Chicago Sky vs. Los Angeles Sparks 5/6/22 WNBA Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Los Angeles Sparks and Chicago Sky face off on Friday on the opening WNBA day of the season at Wintrust Arena. When these two teams faced off in June of 2021 it was the Sparks that won 68-63.

The Chicago Sky are coming off a WNBA championship after finishing the regular season with a 16-16 record. The Sky were an impressive team in terms of talent last season, but they look even better heading into this season. The team brought in Emma Meesseman, who played with the Washington Mystics to start her career. Last season, in 20 games, she averaged 13 points while shooting 45.4 percent from the field. The Sky played two preseason games, and they didn’t look great in either of the games. In the first game against the Dallas Wings they lost 92-77 and in the last game against the Indiana Fever they were defeated 79-75. The offense looks like it should be fine, but there has to be some concern about the defense. 

On the other side of this matchup is the Los Angeles Sparks, who are a proud franchise, but they missed the playoffs during the 2021 season. The Sparks were busy during free agency and brought in Liz Cambage who is one of the best players in the WNBA. In 142 games in her career, Cambage is averaging 16.3 points while shooting 54.4 percent from the field. Chiney Ogumike, Nneka Ogumike, and Kristi Tolliver are also all key players who are going to be leaned on heavily this season. The Sparks only played one preseason game against the Seattle Storm and the offense only scored 68 points. 

The Sparks brought in Cambage this offseason, but I still like the way this Sky team is constructed more. The Sky’s offense was strong during the preseason, and I expect they are going to find offensive success against this Los Angeles offense. The Sky gave up 81 points in the only preseason game, and Chicago will get the job done. Back Chicago against the spread.