It was a hard-fought battle between DeWanna Bonner and Co. and the 2024 Defensive Player of the Year, Napheesa Collier, a couple of days back in Game 4. The Sun had their backs against the wall and needed to make it through one of the league’s most defensive teams. Hence, Alyssa Thomas and Tyasha Harris successfully pushed the challenge to a decisive Game 5, with a little luck added to their win that had walked in alongside DeWanna Bonner who helped her pull it off.

“Having her around is pretty special. My baby girl was in the stands for the first time, she kind of took my mind off, calmed me down a little bit, because you can get high stress in these situations,” this is what Bonner described the last time her daughter was at the game. The Sun had gone on to secure a 92-82 win over the Lynx in Game 4.

Call it an unwillingness to break the charm, Bonner knew she could use some of that luck tonight. Perhaps that’s why she walked into the Target Center with her adorable 7-year-old daughter yet again for the decisive match.

In Game 4, Bonner scored 18 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists. Out of those 18 points, 13 came in a more challenging second half with the Sun outscoring the Lynx by 17 points. However, the lucky charm didn’t work its magic tonight, i.e. the Sun now stands eliminated from the playoffs as they faced an 88-77 defeat at the hands of the Lynx tonight. Let’s explore that a bit more.

DeWanna Bonner’s lucky charm fell short of spreading its magic in Game 5

Tonight, the Sun’s starters couldn’t square up to reach a 20-point mark individually in the semi-finals Game 5. Simple out, DiJonai Carrington put out a team-high 17 points and 12 rebounds, followed by Brionna Jones adding 16 points and 10 rebounds.

DeWanna Bonner, on the other hand, scored 14 points and 8 rebounds, with Tyahsa Harris adding 12 points to it. Significantly, the Sun’s stat stuffer, Alyssa Thomas faced a strong defense from the Lynx and was limited to single-digit scores of 7 points, 3 rebounds, and 6 assists only.

“They just kind of punched us in the face, and we got shellshocked and then we couldn’t fight back,” said Bonner after the game.

It’s the fourth time in the last five years that the Sun has been kicked out of the playoffs in a semifinals round. In 2019 and 2022, they faced losses even after reaching the finals. Maybe, after this, they get back up with better strength for the next season.