Plum celebrates her Sparks debut. (Getty Images/Ezra Shaw)
Let’s reframe the situation and see why her absence hits so differently.
Every outlet covering the Sparks right now will tell you the same thing: Kelsey Plum scores a lot and they miss her scoring. That’s true, at the time of writing, she is second only to A’ja Wilson in points per game. But it’s also the least interesting part of the story.
Other teams lose their best scorer and stay competitive. The Fever do okay without Caitlin Clark, The Lynx win without Napheesa Collier, and Toronto manages without Brittney Sykes. But the Sparks are 1-3 without Plum across both injury stints this season — and the losses haven’t been close. Something bigger is missing than points. Here’s what to actually look for.
Start with what Plum does to a defense before she even touches the ball.
This season she became the only player in WNBA history to open a campaign with four straight games of 25+ points while shooting 55% or better from the floor. That kind of efficiency forces a defense to make a choice that other offensive players simply don’t force: commit to stopping her and leave someone else open, or leave her open and pay for it. That choice is what creates space for Nneka, for Burrell, for everyone else. Watch how much room those players have when Plum is on the floor versus how they’re being guarded right now. The spacing isn’t the same because the threat isn’t the same. Defenses don’t have to choose anymore.
Then there’s the playmaking piece, and this is the one buried deepest in the numbers.
Plum is averaging 6.4 assists per game this season, which is sixth in the entire league, while carrying the team’s primary scoring load simultaneously. She became the Sparks’ main ball handler earlier this season, meaning she was creating shots for herself and for everyone else at the same time. That’s two jobs. When she’s out both jobs go unfilled. Watch how the Sparks initiate offense right now, how often it stalls, how often a player catches the ball and has nowhere to go with it. That’s not a talent problem. That’s a Plum-shaped hole in how this offense breathes.
But the part that doesn’t show up in any stat is the one that matters most.
Coach Lynne Roberts said before Plum’s first game as a Spark: “Kelsey is different, and I mean that in the biggest compliment. Just everyone being around her, it’s going to elevate them in terms of how they prepare themselves, how they work, and how they handle it.” That’s not a compliment about basketball skill. That’s a description of someone whose competitive standard is contagious; someone whose presence in a practice, a huddle, a timeout, raises the expectation of everyone around her without her having to say a word.
Plum has been clear about who she is and what she expects. “We’re no longer the cute, young tadpole team,” she said this season. “We have to win.” That’s not a quote, that’s a culture. And culture doesn’t sustain itself when the person carrying it isn’t in the building.
Watch the Sparks’ body language in the moments when games get hard right now. The huddles, the bench, the way players respond to adversity. Plum is a fiery competitor. Headstrong, demanding, the kind of player whose frustration with mediocrity is visible and whose belief in winning is louder than any halftime speech. When that energy is absent on the court, the question isn’t just who scores. It’s who holds everyone to the standard she set.
On that note, let’s talk a little about Kelsey’s journey in getting to this point, because I think it helps us see the current situation better when we have a wider view.
KP was drafted first overall in 2017 to San Antonio, who made it pretty clear they didn’t want or need her. The team moves to Vegas and she gets a new coach only to be told they intended to trade her. She stayed, fought, and eventually won two championships in Vegas. And then, at a point where most players would have stayed comfortable, she looked at where she was and decided it wasn’t enough. Not because she needed more glory, but because she needed to find out what she was actually capable of when it was her team to lead.
“If you really believe that you are as good as you think you are and think you can impact winning at the highest level, there’s only one way to find out,” she told Sue Bird on Bird’s Eye View. (I highly recommend checking out the full podcast interview, you’ll learn a lot. Both about Kelsey and beyond!) “I would hate to have grandkids sitting on the couch and just being like, ‘I wonder if I would have.'”
That’s the thing people miss about her. She didn’t come to LA to shine alone. She came to build something and bring people with her. That’s a different motivation and it shows up differently on the floor and in the locker room than the “fiery scorer” version of her that gets clipped and shared.
This past offseason she played alongside Aliyah Boston in Unrivaled. They quickly became fast friends, frequently joking around and roasting each other the way you only can in a genuine friendship. They also became one of the most effective duos in the league: the first Unrivaled teammates to both score 30+ in the same game. Boston afterward: “I love KP. I think she’s pushing me in a different way.” If you ask almost anyone, Aliyah Boston one of the warmest, most well-regarded people in the WNBA, so the the fact that they hit it off so quickly and said that playing with Kelsey Plum made her better and that she loves her for it is a real tell. You don’t get that from someone if there isn’t a kind person underneath the competitive exterior.
She is headstrong. She is fiery. She will tell you exactly what she thinks and she will compete like her life depends on it. People sometimes read that as difficult. The people who actually know her read it differently; as someone who cares deeply, works incredibly hard, and wants to win but not alone. Her uniqueness is exactly what makes her great.
So what can the Sparks actually do to turn things around while she’s out? The answer isn’t finding one player to be Kelsey Plum, that’s not how it works. The blueprint already exists. In their one win without her this season: a 92-87 road victory over Washington. Nobody tried to be Plum. Wheeler scored 21 with 8 assists, her best game of the year. Nneka had 20 points and and 11 rebounds. Brink gave them 16 points off the bench, though unfortunately she is also unavailable at the moment, so that’s another tough component of the situation. Hamby had 14 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 steals. Four players doing four completely different things at a high level simultaneously. And when Washington tied it with two minutes left, Nneka hit a three and Wheeler sealed it at the line. Two veterans who’ve been in those moments before, making the plays that needed to be made without anyone carrying anyone else.
That’s the version of this team that can survive without Plum. Not one player replacing her, everyone collectively deciding their role gets bigger. Burrell needs to be the person defenses have to account for so Nneka gets cleaner looks. Wheeler needs to own the playmaking role more completely. Plum’s 6.4 assists don’t appear on their own, someone has to fill that function. And Nneka has to carry something beyond the scoring. Roberts already said the onus falls on her, but watch whether her leadership style shifts visibly in these games. Plum is fiery and outwardly competitive. Nneka is steadier, more internal. Right now the team needs both and only has one. Watch the huddles. Watch who’s talking. Watch whether someone steps into that space.
The points are the easy part to explain. The gravity is harder to replace.
With your new reframed view, watch closely, and let’s see what happens!
