Curt Miller is sick of the tanking talk surrounding Sparks

After the Sparks snapped their losing streak, head coach Curt Miller made it clear he has zero interest in tanking.

The Sparks' impressive win against the New York Liberty on Wednesday night snapped their seven-game losing streak, defeating the top seed in the WNBA.

Los Angeles had excellent performances all around, with four of their five starters in double figures and Rae Burrell scoring 18 points off the bench.

After the victory, postgame conversations were mainly about the good vibes surrounding the win. However, Sparks head coach Curt Miller did take a moment to address the people who think the team is tanking or should tank with what's left of the 2024 season.

"If I have to read the word tank one more time, I mean, we are trying to get better," Miller said after the win. "We are building something special. No team in this league is going to quit. The two-year aggregate makes that silly to even talk about."

The two-year aggregate Miller is speaking about is regarding how the lottery odds are decided in the WNBA. It's based on the record over the past two seasons, not just the year teams are playing in.

So, in Miller's eyes, tanking would help little, given that over 75% of the games that will decide their draft odds have already been played.

Also, the Sparks already have the best odds for that coveted No. 1 pick. They currently have a 44.2% chance of winning the lottery, with the Atlanta Dream a distant second at 27.6%. So maybe they don't even need to consider trying to tank, given they are in prime position to attain that No. 1 selection.

Miller might be frustrated by fans or the media's desire to "Tank for Paige," but both parties tend to think selfishly and are not as directly involved in the day-to-day competition.

Of course, Miller wants to win and is fighting daily to ensure management doesn't consider a change in direction at the head coaching position. Players are in similar boats, like Crystal Dangerfield, who was on three seven-day contracts before being signed for the rest of the year and Odyssey Sims, who is currently on a hardship deal.

Those players can care less about a top pick and want to win games, play well and find a permanent home in the WNBA.

Miller also has to focus on developing his young core. Rickea Jackson is quickly becoming a star and Rae Burrell needs time to develop as well.

The last thing he will be doing is benching them to add some percentage points to draft odds.

Unfortunately for Miller, his plea is falling on deaf ears. Next year's draft class has some potentially generational talent and snagging that top pick and pairing them with Jackson, Cameron Brink and Dearica Hamby is just too tempting not to cheer for.

So, while the team may be out to win, Sparks fans might be hoping for some losses to improve their odds of snagging a future star.

You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88.