Know what the Sparks could really go for right now? A winning streak.

As in, two victories in succession.

The 3-2 Sparks have been playing hopscotch with their record thus far in the WNBA bubble, but thats not a roadmap for long-term success. Their next opportunity to stay on track comes Friday against the 3-2 Las Vegas Aces (6 p.m., ESPN), another talented team with title hopes.

L.A. will be without star forward Nneka Ogwumike, who suffered a slight hamstring injury against Wednesdays victory over Indiana, but they can welcome back Tea Cooper. The rookie point guard wasnt available against the Fever because of an inconclusive coronavirus test that forced her to quarantine for 48 hours while awaiting negative results of two subsequent tests and a physicians approval.

Sparks star Candace Parker was displeased with her teammates inconclusive result and its ramifications, protocol thats been revised in the NBAs bubble so players need not miss as much time if a test comes back inconclusive and they are, in fact, negative for coronavirus.

This has happened a couple times, so at some point we gotta get this together, Parker said, via Zoom. Tea is huge with what we do. Shes coming along great. Shes playing well. So, these are things that can hurt teams, you know?

For me, its about just making sure that were doing the testing the way that we need to, because weve had a couple of inconclusive tests. Obviously somethings gotta change for us to be able to go forward.

Some things have to change on the court as well, the two-time MVP said after Wednesdays less-than-suspenseful victory.

So far weve gone one, and then weve lost focus and lost, and then won and lost and won, said Parker, asked to evaluate her game as she might an NBA player in her role as TNT analyst. So, at some point, Candace has got to step up and lead and string two victories together.

Its worth noting that Candace, the 34-year-old forward, has strung together three consecutive double-doubles, including Wednesdays 18-point, 11-rebound, three-assist, two-block, one-steal effort in 23 minutes of the 86-75 victory.

Pan way back and see that Parkers strung together a feat even more substantial: Twelve-plus seasons as as a Sparks player. Wednesdays game was her 320th in a Sparks uniform, third-most in franchise history.

She surpassed Mwadi Mabika, who played 11 seasons in L.A., and trails only Lisa Leslie (363) and DeLisha Milton (344) for the most games with the franchise.

Boy, it goes fast, said Parker, who has played the entirety of her career for the Sparks, winning a championship in 2016 and averaging 17 points and 8.6 rebounds along the way.

Its an honor to play (in) one jersey my entire career so far, the two-time WNBA MVP said. Huge on loyalty and loyalty goes both ways, so I cant imagine playing for another team. Obviously theres two legends in front of me; Lisa and Delisha that have had a huge influence on my career, at the start and even now.

L.A. is a special place and I dont want to play anywhere else.

Aces (3-2) vs. Sparks (3-2)

When: 6 p.m. Friday

Where: IMG Academy, Bradenton, Florida

TV: ESPN2

Read this article:

Sparks hoping to build momentum against Las Vegas Aces on Friday - OCRegister