Sparks get positive Azurá Stevens injury update
The Los Angeles Sparks have finally returned home to the confines of Crypto.com Arena after completing a seven-game road trip . The Sparks were winless on the trip and lost both Cameron Brink for the season due to an ACL injury and Lexie Brown indefinitely due to illness related to Crohn's. But help could be on the way. The Sparks have been without forward Azurá Stevens all season due to injury, but she is targeting a return to the court before the WNBA Olympic break as per John W. Davis of the Southern California News Group.
"It would definitely be before the break," Stevens said. "That's all I can say, I don't have a specific date cause it's really about how I feel getting integrated back in with contact, but it will for sure be before the break so that's exciting."
Azurá Stevens has not made her 2024 season debut for the Sparks yet due to an arm injury she suffered while playing overseas in China during the offseason. She was a participant in practice this past weekend doing full contact work. The Sparks have six games remaining this month before WNBA All-Star weekend and the subsequent break for the Olympics.
The Sparks have already ruled Stevens out for their July 2 home game against the Washington Mystics meaning the earliest possible date for her return to the court would be Friday against the Las Vegas Aces.
Stevens is in her second season with the Sparks after signing as a free agent during the 2023 offseason. Last year, she appeared in 35 games, including 29 starts, at a little over 26 minutes per game. She averaged 10.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.2 steals with splits of 40.4 percent shooting from the field, 32.1 percent shooting from the three-point line and 75.4 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
Stevens was a key member of the 2021 Chicago Sky championship team. With Brink's absence for the rest of the season, Stevens return will bring a much needed defensive presence and interior player to the Sparks lineup. She can also space the floor with her shooting.
Sparks season hinges on development amid injury
The Sparks suffered a devastating blow when it was revealed that Cameron Brink had suffered a torn ACL and thus missing the remainder of the 2024 season. Brink was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 WNBA Draft and was one of the Sparks' franchise cornerstones for the future.
But even with Brink's absence, the Sparks have another franchise cornerstone on the team in Rickea Jackson. Jackson was the No. 4 overall pick in the 2024 draft and has also displayed flashes of the potential star player she can be.
Jackson began the season coming off the bench but has since moved into the starting lineup. Due the injuries, Jackson has shuffled between playing small forward and power forward. In the 18 games that Jackson has appeared in so far, she's been averaging 10.1 points and 3.4 rebounds with splits of 47.2 percent shooting from the field, 32.4 percent shooting from the three-point line and 79.1 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
Barring a major turnaround, it's becoming increasingly likely that the Sparks will miss the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. That's why development is so crucial so that this doesn't end up being a completed wasted season.
