The Top 10 Mystics stories on Bullets Forever in 2022

Last week, I shared the Top 10 overall stories on Bullets Forever in 2022 based on the number of page views with you. I always had a post on the most-read Mystics stories, and that is what we will go over today.

No. 1: The Mystics drafting Shakira Austin No. 3 overall (Diamond Holton)

Like the NBA, one of the busiest times of the WNBA season is draft time and the playoffs. And unlike the NBA, the WNBA trade deadline is pretty quiet. That’s partly because of the short season.

So it should be no surprise that the top Mystics story of 2022 was about Austin’s arrival to D.C. The Mississippi center led the Rebels to their first NCAA tournament since 2007 and became a starter pretty quickly. She ultimately made the All-Rookie Team and Team USA for the FIBA Women’s World Cup!

No. 2: Natasha Cloud’s engagement to Aleshia Ocasio in 2019 (Albert Lee)

This is a piece from 2019 that consistently gets a steady stream of views throughout the year. It regularly gets its peak views during the regular season.

And here’s an update: Cloud and Ocasio got married in Oct. 2020, which you can read here from Outsports’ Alex Reimer. I may update that piece later this week.

No. 3: Our reactions to the Mystics trading the No. 1 pick in the 2022 Draft

It’s rare to see a No. 1 overall pick get traded before the draft. Unlike ... Tommy Sheppard, we were very deferential to Mike Thibault’s judgment when he made this move.

No. 4: Emma Meesseman signing with the Sky, ending an era (Albert)

Mike Thibault ended up retiring after the 2022 season. Earlier in the calendar year, his top-drafted player, the 2019 WNBA Finals MVP decided to continue her WNBA career with the Chicago Sky.

No. 5: Rui Machida’s introduction to the D.C. media

The Mystics’ backup point guard generated excitement from both American and Japanese audiences.

No. 6: Belgian connections were one reason why the Sky went after Meesseman

Before Meesseman made her decision final, the Chicago Sky hired long-time Belgian player Ann Wauters as an assistant. On Belgian Dutch language TV, Wauters made no attempt to hide the fact that she was recruiting Meesseman. Ultimately, the Sky signed Meesseman and traded for Julie Allemand, another Belgian who played for the Indiana Fever.

No. 7: Washington’s preseason game against the Atlanta Dream

I was surprised that a preseason game recap generated many views. But this likely happened in part because the draft just happened and it also involved the two teams in a big draft pick swap.

No. 8: The Mystics signing Evina Westbrook

Westbrook was a midseason addition after beginning 2022 with the Minnesota Lynx. She played her college basketball at Tennessee (2017-19) and Connecticut (2019-22), which likely fueled the high interest in where she landed.

No. 9: The Mystics cancelling a preseason game against the Liberty

I’m perplexed why this piece had many views, besides the timing of the WNBA calendar.

No. 10: The draft pick swap itself!

This would have been a crime if this story didn’t crack the Top 10.

Here are some other pieces that were in the Top 25 that I felt were worthy of your attention once more.

• How do Lisfranc injuries like Alysha Clark’s happen and how could it affect her play for the Mystics this season? We interviewed Dr. Damian Rouseel of the Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics to learn more about this type of foot injury and how it could affect an athlete like Clark. Thankfully, from hindsight, Clark seemed to bounce back just fine, except for her three-point shooting.
• Mystics locked into 5th seed vs. Storm, will get a 2023 lottery draft pick from the Sparks — The Mystics along with four other teams were competing for homecourt advantage in the playoffs. Unfortunately, they were the one team on the outside looking in for homecourt advantage, and they never hosted a playoff game. In their draft pick swap with the Dream, Washington received a 2023 first round pick that the Los Angeles Sparks originally had. LA missed the playoffs, ultimately giving Washington the No. 4 pick for this year.