Cardoso was the Sky’s highest scorer and most efficient player on an evening when Chicago stayed at bay with Atlanta until the final quarter when the Sky got out scored 30-16 by the Dream. Cardoso won her matchup against Brittney Griner, proving that she’s a much more athletic back-to-the-basket center who can even put on the floor a little bit and drive, especially when Griner is guarding her. Without a natural point guard on the floor for Chicago, both Rebecca Allen and Rachel Banham made sure to get Cardoso the ball in advantageous spots on the floor. Cardoso was responsible for half of the Sky’s 12 second chance points while also reaching a season rebounds with nine. Cardoso is yet to notch a double-double this season, a metric she reached seven times in 2024.

After her worst offensive performance of the season against the Indiana Fever a days ago, shooting 1-for-8 and scoring just 3 points, Howard bounced back in dramatic fashion scoring a season high 36 points in the Dream’s convincing win over the Sky. Howard didn’t even score a single point until the second quarter, and went on a heater in the second half hitting 10 of her 12 total makes all in second half as she accounted for 56 % of Atlanta’s second half points. Dream point guard Jordin Canada and wing Allisha Gray each found Howard on 40% of these made field goals. In her second game back from a knee injury, Canada’s offensive aggression opened the floor up for Howard and allowed her to play her more natural position, the small forward, off the ball with limited on-ball creation.

Injured during the third quarter of Wednesday’s loss to the Sparks, Wilson has entered the league’s concussion protocol. Not only will she not be available for Friday’s game against the Wings, but there’s also a chance Wilson also misses Sunday’s game against the Mercury. Her absence leaves a massive hole in the Aces’ lineup, and Las Vegas will need guard Jewell Loyd to get untracked after a slow start to her first season with the team. As for who moves into the starting lineup, Aaliyah Nye is a possibility if Las Vegas goes with a smaller lineup, and she can provide perimeter shooting.

After missing five games with a strained left quad, Clark has been cleared to make her return to game action. And she’ll do so against the reigning WNBA champion Liberty, which was also the last time Clark played against before being sidelined. In the May 24 defeat, she tallied 18 points, five rebounds, 10 assists and two three-pointers, shooting 6-of-18 from the field. In addition to the shooting, Clark will look to clean up the turnovers, as she recorded 10 in that 90-88 defeat. With Clark available, the Fever waived Aari McDonald in a corresponding move.

Wilson was injured during the third quarter of Wednesday’s loss to the Sparks. While she did not exit the game immediately after getting hit in the face, the three-time MVP would depart with just over a minute remaining in the period. Wilson’s exit led to the Aces going small for longer stretches, with rookie Aaliyah Nye playing additional minutes. Wilson not playing on Friday may also result in recent signing Joyner Holmes playing rotation minutes.

Bueckers’ much-anticipated return from injury was well worth the wait, as the No. 1 pick of the 2025 Draft set a new career-high in scoring on Wednesday. Bueckers’ magnificent first game back was highlighted by a 12-point first quarter where she shot 5-of-5 from the field before ending the half with 22 points. Her scoring trailed off just slightly as the game wore on, which eventually put the Wings in a hole too deep to crawl out of, as she had been the only Dallas player to reach double figures in scoring until later in the fourth quarter. Still, Bueckers’ strong production after missing extended time should leave fantasy managers optimistic about what’s to come next.

In the Lynx’s first loss of the 2025 season, Collier shot 39 percent from the field, her second lowest clip of the season since the Lynx also faced the Storm in their 82-77 win over Seattle last month. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Collier had a less efficient than usual outing when Seattle has a WNBA All-Defensive front court anchored by Ezi Magbegor and Nneka Ogwumike. While it wasn’t Collier’s best performance, she made some history on Wednesday night. She surpassed 3,000 career points and in addition to passing Katie Smith for fourth on the Lynx’s all-time assist lists with 497.

Ogwumike began the first half steady, scoring 11 first half points on 5-of-8 shooting. However, it was her 10-point third quarter that really pumped energy into the Storm to give the Lynx their first loss of the season. Ogwumike didn’t miss a shot in that third quarter including a turnaround hook and-one she made off balance on a cut with Alanna Smith’s out stretched arms in Ogwumike’s field of view that tied the game at 62 with 2:51 left in the third. This was all part of a 19-5 run Storm run throughout the final six minutes of the third quarter. Ogwumike felt especially comfortable in the pick-and-roll alongside teammate Skylar Diggins. The two connected on three field goals including a 28-foot three during that third quarter run.

Bueckers has missed the last three games, two due to the league’s concussion protocols. While the rookie did clear those protocols over the weekend, an illness sidelined her for Sunday’s loss to the Lynx. Bueckers has officially been cleared to play on Wednesday, and Wings coach Chris Koclanes said she will not be under any restrictions. That likely means Kaila Charles will head to the bench after an ineffective spot start against Minnesota.