LOS ANGELES – When I started this beat, there were three questions I wanted to ask Los Angeles Sparks Head Coach / GM Derek Fisher. One, what was the logic that prevented the Sparks from fighting tooth and nail to keep the GOAT Candace Parker and the Point “Gawd” Chelsea Gray? I wanted to follow that up by asking if acquiring Liz Cambage was an attempt to replace two greats with one person who has star power and commands attention? And finally, how did he plan to overcome the vast array of issues Cambage had with the Las Vegas Aces and her Australian team?
But, who wants to come out swinging on day one while the team is in a rebuild and in the process of getting to know each other. Not to mention, Fisher has answered the Candace Parker questions at length so, that ship has sailed. It sailed Candace Parker to a championship and sent Chelsea Gray to a team that currently has the best record in the league. But that isn’t the point. More so, how was Coach Fisher going to take a young team with new pieces that have never played together and make them relevant?
Those questions seemed irrelevant after the first two games of the season. The Sparks marched into Chicago and beat Candace Parker and company in overtime. They followed that up with a win against the Indiana Fever where Cambage led the way with 22 points and no foul trouble. Who knew the winds of change were coming?
Going into game three against the Atlanta Dream, I asked Coach Fisher if a win in Atlanta would end any questions he had about the team’s chemistry and ability to win. He quickly responded that it would not. And, that the true test for the team would be how they bounced back from adversity. The team lost that game to the Dream by just two points and would go on to lose the next three by three points.
No need to panic right? They were all close games. But the loss at home gave the fans a chance to see firsthand that Brittney Sykes was the only perimeter defender and that Liz Cambage not only had foul troubles but problems arguing with the refs as well. Nneka Ogwumike, who plays at full speed 100% of the time, also had to lead the charge in trying to keep Cambage focused. The internal problems were on full display for the home crowd to see.
Suddenly, the questions began to surface (or maybe resurface) on if Derek Fisher was the right person for the job. It seemed a little unfair, especially when the entire narrative has been that the team needed to build chemistry. But when the Sparks hired Vanessa Shay as president, she made her intentions very clear. Having a winning team was vital in her efforts to boost attendance and attract corporate sponsors.
Sitting at the number eight spot at 5-7 isn’t terrible, but it is definitely not good. While I expected Fisher to finish out the season, the end credits were written all over the wall.
Thus far, Cambage has presented nothing but flashes of greatness followed by low effort disappointment. She is 6’9 and not even in the top 10 in rebounding. She is tied with Nneka Ogwumike in blocks. Cambage is capable of more and she should be better. Perhaps interim Head Coach Fred Williams will have better luck coaching the All-Star center out of bad habits and force her to take some accountability. He does have experience with her. Williams has previously coached four other WNBA teams including the Tulsa Shock (now Dallas Wings) from 2014–18, where Cambage eventually made her return to the WNBA. The pair have had a great relationship ever since.
So now the question is, will the relationship between Williams and Cambage cause her to finally step up? Only time will tell.
