The Los Angeles Sparks will try to stop an early slide Friday night when they host the Toronto Tempo, a team that has already checked off a franchise first. The Sparks are 0-2 after a 87-78 home loss to the Indiana Fever on Wednesday, while Toronto beat the Seattle Storm 86-73 in its opening game at home.
Kelsey Plum is carrying the Sparks’ offense through the first week, averaging 26 points per game, but Los Angeles has not turned that production into wins. The Sparks are scoring only 78 points per game and giving up a near-league-high 96, a combination that has left them as one of two winless teams in the 15-team league just a week into the season.
Friday also brings a matchup with a team that has already found a sharper rhythm. Marina Mabrey led Toronto with 26 points on 6-of-11 shooting from 3-point range against Seattle, Brittney Sykes added 18, and point guard Julie Allemand, the No. 2 overall pick in April’s expansion draft, handed out six assists in the victory. Toronto’s win was the franchise’s first game and first victory, a start that gives the Tempo a small but meaningful head start in a league where early momentum can matter.
The Sparks’ frontcourt has provided some steady numbers even as the results have lagged. Nneka Ogwumike is averaging 14.5 points and 7.5 rebounds, and Dearica Hamby is averaging 14 points and 6.5 rebounds. But Los Angeles finished last season 21-23 and missed the playoffs for a franchise-record fifth consecutive season, a stretch that still hangs over a group trying to reset quickly.
Plum said she expects the Sparks to sort themselves out as the season goes on. She said she has faith that by the end of the regular season the team will be in the playoffs and pushing, calling it a matter of process and urging the group to flush last year and treat this as a new year. She said the roster has stretches where it looks dynamic, with scorers and different threats at multiple positions, and that the team can be very good when it is locked in defensively.
The challenge on Friday is that Los Angeles will have to manage that process without two rotation pieces. Guard Ariel Atkins will miss the game because of concussion protocol, and forward Sania Feagin will sit out for a second straight game with a left leg injury. That puts even more pressure on Plum, Ogwumike and Hamby against a Toronto team that has already shown it can spread the floor and create offense from multiple spots.
Plum will also take on a new role next year away from the court. Prime Video said she will join WNBA on Prime as a player contributor for the 2026 season, and she said she was excited to bring a current player’s perspective while highlighting the personalities and storylines around the league. Amina Hussein said Plum has had a standout career and remains a dynamic presence in women’s basketball.
For Los Angeles, the immediate question is less about the broader arc of the season than whether Wednesday’s loss was just an early stumble or the start of a longer chase. Toronto arrives with one win and a little history already in hand. The Sparks still need to prove they can keep up.
