Rae Burrell’s status for Dream rematch in doubt

The Los Angeles Sparks suffered one of their worst losses of the season last Thursday after falling to the Atlanta Dream, 124-88. With a rematch against the Dream on Monday, the Sparks could be short-handed as starting wing Rae Burrell popped up on the team’s injury report.

Rae Burrell is officially listed as questionable on the Sparks’ injury report for their game against the Dream due to an illness. If Burrell is unable to play, the Sparks will be without one of their primary scoring options.

The No. 9 overall pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft, Burrell has been one of the lone bright spots amid a roller coaster season that will see the Sparks miss the playoffs for the sixth consecutive year. Her role shuffled a bit during the beginning of the season, going from starting to coming off the bench, but she’s solidified herself as arguably the team’s most consistent player this year.

Burrell has appeared in all 37 games to this point, including 29 starts, at just about 29 minutes per game. She’s been averaging a career-high 14.4 points, just about double her average from last season. She’s also putting up 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists with splits of 46.4 percent shooting from the field, 38.7 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 79.5 percent shooting from the free-throw line.

She’s coming off one of her best games this season during the Sparks’ win against the Connecticut Sun last Saturday, finishing with a game-high 20 points to go along with two rebounds, two assists, three steals and three blocked shots. After that game, she explained how her comfort level with her teammates has contributed to her career year.

“I think just being comfortable, honestly. It just makes it so much easier when you’re comfortable out there, when your teammates and your coaches, they got your back,” Burrell said, “Just being able to play with that confidence. So I think that’s just helped me play more freely.”

The former Tennessee star returned to the Sparks this past offseason, re-signing on a one-year contract after being a reserved free agent in which the Sparks held exclusive negotiating rights. This coming offseason, she will be a restricted free agent.