Let’s take a look at every player in camp and see what their goal will be for this season, and camp.
The Washington Mystics are in training camp right now for the 2024 WNBA season. Roster cuts are still a week or so away, but we can reasonably assume which players will be franchise cornerstones, key contributors and more based on the type of contract they have.
Yesterday, we went over the questions each of the Mystics’ cornerstone players face. Today, we will focus on players who expect to make the rotation, though they aren’t going to be the faces of the franchise.
Key contibutors
Myisha Hines-Allen — Can she become a consistent starter again?
It’s rare in the WNBA when we say that players are overpaid. But Hines-Allen seems to fit that bill. She is on a guaranteed, near-max contract when fans hoped that she would play close to her 2020 breakout season level when she was outplaying Emma Meesseman, who quite frankly sucked for her standards. Hines-Allen also made the All-WNBA team, something which Meesseman lacks on her resume.
In 2023, Hines-Allen averaged just 5.6 points per game on 34 point percent shooting, though she had nagging injuries all year. So in 2024, can Hines-Allen, entering a contract year, get back to being a consistent starter, like in 2020 and 2021 before injuries got in the way?
Stefanie Dolson — Can she be a consistent sixth woman presence from the low post rotation?
I know I’m going to say Meesseman’s name a lot from time to time here. But Dolson is the best player to ever play for the franchise (sorry Elena Delle Donne), and there are some players who helped her find her voice. One of those players was none other than Dolson.
Both played for Spartak in Moscow in the 2014-15 WNBA offseason before earning their first WNBA All-Star appearances in 2015. As long as Austin is healthy, she will start at center. But Dolson made another All-Star appearance as a Chicago Sky player later on and has many of Meesseman’s skills, like outside shooting touch, passing ability and rebounding (which Dolson is better at in my opinion).
The chances of Meesseman in her current form coming back to be the Mystics’ franchise player are slim at best. But I don’t think the Mystics are settling if they get that 2013-16 ish version of her in Dolson (sixth woman, post scorer and playmaker) that fans are more familiar with.
Karlie Samuelson — Can she be a near (or actual) double digit scorer this season?
Samuelson, like Sykes, is coming to Washington from the Los Angeles Sparks. She has yet to average 10 points a game in any role, but her ability to make the three point shot is her ticket to get there. I’d like to see her light up that scoreboard night after night this season.
Washington hasn’t been too hot from offense lately, and my hope is that Samuelson can get the Mystics moving in that direction.
Aaliyah Edwards — Can she be an effective rotation player from the post this season?
If Austin, Hines-Allen and Dolson are all healthy and hit all of their potential throughout 2023, Edwards will just be a bench player in 2024. I’m fine with that. This Mystics roster has the potential to make a run to the WNBA semifinals, provided everything goes right.
Now, should one or more of these aforementioned players either get injured or not play up to par, I hope Edwards provides a solid post scoring and rebounding presence to keep Washington afloat. That’s how Austin got her starting spot as a rookie. Perhaps Edwards could be the same.
Other Mystics players who should make the team and find a role
I wouldn’t call any of these players starters, but they should be able to play at a high enough level to play regular minutes each and every game. Should a cornerstone or key rotation player be injured, they could have an opportunity to start a game or a few more.
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough — Can she get a guaranteed contract for 2025?
SWK has been on a WNBA team every year since she was drafted in 2017. She has played nearly all of her games as a Mystics player. So I’m surprised that she still hasn’t received a guaranteed contract yet. With that in mind, I’m sure SWK will continue to be a 5-7 point a game scorer.
I’m just hoping that this will be the year where she can get a guaranteed contract somewhere, whether in D.C. or elsewhere.
Julie Vanloo — Can she be a solid point guard or sixth woman in the rotation?
Washington doesn’t have a true point guard in the starting lineup, though it appears that Brittney Sykes will have that role more-or-less at the moment. Based on the lineups right now, Vanloo should be in position to at least be a backup point guard, presumably to Sykes, who could play at that role.
In case you haven’t read our extensive content on the Belgium women’s national team since 2017 (because of Meesseman obviously), Vanloo has been one of Belgium’s best point guards since their world ascendance back then. She has more than shown that she can hang with Team USA in multiple head-to-head matches. And the Mystics had two international guards in recent years who held their own in Rui Machida (Japan, 2022) and Li Meng (China, 2023) while playing stateside.
So I’m confident that Vanloo will answer the bell with the first question, which is what your average WNBA fan is thinking.
After all, I know, WE KNOW she can compete at the WNBA level. But can Vanloo be a consistent three point shooter and distributor on the Mystics THIS SEASON and play all or nearly all of Washington’s regular season games, even with Belgium having Gold Medal aspirations?
If so, Vanloo could be a fan favorite!