"Kaitlyn Chen was fresh and I'm playing a fresh Kaitlyn Chen." Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase on using Chen over Veronica Burton late; Burton never returned after the third quarter. Asked if that was injury-related, Nakase said Burton is "feeling great" but didn't say.
"If you're tired, tell me. And I did at halftime. I went down the line." On a quick turnaround, Golden State Valkyries coach Natalie Nakase asked each player about fatigue and leaned on short stints. She called her team "12 deep" and said the second unit "can play or start."
A'ja Wilson was held to single-digit rebounds as Golden State sent two or three defenders at her. Becky Hammon and Chelsea Gray said the Aces didn't punish it, missing layups they normally make: "They threw 2 or 3 people at her... We missed a lot of open shots."
Jewell Loyd went down mid-game in the Aces' loss. Becky Hammon hadn't spoken to her and gave no status: "I don't know exactly what happened other than some lower leg." With injuries piling up, she said, it's "next woman up."
"Good news is we played like ass and only lost by 10." Becky Hammon on the Aces' loss to Golden State, which she blamed on discipline: "All we talked about for the last 48 hours was rebounding and blocking them out. And we did not do it."
Tired legs, not tactics, drove the late zone defense in Las Vegas's loss to Golden State. Becky Hammon said the Aces went to it "just trying to recoup some legs, I think, with some people playing some high minutes." She didn't say who.