Top Ten WNBA Games To Watch (Early Season Edition)

When last we saw some WNBA action, the Phoenix Mercury were celebrating their WNBA Finals victory over the Detroit Shock.

But now that we have this whole CBA business out of the way, we can begin thinking about next season. Here’s my Games To Watch for the first few weeks of the season.

Difficulty: You will not have to miss one to watch another.

Game One: Sparks @ Mercury, 3:30 p.m. EST, May 17

Why: Why not? Defending champs at home plus the return of Lisa Leslie and a likely debut of Candace Parker. Plus, it’s on ABC (hopefully HD). New coach debut for the Mercury, but still the core of Cappie, Penny, Tangela and Diana.

Game Two: Sky @ Storm, 10 p.m. EST, May 17

Why: First game under new ownership for the Storm. There’s going to be a ton of fans in attendance to show the rest of the league why there shouldn’t have been any question as to keep the Storm in Seattle.

Game Three: Mercury @ Silver Stars, 8 p.m. EST, May 20

Why: Stars fans (and myself sitting in the third row) remember the play all too well. Down six points with under 20 seconds in the game, Shanna Crossley nails three free-throws and after a Diana Taurasi turnover, Becky Hammon nails a long three to tie with two seconds remaining. Crossley fouls on the inbound pass (okay, she shouldn’t have even gone for the ball, but still, weak call) and after two free throws by the Mercury, Crossley nearly hits the buzzer-beater from half court. Do I really need to say anymore about why this game will be great?

Game Four: Fever @ Shock, 7:30 p.m., May 21

Why: Eastern Conference Finals rematch.

Game Five: Shock @ Dream, 7:30 p.m. EST, May 23

Why: Atlanta’s home opener.

Game Six: Liberty @ Shock, 6 p.m., May 25

Why: Playoff rematch. New York was clearly overmatched, but did show up in Game Two of the semis to make the series respectable.

Game Seven: Mercury @ Lynx, 8 p.m. EST, May 31

Why: The Lynx were a very young team in 2007 and the 10-24 record showed it, so this will be a great test for them to see where another season of playing together has helped.

Game Eight: Silver Stars @ Comets, 8:30 p.m. EST, June 3

Why: I just plain don’t like Houston (the city… the Comets, I’ve got no issues with).

Game Nine: Mystics @ Mercury, 10:30 p.m. EST, June 3

Why: “New” coach Tree Rollins takes his ladies to Phoenix to face the defending champs on national TV. Washington really turned their season around under Rollins when he was named interim head coach, so a full off-season and training camp should spell playoffs for the Mystics.

Game Ten: Storm @ Silver Stars, 8 p.m. EST, June 13

Why: Because I’m going to try and be at that game.