The Los Angeles Sparks are 0-2 on this road trip, and Nneka Ogwumike isn’t pretending otherwise. But somewhere in the frustration of back-to-back losses, she quietly pulled even with Lisa Leslie for the franchise’s all-time scoring lead. That kind of company changes the conversation, even when the scoreboard doesn’t cooperate.
Ogwumike dropped 23 points on the Minnesota Lynx Wednesday night, shooting 10-of-16 from the floor and hitting 2-of-4 from three. The milestone bucket came late in the fourth quarter — a pull-up jumper from the elbow, nothing fancy, just a veteran getting to her spot. It tied her with Leslie at 6,263 career points in a Sparks uniform.
“She’s getting a statue,” Ogwumike said after the game. “So being able to continue to carry the legacy that she built here in LA, it’s always an honor. Could’ve been under better circumstances — getting the win. But I do feel like we’re playing more like LA should be playing.”
Ogwumike returned to the Sparks this season after two years in Seattle, and the history has kept stacking up. She’s already chased down several franchise records in 2026, her 15th WNBA season. But the losses sting. Minnesota and the type of teams you can’t afford to take a night off against, she said, and the Sparks have dropped both games on this four-game swing.
“These last two losses, these are tough opponents,” she said. “You can’t take a day off, you can’t take a break. I’m very grateful to do a lot of the things I’ve done in a Sparks jersey. But I’m hoping maybe next game we’ll be one win up in that column.”
The next chance comes Friday against the Chicago Sky. The first basket Ogwumike scores — free throw, jumper, putback — will move her past Leslie for sole possession of first place on the franchise scoring list. She’s also one of two active players, along with Phoenix’s DeWanna Bonner, sitting in the WNBA’s all-time top 10 in career points. Overall, Ogwumike has 7,685 points and counting.
She’s been here before. Taken No. 1 overall in 2012, she was Rookie of the Year that season, league MVP in 2016 and led the Sparks to a championship that same year. That title snapped a 14-year drought for the franchise. The numbers over 15 seasons are ridiculous: 16.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.5 steals per game with splits of 54.4% from the field, 36.7% from three and 83.9% from the free-throw line.
But on Wednesday night, what stuck with her wasn’t the milestone. It was the effort. The Sparks, she said, are starting to play like they belong. The wins just have to follow.
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