Thursday's Best WNBA Bet
San Antonio Silver Stars at Tulsa Shock (-1.5, 159)
After leaving Detroit and moving to Tulsa this season, the Shock were desperate to make a name in their new market. That could be the reason they brought on shamed steroid-using sprinter Marion Jones.
Jones, who played college basketball at North Carolina, made her WNBA debut last weekend. She failed to register any points, assists or rebounds in just under four minutes of time in a 80-74 loss to the Minnesota Lynx as 5.5-point home favorites.
"It's difficult, I'm a competitor. I want to see the team win and I want to see myself contribute to a win but I understand it is a process," Jones told reporters.
"I know people kind of expect great things, they think I will be out there 40 minutes but you've got to understand it's a process."
Jones presence grabbed a ton of media attention for the usually-ignored women’s league and even packed in a sell-out crowd of 7,806 fans at Bank of Oklahoma Center. All the hype is also inflating Tulsa’s spread a tad, leaving the door open to fade the franchise in the early part of the schedule.
The Shock shot just 37 percent from the field in Saturday’s loss including going 5-for-14 beyond the arc and a dreadful 19-for-30 at the foul line. Tulsa also committed 22 turnovers. That sloppy play won’t fly against one of the WNBA’s seasoned teams Thursday.
Pick: San Antonio