Olympic Gold Medalists On Mercury Face Off With Young Sky
Mercury vs Sky Best Bets, Projections And More
The WNBA is back! After a brief pause for the Olympics and WNBA all-star break, the season is back on. The Phoenix Mercury are coming back boasting three Olympic gold medalists, while the Sky will be looking in awe hoping to spoil the Mercury’s good vibes. Thursday’s game marks the first of two meetings between the teams in four days, with the Mercury hosting the Sky on Sunday.
The Mercury vs Sky best bets will be determined by the odds for the game. The Mercury are -4 favorites on the road against the Sky. They are -176 to win straight up and the Sky are +142 to protect their home floor. The total for the game is set at 166.
The Sky are the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of 10-14. They are eighth in the overall standings. The Sky are led in scoring by Chennedy Carter (17.2 points per game). They are led in rebounds by rookie Angel Reese who is averaging 11.9 rebounds per game (second highest average in the league). Lindsay Allen leads the team in assists with only 3.3 per game.
The Mercury are the fourth seed in the Western Conference and the sixth seed overall in the WNBA. They are 13-12 on the season. Kahleah Copper is the leading scorer on the team with 23.3 points per game, good for second in WNBA leading scorers 2024. Brittney Griner is the second leading scorer with 18.3 points per game and leads the team in rebounds with 6.4 per game. Natasha Cloud is the assist and steal leader with 7.2 assists and 1.7 steals per game.
Let’s dive deeper into these teams to make some WNBA predictions on the Mercury vs Sky best bets.
 Phoenix Mercury |
Chicago Sky  |
|---|---|
| 🏀 Game: | Phoenix Mercury (13-12) @ Chicago Sky (10-14) |
| 📍 Location: | Wintrust Arena Chicago, IL |
| 📅 Day/Time: | Thursday, August 16th, 2024, 8:00 PM EDT |
| 📺 Television: | Amazon Prime, Marquee Sports Network, Arizona’s Family Sports, Mercury Live (Livestream) |
Mercury With The Hardware
Copper was the standout performer in Team USA’s thrilling 67-66 gold medal victory over France. Her clutch free throws in the final seconds sealed the win. Copper has been a dominant force for Phoenix this season.
Joining Copper on the Olympic roster were Mercury teammates Brittney Griner and Diana Taurasi. While Taurasi didn’t play in the gold medal game, she earned her historic sixth Olympic gold medal, surpassing all other USA Basketball players. Despite being 42, Taurasi remains a formidable presence for the Mercury, averaging 16.1 points per game before the Olympic break.
The Mercury went into the break on a high note with a 96-87 win against the Mystics. They had lost their two previous games before that. One was a blowout loss to the Connecticut Sun and the other a nine point loss to the Indiana Fever.
Sky High
The Sky, led by rookie sensation Angel Reese, will provide a tough challenge for the Mercury. Reese shattered a WNBA record with 15 consecutive double-doubles earlier in the season and currently averages 13.5 points per game.
The Sky struggled down the stretch before the Olympic break, losing three of their last five games. While they excel at offensive rebounding, primarily due to Reese’s dominance, they struggle from beyond the arc, ranking last in attempted 3-pointers and 10th in 3-point shooting.
The Sky entered the break after an amazing win against the Las Vegas Aces, 93-85. Before that they lost two in a row to the New York Liberty.
The Mercury, who started the season with a 3-5 record before finding their stride, enter the matchup on a positive note, having won four of their last six games. Phoenix has struggled on the road, posting a 5-8 record, while Chicago holds a 4-8 home record.
Betting Trends
The Sky and Mercury have yet to play each other this year, and with such different looking teams we can’t take much information from the Sky’s 2-1 record last season over the Mercury.
Chicago is 5-10 against the spread in their last 15 games.The total points scored in Chicago’s last 15 games have gone over the projected total in 10 of those games. Chicago is 1-4 against the spread in their last five home games. The total points scored in Chicago’s last six home games have gone under the projected total in four of those games.
Phoenix has covered the spread in four of their last six games. Phoenix has won four and lost two in their last six games. The total number of points scored in five of Phoenix’s last six games has exceeded the projected total. The total number of points scored in four of Phoenix’s last five road games has exceeded the projected total.
With this information we see that Phoenix has been trending towards covering the spread and going over the points total, while the Sky have been failing to cover and have been trending more towards the under. The Mercury have been a better team than the Sky so far this season. Our Mercury vs Sky Best Bets likes the Mercury to win and cover.
- Phoenix Mercury- Rebecca Allen F Left last game, is “?” Thursday vs Chicago Sky, Hamstring
- Sug Sutton G Is “?” Thursday vs Chicago Sky, Hamstring
- Charisma Osborne G Is “?” Thursday vs Chicago Sky, Leg
- Chicago Sky- Elizabeth Williams F Is out for season, Knee
- Moriah Jefferson G Is upgraded to probable Thursday vs Phoenix Mercury, Ankle
For WNBA picks today, betting analysis and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
