The Mystics were supposed to be rebuilding, the same path that their sibling franchise — the NBA’s Washington Wizards — are on. Instead, the Mystics left the first weekend of the WNBA season looking more like the upstart Washington Commanders, who shocked the NFL world last year.
The Mystics won their first two games — a home opener against six-time All-Star Brittney Griner and a follow-up at the Connecticut Sun — to soar to the top of the WNBA standings.
Last season’s Mystics didn’t win their second game until mid-June.
This season’s squad is one of the WNBA’s early surprises. They jumped from 12th — out of 13 teams — to fourth in ESPN’s most recent power rankings.
“We’re building up a reputation that it don’t matter where we play,” Washington guard Brittney Sykes said on Sunday. “Wherever the ’Stics play, we’re going to play ’Stics basketball.”
Washington’s offseason moves weren’t those of a team that was looking to win right away. New general manager Jamila Wideman was quiet in free agency and traded All-Star guard Ariel Atkins to the Chicago Sky for a first-round pick.
The big moves came in the draft. The Mystics added guards Sonia Citron and Georgia Amoore alongside forward Kiki Iriafen with three of the top six selections. With a thin roster, the rookies were projected to receive plenty of playing time as the roster moved toward the future.
Then the roster got even thinner. Amoore suffered an ACL injury in training camp that will delay her WNBA debut until 2026.
Aaliyah Edwards, last year’s first-round pick, will miss at least the first two weeks of the season with a lower back contusion.
That didn’t stop the Mystics from grinding out a win against the Dream on opening night or scraping past the Sun on Sunday.
“They’re smart, talented and it just shows,” Washington coach Sydney Johnson said of his group on Sunday. “When tough things come their way, they’re pulling into each other and they’re showing their character. It’s showing in these moments.”
Despite an overhauled roster, Washington retained guard Britney Sykes this offseason. The 31-year-old has responded with the hottest start of her career, averaging 24.5 points through the first two games.
It’s been a grind. Sykes has worked her way into the paint on offense, taking a league-high 25 free-throw attempts to start the season. Her defending, which has landed her on four All-Defense teams, hasn’t taken a step back, either.
An offseason of work with Johnson allowed Sykes to hit the ground running.
“Getting [Johnson] has been tremendous for me. Now I’m confident coming into the season. I know what type of guy he is, what type of coach he is,” Sykes said, noting that she has been working with Johnson since November. “The sky’s the limit for me. So, I had to just do my work and get in the gym. It’s as simple as that.”
Her rookie teammates have matched their veteran’s hot start. Iriafen was given the unenviable task of guarding likely Hall of Famers Griner and Tina Charles in her first two games.
She’s met the challenge, leading the Mystics with nine rebounds per game while averaging 15.5 points.
Citron has ranked second on the team with 17 points per game. She sealed Sunday’s 90-85 win against the Sun with a clutch layup and a pair of free throws in the final seconds.
The rookies haven’t backed down from the challenges issued by Johnson and Sykes.
“I saw them having some personality, right? It’s the fearlessness and the poise that they carry and just their willingness to be a sponge,” Sykes said on Sunday. “You can only dream of having rookies like that, and we are lucky enough to have gotten them. So, I love them.”
The Mystics will look to keep the winning streak alive on Wednesday night against the Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA’s new expansion team.