The Sportsnista | Las Vegas
The Seattle Storm are coming to Michelob ULTRA Arena on Sunday, but at this point in the season, the Las Vegas Aces are playing against something bigger than the team across from them. They’re playing against the calendar. In less than a week, the WNBA playoffs begin, leaving Las Vegas just three regular-season games to answer one increasingly important question:
Who does Becky Hammon trust when the rotation gets smaller and the possessions get bigger?
That makes Sunday less about Seattle and more about what the defending champions want to look like when the postseason arrives.
The Aces enter their final three games with an outside shot at the No. 2 seed, control over their pursuit of No. 3 and enough traffic behind them that a stumble could send them as low as fifth.
Las Vegas is 28-13 after dismantling Seattle 114-77 on Thursday. Jackie Young scored a career-high 35 points, including 22 in the first quarter, while A’ja Wilson added 29 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
It was the Aces’ fourth consecutive victory and their highest-scoring game of the season.
Watch Becky Hammon’s Bench Rotation, Not Just Scoreboard
Las Vegas already knows what its stars can do.
These final three games may be more valuable for discovering what Hammon has around them.
That question became more pressing when NaLyssa Smith suffered a season-ending left-leg injury. Smith started every game she played this season, averaging 11.7 points and 6.4 rebounds while giving Wilson another physical presence in the frontcourt.
Las Vegas responded by signing 6-foot-7 center Kalani Brown, adding size and six seasons of WNBA experience just before the playoff push.
Replacing NaLyssa Smith Isn’t About One Player in WNBA Playoffs
Smith had been exceptionally efficient, shooting 63.8% from the field, so Hammon is entering the playoffs having to reconstruct part of the frontcourt on the fly.
Cheyenne Parker-Tyus has provided efficient offense in limited minutes. Brianna Turner gives Hammon another defensive and rebounding option. Stephanie Talbot brings size and versatility on the wing, while Mai Yamamoto has shown she can stretch the floor when called upon.
The question now is which of those options survives when Hammon starts trimming the rotation.
Because playoff basketball has a way of turning the eighth or ninth player on a roster into the difference between surviving five bad minutes and losing a game.
And especially watch what happens when Wilson isn’t on the floor.
A WNBA playoff opponent will spend an entire series trying to make somebody other than the four-time MVP beat them.
Aces Have Three Games to Fine Tune WNBA Playoff Rhythm
Thursday was Las Vegas’ first game following the FIBA World Cup break. Young and Chelsea Gray returned after helping Team USA win gold, meaning the Aces are reconnecting a roster whose players spent the break on very different schedules.
Now comes Seattle, followed by Los Angeles and Phoenix.
Hammon has three regular season opportunities to test combinations, redistribute Smith’s minutes and decide who she trusts when possessions become more valuable and mistakes become harder to survive.
So Sunday’s box score will tell part of the story.
The substitutions may tell us more.
Seattle is the opponent.
But the WNBA playoffs are already in the building.
How to Watch Las Vegas Aces vs. Seattle Storm
Game day: Sunday, September 20, 2026
Game time: 9 p.m. ET
TV channel: USA, The Spot-Vegas 34, CW Seattle, Amazon Prime Video, and CNBC
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Arena: Michelob ULTRA Arena
Live Stream:Watch on Prime Video
Tickets:Buy tickets for this game on Vivid Seats
