Graney: Time for Aces to flip switch after Olympic glory

Au revoir, Olympic glory.

The Aces on Saturday return to the WNBA season following the Paris Games, where four members of the team won gold for the United States. A’ja Wilson. Kelsey Plum. Jackie Young. Chelsea Gray. All departed France with a medal draped around their necks.

Megan Gustafson also played for Spain, and Tiffany Hayes was on the 3-on-3 team for Azerbaijan.

Six in total.

Six players undoubtedly with some tired legs. Some with serious jet lag.

But there is also a third straight WNBA championship to continue chasing, and opponents won’t wait for the Aces to rest. It all begins against first-place New York on Saturday at Michelob Ultra Arena.

Nothing like jumping right back into things.

“As athletes, we have to compartmentalize all the time,” Gray said. “It’s in our nature to go onto the next thing. It’s a pedal-to-the-metal type of feeling. You don’t have time to stop and take a load off for a week at a time. We’re ready for the next thing.

“We’ve been doing this for a long time. Just focus on the task and goals ahead.”

They return to play 16-8 but have gone 8-2 over their last 10 games. Things have begun to click some. They should be just as tough an out as usual come playoff time.

But putting the Olympic experience behind them quickly is paramount to all of it. The memories will never fade, but the transition back into their WNBA existence needs to be swift. Needs to be right now.

Facing distraction

They return also to controversy surrounding the franchise, to a federal lawsuit filed by former Aces player Dearica Hamby against the team and league. To allegations that include repeated acts of discrimination and retaliation.

The Aces have repeatedly stated they did nothing wrong.

“It’s not the first distraction that has come our way,” coach Becky Hammon said. “Adversity tends to bring this group closer. The more outside nose, the tighter we get inside.”

That’s off the court.

This is on it: When right and defending — the latter having been an issue throughout the season — the Aces remain arguably the league’s most talented side. They have the best player in Wilson and a supporting cast of fellow All-Stars.

Haven’t played like it at times this season. But the star power remains.

“I definitely needed some time to decompress,” Wilson said. “Playing for the United States is a whole other process. You might not necessarily have to exert as much energy playing for your respective (WNBA) team, so I definitely needed a couple days to get back into the flow of things and get my feet back underneath me. That was a long time away.

“We all know what we want to go after now. We checked off the box with a gold medal. Now, it’s time to go.”

Moving on

They will remember the gold-medal final against France, that nail-biter of a 67-66 win that saw the Americans rally from a double-digit deficit in the second half. That came in front of a pro-France gathering. Road game, is right.

But they overcame all of it and returned home with medals draped around their necks. Won’t do them any good over the remainder of a WNBA regular season. Won’t in any manner guarantee them a third straight title.

Things are back to normal now.

“We know what we have to do as professionals,” Young said. “Lock in. There is still work to be done. We know we have to flip that switch. We know there is a short amount of time, just knowing we have New York coming in here Saturday. You just have to flip that switch.”

The Aces have no choice. Must be done.

Must move on from all those golden moments.

Ed Graney, a Sigma Delta Chi Award winner for sports column writing, can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on X.