This is part of a 12-team series of fantasy women's basketball previews leading up to the 2022 WNBA season. For more information on ESPN's newest fantasy game, check out how to play fantasy women's basketball.
Washington Mystics
Head coach: Mike Thibault (10th season)
2021 record: 12-20
2021 offensive efficiency: (99.5, 8th in WNBA)
2021 defensive efficiency: (104.4, 11th)
2021 pace: 95.8, 6th
Jump ahead: Offseason moves | Key stats | Top fantasy options | Sleeper
About the Mystics
The Mystics are coming off a lost season, in which 2019 MVP and Finals MVP Elena Delle Donne missed all but three games because of her lingering back injury. Alysha Clark also missed the entire season with a Lisfranc injury, a year after being chosen as a unanimous selection to the 2020 WNBA all-defensive first team on the champion Seattle Storm.
Both return this season, joining a team of talented players entering their primes along with a promising rookie class. The big question is whether the team can stay healthy this season, and if so, whether they can rediscover the magic that led to their 2019 championship.
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Offseason moves
The Mystics effectively exchanged one former MVP for another this offseason, with 2012 MVP and 2021 top-five MVP finisher Tina Charles leaving for the Phoenix Mercury while two-time MVP Elena Delle Donne returns from her back injuries.
Last season, Charles led the WNBA in scoring with 23.4 points per game to go with 9.6 rebounds per game, numbers very similar to those Delle Donne typically produces when healthy. Thus, the fantasy impact of the virtua-swap is potentially minimal on the prospects of the rest of the Mystics that play off their MVP teammate.
The other franchise-shifting move of the offseason was the decision to trade the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 WNBA draft to the Atlanta Dream in exchange for the No. 3 and 14 picks in 2022 and future draft considerations. The Mystics used the third pick to draft forward/center Shakira Austin, an immense talent that was named first-team All-SEC for two straight seasons and one of seven active players last season with 1,500 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.
Austin is expected to develop into a franchise player, but she joins a team with strong frontline depth and will have no pressure to be the immediate go-to player. The Mystics used the No. 14 pick to draft guard Christyn Williams out of UConn, named the top shooting guard in the nation last season, but Williams unfortunately suffered a knee injury and is out for the season.
Key stats
The Mystics were among the bottom third of the league in both offensive and defensive rating last season, and they also played at league-average pace. However, it is difficult to evaluate them last season in light of their injuries.
In 2019, the last season Delle Donne was healthy, the Mystics ranked first in the WNBA with an offensive rating of 115.9 points per 100 possessions, a spectacular 12.6 points per 100 possessions better than the second-place Chicago Sky.
That was a different team than 2022's version, but it was built around Delle Donne with Natasha Cloud and Ariel Atkins as the starting backcourt. If the team remains healthy, with Myisha Hines-Allen having dramatically improved and new talent like third-overall pick Shakira Austin in the fold, the Mystics have the upside to field a dominant offense again this season.
Top fantasy options
Elena Delle Donne, F, 32.8 projected FP/G: Delle Donne is a two-time MVP that led her team to the WNBA championship in 2019. Unfortunately, she's dealt with a series of back injuries that have limited her to a total of three WNBA games since that championship. She has deemed herself to be back at full health in training camp, with a renewed love for the game after such a long absence. If she is able to maintain her health, Delle Donne could challenge for another MVP award and acclaim as the top fantasy producer in the league. She averaged more than 20 points and almost 8 rebounds between 2015 and 2019, with about 1.5 blocks and 1.5 treys per game. Elite stuff. However, her health and the attendant risks have to be part of any projections for this season.
Myisha Hines-Allen, F, 30.4 projected FP/G: Hines-Allen has grown into an impact player, and signed a multiyear extension with the Mystics in the offseason to cement her role as a building block for the future. The 6-foot-2 forward exploded onto the scene in the bubble in 2020, her third season, with career-best marks of 17.0 PPG, 8.9 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.5 SPG and 1.2 3s per game. Last season, she dealt with a knee injury and a non-COVID illness that limited her to only 18 games and attenuated stats, but still only 25 years old, Hines-Allen could be poised for a big bounceback to a career output this season.
Ariel Atkins, G, 27.1 projected FP/G: Atkins was part of the same 2018 draft class as Myisha Hines-Allen, and is on a similarly positive career arc towards an impressive prime. Atkins has increased her scoring average in each of the last three seasons, up to a career-best mark of 16.2 PPG last season that tied for 12th in the league. She also ranked fourth in the league with 2.2 3PG, and contributed positively in assists, steals and even blocks as well. Atkins is more of a volume scorer than an efficient shooter, but she showed by making 41.1% of her 3-point attempts and 43.8% of her shots overall in 2020 that she has upside on the efficiency front. Atkins will be playing off a dominant pivot in Elena Delle Donne this season, who should get her the same open looks at a similar volume as what she got from playing off Tina Charles last season.
Natasha Cloud, G, 22.6 projected FP/G: Cloud is the point guard, the engine of the offense, and is coming off a season in which she averaged career highs of 6.4 APG, 3.6 RPG and 1.6 SPG. Cloud has made at least one 3-pointer per game in three straight seasons, but has plenty of bounceback room from last seasons 27.4 3P% to the 38.6 3P% she managed in 2018. She's never been a volume scorer, but that works on this team, as she can distribute and set up her teammates to put big numbers on the board. She was second in the WNBA in assists per game last season, and should be among the league leaders again this season.
Elizabeth Williams, C, 19.8 projected FP/G: Williams started 152 of the 153 games she played for the Dream between 2017 and 2021, and she is a strong candidate to claim a starting role for the Mystics this season. Williams operates primarily in the post, complementing well with the floor-stretching shooting abilities of frontcourt teammates Elena Delle Donne, Myisha Hines-Allen and Alysha Clark. Williams may face a challenge from No. 3 overall draft pick Shakira Austin, but when she's on the court, she should remain a strong source of defensive stats and rebounds.
Sleeper
Shakira Austin, C, 11.8 projected FP/G: Austin was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2022 WNBA draft. She is 6-5, capable of playing both post positions and has the talent to grow into a dominant force on both ends of the court. She has a strong faceup game, but can also play with her back to the basket. On defense, she's a strong shotblocker and rebounder, as well as being a great communicator. In her senior year at Ole Miss, she averaged 15.2 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 2.1 BPG and 1.2 SPG with 10 double-doubles. She will likely battle Elizabeth Williams for playing time, with the veteran favored to start, but Austin has upside if she gets enough playing time to make an impact.