For Kelsey Plum, the conversation around the Sparks’ defense turned into a call to action. Against the Portland Fire, she set out to prove a point on that end of the floor. When former teammate Sarah Ashlee Barker dribbled near the key, Plum reached in for a steal, sending Barker to the floor before adding a bit of edge to the moment. The sequence made one thing clear: Plum had grown tired of the Sparks being questioned for their defense.
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The Sparks delivered their strongest defensive performance of the season in an 89-72 win over the Fire. Plum finished with 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting, along with seven assists, six rebounds, and three steals. Los Angeles held Portland to just 36 percent from the field and 11 percent from beyond the arc. After the game, Plum said the team took pride in responding to its poor defensive rating and used it as motivation to improve.
“It’s about being a professional. You show up every night, and you do your job. That’s what we need to do moving forward every night. I get it, you make mistakes and everything, but it’s really more about pride,” Plum said via Justin Russo.
When asked if the team lacked pride in its defense earlier in the season, Plum kept the focus on herself. “I’m not going to speak for anyone else,” she said. “But when you have the worst defensive rating of all time in the W, I mean, you tell me.”
Asked Kelsey Plum about the defense: “It’s about being a professional.”
— Justin Russo (@FlyByKnite) June 8, 2026
When I asked Plum if it could have been a pride issue, Plum said, “I’m not going to speak for anyone else, but when you have the worst defensive rating of all-time in the [WNBA], you tell me?” pic.twitter.com/ssE7uQ8gFb
The Sparks entered the game with a 115.6 defensive rating, the worst in WNBA history. The previous low stood at 114.0, and Los Angeles also ranked last in true shooting percentage allowed and second worst in effective field goal percentage, according to Russo. This time, though, the entire team stepped up.
Coming into this game, the Sparks had a defensive rating of 115.6, which is the worst defensive rating in the history of the WNBA. The previous worst mark by a team was 114.0 while allowing the worst TS% and the second worst eFG%, according to Russo. But in this game the entire team stepped up.
“I think we’ve had a lot of conversations over the last couple days about pride. I get it. I’m a leader on this team, and I always play hard. I play hard all the time. For me, I’m just going to continue to do that,” Plum further said.
“I was really proud. I thought a lot of people didn’t leave gas in the tank. They didn’t reserve themselves for the offensive end. They stepped up, and that’s what we have to have every game.”
With a defensive rating of 88.9, it was comfortably a massive improvement over their dismal defense. They also had a season-high 42 rebounds, including an impressive 15 offensive rebounds.
It has been gaining even more limelight since they added Ariel Atkins and Nneka Ogwumike in the offseason, who have a combined 12 All-Defensive team selections. It seemed that it was a system problem, but Nneka Ogwumike revealed the real issue behind the scenes.
Kelsey Plum Shrugs Off Offensive Worries as Nneka Ogwumike Uncovers Sparks’ Defensive Shift
The offense is not a problem for the Sparks or Kelsey Plum. The point guard was struggling in the first half with no points and no field goal attempts. But she bounced back in the second, exploding for 16 points.
“I’m not really ever wondering, “I wonder if I’m going to be able to score,” or anything. It’s more about trying to figure out where to do what and when to do it in the game. It was going to open up eventually.” Plum said after the game.
Even with Plum subdued, the Sparks kept up with the Fire by scoring 41 points. So, the issue was and remains their defense. Nneka Ogwumike explained how their buy-in changed their fortunes.
“One thing that we’ve really been adamant about is getting the schemes that the coaches put us in and adhering to those schemes. We bought into that, and that allowed us to make adjustments on the schemes without feeling like we need to change something, because we weren’t originally executing what they had in plan for us, so I appreciated that.”
Ogwumike was arguably the difference-maker. She added 20 points and 17 rebounds in her best performance of the season. They are facing a ‘winnable’ schedule in the immediate future with Seattle and the Phoenix Mercury.
Whether one night fixes a season-long concern remains to be seen, but Plum made one thing clear: the Sparks are not accepting their defensive reputation anymore and are actively working on it.
