What to watch from Tempo after World Cup break

Now that the FIBA Women's World Cup has wrapped up, the WNBA and Toronto Tempo are ready to resume action.

For the expansion franchise, that means just four games — starting with a Friday matchup against Caitlin Clark and the visiting Indiana Fever — before its inaugural season is officially in the books.

There is no doubt the Tempo campaign has been historic, even if marred by injuries. But the time to admire milestones and ponder over what could've been is still a ways away, with a week's worth of hoops remaining between now and the off-season.

It begs the question: For a Tempo team already out of playoff contention and missing a handful of key players, what's left to watch?

Although Kiki Rice's rookie campaign has certainly faced adversity — from her own injuries to the vets who were meant to act as her safety net going down as well — she's carved out a productive first season through her own guile and problem-solving.

"A lot of opportunity to go out there and get better, get a lot of reps in areas that I think are going to be really good for me for the rest of my career," the 22-year-old said after practice last week. "Obviously, I missed a lot of time, so that was unfortunate, because I felt like I was starting to really hit a groove ... but I think overall just my biggest goal this year was to soak in everything that I can and to continue to step in the right direction, and I think I did that overall."

This year's sixth-overall pick is averaging 12.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 26.6 minutes per game through 24 appearances — ranked fifth among rookies in scoring, eighth in rebounds, sixth in assists, 10th in steals and sixth in minutes. The advanced analytics paint an even prettier picture, with Rice sitting top five among rookies (min. 15 minutes per game) in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.95), true shooting (60.7 per cent), free-throw attempt rate (26.9 per cent), fast-break points per game (2.3) and points in the paint (5.7).

Her name shows up high on plenty more statistical leaderboards, which makes it abundantly clear that the UCLA product has been a slam-dunk first-ever draft pick by the Tempo.

While that presumably won't culminate in winning Rookie of the Year — that award almost certainly belongs to Minnesota Lynx guard Olivia Miles — Rice can still solidify her case as one of the top five newbies with an All-Rookie selection.

The only knock on her case is time missed, but a healthy close to the season could erase any doubt. All she has to do is stay on the court to keep showing off her devastatingly effective driving package, burgeoning jump shot and steadily improving floor game.

"I'm not trying to focus on awards and accolades and that kind of stuff. I just think that takes my focus off of what it needs to be, which is getting better and winning and producing for the team ... but I feel like I've put up a really good case to be there, because I've been really solid," Rice explained. "Whatever happens, I feel like it'll still be a successful season regardless."

The Tempo were well represented at the World Cup in Berlin, with three players and two coaches taking part.

And the contingent showed out, with Tempo head coach Sandy Brondello's Australia finishing sixth, Julie Allemand's Belgium coming in fifth, and Maria Conde helping Spain to a podium finish, earning bronze over Nyara Sabally and associate head coach Olaf Lange's Germany.

Although Allemand's squad was upset by Sabally's team in the quarter-finals, the Belgian guard displayed her elite floor generalship and led the tournament with 7.8 assists per game. Sabally reminded fans how productive she can be when healthy, averaging 12.1 points and six rebounds. In Germany's big win over Belgium, Sabally chipped in 16 points, 12 rebounds, two triples and finished a game-best plus-17.

Conde was also an all-around performer, as she averaged 11 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists and two steals (sixth highest) per game. In Spain's bronze-medal win over Germany, Conde put up 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and a game-high three steals. She reached double figures in scoring in four of her six appearances, including a game-high-tying 17 points against the eventual-champion U.S.

Now it's time to see if that momentum can carry forward into a high-note finish through the closing stretch.

A bit more stargazing

When it was announced that Toronto would be landing Canada's first WNBA team, one of the immediate draws was "W" fans north of the border getting to see the game's brightest stars up close.

That's played out this season with the likes of four-time MVP A'ja Wilson and reigning Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers coming to town, showing out, and bringing their fandom with them.

That trend will continue through the Tempo's final two home games. First it'll be Clark's Fever on Friday, making their second trip north and first to the intimate confines of Coca-Cola Coliseum. Then on Sunday, for the Tempo's final home game of their inaugural season, the New York Liberty — led by Breanna Stewart, fresh off a World Cup MVP effort as Team USA won gold for a fifth-consecutive tournament — are back in Canada for a second time, but just their first visit to Toronto, as the last matchup was played in Montreal.

While the season has, at times, looked bleaker than Toronto often does in late January, there appears to be a light at the end of the tunnel.

The Tempo (11-29, .275) enter the closing stretch with the second-worst record in the WNBA, or alternatively, the second-best odds (24 per cent) of landing the No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft lottery. As it stands, Toronto has an 86.2 per cent chance of finishing with at least a top three pick and can only drop as low as fourth based on its current position.

As a reminder, the WNBA uses two-year records for draft lottery odds, a situation that's created a built-in advantage for the expansion Tempo and Portland Fire, who'll have their one-year records used against the rest of the lottery teams — making it, in theory, easier to impact the reverse standings.

The Connecticut Sun (10-30, .250) currently hold the top odds, with a 35 per cent chance of landing the first-overall pick in next year's draft — presumably for the right to select USC star JuJu Watkins. Although the Tempo could still select a top-tier prospect like Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo or Texas standout Madison Booker even if they don't land the first-overall pick, there's a consensus top choice in this class for a reason, assuming Watkins declares.

Adding that level of talent and star power next to the already blossoming Rice would create a backcourt pairing that fans could rally around for years to come. And with the Tempo visiting not only the Sun, but also the Chicago Sky, who sit right below Toronto, to end the season, there's plenty of reason to keep a close eye on the reverse standings as those games unfold.