Elena Delle Donne will miss the Washington Mystics’ second game of the season as she plans to sit out Sunday’s contest against the Minnesota Lynx because of the team’s ongoing plan to manage her workload.
Delle Donne told reporters at media day that her back injuries from the last few years would require her to strategically rest throughout the season in order to avoid becoming hurt again. That plan will take into effect almost as soon as the season starts, with Delle Donne expected to play in Friday’s season-opener against the Indiana Fever before resting against the Lynx.
The Mystics forward will then be available to play in Tuesday’s contest against the Las Vegas Aces.
“With Elena, we’re trying to select days that we’re going to hold her out of games,” Mystics coach Mike Thibault told reporters. “Out of 36 games, she might not play six, seven, eight games, kind of spaced them out with how many games you’re playing in a week and what travel looks like.”
Delle Donne, 32, played in only three games last season because of lingering back pain. She revealed last month that the injuries — Delle Donne played through three herniated discs in the 2019 WNBA Finals and went on to have multiple surgeries — forced her to retrain how she moved her body. She said her legs are now noticeably bigger, and will use them to help alter her style on the court.
In the preseason, Delle Donne appeared in one of Washington’s two games. The two-time MVP scored 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting in just 18 minutes in a win over the Lynx.
• Matthew Paras can be reached at mparas@washingtontimes.com.
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