Games over, so Aces get back to business

The Aces return from the Olympic break on Sunday with the best offensive rating in the WNBA. The best defensive rating in the WNBA. The second-best record in the WNBA.

And four new Olympic gold medalists.

“We enjoyed the experience and did it together,” Aces point guard Chelsea Gray said.

“Like Chelsea said, it’s honestly a blessing,” teammate A’ja Wilson said.

The Olympics are history now, and the Aces will try to parlay the afterglow into a strong finish over the final 11 games of the WNBA season. They begin the final third of the season at Michelob Ultra Arena against the Washington Mystics and then play the Mystics again Tuesday.

Then it’s a three-game road trip against Eastern Conference competition.

“We got through the first half of the season with a lot of players sacrificing their minutes and points (from) what they’re used to,” coach Bill Laimbeer said. “They all got rewarded for it. We had multiple Olympians. We had an All-Star, Dearica (Hamby), for her first time. Everybody got rewarded for their sacrifices.”

The Aces reconvened for practice last week, though players who didn’t play in the Olympics were in the market earlier and began working out at the beginning of the month. Three-onthree gold medalists Kelsey Plum and Jackie Young were among the first Olympians to return, with their event concluding late last month.

Wilson and Gray arrived at the beginning of last week with newfound perspective after winning their first gold with the five-on-five national team.

“For me, I was just taking it all in,” Wilson said, “because you’re around different players. Yeah, I love my team. But when you go and you’re in a setting with USA Basketball, there’s so much knowledge that you can just take in.”

Added Gray: “(We had) so much fun repping USA. We had so much fun with the men’s team, just us being together. It was actually good with the time difference. It allowed us to be a little bit more present sometimes.”

That said, they’ve had a few days to readjust to playing with their Aces teammates and understand the implications of the rest of WNBA season.

“You’re never comfortable with where you’re at because you can always get better and spend more time in the gym,” Laimbeer said after Saturday’s practice. “I was a little pessimistic three or four days ago, but I’m more optimistic today. We had three really good practices down the stretch here. I think we’re ready to play. Let’s go throw the ball up and see what happens.”