Las Vegas Aces On SI

Aces' Coach Reveals Shocking Gameplan to Guard Sparks' Kelsey Plum

Las Vegas' coach was brutally honest when asked about prep on Kelsey Plum.
Ben Geffner|
Jul 5, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon (right) talks with guard Kelsey Plum (10) in the second half against the LA Sparks at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Jul 5, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Las Vegas Aces coach Becky Hammon (right) talks with guard Kelsey Plum (10) in the second half against the LA Sparks at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Aces won two WNBA titles and rattled off three 26-plus win seasons during Kelsey Plum's seven-year stay.

It served as one of the most successful stretches of any team in league history.

Read more: Aces Search For Scoring Help Following Kelsey Plum's Departure

Plum averaged 17.8 points per game in an Aces uniform last season, — the second-most on the team behind 6-foot-4 center A'ja Wilson.

The organization's decision to move the star guard to the Los Angeles Sparks via a blockbuster three-team trade in late January sent shockwaves through the WNBA world.

Read more: Aces' A'ja Wilson Joins Wild New Nike Campaign

Now, the star guard is excelling with the purple and gold, averaging 25.2 points and 5.5 assists through the Sparks' first six games of 2025 — all while ranking first in the WNBA in triples made (3.8) and steals (2.7) per game.

Following a 20-point road loss to the Seattle Storm, the Aces return home tonight to close out the month against a familiar face in Plum — this time playing on different sides.

Aces' coach Becky Hammon discussed Las Vegas' special, "non-personal" strategy in planning to guard Plum following a defense-focused practice that lasted 45 minutes longer than expected, via an interview in the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Thursday.

“Plum requires special defense ... She’s just too elite of a player to just let her just do whatever she wants," Hammon told the Review-Journal. "A lot of [our former] players, we’ll just play them like any other opponent.

Read more: Former Aces' Guard Deja Kelly Holds Back Tears After Being Waived

“[But Plum], because of how good she is, we’re gonna have to do things a little bit differently with her," Hammon added. "But it’s not personal. I would do a special thing for [Sabrina Ionescu]. I would try to do a special thing for Caitlin [Clark]. It just is what it is.”

Hammon further discussed the emotional difficulty in going against Plum — a balancing act between wanting the best possible result for the Aces while praising all that the two-time WNBA Champion did while in Las Vegas.

“Going against her, of course we want to win. But she’s gonna be great for them. She was great for us for a long time," Hammon said.

For more news and notes on the Las Vegas Aces, visit Las Vegas Aces on SI.

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Ben Geffner
BEN GEFFNER

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