Jeff Van Gundy offered brief WNBA analysis during Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday, but the ESPN analyst probably wasn’t expecting it to back fire so quickly.
“The Aces may run the table and not get beat this year,” Van Gundy said on the ABC broadcast.
Mark Jackson pushed back and thought his fellow analyst was making the comment in jest. But Van Gundy appeared to be serious about Las Vegas’ outlook on the season. It was a bold claim to add to a promotional read for this Sunday’s doubleheader.
However, DeWanna Bonner and the Sun had other plans Thursday. The forward scored a franchise single-game high 41 points against the then 7-0 Aces to help Connecticut beat the Aces, 94-77 at Mohegan Sun Arena. The performance was the first 40-point game against an unbeaten team in WNBA history, according to ESPN Stats and Info. The win came after the Sun lost to the Aces, 90-84, on Tuesday.
Connecticut’s social team didn’t waste time in remembering Van Gundy’s analysis in a Twitter video captioned “with all due respect.” The ESPN analyst’s sound bite was used followed up by a “the next day” transition from “SpongeBob SquarePants.” The clip then cut to Bonner hitting a 3-pointer that put her at 41 points in the matchup.
In fairness to Van Gundy, he did add a caveat that if the Aces were locked in every night, then they would “run the table,” so that might be the cover he uses during broadcast of Game 4 of the NBA Finals on Friday.
