole it on sheer competitiveness. A team that keeps climbing back is either a live dog or a situational fade depending on when you're looking at them, and right now you're looking at them heading into Washington on Friday.
The second game in Phoenix was equally unhinged. Kahleah Copper put up 27 points and Alyssa Thomas matched her season-high with 25 (nine rebounds, eight assists) as the Mercury erased a 13-point hole to beat Golden State 91-89. Four lead changes, eight ties. The Valkyries led 46-34 at halftime and still couldn't close it. Copper and Thomas combined for 52. That's not a stat line, that's a two-woman crime scene.
The Friday Games, One at a Time
Three games on Friday's schedule all deserve a look through the lens of what just happened.
Dallas Wings @ Washington Mystics, 7:30 PM ET. Washington has won four straight and is sitting at 15-12, 9-5 in the Eastern Conference. Dallas just dropped one at home to Atlanta after blowing a 15-point lead in the second half. The Wings are 18-10 overall, a genuinely good team, but they're coming in fatigued on the wrong end of a gut-punch loss. Washington is playing with momentum. That's not a nothing sentence in a league with thin margins.
Indiana Fever @ Portland Fire, 10:00 PM ET. The wire says Clark had 32 points in Indiana's last outing. The Fever sit at 18-10. Portland is 11-17, 3-9 in the West. That record is not a misprint. The Fire are near the bottom of the Western Conference, and they're hosting one of the hottest players in the league coming off a 32-point performance. The gap between these rosters is real. Portland is not a feel-good story right now, they're a team that has genuinely struggled against conference competition, and Indiana is built to exploit exactly that.
Seattle Storm @ Atlanta Dream, 7:30 PM ET. Seattle is 6-24. Atlanta is 17-10, 9-3 in the East, and Allisha Gray just delivered a game-winner the night before. The reporting out of the league preview notes Sabrina Hiedeman dropped 33 for Seattle in their last game, which is a real number and worth tracking, but one performance doesn't move a 6-24 team past a Dream squad playing its best basketball of the season. Seattle has been the league's softest side for most of this year.
Today's Thursday Slate
Three games tip Thursday evening before Friday's card gets here.
| Game | Time (ET) |
|---|---|
| Minnesota Lynx @ Toronto Tempo | 8:10 PM |
| Connecticut Sun @ Chicago Sky | 8:10 PM |
| New York Liberty @ Las Vegas Aces | 10:10 PM |
The Liberty-Aces game at 10:10 is the marquee. Both are legitimate contenders and the board on that one should be worth watching before it closes.
What I'm Watching Next
Nothing cleared my number this morning. The overnight wire gave me game results and context, not a qualifying edge on today's Thursday board or tomorrow's Friday games. What I am tracking: how Portland's home number moves once sharp money gets a look at the Indiana-Portland matchup. A team at 3-9 in conference hosting a Fever squad with Clark coming off 32 is going to be priced accordingly, and the question is always whether the number overshoots. Right now I don't have that line in front of me. When I do, you'll hear about it.
The Read, not a tip. Nothing on the board today, but the picture is getting clearer. Bet for entertainment, size what you can lose, and if the game ever stops being fun, 1-800-GAMBLER is there.
