2020 Washington Mystics season

2020 Washington Mystics season
CoachMike Thibault
ArenaOriginally: St. Elizabeths East Arena
Rescheduled to: IMG Academy gymnasiums, Bradenton, Florida
Attendance0 per game
Results
Record9–13 (.409)
Place3rd (Eastern)
Playoff finish8th Seed, Lost in First Round to Phoenix Mercury
Team Leaders
PointsMyisha Hines-Allen – 17.0 ppg
ReboundsMyisha Hines-Allen – 8.9 rpg
AssistsLeilani Mitchell – 5.4 apg

The 2020 Washington Mystics season was the franchise's 23rd season in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The regular season tipped off versus the Indiana Fever on July 25, 2020.[1]

This WNBA season will feature an all-time high 36 regular-season games.[2] However, the plan for expanded games was put on hold on April 3, when the WNBA postponed its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] Under a plan approved on June 15, the league is scheduled to hold a shortened 22-game regular season at IMG Academy, without fans present, starting on July 24.[4][5]

The Mystics were without star Elena Delle Donne for the season, as she sat out due to COVID-19 concerns. Expectations were lowered when it was announced that the 2019 MVP would be out for the season. However, the Mystics defied those expectations in their first three games, winning all three. However, the season took a drastic turn for the worse after that, with the team going 1–11 in their August games. At 4–11 overall, the Mystics were on the outside looking in for the playoffs. The Mystics went 5–2 in September, including a four game win-streak to finish the season and secure the eight seed in the playoffs. As the eight seed, they lost in the first round to the Phoenix Mercury.

Transactions

WNBA draft

See also: 2020 WNBA draft
Round Pick Player Nationality School/Team/Country
2 24 Jaylyn Agnew  United States Creighton
3 36 Sug Sutton  United States Texas

Trades and roster changes

Date Details
February 11, 2020 Re-Signed F Elena Delle Donne[6]
February 13, 2020 Signed G Leilani Mitchell[7]
February 17, 2020 Re-signed G Emma Meesseman[8]
April 15, 2020 Engaged in a three team trade where they acquired Tina Charles in exchange for their first-round pick in the 2020 WNBA draft and their first, second, and third round pick in the 2021 WNBA draft and G Shatori Walker-Kimbrough.[9]
June 22, 2020 G Natasha Cloud and F/C LaToya Sanders announce they will opt out of the 2020 season.[10]
June 26, 2020 Signed G/F Essence Carson.[11]
June 29, 2020 Signed C Alaina Coates and G Shey Peddy.[12]

Roster

2020 Washington Mystics roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Height Weight DOB From Yrs
G 7 United States Atkins, Ariel 5' 8" (1.73m) 167 lb (76kg) 07-30-1996 Texas 2
C 31 United States Charles, Tina 6' 4" (1.93m) 192 lb (87kg) 12-05-1988 Connecticut 10
C 81 United States Coates, Alaina 6' 4" (1.93m) 225 lb (102kg) 04-07-1995 South Carolina 2
G/F 11 United States Delle Donne, Elena 6' 5" (1.96m) 187 lb (85kg) 09-05-1989 Delaware 7
F 88 Greece Gemelos, Jacki 6' 0" (1.83m) 165 lb (75kg) 11-22-1988 USC 1
F 21 United States Hawkins, Tianna 6' 3" (1.91m) 186 lb (84kg) 03-02-1991 Maryland 6
F 2 United States Hines-Allen, Myisha 6' 2" (1.88m) 200 lb (91kg) 05-30-1996 Louisville 2
G 4 United States Johnson, Stella 5' 10" (1.78m) 158 lb (72kg) 07-11-1998 Rider R
G 1 United States Leslie, Kiara 6' 0" (1.83m) 175 lb (79kg) 12-06-1995 NC State R
F 33 Belgium Meesseman, Emma 6' 4" (1.93m) 191 lb (87kg) 05-13-1993 Belgium 6
G 5 United States Mitchell, Leilani 5' 5" (1.65m) 138 lb (63kg) 06-15-1985 Utah 11
G/F 23 United States Powers, Aerial 5' 9" (1.75m) 159 lb (72kg) 07-17-1994 Michigan State 4
G 0 United States Sutton, Sug 5' 8" (1.73m) 140 lb (64kg) 12-17-1998 Texas R
Head coach
United States Mike Thibault (St. Martin's)
Assistant coaches
United States Eric Thibault (Missouri)
United States Asjha Jones (Connecticut)
Athletic trainer
United States Chalisa Fonza (Western Illinois)
Strength and conditioning coach
Vacant
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (IN) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Game log

