The following is a game report for the Dallas Wings vs. LA Sparks at Crypto.com Arena on 5.27.24.

Game Reports are not “Game Logs” but an ongoing series covering attended games including all the trivial stuff that occurs along the way including travel, food, merch purchases, and arena reviews etc….

The day started like all of the (well, really one) other Sparks game this San Diegan had attended so far this season. And that is with an Amtrak ride. It was the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, so I was not sure if the train was going to be very crowded or very empty. Well, it was the former. This was apparent early on as, upon boarding, the conductor announced that coach was standing room only. I found a seat (luckily I was facing forward today, unlike a few days prior when I went to Sparks/Fever) and, to be honest it was not that bad. I never saw anyone standing but I also did not vacate my seat. Eventually we made it to Oceanside where a ton of people exited. I actually got a forward facing window seat on the ocean side of the train car, so I was doing good. Check out the varied but quite breathtaking (for different reasons) artwork on the Pacific Surfliner’s route from San Diego to Los Angeles:

I got to Union Station and made the metro ride over to Crypto. But I had arrived very early (on purpose) as I wanted to go cat a movie at LA LIVE prior to the game for a movie but I already know I am getting way off course. But there is a point. Even after the movie, I was still too early to get to the game, so I decided to go forth and take a look at the statue garden in front of Crypto. Crypto was actually currently being renovated, but even on a Sunday during Memorial Day weekend, there were so many people there to see all of the statues.

Those statues are so darn cool. As a lifelong Lakers fan (please don’t stop reading this blog now), I had to include them. I just love that darn Shaq statue. It’s just so cool. And being able to get so close and essentially sit next to Chick Hearn was awesome. I mean these just all add to the aura and legend of Staples Cent- I mean Crypto.com Arena.

But wait, why am I back to see a second Sparks game in the span of just 48 hours? First, I love the Sparks – that’s a no duh. But second, this was actually the game I bought tickets to first. You see originally this game was scheduled to be held in the Long Beach Pyramid but was moved to Crypto after the Sparks moved the Fever, and all subsequent games, to Crypto. They reassigned my seats from the Pyramid and basically gave me a 7th row seat behind the bench near the tunnel. I also was able to get tix to see the (previously blogged about) Fever game after it was moved to Crypto.

And simply, this was the greatest WNBA experience I have ever had. I was so close to the action, got to see all of the celebrations, anger, and frustration from the players – and even got to cheer for them when they entered and exited the tunnel. But I know, I’m getting ahead of myself.

I entered the arena when doors opened 60 minutes before game time. I found my seat and watched a bit of the shoot-around, though none of the actual teams had showed up yet. I then went and checked out the TEAM LA store again and bought another hat that I was eyeing at the Fever game. I knew that I wanted to try Dirt Dog for my pregame meal this time instead of the stadium-sold hot dog. And it did not disappoint. New tradition begins. Or as the Sparks’ hashtag for 2024 announces: #TheNewClassic.

I made it back to my seat about 25 minutes before tip-off which is about when the actual players begin to warm-up. I watched the Sparks and it was pretty cool seeing Cameron Brink, Dearica Hamby, and Rickea Jackson up close. But I was also excited to see some of the Dallas Mavericks up close, especially Maddy Siegrist and Jacy Sheldon both of whom I had watched in college in recent years and frankly I am a huge fan of both. I was also interested to see how the Sparks crowd would react after having lost such a heartbreaker to the Fever a few nights ago. They were very loud and very enthusiastic. It was awesome seeing the Sparks players run out of the tunnel and being so close to them during introductions.

The Dallas Mavericks really blew the sparks out in the second quarter when Cam got into foul trouble. The bad news was Cam Brink had 15 in the first and 20 overall but ran into foul trouble (again). The good news was that her sub, Li Yureu, had a great game. Li had such an amazing energy and attitude throughout the game – even when Dallas was trying to bully her. Li held her own and kept the Sparks within striking distance. When Cam eventually returned in the 4th, the Sparks closed the gap, but were not close enough, losing by a point to the Wings. And I will say that Dallas is a really physical team – something that I really could not comprehend until seeing them in person. They are also a fun team. Siegrest and Sheldon are such fun players to watch. I really hope Jacy Sheldon gets more minutes in the future. Time will tell.

It was also great to watch both teams throughout the game. Jacy Sheldon had so much energy. She is one high motor player. I really think, however, that she is not a plug-and-play type player who can go in for 5 minutes, make a difference, and then sit. I think she needs to run, run, run, and then have her moments. And I think that could be a problem for her on Dallas. Because frankly, she is not getting enough minutes. Jacy was the 5th pick in the draft and having your 5th pick play only 5 minutes a game is a huge waste. Does Dallas have an issue with her? Is her game not fitting in? I really want to know more and I think that it will come to light in the next few weeks.

It was also awesome to see Cam Brink not get frustrated but remain positive even when she was in foul trouble. She stayed cheering her teammates on (especially Li Yereu) throughout and really letting her presence and leadership be felt even when she was not in the game. That is what you want from a #2 pick and someone who clearly has the future of the franchise on her back. Cam is already a WNBA celebrity but she has quickly become an LA Celebrity. There were tons of Cam jerseys cheering throughout the crowd and frankly the crowd was cheering loudest for her throughout the game – even though Dearica Hamby was scoring her usual 20. It did not surprise me a few weeks later when she mentioned in an interview that she hopes the fans can cheer for her teammates as much as they do for her. Now I do not think this was about getting out of the spotlight but rather being the leader that she so clearly aims to be for this franchise.

I left the game, rode the MetroRail back to Union Station and lucked out because the 8:10PM Amtrak had still not left at 8:45PM. I grabbed my Wetzel’s Bitz, #TheNewClassic, and made it to the platform where I was let on the train (even though I had a 10:10PM ticket). And I thought that was pretty cool. I asked a woman at the ticket booth if I could change my ticket but she told me that there was no need, that it was the conductor’s discretion but she was sure that if I made it before departure that they would say yes because the train was very empty.

Anyway, I made it on and the train departed about 10 minutes later. I had some more Miles In Transit vlogs downloaded to my cell phone and this time I brought a charger so I was ready to roll. I got home early and called it a night, happy to relive this great day at Crypto.