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A WNBA superstar doled out a no-look, behind-the-back inbounds pass that may be the best assist of the year

Aug 2, 2022, 23:20 IST
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Gray dribbles down the court.AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast
  • WNBA superstar Chelsea Gray dished out a successful no-look, behind-the-back inbounds pass on Sunday.
  • The Las Vegas Aces point guard suavely connected with teammate Jackie Young for an easy two points.
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Chelsea Gray lived up to her "Point Gawd" nickname during her team's successful road trip last weekend.

The four-time WNBA All-Star doled out one of the flashiest dimes of the 2022 season Sunday, as her Las Vegas Aces took on — and took down — the Indiana Fever on the road at Indianapolis' Hinkle Fieldhouse.

As the final seconds of the first quarter ticked off the clock, Gray stepped out onto the baseline to attempt an inbounds pass from under the basket.

Gray steps onto the baseline to attempt an inbounds pass.Jack Maloney/Twitter

Her teammates struggled to evade the Fever's defense, but fellow guard Jackie Young finally broke free after splitting two defenders and cutting into the paint.

Jackie Young breaks through the Indiana Fever's defense.Jack Maloney/Twitter

But Gray was facing the opposite direction and had her feet pointed towards her right. She appeared poised to throw the ball away as a trio of Indiana players closed in.

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Gray looks poised to throw a turnover as a trio of Indiana Fever defenders close in.Jack Maloney/Twitter

Instead, she deftly swung the rock behind her back and tossed a no-look pass towards the far block, where Young arrived half a second later.

Gray goes behind-the-back to find a wide-open Young with the inbounds pass.Jack Maloney/Twitter

The 24-year-old guard collected Gray's pass with relative ease, then laid the ball off the backboard for an easy bucket. Check out the full sequence from a standard TV shot below:

The angle from behind the baseline, as shared by the Aces' social media team, was somehow even more mind-blowing:

Even though Gray's no-look, behind-the-back inbounds pass to Young received the most fanfare, it was far from her only impressive dime of the day.

The former Duke Blue Devil racked up a game-high seven assists in Las Vegas' 25-point victory, but that doesn't even include hockey assists — like this blind, cross-court pass to 2020 WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson in the second quarter that led to a quick bucket for Dearica Hamby.

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Gray's teammates have argued that her stellar play has largely been overlooked this season. After the 29-year-old point guard earned MVP honors for her magnificent efforts in the Aces' 2022 Commissioner's Cup victory, Vegas' leading scorer, Kelsey Plum, called her backcourt teammate "the best point guard in the world" and "the clutchest player in the WNBA."

"That's the MVP tonight, but she has been leading our team the whole season," Plum said. "I feel like, to be honest, she doesn't get the love and credit she deserves.

"And I'm really, really glad that people saw that tonight," she added.

Kelsey Plum (left) and Gray celebrate winning the 2022 WNBA Commissioner's Cup.AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast

With a Western Conference-leading 22-8 record, Las Vegas is the class of the league heading into the final stretch of the season. The Aces have already clinched a spot in the 2022 WNBA playoffs and have high hopes of securing their franchise's first-ever WNBA title come September.

And Gray — who leads the team with 6.1 assists and 1.8 steals per game — will undoubtedly be instrumental to that effort.

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