Regular season

2020 game log
Total: 9–13
July
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 July 25 Indiana Fever W 101–76 Hines-Allen (27) Hines-Allen (10) Mitchell (4) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		1–0
2 July 28 Connecticut Sun W 94–89 Powers (27) Hines-Allen (8) Meesseman (8) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		2–0
3 July 30 Seattle Storm W 89–71 Atkins (22) Powers (8) Mitchell (6) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–0
August
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
4 August 1 Chicago Sky L 86–88 Atkins (24) Hines-Allen (10) Meesseman (6) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–1
5 August 5 Las Vegas Aces L 77–83 Meesseman (24) Meesseman (13) Mitchell (4) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–2
6 August 7 New York Liberty L 66–74 Powers (20) Hines-Allen (8) Mitchell (5) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–3
7 August 9 Indiana Fever L 84–91 Meesseman (19) Hawkins (10) Mitchell (5) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–4
8 August 11 Minnesota Lynx L 48–68 Hines-Allen (12) 3 tied (6) 3 tied (3) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–5
9 August 13 Los Angeles Sparks L 64–81 Atkins (20) Meesseman (11) Tied (5) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–6
10 August 15 Las Vegas Aces L 73–88 Atkins (17) Meesseman (9) Tied (5) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		3–7
11 August 19 Atlanta Dream W 98–91 Johnson (25) Meesseman (6) Meesseman (10) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		4–7
12 August 21 Dallas Wings L 92–101 (OT) Hines-Allen (35) Hines-Allen (12) Mitchell (4) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		4–8
13 August 23 Phoenix Mercury L 87–88 Hawkins (19) Hines-Allen (13) Hines-Allen (8) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		4–9
14 August 28 Phoenix Mercury L 72–94 Mitchell (17) Tied (6) Mitchell (5) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		4–10
15 August 30 Connecticut Sun L 63–76 Tied (14) Hines-Allen (13) Hines-Allen (6) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		4–11
September
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
16 September 2 Seattle Storm L 64–71 Meesseman (17) Hines-Allen (6) Mitchell (5) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		4–12
17 September 4 Chicago Sky W 79–69 Mitchell (20) Hines-Allen (10) Mitchell (12) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		5–12
18 September 6 Dallas Wings L 94–101 (OT) Atkins (22) Hines-Allen (13) Mitchell (9) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		5–13
19 September 8 Minnesota Lynx W 89–86 Hines-Allen (26) Hines-Allen (9) Mitchell (10) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		6–13
20 September 10 Los Angeles Sparks W 80–72 Hines-Allen (30) Hines-Allen (8) Mitchell (9) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		7–13
21 September 12 New York Liberty W 75–58 Hines-Allen (25) Hines-Allen (11) Meesseman (7) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		8–13
22 September 13 Atlanta Dream W 85–78 Atkins (26) Hines-Allen (10) Tied (7) IMG Academy
No In-Person Attendance 		9–13
2020 season schedule

Playoffs

2020 playoff game log
Total: 0–1
First Round
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 September 15 Phoenix Mercury L 84–85 Mitchell (25) Hines-Allen (9) 4 tied (4) IMG Academy 0–1
2020 playoff schedule

Standings

# Team W L PCT GB Conf.
1 x – Las Vegas Aces 18 4 .818 – 8–2
2 x – Seattle Storm 18 4 .818 – 8–2
3 x – Los Angeles Sparks 15 7 .682 3 5–5
4 x – Minnesota Lynx 14 8 .636 4 4–6
5 x – Phoenix Mercury 13 9 .591 5 4–6
6 x – Chicago Sky 12 10 .545 6 6–4
7 x – Connecticut Sun 10 12 .455 8 7–3
8 x – Washington Mystics 9 13 .409 9 6–4
9 e – Dallas Wings 8 14 .364 10 1–9
10 e – Atlanta Dream 7 15 .318 11 5–5
11 e – Indiana Fever 6 16 .273 12 4–6
12 e – New York Liberty 2 20 .091 16 2–8

Notes

x – Clinched playoff berth
e – Eliminated from playoffs
Home and Away records not shown, as all games played at a neutral location.
Updated to include results from September 13, 2020
Source


Playoffs

Main article: 2020 WNBA Playoffs
First round:
Single elimination
(September 15)		Second round:
Single elimination
(September 17)		Semifinals:
Best-of-five
(September 20–29)		WNBA Finals:
Best-of-five
(October 2–11)
1Las Vegas Aces6283688466
4Minnesota Lynx807Connecticut Sun8775777563
5Phoenix Mercury855Phoenix Mercury791Las Vegas Aces809159
8Washington Mystics842Seattle Storm9310492
2Seattle Storm888992
3Los Angeles Sparks594Minnesota Lynx867971
6Chicago Sky817Connecticut Sun73
7Connecticut Sun94

Note: Teams re-seeded after each round.

Statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game  RPG  Rebounds per game
 APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game  BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage  TO  Turnovers per game
 PF  Fouls per game Team leader League leader

Regular season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Myisha Hines-Allen 22 22 30.0 51.0 42.6 82.8 8.9 2.6 1.5 0.2 17.0
Aerial Powers 6 6 29.8 46.4 34.6 83.3 4.8 2.5 1.5 0 16.3
Ariel Atkins 22 22 31.0 43.8 41.1 88.6 2.9 2.4 1.8 0.3 14.8
Emma Meesseman 20 20 31.0 45.4 28.9 82.9 5.3 4.5 1.2 0.8 13.0
Leilani Mitchell 22 22 30.6 40.8 30.5 87.2 2.8 5.4 0.8 0 9.5
Stella Johnson 5 2 18.8 48.5 64.3 100 2.0 2.4 1.0 0.4 9.2
Tianna Hawkins 17 5 19.4 40.8 29.8 84.6 3.5 1.0 0.8 0.4 8.5
Kiara Leslie 19 10 21.8 35.2 36.2 92.3 3.0 1.1 0.5 0.4 5.5
Jacki Gemelos 12 1 16.1 31.3 20.7 50.0 1.4 1.2 0.3 0.1 3.2
Sug Sutton 12 0 9.4 36.4 29.4 71.4 0.8 1.0 0.1 0 2.8
Alaina Coates 20 0 9.9 52.9 0 53.8 2.8 0.5 0.4 0.2 2.5

Awards and honors

Recipient Award Date awarded Ref.
Myisha Hines-Allen Eastern Conference Player of the Week August 3, 2020 [13]
September 14, 2020 [14]
Eastern Conference Player of the Month – September September 15, 2020 [15]
Ariel Atkins 2nd Team All-Defense September 29, 2020 [16]
Myisha Hines-Allen All-WNBA Second Team October 4, 2020 [17]

References

  1. ^ "2020 Washington Mystics Schedule". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  2. ^ "Atlanta Dream Announce 2020 Schedule - Atlanta Dream". dream.wnba.com. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  3. ^ "WNBA Statement Regarding the Start of the 2020 Regular Season". April 3, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  4. ^ "WNBA Announces Plan To Tip Off 2020 Season". WNBA. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
  5. ^ "WNBA announces plans for 2020 season to start late July in Florida". NBC Sports Washington. June 15, 2020. Retrieved June 15, 2020.
  6. ^ "MYSTICS RE-SIGN REIGNING MVP ELENA DELLE DONNE". mystics.wnba.com. WNBA. February 11, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  7. ^ "LEILANI MITCHELL RETURNS TO MYSTICS". mystics.wnba.com. WNBA. February 13, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
  8. ^ "MYSTICS RE-SIGN 2019 FINALS MVP EMMA MEESSEMAN". mystics.wnba.com. WNBA. February 17, 2020. Retrieved February 17, 2020.
  9. ^ "Washington Mystics Acquire 7x All-Star Tina Charles in Three-Team Deal". wnba.com. WNBA. April 15, 2020. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
  10. ^ "CLOUD, SANDERS TO OPT OUT OF 2020 SEASON". wnba.com. WNBA. June 22, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  11. ^ "Mystics Sign Veteran Essence Carson". wnba.com. WNBA. June 26, 2020. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  12. ^ "MYSTICS SIGN ALAINA COATES AND SHEY PEDDY". wnba.com. WNBA. June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  13. ^ "Stewart, Hines-Allen Earn First Players Of The Week Honors Of The Season". wnba.com. WNBA. August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
  14. ^ "Hines-Allen, Wilson Earn Player Of The Week Honors For Week 7". wnba.com. WNBA. September 14, 2020. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
  15. ^ "WNBA Announces Players Of The Month". wnba.com. WNBA. September 15, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  16. ^ "Two Atlanta Dream Players And Seattle Storm's Alysha Clark Headline 2020 WNBA All-Defensive Team". wnba.com. WNBA. September 29, 2020. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
  17. ^ "A'ja Wilson And Candace Parker Unanimously Selected To 2020 All-WNBA First Team". wnba.com. WNBA. October 4, 2020. Retrieved October 5, 2020.