Peter Dewey Picks 3 WNBA Bets for Aug. 9 as Playoff Seeding Tightens

Q: How did a sudden lineup decision turn a highly anticipated WNBA Finals rematch into a shocking 40-point blowout?

It turned on Becky Hammon’s pregame decision to rest A’ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young, which stripped Las Vegas of 57 points per game and effectively removed the core of the Aces from what had been billed as a marquee Liberty-Aces rematch. Hammon said the move was about player health, not playoff optics. The Aces were on the second night of a brutal back-to-back, had lost in Minnesota the previous afternoon, then traveled nearly 1,200 miles and did not reach their New York hotel until around 10 p.m. Sunday’s ABC game tipped at 12:30 p.m. ET, leaving Las Vegas with less than 24 hours between games and less than 12 hours from hotel arrival to arena time. Hammon said she was unwilling to risk injury after a taxing five-game road trip and with Wilson, Gray and Young all set for FIBA duty next month. The result was immediate and stark. With an unfamiliar starting lineup and without its top creators and scorers, Las Vegas was overwhelmed by a Liberty team in form. New York led from the opening possession, was ahead 50-39 at halftime, then broke the game open in the third quarter. Marine Johannes scored a career-high 27 points and hit seven 3-pointers, while the Liberty dominated the glass 45-24 and controlled the paint. So the “shocking” 40-point margin was less about a sudden collapse than a scheduling-driven load-management decision that transformed a potential playoff measuring stick into a one-sided game.

1 articles · Updated · Sports Illustrated · Aug 9

Three plays headline Dewey’s Aug. 9 WNBA card: Breanna Stewart 8+ rebounds at -180, Mystics moneyline at -125 against Phoenix, and Valkyries -6.5 at Los Angeles.
Stewart’s prop leans on her 8.5 rebounds per game average and a strong trend line—she has grabbed at least eight boards in 22 of 31 games and in nine of her last 11 matchups.
Washington’s case rests on a six-game winning streak, a league No. 3 defensive rating and Phoenix’s slide to nine games under .500 with a minus-7.9 net rating over its last 10.
Golden State’s spread pick centers on defense: the Valkyries rank No. 1 in defensive rating and slowest in pace, a contrast with a Sparks team allowing the WNBA’s most points per game.
Sunday’s four-game slate carries playoff implications, with Golden State and Las Vegas chasing the No. 2 seed while Dallas, Washington and New York battle for positions 6 through 8.