How depth is fueling Minnesota’s hot start

“I’d be scared if I were other teams, knowing that you’ve got someone like Jess coming on the board,” Smith said after the Lynx 82-77 win. “Her ability to have an impact on the game, whether it’s passing, finishing, rebounding. I just think that she is just a really, really great player we have coming off the bench.”

Although she finished with only four points, three rebounds, and an assist in 14 minutes against Seattle, Shepard was emblematic of a more ethereal entity wreaking havoc on the Lynx’s opponents: their depth.

As of this writing, the Lynx have eight players logging double-digit minutes per game, with only backup point guard Natisha Hiedeman registering less than 20 among them, at 19.3. (Former first-round picks Diamond Miller (8.2 minutes per game) and Alissa Pili (5.4) round out the rotation’s top 10.) Hiedeman, Karlie Samuelson, and Jessica Shepard, the primary bench contributors, are +18 in their minutes off the bench.

“They’re just getting started right because now we kind of get them back in their spots, if you will. So, we’re just getting started with that group,” Reeve said of her bench. “Their group is gonna be really good together, really able to play off of each other. I’m looking forward to seeing them out there.”

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While MVP-favorite and reigning Defensive Player of the Year Napheesa Collier is central to the offensive attack, it is the team’s overall modularity that makes it most intimidating. Nowhere is this more obvious than during the second half of games. 

The Lynx, who were a missed foul call away from winning the 2024 WNBA title, are off to a 5-0 start fueled by the league’s second-best offense (108.6 offensive rating) and crippling, though inconsistent, defense. While the team’s 98.0 defensive rating is seventh overall, it drops to 92.4 in the second half, which is third best.

Their second-half net rating of 17.7 is 2.5 points better than the second-best Indiana Fever and twice that of the fourth-best Phoenix Mercury. Put simply, over the course of a game, Minnesota has the depth at all levels to grind its opponents to a pulp.

Take, for example, how head coach Cheryl Reeve managed her team’s point guard minutes during their victories over the Connecticut Sun and Storm. Starting guard Courtney Williams struggled mightily against Connecticut, shooting 0-for-11 from the field to go with three turnovers and a team-worst  -13 plus/minus in 26 minutes. However, Natisha Hiedeman was crucial off the bench, scoring a hyper-efficient 11 points without a turnover and was +15 in 30 minutes.

Against the Storm, the outcomes were reversed. Williams rebounded nicely, registering a team-high 23 points and +11 plus/minus, while Hiedeman scored only two points in 11 rather forgettable minutes.

“Me and [Hiedeman], we know we are one two punch,” Williams said after her strong performance against the Storm. “We have the utmost confidence in T to go out there and run the troops, and she has the same amount of confidence in me to do the same thing. Neither one of us is jealous-hearted, man. It’s just a matter of whoever got it going, that’s what we go with. And she had it going [against the Sun], and tonight I had it going. It could be any one of our nights. Our group understands that. Our group trusts that.”

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That trust, along with the plug-and-play nature of the roster, has drawn the Lynx comparisons to the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder, the betting favorite to win the title. Like OKC, the MVP-caliber star sets the foundation in Minnesota, but the remainder of the roster is a bunch of unselfish role players who play within themselves, buoyed by a second-tier star who is dangerous from beyond the arc. (Yes, Kayla McBride is Jalen Williams in this analogy.)

The key, as is the case with most teams, is maintaining their health. Luckily, Minnesota has lost only 103 games due to injury since 2023, which is fourth-best behind the Sun (64), Indiana Fever (83), and Las Vegas Aces (92). But even if injury were to befall them, the Lynx have the depth to not only survive but remain a playoff-caliber team.