Jewell Loyd hasn’t averaged fewer than 12 points per game since she finished her rookie campaign with the Seattle Storm, scoring 10.7 points per contest.
Through her first 18 games with the Aces this season, the 11-year veteran is averaging a career-low 10.3 points. She finished with three points in Sunday’s 86-68 victory in Connecticut, her second-lowest output of the season.
Loyd finished 1 of 9 from the floor, including 1 of 5 from 3-point range, marking the 12th time this season she’s been held to four or fewer field goals in a game. That includes Thursday’s blowout loss in Indianapolis, where she was 0 for 3 from the floor and had two points.
Last season, she made four or fewer field goals just seven times. The year before, four times.
In 2022, it happened 11 times. The previous high.
You get the point. This year isn’t going so well.
Trust me, the last thing I had on my Aces bingo card was criticizing Loyd’s offensive touch less than halfway through the season, but here we are.
“She’s had a couple of off nights the last couple of nights, but she’s also had some nights where she’s hit at least five of ’em, or six of ’em,” coach Becky Hammon said. “She knows there’s other ways to influence the game. She’s always playing defense; she does a great job of getting on the offensive glass and the boards for us. So she’s doing a lot of other things that make me want to play her, other than just her shooting.”
Okay, makes sense, but let’s not forget what we heard on April 30. Days after training camp opened, Hammon said, “It’s a lot better playing with her than trying to guard her, as we know. To add that caliber of a player, I would say there’s a very elite group of players, and she’s one of them. … She fits right in with what we’re trying to do.”
Problem is, after Sunday’s win, Hammon said her team is still trying to find its identity.
So, what is Loyd fitting into, and what exactly is it they’re trying to do?
Because at 9-9, and the team ranked ninth in the WNBA with 79.7 points per game, I think we’re all waiting on the “Jewell the world quite hasn’t seen” that Hammon promised us that day at training camp.
Now, to Loyd’s defense, she has scored in double figures 11 times, and did ignite the crowd in the home opener (was it that long ago?) with her game-winning shot against the Washington Mystics.
She also leads the team in 3-point field-goal percentage (.409) and is the only player shooting better than 40 percent from long range. Not to mention, her .371 shooting percentage hasn’t dipped below last year’s .360 clip.
However, Loyd hasn’t hit 40% from the field since 2021, when she tethered the nets with a .420 shooting percentage. This is also the first time since her rookie season that she’s averaging less than 10 shot attempts per game.
So, perhaps this isn’t a big deal.
I mean, Hammon has never put the handcuffs on her sharpshooters since taking over the franchise, whether it’s been Jackie Young, Kelsey Plum, or now, Loyd.
“The shooting I know is gonna come,” Hammon said. “I’m gonna keep drawing plays for her, I’m gonna keep trying to get her shots.
“But I think she’s been so even-keeled, but that’s because she knows she’s been doing a lot of other things that are helping us win basketball games.”
I tend to believe Hammon, by the way, when she says the shooting will come if history revisits Loyd.
Last year, Loyd averaged 19.5 points per game in the second half of the season. The year before that, 25.2 points per game. And in 2022, it was 16.1.
You get the point. Loyd hasn’t scratched the surface, perhaps.
Maybe she’ll sneak up on us, like an, uhm – *checks notes for nickname* – Mamba.
“She’s like a silent killer,” Hammon added back in April. “There’s always that killer instinct right below the surface, but she just kind of does it in her own way, which is really special.
“She’s cold-blooded, for sure.”
Now that, is something I had on my bingo card.
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