It seemed like a familiar pattern for Ted Leonsis. Just as his official takeover as owner of the Washington Wizards this spring coincided with the team winning the NBA Draft Lottery, his other basketball franchise, the Washington Mystics, defied its frustrating history this summer with a franchise-record 22 regular-season victories and the second seed in the WNBA playoffs.
But the Mystics also seemed to capture the postseason luck of Leonsis’ other team, the Washington Capitals, as they were stunningly swept by Atlanta in the first round.
“We improved dramatically this season,” Leonsis said afterward on his blog, Ted’s Take. “We proved many skeptics wrong by winning the East despite missing a very important player on our team due to injury.”
It’s not certain that player, Alana Beard, could have helped the Mystics against the run-and-gun Dream, who overwhelmed them at both ends of the floor over two games. An example of the dominance: A 26-0 run in Game 2 clinched the series.
But Beard’s absence allowed coach Julie Plank to preside over a dramatic improvement by Crystal Langhorne, who was a legitimate league MVP candidate as the team’s leading scorer and rebounder, as well as Monique Currie and Marissa Coleman. With Beard back next year, Washington returns one of the strongest core groups in the WNBA.
“We apologize for the quick exit,” Leonsis said, echoing similar sentiments after the top-seeded Capitals were bounced by Montreal in April. “We will catch our breath and work hard in the offseason to improve the team.”
