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Five Mystics games you must see in the 2020 WNBA season

In an abbreviated season, every game is going to matter more. So here are the games that will have the biggest storylines for the year.

By Albert Lee
Washington Mystics Practice
The Washington Mystics are getting ready for their 2020 season, which starts in less than two weeks.
Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images

The 2020 WNBA season schedule has been re-released and the Washington Mystics can still expect to be a factor in the playoff race, even if it’s unlikely that they’ll repeat ON PAPER.

2019 WNBA Finals MVP Emma Meesseman, Ariel Atkins, Aerial Powers and Tianna Hawkins are the key returning members from the 2019 WNBA championship team. And though it is possible that 2019 WNBA MVP Elena Delle Donne and newly-acquired star Tina Charles could play, let’s assume that they don’t.

Since neither of them are at IMG Academy at the moment, let’s assume they aren’t playing this season — and consider it an added bonus if/when they actually do play.

Now that the schedule is out, what are the Top five games to see? Let’s take a look below:

  • Saturday, July 25 vs. Indiana Fever, 5 p.m. ET — This is the season opener, but it also features two reunions. For Mystics fans, we’ll get to see Marianne Stanley behind the Fever sidelines as their new head coach. But for Belgian basketball fans, they’ll also get to see Meesseman do what she does for D.C. AND see the WNBA debut of Julie Allemand, who is their national team’s starting point guard.
  • Tuesday, July 28 vs. Connecticut Sun, 7 p.m. ET — After the reunion, the Mystics face off against the team they beat to win the championship. Connecticut returns Jasmine Thomas and Alyssa Thomas, but they’ll have a significantly changed up roster as well with DeWanna Bonner now playing for the Sun.
  • Thursday, July 30 vs. Seattle Storm, 6 p.m. ET — Wow, the first THREE GAMES are must sees! We’ll see Meesseman show Breanna Stewart who’s boss in this matchup between the teams that have the last two championships!
  • Friday, Aug. 7 vs. New York Liberty, 7 p.m. ET — I could have easily made the Aug. 5 game vs. the Aces a must see, but Liz Cambage isn’t playing this season, and she adds a lot more fuel to the fire. But in this match, we’ll see Washington face off against rookie point guard Sabrina Ionescu, the first pick of the 2020 Draft.
  • Thursday, Sept. 10 vs. Los Angeles Sparks, 10 p.m. ET — The Mystics will face another veteran-laden team where Meesseman matches up against Candace Parker and Nneka Ogwumike while Atkins will get to defend Riquna Williams and Chelsea Gray. Kristi Toliver isn’t playing for LA this season due to health concerns but this match should have playoff seeding implications on the line for both teams, especially in an abbreviated season.